Recognised as one of TIME Magazine’s World’s Greatest Places of 2021, Desaru Coast Destination Resort (Desaru Coast) has reinvented the future of meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE) to offer fully customisable events that will inspire, rejuvenate and reconnect people. Through “MICE Reinvented”, Desaru Coast introduces five distinct event pillars for all occasions; i) Corporate Events, Reimagined, ii) Future-proof Conferences & Exhibitions, iii) Wanderlust Destination Weddings & Celebrations, iv) Sports & Such and v) Nature & Nurture.
Situated on the eastern coast of Johor, Malaysia, Desaru Coast boasts a portfolio of some of the most coveted international five-star resorts to extend perfect event venues that can be repurposed for any MICE need. Collectively, the destination holds an inventory of close to 800 rooms, indoor event spaces that can accommodate a total of more than 2300 delegates, two award-winning world-class golf courses and the region’s largest waterpark that spans along 17 kilometres beachfront and unbounded, wide-open spaces for endless possibilities for events. Furthermore, as an integrated destination, delegates can stay at any one resort and yet spread activities and experiences across any of the other three resorts, attractions and outdoor experiences.
“Just as the pandemic redesigned the way we live; it has driven us to relook and rethink how events will look like in the future. Leveraging our portfolio of assets as an international destination in the world where people seek inspiration, rejuvenation and reconnections, Desaru Coast has reimagined all possible spaces and experiences across the destination to offer a multitude of integrated indoor and outdoor programmes. Future MICE at Desaru Coast can be designed with an enchanting mix of indoor and outdoor experiences to include all five-star facilities along with curated activities at the beach, forest, mangroves, local villages, golf courses, ballrooms and conference centre,” said Roslina Arbak, Managing Director and CEO Desaru Coast Destination Resorts.
MICE Reinvented at Desaru Coast
i. Corporate Events, Reimagined at Desaru Coast
Breaking the mould of traditional corporate events, Desaru Coast has deconstructed the format and experience of off-site senior-level company meetings by removing the conventional configuration of arrival to check-in to conference or business meetings, followed by networking dinners and team-building exercises.
Corporate Events, Reimagined first takes delegates on curated and elevated experiences at the beach, the forest, the golf course or even the spa before the business agenda to help provide a different perspective and a rejuvenated approach to high-level corporate retreats. By upending this format, Corporate Events, Reimagined offers delegates unique experiences to be inspired, rejuvenated, and reconnect.
ii. Future-proof Conferences & Exhibitions
The fully equipped Desaru Coast Conference Centre can cater to 1400 people with safe social distancing. Further to this, the destination’s outdoor spaces offer larger areas that can easily be converted for conferences requiring more extensive staging and build-up of additional conference space, making it possible for meetings and exhibitions to adopt a hybrid of an indoor and outdoor model and at the same time accommodating a wider attendance.
iii. Wanderlust Destination Weddings & Celebrations
17km of pristine beachfront makes Desaru Coast the ideal destination for beach weddings of any scale. Indoor weddings can be hosted at Desaru Coast Conference Centre, any of the three large ballrooms at the destination’s five-star resorts and at one of its 21 restaurants and cafes for more intimate affairs.
Similarly, with the luxury resorts of the destination offering top-rated facilities, multi-generational gatherings and special celebrations can also be curated to suit the needs of all parties and guests’ profiles.
iv. Sports & Such
Set within kilometres of white-sandy beaches and long scenic stretches of roads in the greater Desaru area, the destination has quickly gained a reputation as a sporting hotspot for all types of land and water sports. With ample choices of accommodation, facilities and easy connectivity to the region, Desaru Coast has the capacity and space for mage-size outdoor sporting and lifestyle events.
Already on the calendar for next year are two major international sporting events – L’Etape by Tour de France and Desaru Coast IRONMAN. In 2019, the destination hosted Desaru International Bike Week that drew over 45,000 bikers and visitors over a weekend. Events such as car and fashion shows, music, food and art festivals that require safer outdoor spaces can design imaginative events at Desaru Coast.
v. Nature & Nurture
The stretches of pristine beaches on the South China Sea and rich bio-diverse surrounding of Desaru Coast allows the destination to offer exceptional eco experiences and edutourism – activities that blend education and tourism learning experiences, to be incorporated into its MICE mix of activities. School trips, NGO learning expeditions and corporate retreats can combine nature excursions into agendas to educate and drive awareness of conservation and sustainability.
Easy Accessibility
Desaru Coast is a four-hour drive from Kuala Lumpur, and approximately three and a half hours from Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA). Senai International Airport is an hour away, and Changi International Airport – one of the busiest airports in the world – is nearby within a two-hour drive.
Roslina further adds, “as an international destination ideal for MICE, Desaru Coast is well connected via land, air and sea. With three international airports within Desaru Coast’s reach, it is accessible to a regional population catchment of an estimated 624 million within ASEAN in a 4-hour flight radius and a population catchment of 3.8 billion within an 8-hour flight radius. Our soon-to-be opened Desaru Coast Ferry Terminal will offer easy fly & ferry options for arrivals into Singapore to attend events at the destination
As travel gradually resumes, Desaru Coast is prime for MICE. We now look forward to boosting confidence in the industry with MICE Reinvented at Desaru Coast,”