Melco PBL Entertainment, the joint venture of leading leisure and entertainment conglomerate Melco International Development Limited and its exclusive pan-Asia joint venture partner Publishing and Broadcasting Ltd (“PBL”), announced that it has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding and will shortly be entering into a formal contract to engage The Leighton-China State-John Holland Joint Venture as the main contractor for its flagship resort and entertainment project -- City of Dreams, currently being constructed in Cotai, Macau.
City of Dreams is a premium integrated urban entertainment resort featuring a variety of luxurious resort accommodations and top-notch facilities. In addition to four hotels, an underwater-themed casino, top-notch restaurants and casual eateries, performance hall and serviced apartments, the project will incorporate extensive water screening and landscaping work including public access to the “Bubble” - a unique architectural showpiece and the main “wow factor” of the project.
City of Dreams is expected to take around two years to complete and the first phase including the casino is scheduled to open in the second half of 2008. Crown Macau due to be completed in April 2007, will cater specifically for high rollers and VIPs who require a high degree of exclusivity. The City of Dreams will be a comprehensive integrated resort catering for all age groups, including children and families. Support for the project is coming from world-class partners such as Hard Rock International, Dragone, and Leighton-China State - John Holland, as well as Hyatt International.
Melco PBL Entertainment has aligned with Hard Rock International to create a unique four-star boutique hotel and casino to be branded the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Macau. This boutique hotel and casino will have 350 guestrooms and will feature a 25,000 square-foot “Hard Rock” casino. The casino will be operated by Melco PBL Entertainment under its gaming licence.
In addition, there will be a Hard Rock Cafe, offering live musical performances and a Hard Rock `Rock Shop’, which retails authentic rock ‘n’ roll gear and Hard Rock merchandise. The property also includes signature restaurant and bar offerings, a Hard Rock Pool entertainment deck as well as meeting spaces.
In addition to Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Macau, City of Dreams will also feature two deluxe hotels managed by Hyatt International, carrying the brands of Grand Hyatt and Hyatt Regency Hard Rock brand in Asia. Melco PBL Entertainment has teamed up with Dragone to form an exclusive partnership to stage permanent shows at the City of Dreams. Being a renowned live entertainment company, Dragone conceives, produces and directs shows on an international scale. A stand-alone performance hall with a seating capacity of around 2000, designed by the renowned Pei Partnerships in New York, will be specially built for staging the Dragone show. This will be the first Asian permanent show to feature Dragone.
Like so many Asian destinations Macau is currently seeing phenomenal growth in hotel construction and development, and a huge range of new attractions are on the drawing board. Among the many casino hotels already operating there are plenty more to come. The Las Vegas Sands Corp. has a massive project underway that should be of great appeal to meeting and incentive planners. The Venetian Resort Hotel Casino, with its 3000 rooms, and the Sands Expo & Convention Centre are under construction as we speak, with consruction expected to be completed this year.
Hotels including the Four Seasons, Shangri-La, Sheraton and St Regis hotels are also well on their way to being part of the Macau scene. Also on the drawing board or under construction is an underwater casino, Grand Waldo Hotel, Galaxy Starworld, Galaxy Cotai mega resort, Wynn Resorts and Crown Macau. Entertainment will be taken to a new level and with the living history of Macau, delegates will be stopped in their tracks with what’s on offer.
As far as Macau goes for the MICE market, it’s watch this space!
<< Top |