Universal Studios Singapore has celebrated its grand opening on the island of Sentosa. The theme park was launched on Saturday by movie star Jet Li, former American Idol judge, Paula Abdul and Chinese cinema and pop star, Vicki Zhao Wei, who joined a gala ceremony at the 21-metre tall arch which marks the entrance of the attraction.
Universal Studios Singapore features 21 rides and shows with themes such as the world’s first Madagascar-themed ride, ‘Madagascar: A Crate Adventure’, Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure, Shrek 4-D Adventure, Revenge of the Mummy, and Battlestar Galactica: Human and Battlestar Galactica: Cylon.
The grand opening activities kicked off with a gala dinner party for 1,600 guests, including local business figures, government officials as well as Singapore celebrities.
Resorts World Sentosa, the integrated resort site for Universal Studios Singapore, last week announced a new forecast of 16 million visitors for the year 2011, up from 15 million in 2010. Universal Studios Singapore is expected to attract a quarter of these, with four million visitors. Since its soft-opening nine months ago, the theme park has attracted approximately two million visitors.
“Today’s Grand Opening marks a very special day, not just for Universal Studios Singapore, but for all of Singapore, as your country positions itself as a world-class tourism and entertainment destination for all its residents as well as millions of international guests,” said Tom Williams, Chairman & CEO of Universal Parks & Resorts. “We’re proud to be a keystone feature of Resorts World Sentosa and welcome Universal Studios Singapore to the growing family of Universal Studios parks and resorts worldwide. We look forward to being a part of the continued success, development and growth of Singapore’s burgeoning travel and tourism industry,” he added.
Following the grand opening of Universal Studios, Resorts World Sentosa is working on another attraction – the Marine Life Park, which will be one of the largest wildlife parks in the world, opening its doors to guests in 2012.
Two more hotels and the ESPA complex will mark the completion of the integrated resort. Also last wee, Resorts World held a ‘topping-out ceremony’ for its fifth hotel, the Equarius Hotel. The five-star, seven-storey property will offer 172 guestrooms in the resort’s West Zone.
