Wikipedia

The Londoner Macao

The Londoner Macao (Chinese: 澳門倫敦人) is a casino and resort on the Cotai Strip, in Macau. On August 5th, 2011, Sands China announced that the $4 billion property,[1] long referred to as parcels five and six, would be officially named Sands Cotai Central (Chinese: 金沙城中心). The first portion of the resort opened on April11th, 2012.[2][3] The resort was rebranded as The Londoner Macao in 2021.[4] The resort's redesign was completed in May 2023.[5]

The Londoner Macao
澳門倫敦人 (Yue Chinese)
The Londoner Macao is located in Macau
The Londoner Macao
Location Macau
Address Cotai Strip
Opening date11 April 2012; 12 years ago (11 April 2012)
ThemeLondon
No. of rooms5,989
Total gaming space106,000 sq ft (9,800 m2)
Casino typeLand-based
OwnerLas Vegas Sands
Previous namesCotai Strip parcels 5 and 6
Coordinates22°08′45″N 113°33′56″E / 22.14579°N 113.56558°E / 22.14579; 113.56558
Websitehttps://www.londonermacao.com/
The Londoner Macao
Traditional Chinese澳門倫敦人
Simplified Chinese澳门伦敦人
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinÀomén Lúndūn Rén
Yue: Cantonese
Jyutpingou3 mun4*2 leon4 deon1 jan4

History

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Development and construction

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

Architecture firm Aedas was the lead architect for all Las Vegas Sands projects on the Cotai Strip. The firm employed local companies for developing, coordinating and implementing the design.[6] The main contractor was Hsin Chong Construction Group Limited.[7]

In November 2005, Las Vegas Sands announced a deal with Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts for them to manage one hotel tower in the complex, with 500 rooms under their luxury Shangri-La brand and 1,000 rooms under their business-class Traders Hotels brand.[8]

In February 2006, Las Vegas Sands announced a deal with Starwood Hotels to operate two hotel towers in the complex under their Sheraton Hotels brand and a third hotel tower under their luxury St. Regis Hotels brand.[9]

Construction of the project was slowed and complicated in part by government restrictions on how many foreign workers could be hired in the labor-starved territory. 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 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."[7]

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 stated in early August 2011 that Sands Cotai Central would have up to 530 tables versus the 670 it was planning previously.[10]

On March 24th, 2011, Las Vegas Sands announced it had terminated its management agreement with Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts .[11][12] Then, on August 5th, 2011, Sands China announced that they had signed franchise deals with Hilton Worldwide[13] and InterContinental Hotels[14] to replace Shangri-La and brand over 1,800 rooms at Cotai site 5 and 6 under Hilton's luxury Conrad Hotels brand and InterContinental's Holiday Inn brand.

In addition, on August 5th, 2011 the company also announced that the resort complex would officially be named Sands Cotai Central. The resort would include over 6,000 rooms and suites, two casinos, more than 300,000 square feet (28,000 m2) of meeting space, and 11 food and beverage establishments. It would total 106,000-square-foot (9,800 m2) of gaming area and 13,700,000-square-foot (1,270,000 m2) of non-gaming facilities.[15]

Opening

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

The resort complex opened on April 11th, 2012,[3] featuring the four-star Holiday Inn Macao, Cotai Central, the world's largest Holiday Inn,[16] with more than 1,200 rooms, and the five-star Conrad Macao, Cotai Central, with more than 600 rooms.[7]

The opening ceremony was announced as "Asia's Biggest Launch Party in 2012." It was marked by the feat of high wire walker Jade Kindar-Martin and his wife Karine Mauffrey, traversing 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 1 inch (25 mm) thick. The spectacle was accompanied by the China National Symphony Orchestra.[17]

The second phase, consisting of the twin-towered five-star Sheraton Macao Hotel, Cotai Central, opened on September 20th, 2012.[18] The 4,001-room Sheraton was both the largest hotel in Macau and the largest Sheraton in the world.

