Sands Cotai Central

Sands Cotai Central
金沙城中心
Location Macau, China
Address Cotai Strip
Opening date 11 April 2012 (11 April 2012)
Number of rooms 6,000
(Conrad Macao 636
Holiday Inn Macao Cotai Strip 1,224
Sheraton Macao 3,896
St. Regis Macao 400)
Total gaming space 106,000 sq ft (9,800 m2)
Casino type Land-based
Owner Las Vegas Sands
Previous names Cotai Strip parcels 5 and 6
Website Sands China website

Sands Cotai Central (Chinese: 金沙城中心)[1] is a casino resort on the Cotai Strip, Macau, China. On 5 August 2011, Sands China announced that the $4 billion property[2] long referred to as parcels five and six is now officially named Sands Cotai Central. It opened on 11 April 2012.[3]

History

Background

On 24 March 2011, Las Vegas Sands announced it had terminated a hotel-management agreement with Shangri-La International Hotel Management for its new casino resort development being built on plots 5 and 6 in Cotai. Las Vegas Sands was allegedly in talks with InterContinental Hotels Group PLC to manage the two hotel towers at its USD 4.1 billion expansion project.[4]

Sands China also decided to manage the hotel tower on site 5 that was supposed to be operated by Shangri-La.[5] Sands China signed a franchise deal with Hilton Worldwide and InterContinental Hotels to brand over 1,800 rooms at Cotai site 5 and 6. The resort would officially be named Sands Cotai Central, the company announced on 5 August 2011. The site wiould include more than 300,000 square feet (28,000 m2) of meeting space, 11 food and beverage establishments and 106,000-square-foot (9,800 m2) of gaming area but also 13,700,000-square-foot (1,270,000 m2) of non-gaming facilities.[6]

Construction

The development under construction in 2007, five years before opening.

Architecture firm Aedas were the lead architect for all Las Vegas Sands projects on the Cotai Strip and were responsible for employing all local consultants and for developing, coordinating and implementing the design.[7]

Construction of the project was slowed and complicated at least in part by government restrictions on the amount of foreign workers companies in the labor-starved territory can hire. According to the main contractor: "Work started in 2006 but the project went through a period of suspension due to the global economic crisis. During this period, work on the project came to a complete stop and it was therefore quite a challenge to restart the project. Staff had to be recruited and contractors engaged. Over 130 contractors were involved in the project. The imported labour quota restrictions have also been challenging."[8]

The number of gaming tables at the resort was a thorny issue as well since the local government imposed a cap on tables until 2013. The company said in early August 2011 that Sands Cotai Central would have up to 530 tables versus the 670 it was planning previously.[9]

Opening (2012-2015)

It opened on 11 April 2012.[3] The opening ceremony was announced as "Asia's Biggest Launch Party in 2012". It was marked by the feat of the high wire walker Jade Kindar-Martin and his wife Karine Mauffrey, the duo ttempting to traverse the 525 meter (1,700 feet) distance between the top of the Venetian and the new Conrad Hotel, whilst balancing 150 meters (500 feet) above the ground on a wire less than one inch thick. The spectacle was accompanied by the China National Symphony Orchestra.[10]

The second phase opened on September 20, 2012.[11] The third phase (St Regis Macao) was opened on 17 December 2015.

Features

Development

The lead consultant for the project was architecture firm Aedas, who were responsible for employing all local consultants and for developing, coordinating and implementing the design.[7] Main contractor for construction was Hsin Chong Construction Group Limited.[8]

The first phase of Sands Cotai Central opened on April 11, 2012, featuring the Holiday Inn hotel with more than 1,200 rooms, and the Conrad hotel with more than 600 rooms. Eventually, the complex will offer close to 6,000 rooms across the Conrad, Sheraton and Holiday Inn brands.[8]

Hotels

The 3 hotel towers. From left to right: Conrad/Holiday Inn, Sheraton and Sheraton Towers.

