They are loud and demanding, speak little English and like items which scream 'expensive' all over.

Meet your average Chinese tourist. He or she is a sharp contrast to Indonesians, Singapore's top tourist spenders, according to sales staff The Sunday Times spoke to.

Said a sales person for French luxury leather goods brand Louis Vuitton: 'The Chinese tourists tend to be very loud, more demanding, and can sometimes be rude. The Indonesians are soft-spoken and easier to communicate with as they speak English. The Chinese still mostly speak Mandarin.' She added that the Indonesians are more fashionable as they often request exclusive or limited-edition designs.

A salesman at high-end German brand Hugo Boss, famous for its suits, agreed.

'Indonesian tourists come in knowing what they want, whereas the Chinese want to see everything and make their picks from there.'

He also observed that the Indonesians are the big-ticket spenders, buying suits, shirts and jeans. Chinese tourists go for less expensive products such as polo shirts but they buy in bulk - 10 to 20 pieces at a go.

Indonesians spent $2.1 billion in Singapore last year, $702 million more than tourists from China, according to the Singapore Tourism Board.

In terms of design, it is the 'bling-er' the better for Chinese customers, noted a sales staff from Italian luxury jeweller Bulgari. 'Chinese tourists usually go for designs that have lots of diamonds, or the piece must have its brand prominently displayed so that others can immediately tell it's expensive.

'Indonesians, however, are interested in the latest designs, and are more tasteful.'

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