The third phase, The St. Regis Macao, Cotai Central and branded residences, opened on December 17th, 2015, as the fourth tower of the Sands Cotai Central.[19]

On January 18th, 2016, the Sheraton Macao Hotel, Cotai Central was upgraded to the brand's premium Sheraton Grand tier and renamed Sheraton Grand Macao Hotel, Cotai Central.[20]

Rebranding

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In 2017, Las Vegas Sands announced plans to renovate Sands Cotai Central with a London theme and rebrand it as The Londoner Macao, due to disappointing results at the property.[21] The Holiday Inn Macao at Cotal Central closed in 2019 and was overhauled and rebranded as The Londoner Hotel with half the number of rooms,[22][23] and the "Cotai Central" branding was dropped from the St. Regis, Conrad and Sheraton hotels.

The entire complex was officially rebranded The Londoner Macao on February 8th 2021, when the first phase of the renovated property celebrated its grand opening.[4] The first phase includes the opening of The Londoner Hotel, an all-new Crystal Palace atrium featuring a replica of the Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain, new dining options, and a number of interactive attractions that are themed to London. A British-style exclusive club for guests of The Londoner Hotel, The Residence, also opened its doors as part of Phase 1.[24]

Later phases, progressively completed throughout 2021, includes the Suites by David Beckham situated at the top two floors of The Londoner Hotel, a 370-room Londoner Court, a re-themed and expanded Shoppes at Londoner, and the 6000-seat Londoner Arena.[25] Later phases of the rebranding also saw the completion of the Houses of Parliament facade, a life-sized Big Ben, and a Changing of The Guard show held at the Crystal Palace atrium.[24][26][27]

The resort's overall redesign was completed in May 2023 and was marked with a celebration attended by David Beckham, with performances by pianist Lang Lang, Hong Kong pop singer G.E.M., Chinese musical theater performer Ayanga and English singer Jamie Cullum.[28]

In 2024, the two hotel towers under Sheraton branding closed and were renovated, with their 4000 rooms reduced to 2405 rooms, due to the conversion of many rooms into suites. The Sheraton had just 360 suites, while the new property will have 1500 suites. It will be launched under Marriott's Luxury Collection brand as the Londoner Grand, A Luxury Collection Hotel in fall 2024, with one tower, while the second tower will reopen in 2025. The Londoner Grand Casino is being renovated at the same time.[29]

Hotels in The Londoner Macao

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Hotels that are part of The Londoner Macao are as follow:

Hotels No. of Rooms
The Londoner Hotel 594
Suites by David Beckham
Conrad Macao 659
St. Regis Macao 400
Londoner Grand 2405
Londoner Court 368

Macanese firsts

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Many companies opened their first Macau stores in The Londoner Macao:

Transportation

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Bus

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There are several shuttle bus services connecting The Londoner Macao to Macau's major ports of entry and nearby resorts. These shuttle services are provided free of charge. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, some services may be temporarily out of operation.[34]

Macau Light Rapid Transit

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Main article: Taipa line

The Londoner Macao is within walking distance from both Cotai West Station and Cotai East Station on the Taipa section of the Macau Light Rapid Transit that serves the Cotai Strip and the larger area of Cotai.[35]

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  •  
    Cotai Strip in 2008
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    Conrad The Lounge 2013
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    Conrad Macao Lobby 2013
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    Holiday Inn Macao Swimming Pool
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    Shoppes at Cotai Central Interior
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    The Black Cab Escape at Londoner Macao
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    Paradise Garden Sands Cotai Central
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    Crystal Palace at Londoner Macao
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    Holiday Inn Macao Lobby Lounge 2013
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    Holiday Inn Macao Lobby 2013
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    Sands Cotai Central

