BINTAN Lagoon Resort (BLR) is on the hunt for partners to participate in its next phase of development which will see it grow from the current 500 rooms to 2,500 rooms in various thematic properties.
As part of BLR’s 20th anniversary this July, president director of BLR, Moe Ibrahim, said the resort, which currently owns 283ha of land, intends to work with partners to transform the whole area into a “massive marketplace” under a five-year plan.
“We are talking about transforming the place into a variety of boutique resorts, and in a way that has never been done before,” said Moe.
The land could be divided, for instance, into various 200-room properties featuring their own unique themes such as sports, wellness and medical tourism, he said.
“We want to build demand for tourists based on (the consumer’s) interest (in each project) in its own right, and not let each one be controlled so much by the economic cycle,” said Moe.
“We want to replace what is dated with a new concept. We no longer want to be just a 500-room resort; instead we want to go out with a specific and tailored message to the market,” he added.
The initiative will also see an overhaul of F&B concepts at the current resort which alone offers 12 dining options.
As the expansion plan is still in early stages, Moe said relevant themes based on market demand were continuing to be assessed. For now, BLR’s current goal is to find partners to help execute this project.
Moe estimates the “massive transformative project” to cost about S$300 million (US$217 million).
He expects the development to raise Bintan’s appeal and fuel greater interest on the island from the international market.
Currently, more than 50 per cent of tourists to the resort arrive from Singapore.
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