SINGAPORE, Jul. 3, 2009 (Xinhua News Agency) -- Although tourist arrivals to Singapore have been drifting for 12 straight months, local English newspaper The Straits Times reported on Friday that its cruise industry is defying the industry trend with a 21 percent passenger volume surge.

For the first five months of this year, the Singapore Cruise Center at HarborFront saw 459,000 passengers go through its gates, a 21 percent increase over the same period last year.

The proportion of locals to foreigners is approximately half. But the number of foreigners increased marginally by 1 percent this year.

This passenger surge is in stark contrast with the Singapore Tourism Board's figures for monthly arrivals which noted a 14 percent drop year-on-year on the number of foreign visitors who visited in the first five months of this year.

According to industry players, one draw could be the all- inclusive concept of cruising, so travelers do not have to worry about "hidden costs" as accommodation, food and entertainment are all part of the package.

Another attraction is that cruise companies have been slashing prices and offering deals, such as one-for-one travel, to attract more customers.

This year, a record 10 ships, many on round-the-world tours, are making their maiden calls at the Singapore HarborFront terminal. Italian cruise company Costa Cruises and Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) are also widening their berths in Asia.

Singapore aims to be a cruise hub for the region, which is why it is building a second cruise terminal, which is slated to complete by end 2011.

Singapore Tourism Board's cruise director Chew Tiong Heng also said that Singapore will benefit from more shops calling here as a variety of industries from tourism, hospitality, ship maintenance and servicing will reap the economic spin-offs.

He added that the Asian market accounts for only 5 percent of the world cruise market, so it has plenty of room to grow.