See also

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References

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  1. ^ 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
  2. ^ 金沙五六期命名"金沙城中心". Macao Daily News (in Chinese (Macau)). 28 October 2011. Archived from the original on 2012-04-05. Retrieved 2011-10-28.
  3. ^ a b Macau casino owners bet everyone wins as Adelson expands By Vinicy Chan. Macau Daily Times. 30 March 2012.
  4. ^ a b "The Londoner Macao Launches First Phase with Regal Opening Ceremony". Hospitality Net. Retrieved 2021-02-20.
  5. ^ "The Londoner Macao Resort Celebrates Completion".
  6. ^ ".Frank McGoldrick, Managing Director of Aedas Ltd on World's Biggest Casino". aedasasia.
  7. ^ a b c Hsin Chong Construction Group Ltd. (2012-04-12). "Sands Cotai Central Opens in Macau". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2013-12-01.
  8. ^ "LV Sands Signs Macau Resorts to Management Deal".
  9. ^ "Las Vegas Sands Corp. and Starwood Hotels Reach Agreement on Management Deal; Starwood to Manage Planned 1,200-room Sheraton and a 300-room St. Regis on the Cotai Strip, Macao / February 2006".
  10. ^ Sands China Signs Franchise Agreements With Hilton, IHG For Cotai Project Fox Business. By Kate O'Keeffe Published August 05, 2011
  11. ^ Sands China, Shangri-La end agreement for Cotai Macau Daily Times. 25/03/2011 07:08:00 Tiago Azevedo
  12. ^ Sands may push back Cotai site 5 to 2012 19/05/2011 08:25:00 Macau Daily Times. Vítor Quintã
  13. ^ "Hilton Worldwide and Sands China Ltd sign Franchise Agreement to bring a New Conrad Hotel to Macao | Hilton Press Center". newsroom.hilton.com. Archived from the original on 2020-09-19.
  14. ^ "IHG Further Taps into Macao's Mid-Scale Hotel Market by Opening New Holiday Inn in Early 2012".
  15. ^ Sands signs Cotai deal with Conrad, Holiday Inn Macau Daily Times. 06/08/2011 09:23:00
  16. ^ World’s largest Holiday Inn to be in Macau Archived 2012-10-01 at the Wayback Machine Japan Today. TRAVEL AUG. 10, 2011 - 05:58AM JST
  17. ^ The final opening preparations by Paulo Barbosa. Macau Daily Times. 10 April 2012.
  18. ^ Hsin Chong Construction Group Ltd. (2012-09-21). "Sands Cotai Central Second Phase Opened". Archived from the original on 2013-12-11. Retrieved 2013-12-01.
  19. ^ "The St. Regis Macao Cotai Central Opens in Macau".
  20. ^ "Sheraton Hotels & Resorts announces Recognition of Sheraton Macao Hotel, Cotai Central as "Sheraton Grand" Property".
  21. ^ Farah Master (25 October 2017). "London comes to Macau as Las Vegas Sands revamps casino resort". Reuters. Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  22. ^ "GGRAsia – Londoner rejig started via Holiday Inn work: Wilfred Wong". GGRAsia. Retrieved 2021-02-23.
  23. ^ "Londoner Hotel expected to be ready to go in July 2020". 30 August 2019.
  24. ^ a b "The Londoner Macao Set to Open First Phase". Hospitality Net. Retrieved 2021-02-20.
  25. ^ "The Londoner Macao to open first phase on 8 February". IAG. 2021-01-21. Retrieved 2021-02-20.
  26. ^ "Big Ben and Beckham: Macao's newest resort, The Londoner, is a shrine to all things British". CNN. 6 January 2021. Retrieved 2021-02-20.
  27. ^ "The Londoner Macao | Sands China Ltd". www.sandschina.com. Retrieved 2021-02-20.
  28. ^ "The Londoner Macao Resort Celebrates Completion".
  29. ^ https://macaonews.org/news/business/sheraton-macao-londoner-grand-marriott-macau/
  30. ^ "Hong Kong". Inside Retail.
  31. ^ 【澳門必試甜品】歡呼吧！芝士蛋糕迷。The Cheesecake Factory 將會在金沙城中心開張 |. 澳門生活誌 | CyberCTM (in Chinese (Taiwan)).
  32. ^ "Shake Shack to make Macau debut". Inside Retail. 2021-03-18. Retrieved 2021-04-18.
  33. ^ "First Shake Shack restaurant to hold soft opening in April". Macau Business. 2021-04-16. Retrieved 2021-04-18.
  34. ^ "Schedules of The Londoner Macao Guest Shuttle Bus Services". Sands Resorts Macao.
  35. ^ "Cotai West Station". Macao Light Rapid Transit Corporation.
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