MARINA BAY SANDS
Marina Bay Sands (MBS) will open in the first quarter of 2010 with its 2,500-room hotel operating at half capacity. Much of the Sands Expo and Convention Centre will also be open, as will the casino, a variety of restaurants and 150 retail outlets. Sands Sky Park will open in Q2 and the remaining attractions will open progressively throughout the year. Companies with confirmed events in the next two years are from the lifestyle, textiles, life sciences, manufacturing and renewable energy industries. Show sizes vary, with attendee numbers ranging from 3,000 to 10,000. Incentive travel interest is mainly from the pharmaceutical, financial services and consumer goods industries.
Paul Stocker, executive director of sales, says: “We are seeing a lot of interest from the international community, particularly the UK and US, because Singapore is home to many MNCs from these countries and our parent company, Las Vegas Sands, has a strong track record.”
Unique facilities
Sands SkyPark is ideal for cocktail parties, teambuilding sessions or intimate dinner receptions. Situated 200 metres above ground, at the top of the Marina Bay Sands hotel towers, the SkyPark will have three restaurants and the world’s largest public cantilever. Total capacity is 3,900 people, including up to 900 on the public observation deck. Event Plaza caters for events of up to 10,000 people that can be held by the water’s edge. The unique seating rests on a series of hydraulic lifts. When the tiered seating is down, the audience can watch a show on the water; when it is raised, the audience faces the other direction to watch a show on land.
RESORTS WORLD SENTOSA
Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) will soft-open in the first quarter of 2010, featuring Universal Studios Singapore, the casino, a resident show theatre, part of the dining strip Festive Walk and four hotels – Hotel Michael, Maxims Tower, Festive Hotel and Hard Rock Hotel. RWS has bookings from March 2010 onwards for meetings and conventions, as well as incentive travel and evening functions in the multiple venues at Universal Studios Singapore. More than 25 major events are confirmed, many of them high-profile, first-time events expected to bring a total of 4,000 international delegates to Singapore. Currently, there are more than 100 event enquiries and 60 high-potential leads.
Elena Arabadjieva, director, MICE, says: “We have strong interest from both local and international organisers. The medical, insurance and, most recently, banking industries have shown a lot of interest in our offerings. There are also engineering and manufacturing events planned. Strong interest is coming from China, India and Japan for our new and unique MICE facilities.”
New venues
RWS is leveraging the appeal of its traditional meeting facilities coupled with Universal Studios Singapore’s less conventional function venues. Universal Studios Singapore will be Southeast Asia’s first and only Universal Studios theme park. Event organisers can hold an evening banquet-style function for 1,200 people amid the nostalgic, fully sheltered streetscape of 1950s and 1960s New York City. The 3,500-person capacity Waterworld Stunt Show Amphitheatre can be booked as a venue, complete with Waterworld Stunt Show, including pyrotechnics and stunt performers.