Turning one-off visitors into repeat guests: Resorts World Sentosa’s CEO on reinventing its appeal

SINGAPORE – For years, Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) was a place that visitors went to tick off a specific attraction before moving on. Whether it was Universal Studios Singapore (USS), the aquarium or, at times, the casino, many came, spent time there and left.

That attraction-led model lost momentum over the years, while long periods of disruptive redevelopment deterred footfall and affected revenues even as the integrated resort (IR) invested heavily to revive its appeal.

Meanwhile, rival IR Marina Bay Sands (MBS), which is also expanding,

has continued to draw gamers as well as travellers and locals

with new dining outlets, theatre screenings and MICE (meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions) events.

To chart the next chapter of growth, RWS’ new chief executive is repositioning the IR as a destination anchored by experiences and programming that visitors cannot easily find elsewhere in Singapore, betting that an overhaul of what it offers will encourage longer stays and repeat visits.

Many visitors, especially Singaporeans, have not returned for years, and bringing them back will be critical to the IR’s next phase of growth, said RWS CEO Lee Shi Ruh in an interview with The Straits Times.

“To bring people back, they need to feel that this is a place they can hang out with family and friends, with something new every two to three weeks,” she said, adding that RWS also wants to be a place where locals go regularly to experience new things.

The push to reshape public perception and extend RWS’ appeal follows a reality check in November 2024, when its casino licence was

renewed for just two years from Feb 6, 2025

, instead of the standard three.

This followed an “unsatisfactory” tourism performance assessment between 2021 and 2023 by the Gambling Regulatory Authority.

The next evaluation is scheduled for later in 2026, which will determine if the resort has successfully rejuvenated its appeal enough to earn a full three-year licence renewal.

New attractions, improving perceptions

In recent years, RWS has deliberately courted and introduced several first-in-market concepts to pique interest and encourage visitors to return.

Since 2019, Singapore-listed Genting Singapore, which owns and operates RWS, has invested billions in RWS 2.0, an ambitious $6.8 billion project undertaken to increase the IR’s gross floor area by 50 per cent through new attractions, luxury hotels and lifestyle developments.

In 2025, RWS completed and opened several major attractions aimed at strengthening its non-gaming appeal, including permanent attractions like

Minion Land at

USS, and the Singapore Oceanarium.

It launched Weave, a new lifestyle mall housing more than 40 retail and dining concepts, including French macaron sensation Pierre Herme Paris’ first South-east Asia store, and Ka-Mon – Singapore’s first restaurant integrating three traditional Japanese grilling techniques. The Republic’s first Coach coffee shop and a Din Tai Fung outlet housing its first cocktail bar in Asia have also opened.

RWS and hotel group Marriott International launched The Laurus, Singapore’s first Luxury Collection resort, a partnership that took more than a year to negotiate.

The IR also jostled to host a series of global-scale events at its convention centre.

Among the 2025 highlights was the Wicked: For Good Asia-Pacific premiere at USS – the production’s only stop in Asia – which drew a substantial influx of visitors to the IR in November and December 2025.

Other major events included the inaugural Bubbling & Boiling Music and Arts Festival from China, blending live music, digital art and cultural activities.

More new concepts across dining, nightlife and family-friendly experiences are in the pipeline for 2026, including interactive museum Dopamine Land and People People brewery at Weave.

RWS will also kick off a year-long collaboration with Labubu doll maker Pop Mart, starting with an exclusive pop-up store that is already open at the IR.

By 2030, a new waterfront featuring two luxury hotels and retail and dining spaces, as well as an 88m-tall “mountain trail”, will expand RWS by more than 164,000 sq m. Super Nintendo World is also expected to open at USS.

Several hotels and shops were closed to make way for the fresher offerings, though.

As part of the overhaul, the Madagascar Zone at USS was shuttered to make way for Minion Land, while The Forum – previously home to mass-market brands – was replaced by Weave. The Malaysian Food Street has given way to Feast at Wave, a higher-end food hall, while the Hard Rock Hotel and Hard Rock Cafe have also closed.

Ultimately, the aim is for “people to see that RWS is different now”, Ms Lee said.

Winning back market share

Still, resetting perceptions and rebuilding market share will take time after years of renovation-related disruptions saw business shift towards MBS, which now holds a much larger share of gaming revenues in Singapore’s two-IR system.

Ms Lee said drawing gamers back depends largely on strengthening the overall environment around it – giving guests reasons to stay on, return and bring others with them.

She added that RWS is not seeking to replicate MBS’ luxury retail model, but to build a different kind of offering anchored by food, lifestyle and entertainment.

“In the past, some guests came to gamble and then left straight away. How do you bring gamers back? We want them to feel there is more to do – eat, drink, socialise and spend time with family and friends,” she said.

With the bulk of disruptive renovation works now completed, RWS is shifting its focus from construction to stabilising operations and repositioning RWS as a more vibrant, constantly evolving destination, said Ms Lee, who is also president and chief operating officer of Genting Singapore.

“There won’t be another wave of major closures. Now, it’s about putting everything together.”

This should also put investors of Genting Singapore more at ease after RWS’ poor financial performance in 2025.

Genting Singapore reported a 34 per cent year-on-year fall in profit for the first half of 2025 to $234.7 million, while revenue declined 10 per cent to $1.2 billion, dragged down by weaker gaming and room revenues despite stronger takings from its attractions.

Ms Lee, who replaced former RWS CEO Tan Hee Teck in June 2025, said the company has spent the past year engaging closely with investors to explain how the business has pivoted towards a new operating model.

She added that confidence is gradually building as changes become visible on the ground.

“They can see for themselves how the business has shifted,” she said. “But results don’t come through immediately. It takes time to rebuild.”

Still, Ms Lee noted that results in the non-gaming business are already showing a clear uplift.

In the third quarter of 2025, Genting Singapore posted improved earnings of $94.6 million, compared with the quarter before and the same period a year ago, while revenue rose to $649.8 million, supported by higher spending from its top-tier casino customers and continued growth in its non-gaming businesses.

In comparison, MBS reported a third-quarter jump in profit to US$743 million (S$957.6 million), while revenue rose to US$1.4 billion, driven by its casino business.

But while the public’s perception of RWS cannot be changed overnight, it is already beginning to improve.

“There were some people I met over the weekend who hadn’t been back for years and were pleasantly surprised by how much had changed,” Ms Lee said.