| Year | Events |
| 2001 | -
On September 11th, 2001, four American jets were hijacked and used as weapons against the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon.  -
The September 11 terrorist attacks had depressing impacts on the global tourism arena, with nations seeing the dive in tourist arrivals as potential tourists curtailed their travelling plans. -
The use of civilian aircraft as a suicide bomb had devastating impacts on the confidence of travellers on a worldwide scale. -
The World Travel and Tourism Council, estimated that in the two years to the end of 2002, overall demand for tourism will have dropped by 7.4%. This was so as the timing of the suicide bombing coincided with an economic slump. -
With the fear of air travel, Britain saw a 25% surge in self-drive holidays among Britons and neighbouring France was a popular tourist destination. In contrast, holidays to North America registered a 20% decline. |
| 2002 | -
In 2002, Singapore’s tourism receipts reached $7.8 billion, contributing to around 5% of Singapore’s GDP. -
On October 12, 2002, Bali saw more than 202 people being killed with the denotation of 3 bombs by suicide bombers: backpack-mounted device carried by a suicide bomber; a large car bomb, both of which were detonated in or near popular nightclubs in Kuta; and a third much smaller device detonated outside the United States consulate in Denpasar, causing only minor damage. -
With the bombings, British and American governments are warning their people against travelling to Indonesia while Indonesia is experiencing the wrecking of its tourism industry by terrorism acts. -
Bali was badly affected by the terrorism attacks, given its heavy reliance on the tourism sector as an engine of growth as Bali accounts for about 40% of Indonesia’s revenue from the tourism sector. |
| 2003 | - In February 2003, alarm bells were raised with the reappearance of H5N1 bird flu virus (Avian flu) in Hong Kong started in Hong Kong, killing 6 people in 2003.
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On February 10, 2003, China’s health authorities released to the press about an outbreak of a pneumonia-like illness which had killed five people in the southern province of Guangdong since November 2002. -
From March 2003, there is increased global awareness of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) as cases in Canada and Singapore surfaced. -
Tourist destinations such as Hong Kong, China, Vietnam and Singapore witnessed reduced tourist arrivals. -
All major markets experienced double digit decline in tourist arrivals, Japan with a 75% drop, Malaysia with 72% decrease and China  subjected to a 64% drop. -
In Singapore, the tourism and transport-related industries such as hotels, restaurants, travel agencies and taxi services were most badly affected with the plunge in tourist arrivals. -
Singapore Tourism Board (STB) projected that tourist arrivals would fall by 30 to 40% relative to that in 2002. -
Changi Airport handled 2,296 fewer flights in April 2003, a 17% drop from March 2003. The airport’s passenger movement fell by 50% in April 2003 relative to April 2002. -
International tourism to Asia declined by around 60% during the SARS outbreak. |
| 2004 | -
The 9.0 magnitude earthquake under the Indian Ocean near Sumatra triggered the great Indian Ocean tsunami on December 26, 2004 and unleashed a series of sweeping tsunami waves as high as 15 metres across the Indian Ocean. -
In view of the catastrophe, the spirit of showing compassion for the victims dawned upon Singapore’s tourism authorities, which appealed to event organisers to tone down their countdown parties on New Year’s Eve. -
Most organisers heeded the advice and the Esplanade Arts Centre cancelled a S$160,000 Singapore dollar fireworks display at midnight. MediaCorp's Channel Five television also followed suit and did away with its planned live broadcast of a beach party countdown. |
| 2005 | -
Phuket suffered a 70% dive in international tourist arrival in the six months after the 2004 tsunami. -
Sri Lanka is confronted with a hefty reconstruction bill, and about one-fifth of the hotels on its southern coast have been destroyed, leaving a worrying impact on its tourism sector, given that it constitutes 4.6% of its GDP. -
The Maldives is the most dependent on the tourism sector with about 40% of the workforce engaged in tourism related industries and tourism earnings constitute more than 40% of its GDP. It now experiences around 45% of hotel occupancy rates and local hoteliers experience the cancellation of bookings. -
Despite the dip in tourism arrivals, there was the emergence of a new form of tourism which saw volunteers travelling to the tsunami-affected regions to facilitate in the rebuilding process and the distribution of medical and food aid to the people. -
