Sri Lanka’s City of Dreams to open on 2 August
The Morning: John Keells Holdings PLC (JKH) and Melco Resorts and Entertainment (MRE) announced the grand opening of City of Dreams Sri Lanka which will take place on 2 August.
This launch marks the completion of the final components of the project, including a world-class casino, the luxurious Nuwa hotel and a premium shopping mall.
The milestone partnership, marks the debut of South Asia’s first fully-integrated resort and Sri Lanka’s largest private sector investment in luxury lifestyle to date – an over $ 1.2 billion development that redefines Colombo’s place on the global tourism map.
Strategically located in the heart of Colombo, the integrated resort brings together world-class hospitality, upscale retail, immersive entertainment, and cutting-edge MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions) infrastructure in one dynamic destination.
As City of Dreams expands its iconic brand into a vibrant new market, it capitalises on Sri Lanka’s strategic location and the region’s growing tourism demand. By introducing global expertise in luxury hospitality and gaming, the resort is poised to elevate the standard and appeal of Sri Lanka’s tourism offerings.
City of Dreams Sri Lanka is more than a resort – it is the epicentre of a new lifestyle movement, where modernity, elegance, and local culture converge. The landmark project sets new benchmarks for luxury, sustainability, and community engagement, redefining the region’s tourism narrative.
John Keells Group Chairperson Krishan Balendra said: “The opening of the casino and Nuwa hotel operated by Melco marks the realisation of a key pillar of City of Dreams Sri Lanka, bringing to fruition the integrated development that was envisioned over a decade ago. This milestone sets a new benchmark in South Asia for world-class lifestyle, entertainment, and retail offerings. With Melco’s globally recognised expertise and exceptional standards, we believe this unique addition will significantly enhance Colombo’s tourism appeal, drive foreign exchange earnings, and create meaningful employment opportunities. City of Dreams Sri Lanka stands as a bold testament to our confidence in Sri Lanka’s future and our continued commitment to nation-building through transformative investments.”
Melco Resorts and Entertainment Chairperson and CEO Lawrence Ho said: “We are thrilled to be part of this landmark development in Sri Lanka and to be in partnership with John Keells. We believe Sri Lanka has immense potential, and this opportunity complements our existing portfolio of properties. City of Dreams Sri Lanka is expected to serve as a catalyst for stimulating tourism demand and promoting economic growth in Sri Lanka, drawing inspiration from the successful examples set by similar integrated resorts in other jurisdictions.”
OSL take:
On its path to becoming a hub in the South Asian region in the maritime, trade and business sectors, Sri Lanka is also on the path towards becoming an entertainment hub in the region as well. The City of Dreams in Colombo, which is one of the landmark development projects in the country, a fully integrated resort would give a further boost to Sri Lanka’s tourism industry that is already on a steady growth path with increasing numbers of foreign tourists to the country. Sri Lanka’s tourism authorities are already engaged in many programmes to provide a further impetus to the country’s tourism industry through the expansion of tourism concepts in the country and promoting them in key tourist source markets. All these have resulted in the expansion of business/investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s tourism industry and related sectors. The ongoing expansion in the tourism industry has presented many lucrative business opportunities for foreign businesses/investors on the lookout for ventures in the regions, especially in Sri Lanka. The opportunities in Sri Lanka’s tourism industry range from the development of infrastructure and supplementary infrastructure facilities to expansions in the leisure and hospitality sectors. The interest shown by international leisure and hospitality brands to enter Sri Lanka further indicates the increasing business potential in Sri Lanka’s tourism industry and related sectors.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/20250702/Z_1 |