At SplashMania, located in Gamuda Cove about 45 minutes south of Kuala Lumpur, a young man in a gray T-shirt and knee-length swimming trunks crosses his arms and takes a 3-story plunge from near the top of a massive pirate ship stranded atop a rock mountain, designed by Australia’s Pico Play, as onlookers watch from a deck below.
Five hundred miles to the northeast, on a resort island off the coast of Vietnam, tourists visiting Sun World Group’s Sunset Town gasp with joy while watching a show called Kiss the Stars, as images of an animated planet appear to emerge on a 1,000-square-meter water screen from beneath the arch of the largest aquatic stage ever built by France’s ECA2.
Along Australia’s Gold Coast, guests inside Sea World’s new A$50 million New Atlantis themed land scream as the Vortex, a Huss Top Spin, twirls them along multiple axes 60 feet above the ground.
At first glance, the Malaysian water park, Vietnamese show, and Australian marine park may not appear to have much in common. Yet, their collective experience is indicative of the Asia-Pacific attractions industry’s emergence from the pandemic. Each of these attractions, like many others throughout the region, faced significant delays due to COVID-19. But they have opened their gates in recent months amid a renewed bout of optimism about leisure spending and the broader economy.
Fun in Malaysia
SplashMania, designed to welcome 800,000 visitors a year, is the brainchild of Malaysian property developer Gamuda Land, which aims to attract more buyers to its townships by building attractions in them. The construction and engineering company is also diversifying its business. Gamuda Land had initially delayed opening the water park, but a resurgence in Malaysia’s property market led it to resume course.
“They decided to pull the trigger and say, ‘Yeah, go ahead and open,’” shares Gamuda Land General Manager for Leisure and Hospitality Sanjay Nadarajah. He adds that Malaysians are excited to go out again, although a bit wary about spending too much. “We’ve just emerged out of the ashes of the pandemic. There is fresh sentiment from the public that they want to have fun, because everybody’s been cooped up for two years.”
Gamuda Land is planning to launch another attraction, a 40 million ringgit fun park featuring a 50-meter Ferris wheel, carousel, midway rides, and Malaysia’s first Skyline Luge later this year.
Asia’s Phoenix Set to Rise Again
Perhaps the resurgence of the Asian attractions industry is best characterized by design firms like Legacy Entertainment, which currently has more than a dozen Asia-Pacific projects in the pipeline with a capital investment of more than US$2.5 billion. These include theme parks, a flying theater, and immersive complexes that integrate dining, retail, and entertainment.
“Asia is back in full force with China lagging a little behind, but not for long,” says Legacy Entertainment President and Chief Creative Officer Taylor Jeffs. “While attendance levels at Asian theme parks have not yet rebounded to pre-COVID levels, we are seeing existing operators and new developers feeling very bullish about the future.”
Business has returned to pre-pandemic levels in Indonesia and South Korea, Jeffs says, while Vietnam has quickly become Legacy’s biggest market. AECOM estimates there are a half-billion U.S. dollars of new attractions projects taking place in the country.
“Much in the way ‘Top Gun’ and ‘Avatar’ have given movie theaters a shot in the arm,” Jeffs says, “developers realize that big, exciting new products are what’s needed to draw audiences back over the next two seasons and beyond.”
“With China just reopening, projects on hold for the past years are now moving forward,” adds ECA2 Chairman Jean-Christophe Canizares. “What were just ideas or wishes three years ago are now transforming into deep design studies.” ECA2 currently has 15 projects in six countries across Asia-Pacific. It is revamping Wings of Time in Singapore and Lake of Illusion in Shanghai, while working with partners on new show ideas in half a dozen Asian markets.
Creating Integrated Resorts
Another market attracting renewed attention is Macau. The Chinese special administrative region, best known for its gaming revenues—and for being the only place in China where gambling is legal—appears to be taking a page from Singapore, which requires casinos to invest in attractions.
At the end of last year, Macau renewed the gaming licenses of the island’s ‘Big Six’ casino operators—Galaxy Entertainment, Melco Resorts, MGM China, Sands China, SJM Holdings, and Wynn Macau. In return for a 10-year extension, the companies have pledged to invest $14.9 billion in theme parks, exhibition centers, fine dining, performance venues, and other non-gambling entertainment.
“The goal now is different than it was when we started designing Galaxy Macau in 2006, and Studio City Macau in 2011,” Jeffs says. “Back then, the mandate was to create the world’s most compelling gaming destination. Now we’re out to simply create one of the world’s top entertainment destinations for all ages.”
Legacy Entertainment is developing a slate of theme park, water park, and attractions products for clients in Macau. The company also recently completed the design of a 30,000-square-meter indoor theme park for a large integrated resort.
New Openings and Projects in the Pipeline
Other projects delayed by the pandemic are back underway or opening this year.
Across the bridge from Macau, Chimelong’s 8 billion yuan marine science park is slated to open this year. Originally set to open in 2021, park operators have reportedly been waiting for an uptick in visitor numbers before launching the colossal 400,000-square-meter indoor theme park, which will be on of the world’s largest such facilities once open.
In Singapore, Mandai Wildlife Group’s new Bird Paradise, which takes the place of the recently shuttered Jurong Bird Park, is slated to open in the second quarter of this year. The new zoological park has twice the number of aviaries, including one housing 20 hornbill species, one of the world’s “largest living reserve of hornbills under human care.” Other new features, including Rainforest Wild, nature-themed indoor experiences, and an eco-resort operated by Banyan Tree will open progressively through 2025.
Genting Singapore says it is progressing on Resorts World Sentosa 2.0, along with construction of Minion Land at Universal Studios Singapore, the new Singapore Oceanarium to replace the S.E.A. Aquarium, and revamped retail and dining facilities. A relaunched 389-room Festive Hotel opens in May.
On Australia’s Gold Coast, Village Roadshow Theme Parks recently launched a new area at Wet ‘n’ Wild that features one of Australia’s tallest water park slide towers, in addition to the New Atlantis themed area at Sea World. Next year, visitors to Warner Bros. Movie World should be able to travel the Yellow Brick Road in an all-new The Wizard of Oz themed section.
In China, Shanghai Disney Resort says it is making progress on the world’s only Zootopia-themed land, which will be the resort’s eighth themed land. Zootopia’s building facades are inspired by various mammals and their habitats, while the doors to the Zootopia Transit Authority train are designed for animals of all sizes.
“We are ready to embrace business recovery and emerge in a strong position,” says Shanghai Disney President and General Manager Joe Schott. “The new experiences we introduce aim to continue to elevate guest experience while also increasing our overall capacity. We know that when we invest in increasing capacity, we can grow our business.”