On October 1, 2005, Bali was again targeted as 3 suicide bombers blew themselves up in tourist attractions, killing at least 16 people, who were mostly Indonesians. -
In November 2005, Indonesia confirmed new human cases of H5N1 Avian flu. |
| 2006 | -
In January 2006, the first reports of human H5N1 cases emerged in Iraq and Turkey. -
The first outbreaks in the European Union (EU) was registered in January 2006 when cases were confirmed in wild swans in Italy, Greece, Germany and Austria. -
In April 2006, China reported 16 human cases of H5N1 infection, with 11 of them being fatal. -
With fears of the Avian flu escalating into a pandemic, tourism will also be affected with the ban or restrictions of travel to areas where there are reports of Avian flu. -
Some countries such as Turkey saw the contracting of its tourism industry with tourists cancelling trips and hotel reservations. |
| 2007 | -
2007 witnessed good performance in the global tourism arena, with the period between January 2007 and April 2007seeing an increase in the influx of tourists from across the globe, amounting to 252 million. -
There was a 9% growth in Asia and Pacific, 6% increase in Europe and 8% increase in the Middle East. -
The expansion in tourism was attributed to the robust economic growth which led to rising disposable income and greater purchasing power. |
| 2008 | -
Onset of the global financial meltdown in 2008 caused prospects for travel and tourism in the short term, at least till the end of 2009 to perform poorly (ITB World Travel Trends Report 2008/2009). Consequently, people around the globe have cut down their spending on travelling and tourism. -
With the prices of oil reaching more than US$100 per barrel, there is an increase in the operating costs of airlines as fuel accounts for more than a third of the total operating cost for an average airline. -
With escalating costs of travelling and more expensive ticket pricing, people withdrew or postponed their travelling plans. -
Singapore Tourism Board (STB) released the figures for tourist arrivals in Singapore during October 2008. The released data shows a drop of 8.1% (to 843,000) in visitor arrivals from 917,000 in October 2007. The revenue from hotel rooms in Singapore was expected at S$178 for October 2008, but it slipped 0.3% from October 2007. -
Global financial crisis is the main cause for steep fall in tourist arrivals in Singapore as consumer confidence was severely hit and discretionary spending power. -
Organisation of the 2008 Olympics Games on August 8, 2008  is set to boost the tourism sector of China as people are attracted to visit the country when they view the footage of the Olympics Games and the spectacular scenes and performances that Beijing presented. -
The 2008 Olympics Games received more than 10 million domestic and overseas visitors to Beijing. -
Interest in visiting China was highest among Singaporeans, followed by Mexicans and South Africans. The strong enthusiasm among the international audience to visit China arose from the positive image that China projected upon its successful hosting of the Olympics Games. -
Singapore began to hold the world’s first night race – Formula One Grand Prix in September 2008 and the Singapore government is shouldering around 60% of the $100 million annual cost for staging the event for five consecutive years. -
Despite the disruptions to traffic and the high cost incurred, Singapore hopes that the staging of the F1 race will boost businesses and help to project the image that Singapore is more than a staid financial centre. -
Despite the pressure of the global recession, the  authorities hope that the organisation of the F1 would lead to the expansion of the services sectors such as food and beverage (F&B), entertainment and the hotels sectors. The first F1 night race in Singapore seeks to expand the services sector and boost the economy of Singapore. -
On November 26, 2008, 4 anti government protestors were injured in an explosion outside Bangkok’s International Airport after demonstrators occupied its main terminal, attempting to topple the government for the second time since a 2006 coup. -
The Bangkok airport was in chaos, with the breaking down of communication and tourists were intimidated with the scene of seeing people walking around with knives, iron bars and masks. -
Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd., Singapore Airlines Ltd. and other carriers cancelled flights to Bangkok in response to the seizure of the airport by the protestors. |
| 2009 | - On April 24, 2009, World Health Organisation (WHO) issued an alert on an influenza-like illness in the United States, Mexico and Canada. The US government also confirmed 7 human cases of Swine Influenza A (H1N1) in the US.
