The expansion of Marina Bay Sands will see the addition of significant tourism offerings to the property.

More MICE inventory as well as additional MICE capabilities are on the cards as Marina Bay Sands gears up to expand its offerings. The integrated resort announced its S$4.5 billion expansion plans in early April, nearly 10 years after it opened its doors in Singapore.

Located immediately adjacent to the existing property, the new development will include a fourth hotel tower, adding 1,000 luxury suites to the current inventory of 2,561 rooms and suites; a 15,000-seat entertainment arena; as well as additional MICE space.

The expansion project aims to relieve both Marina Bay Sands’ and market constraints, said George Tanasijevich, President & Chief Executive Officer, Marina Bay Sands.

“Our annual hotel occupancy levels have ranged from 94 to 99%.  Our exhibition halls have been at full capacity for years and our grand ballroom is unable to accommodate current demand.  Given the 5,000 seat capacity of our ballroom and outdoor event plaza for concerts, we are limited in the number of events we can stage,” he said.

Artist Impression of the upcoming arena

The entertainment arena overcomes this constraint at Marina Bay Sands and a current gap in the market for an appropriately-sized arena that has modern amenities for the artistes, individual ticket-buyers and corporate hospitality, he added.

“Today, artistes rely more on ticket sales for live performances than sales of recorded music to make a living. Concert ticket prices in Singapore are among the highest in the world and as a result, the pool of potential customers is suppressed,” he said.

An arena with 15,000 seats will result in ticket prices being in line with industry norms, and make the events more accessible to a larger number of people.  This, in turn, will lead to an increase in the number of music events in Singapore.

The new arena isn’t just for entertainment acts – the facility is also suitable for MICE groups to host big plenary sessions and large conference groups who need to sit up to 15,000 persons in one session.  

“The set-up of the arena will also allow for much more elaborate technical productions than our existing MICE facilities, which are increasingly in demand by MICE event organisers,” he added.