JOHOR BARU: Day trips to Singapore are getting popular, say Johor-based tour operators.
“So far, the demand for travel has been positive as locals want to use their newly renewed passports to travel nearby,” said Rajawali Bintang director Nur Balkish Abdul Wahab.
She said that day-tour operations had been growing ever since the border between Malaysia and Singapore reopened on April 1.
“We started quite small, with eight people a day in one MPV, and now we have 80 people a day on two buses,” she said when contacted.
Nur Balkish said her company’s travel schedule was usually full on Fridays and Saturdays and during long holidays.
“Some of the top places on the list that customers want to visit are Universal Studio Singapore, Singapore Zoo, Gardens by the Bay and Jewel Changi Airport,” she said.
These visitors, she added, were advised to avoid crowds and to make sure there was a safe distance between them and other groups of tourists.
“As a precaution, we prepare meals for our guests during the trip,” she said.
To date, she said the daily trips had been running smoothly as the company would often remind its customers about the necessary preparations, such as the filling up of the online SG Arrival Card.
Abdul Majid Mohmad Salleh, who is a marketing executive at Executive Travel & Tours, said day trippers would usually spend time shopping at the Jewel Changi Airport, Arab Street and Bugis Street.
He said they would also be sightseeing at Singapore Botanic Gardens, Sentosa Island and Orchard Road.
He said his company offered a once-a-week day trip to Singapore every Saturday, as well as private trips on weekdays upon request.
“The private trip is usually for six people, while the weekend trip is for larger groups,” he said, adding that the biggest trips involved three buses that carried 40 people each during the weekend.
A typical day trip would usually depart at 7.30am from Johor Baru and return around 8.30pm, he added.