Pleasure island
The revamp of Singapore's holiday island, Sentosa, is expected to see the place attracting eight million visitors a year, generating S$900 million ($4.15 billion) by 2012.
Shopping is a Singaporean national pastime and staying there for any length of time means the visitor can easily morph into a shopaholic. Unsurprisingly, therefore, the manicured beaches of the city-state's seaside zone often remain embarrassingly empty, especially, and strangely, at weekends and on the sunniest days.
But things are about to change thanks to a S$10 billion, 10-year plan to reinvent Sentosa and its surrounding area. A generous portion of that cash supports a simple concept to bring the shops to the beach.
Darrell Metzger, chief executive officer of the government-linked Sentosa Leisure Group (SLG), says: 'By providing better facilities on the beaches and offering people cafes and pubs, we have already increased the volume of visitors. Last year, five million people visited, which is a record. But we want to service people better.'
The Sentosa makeover is not just about its three beaches. Faced with fierce competition in the region for the tourist dollar, straight-laced Singapore is embarking on a change of identity for its 500-hectare holiday hub.
The rejuvenation encompasses Sentosa Island and its core residential development, Sentosa Cove, the Southern Islands and the Harbour Front precinct, including the Singapore Cruise Centre. About S$2 billion will be spent on the Harbour Front upgrade, which incorporates the construction of Vivo City, a 100,000-square-metre shopping mall to be completed by October next year.
'The aim is to create an integrated destination within Singapore that would be extremely difficult - if not impossible - for any tourist not to visit,' says Metzger. The upgrade also, controversially, includes the construction of a casino within a family-orientated theme park. Allowing previously outlawed gambling halls in Singapore is a thorny issue. But, as Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said recently, 'We cannot stand still. The whole region is on the move. If we don't change, where will we be in 20 years?'
Lee believes Singapore faces strong competition from Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, Shanghai and Sydney, which 'have learned the rules of globalisation and are playing aggressively'. To stay competitive, the wealthy but resource-poor city-state 'must constantly re-invent itself'.
Most objections made so far have come, not from green groups, but from religious organisations pointing to the moral and social implications of opening a casino. Says Metzger: 'The casino is a small part of the entire project. [Those] who want to gamble will gamble, but we are not interested in attracting only that type of person.'
Eagerly awaited too is the construction of a five-star residential resort, shopping plazas, convention halls, hotels, museums and an express rail system.
The plan calls for Sentosa to be redefined into three zones. The activity zone, on the northern part of the island, will feature an arrivals plaza with an underground car park for 1,300 cars, themed food, drink and entertainment offerings and a family resort. The southern zone will contain lively Siloso Beach, the family-friendly Palawan Beach and the more tranquil Tanjong Beach. It will also feature an arrivals area for the Sentosa Express, with underground car parking, a family beach club and dining and retail outlets. The green zone will feature a luxurious all-villa resort called the Knolls, a small, back-to-nature 'tree tops' resort and the Singapore Tourism Academy.
Projects already completed include updating the Merlion, the 37-metre-high symbol of Singapore, with a themed tour featuring sea creatures and mythical monsters; the new Fort Siloso tour, which tells the story of Singapore from its earliest days; the Carlsberg Sky Tower, Singapore's tallest public vantage point at 110 metres; the Trapizza, a bizarre beach attraction that marries a pizzeria to the city-state's first flying trapeze school; and the Spa Botanica, Singapore's first garden destination spa.
The S$4 billion residential development of Sentosa Cove is expected to draw investment through the sale of 2,600 homes, including bungalows, town houses and condominiums. A marina that will accommodate up to 240 boats, including 10 mega-yachts, will also be built.
The southern islands of Kusu, Lazarus, Seringat, the Sisters Islands and St John's are about one kilometre from Sentosa. The islands encompass 137 hectares of natural flora and fauna, and Sentosa oversees their maintenance. Under the S$1 billion redevelopment plans for these islands, residential, resort and entertainment facilities will be created. A range of high-end entertainment venues, theatres, exclusive restaurants, health spas, resorts, themed attractions and conference facilities is planned.
The Harbour Front is a landmark development that will feature offices, accommodation, cruise and ferry terminals, and Singapore's only cable-car system. The Harbour Front spans 24 hectares along Singapore's southern waterfront, overlooking Sentosa. Located on prime land at the foothills of Mount Faber, it attracts more than 30 million visitors annually, including passengers using the Singapore Cruise Centre.
SLG says it is not attempting to outdo other tourist destinations and attractions in the region. 'We are not trying to compete with the beautiful beaches of Phuket or the casinos of Macau, nor Disneyland in Hong Kong,' says Metzger. 'The difference is that we [will] have a combination of all these things.'
