During the 'golden week' holiday in October 2024, a significant number of Chinese parents, often referred to as 'tiger mums', are touring Singapore universities with the aim of providing their children with a competitive academic edge. This trend has led to a surge in business for local hotels and travel operators, as parents seek to explore educational opportunities for their children [7e60b65c]. Over 170,000 posts on the social media platform Xiaohongshu have been tagged with #SingaporeUniversityTourStrategy, indicating the popularity of these tours [7e60b65c]. Tour packages priced at 2,388 yuan (approximately US$340) have been advertised across various platforms [7e60b65c].
In response to the anticipated influx of visitors, both the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Nanyang Technological University (NTU) have implemented crowd control measures to manage the increased visitor numbers [7e60b65c]. Students at these universities have voiced complaints about overcrowding, highlighting the impact of the tourist surge on their campus experience [7e60b65c].
Parents are drawn to Singapore for its safety, affordability, and relatively easier visa regime compared to other countries. Alice Zhang, a 35-year-old parent, expressed her interest in NUS for her children, while Oscar Du, a master's student at NTU, noted that many visitors are middle-class families from Shanghai [7e60b65c]. Wen Wen, another parent, visited NUS with her son and emphasized the competitiveness of Chinese universities, further illustrating the motivations behind these tours [7e60b65c].
As Singapore prepares for this surge in tourism during the holiday, the universities are striving to balance accessibility for prospective students and their families with the needs of their current students [31a03aff]. The measures being put in place aim to ensure that both visitors and students can coexist on campus without significant disruption [31a03aff].