IR will help in Singapore's aspirations to boost tourism . .
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MBS - Makings of a big starBy Lee U-Wen, The Business Times | Mon, Jun 14 2010
IR will help in Singapore's aspirations to boost tourism numbers and spending in the years to come.
IR will help in Singapore's aspirations to boost tourism numbers and spending in the years to come.
Keywords
- southeast asia
- singapore
- luxury
- marina bay sands
- casino
- tourism
- skypark
DRIVING up the newly opened Bayshore Avenue road, I spotted locals and tourists alike strolling along the adjacent helix-shaped bridge, all eager to get a snap of the newest landmark to decorate Singapore's already-glittering skyline.
The three 55-storey hotel towers of the Marina Bay Sands (MBS) integrated resort - topped off with the surfboard-like structure that is its yet-to-be-opened SkyPark - easily takes one's breath away with its iconic design.
Lining the facade of the hotel's atrium are 260,000 thin aluminium 'flappers' - collectively called Wind Arbor - placed so closely together that they create a captivating water ripple-like effect under the light and when the wind blows.
Walk inside the hotel's main lobby and you are greeted with the sight of a seven-storey high art installation resembling a three-dimensional spiderweb hanging from the ceiling. Called 'Drift', the 14.8-ton structure is designed by renowned British sculptor Antony Gormley and required over 16,000 steel roods to put together.
Grand view
A senior MBS employee brought me up to the 30th floor where I took in the breathtaking view from one of the deluxe suites. How great it would be to catch either the National Day Parade fireworks, Youth Olympic Games opening ceremony festivities or even the Formula 1 action from such a vantage point, I thought to myself.
Back downstairs, the atmosphere is serene. Guests sipped their cocktails at the hotel's Fuse lobby bar as soothing classical music played overhead. The ladies that weekday evening were dressed to the nines, the men were decked out in freshly pressed suits. I saw many of them making a beeline for the casino - trying to look their smartest before hitting the jackpot, perhaps? - and that's where I gamely headed towards as well.
I've heard many positive reviews about the casino since the IR first opened its doors to the public after a soft launch on April 27. Once there, I joined a short queue of locals and forked out the $100 24-hour levy. The woman behind the counter was pleasant and politely showed me the way to scan my IC at the numerous gantries at the casino entrance.
Having been impressed with the grandeur of the Sands' other casino properties in Las Vegas and Macau recently, I must admit that I had high expectations of what the Singapore version had to offer - and I wasn't disappointed.