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In Singapore, the Disease Outbreak Response System (DORSCON) was raised to Yellow Alert on April 29, 2009. -
By May 3, 2009, 17 countries have officially reported 787 cases of confirmed H1N1 infection. -
In view of the swine flu pandemic, the services sectors such as tourism, food and beverage (F&B) and entertainment would experience contraction as consumers, tourists and business travellers avoid crowded places to avoid contracting the infection. -
The US economy is hit relatively harder than other developed economies, with a GDP loss of nearly 5% of 2009 GDP in the six-month pandemic period. -
Due to the global nature of pandemics, all countries and regions are affected. -
International passenger traffic dropped by 8% year-on-year in May relative to that in 2008 due to health corners in response to the H1N1 virus. -
Visitor arrivals to Singapore reached 730,000 in May 2009, registering a year-on-year decline of 13.0%. Its tourism industry witnessed sharper declines in visitor arrivals in May from China and Japan due to the H1N1 outbreak.  Tourist arrivals in Singapore from May 2008 to May 2009
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Airports of Thailand which operates 6 international airports in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket, Hat Yai and Chiang Rai suffered more than 22% drop in international passenger numbers in May 2009, when compared to that in May 2008. -
The poor May 2009 performance had been the consequences of the global financial crisis, the H1N1 pandemic and the political instability within Thailand that hit the tourism sector hard. -
The Thai government is working hard to revive the troubled tourism industry. It has given the Tourism Authority of Thailand THB1.4 billion (US$41 million) to boost the tourism sector in the second half of 2009, targeting both foreign and domestic visitors. |
| 2010 | - Opening of Singapore’s first Integrated Resort (IR) – Resorts World Sentosa
 (RWS) on February 11,2010. RWS houses a casino, Universal Studio Theme Park and specially themed dining and shopping venues to complement the attractions of RWS. RWS is one of the world’s most extensive and costly IR at S$6.59 billion and is constructed within 3 years. - Marina Bay Sands (MBS) – the second IR in Singapore
 opened its doors to the first phase of its $5.5 billion project on April 27, 2010. MBS is a more business-focused IR with extensive convention facilities. Reports have revealed that RWS and MBS added $470 million to Singapore’s economy in the first half of the year. Both IRs are expected to contribute $2 billion to the annual economy of Singapore. - The eruption of Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano
 on April 14, 2010, resulted in the ejection of a plume of ash into the atmosphere. Air traffic had been subject to cancellations or delays as airspace across parts of Northern Europe were closed. - The International Air Transport Association (IATA) estimated that airlines are collectively losing £130 million per day in lost revenues.
- However, other transport companies are benefiting as passengers look to alternatives to flying as a mode of transport.
- Train services between Scotland and the south of England are reporting a big increase in passenger numbers and cross channel ferry services.
- The organisation of the Youth Olympics Games (YOG)
 in Singapore on August 2010 saw the arrival of 40,000 foreign investors and Visa Cards revealed that there was a 38% surge in usage which amounted to a shopping spree of S$154 million within two weeks. - The Games was watched by more than 2 billion viewers and this helped to promote the Singapore brand to the global stage over the 14 days.
- However, the projected expenditure for hosting the YOG was set at $104 million but it more than tripled in July 2010 to reach $384 million. The amount of money was spent on the upgrading of sports venues and equipments, providing live broadcast of the Games and staging the opening and closing ceremonies.
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