Dining, travel, wellness deals feature in SG50 Seniors package

SINGAPORE — Dining and travel deals, free courses in fashion illustration, art and financial literacy, and even a complimentary Traditional Chinese Medicine consultation. 

These are some of the perks that seniors aged 50 and above stand to enjoy with the roll-out of the SG50 Seniors package, which was launched today (May 22) by Health Minister Gan Kim Yong, who is also Minister-in-Charge of Ageing Issues.

Each offer comes with a validity period and age criteria. For instance, those aged 55 and above are entitled to a free five-year PAssion Card membership, but they would have to apply by the end of the year. Existing ActiveSG members in the same age group will automatically receive a top-up of S$25 ActiveSG credits, which can be used to offset the fees for sports courses. 

More than 700,000 seniors aged 60 and above are eligible for more deals: Complimentary admission to Gardens by the Bay attractions from next month to August, and to Jurong Bird Park and the Singapore Zoo next month. To help them with their transport expenses, those in this age group will also receive an SG50 Seniors Public Transport Voucher, worth S$50, to be redeemed between June 15 this year and Dec 31 next year. 

The vouchers will be sent to the mailboxes of those aged 60 and above next month, together with the SG50 Seniors package booklet, which details the full set of benefits. 

More than 100 companies have come on board the SG50 bandwagon to offer special promotions and discounts, which cut across categories such as dining, travel, leisure, lifestyle and wellness. 

Most of the more than 200 deals are valid from next month to August, and seniors will have to take their photo identification along to enjoy the offers. All participating outlets will carry the SG50 Seniors decal.

Speaking at a community event in Yishun, Mr Gan said: “I encourage you to take advantage of the offers and stay active. I also encourage younger Singaporeans to take advantage of these offers and bring your parents for a day out, whether to places of attraction or for a good meal, and enjoy some quality time with your parents, grandpa or grandma.” 

Retiree Ng Pheck Teng — who travels daily from her Yishun flat to Paya Lebar, to babysit her seven-year-old granddaughter — is looking forward to the public transport voucher. Madam Ng said the voucher would to defray her travelling expenses, which can amount to S$200 per month.

Creative consultant Sandy Lim, however, wished that the promotions could extend till the end of the year, instead of being limited to a relatively short time frame. “I’m planning to go to the zoo and the bird park to sketch the animals. I’m an animal lover,” said Mdm Lim, 60. 

For details, refer to http://www.sg50seniors.sg.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story referred to more than 700,000 seniors aged 50 and above. This is incorrect. The figure refers to those aged 60 and above. We apologise for the error.