Cotai Central has combination of 6,000 rooms and suites from the Conrad, Sheraton, St. Regis and Holiday Inn brands. It will also have meeting and convention space, and retail outlets, entertainment and dining options. There are two casinos, the Pacifica casino and Himalaya casino.

Hilton Worldwide's five-star Conrad Macao, Cotal Central, Cotai Strip opened at Cotai Central in the first quarter of 2012 and will have more than 600 rooms and suites.

The four-star Holiday Inn Macao, Cotal Central by IHG is also opened late first quarter 2012. It will features more than 1,200 rooms and suites.[12] When built, the Holiday Inn Macau Cotai Strip was the world’s largest Holiday Inn.[13]

The five star Sheraton Macao Hotel, Cotai Central, had nearly 1,800 of Starwood's Sheraton-branded hotel rooms opening for the Sky Tower in the third quarter of 2012, and another 2,000 rooms of Earth Tower in early 2013, the casino operator said in July 2011.

The 3,863-room (still expending) of the Sheraton Hotel is both the largest hotel in Macau and in the over 1,000-strong portfolio of hotels and resorts globally operated by the company. Recreational facilities include a Spa, three pools surrounded by 12,000 square metres of deck space, as well as fitness and kid’s entertainment programmes. The signature Xin restaurant, a seafood hotpot restaurant, will launch in April 2012.[14]

The St. Regis Macao, Cotai Central and branded residences opened on December 17, 2015. It is the forth tower of the Sands Cotai Central.

MICE and non-gaming facilities

The site includes more than 300,000 square feet (28,000 m2) of meeting space, 11 food and beverage establishments and 106,000-square-foot (9,800 m2) of gaming area but also 13,700,000-square-foot (1,270,000 m2) of non-gaming facilities.

The resort will provide thousands of new non-gaming jobs, grow non-gaming revenues and expand a variety of non-gaming business segments, specifically the Meetings, Incentive, Convention and Exhibition industry, Sheldon Adelson stated.[15]

See also

References

  1. 金沙五六期命名"金沙城中心" Macao Daily. 28 October 2011.
  2. Sands China Signs Deal With Hilton, IHG for Cotai Project By KATE O'KEEFFE. Wall Street Journal online AUGUST 5, 2011, 9:16 A.M. ET
  3. 1 2 Macau casino owners bet everyone wins as Adelson expands By Vinicy Chan. Macau Daily Times. 30 March 2012.
  4. Sands China, Shangri-La end agreement for Cotai Macau Daily Times. 25/03/2011 07:08:00 Tiago Azevedo
  5. Sands may push back Cotai site 5 to 2012 19/05/2011 08:25:00 Macau Daily Times. Vítor Quintã
  6. Sands signs Cotai deal with Conrad, Holiday Inn Macau Daily Times. 06/08/2011 09:23:00
  7. 1 2 ".Frank McGoldrick, Managing Director of Aedas Ltd on World's Biggest Casino". aedasasia.
  8. 1 2 3 Hsin Chong Construction Group Ltd. (2012-04-12). "Sands Cotai Central Opens in Macau". Retrieved 2013-12-01.
  9. Sands China Signs Franchise Agreements With Hilton, IHG For Cotai Project Fox Business. By Kate O'Keeffe Published August 05, 2011
  10. The final opening preparations by Paulo Barbosa. Macau Daily Times. 10 April 2012.
  11. Hsin Chong Construction Group Ltd. (2012-09-21). "Sands Cotai Central Second Phase Opened". Retrieved 2013-12-01.
  12. Conrad and Holiday Inn Newest Additions to Sands Cotai Central in Macao S.A.R. CNN Money. August 05, 2011: 12:01 AM ET
  13. World’s largest Holiday Inn to be in Macau Japan Today. TRAVEL AUG. 10, 2011 - 05:58AM JST
  14. Sheraton Macao Hotel recruiting staff for opening in September 2012 Macau Daily Times. 22 February 2012.
  15. Sands signs Cotai deal with Conrad, Holiday Inn Macau Daily Times. August 6, 2011 09:23:00
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