‘Visitors can become poor’: Chinese netizens debate whether Singapore is too costly to visit

BEIJING: When marketing planner Johnnie Zhu, 28, visited Singapore for a day over the New Year weekend, he blew his budget by 30 per cent on the back of higher-than-expected food and transport costs. Zhu, who was in transit on his way to Mount Bromo in Indonesia’s East Java, spent about 1,500 yuan (S$280) in that one day in Singapore. In Indonesia, he spent 500 to 600 yuan a day. “I found the souvenirs at the airport particularly expensive,” he told The Straits Times. Zhu bought three small Merlion soft toys – each the size of about half a palm – for around 100 yuan and a keychain for 50 yuan for family and friends back home. He lowered his…