By Lavinia Rajaram, on June 23, 2017

Haven’t made travel plans for the coming long weekend? It’s still not too late.

Singaporeans tend to be last-minute travel planners, and for a good reason as well. Based on Expedia’s air ticket demand data in 2016 for travel during the months of June to August 2016, half of Singapore travellers (50 percent) make their travel bookings only one month in advance, with three in 10 (35 percent) making their bookings less than two weeks in advance of their travel date. Interestingly, Expedia’s data also showed that the cheapest airfares, up to 10 percent cheaper than the average fares during the same period, were booked between seven to 13 days in advance of the actual travel date, showing that Singaporeans know how to seize a good travel deal when they spot one.

Comparing the travel booking behaviors of Singapore travellers against travellers from Malaysia and Japan, Singapore travellers tend to make their bookings closer to their actual travel date compared to their Japanese counterparts, while Malaysian travellers exude an even greater tendency to make last-minute travel plans. According to Expedia’s data, almost 50 percent of Singapore travellers make their travel bookings more than a month in advance, compared to 45 percent of Malaysian travellers and 55 percent of Japanese travellers doing the same.

Among the most popular country destinations for last-minute travel demand – made less than two weeks in advance of actual travel date – Asian destinations such as China, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia topped the list. Singapore travellers also tend to make more last-minute bookings when travelling to neighboring countries such as Malaysia, as compared to the other destinations. 55 percent of Singapore travellers make their travel bookings to Malaysia less than two weeks in advance, compared to 40 percent of those travelling to China, 35 percent of those travelling to Thailand and 30 percent of those travelling to Indonesia doing the same.

Among the most popular city destinations for last-minute travel bookings, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong and Manila emerged as the top four cities for Singapore travellers. Bookings made for travel to Kuala Lumpur tend to be made closer to the actual travel date, with 65 percent of travel bookings made less than two weeks in advance. Last-minute bookings to Manila, Bangkok and Hong Kong took 45 percent, 40 percent and 35 percent of the total bookings to these destinations respectively.

“At Expedia, our job is to help people go places. Looking at our 2016 demand data, Asia is a region with incredible travel potential. Regardless of whether we are looking at travellers originating from Singapore, Malaysia or Japan, the majority of travel, and especially last-minute travel, are all done within Asia. We aim to continue leveraging our unique position in Asia to offer travellers greater convenience, choice and savings to help them travel more,” said Lavinia Rajaram, Regional Head of Consumer Public Relations, Expedia Asia.

“Singaporeans are savvy travellers who know how to seize a good deal when they spot one. With the Hari Raya Puasa long weekend coming up and the National Day and Hari Raya Haji holidays arriving in the next two to three months, there’s still time to make your travel bookings at compelling prices to popular destinations in Asia. Some good tips to consider include booking your flights on a Sunday and including a Saturday night stay for more savings. With these tips at the back of your hand, you can now embrace spontaneous travel and be ready to go places whenever you want,” she added.