Trying to shed its image as an authoritarian, rigid regime and in a bid to earn valuable foreign exchange, Singapore has opened its doors for gay tourists, a report said on Saturday.

Gay bars, dance clubs and about half a dozen bathhouses have sprung up, with the National Art Museum even featuring an exhibition of homo-erotic photos this summer, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Nearly 8,000 gay men from around the world flocked to a beach resort in Singapore in August for an all night party timed to coincide with Singapore's national day.

Laser lights played across the bodies of revellers as they danced through the humid tropical night, providing around $6 million as revenue to the city-state.

"Singapore has become much more tolerant and open," said Sean Ho, surveying the raucous scene at the dance party.

The 33-year-old information technology consultant was decked out in a T-shirt proclaiming Choose sin in large, red letters and Singapore in small print. "They are giving us a lot more space," he told the paper.