SINGAPORE | The Grand Opening of Mandai Rainforest Resort by Banyan Tree has celebrated a milestone in sustainable design and biodiversity.
Banyan Group and Mandai Wildlife Group marked a major milestone on 26 November with the Grand Opening of Mandai Rainforest Resort by Banyan Tree. President Tharman Shanmugaratnam officiated the grand opening, inaugurating the resort's Wishing Wall and previewing Banyan Group's inaugural Rainforest Festival.
Located in the Mandai Wildlife Reserve, Mandai Rainforest Resort by Banyan Tree marks Banyan Group's 100th resort and its symbolic homecoming to Singapore. Owned by Mandai Wildlife Group, the resort is the first-ever resort situated within a world-leading wildlife and nature destination in a capital city.
Beginning with a musical prelude by young talents from the Wolfgang Violin Studio, the tour featured a guided walk through the resort's sustainable design features, biodiversity corridors and nature-led guest experiences. It also included a preview of the Rainforest Festival, featuring highlights from the Discovery Trail, a curated collection of diversified crafts from around the world at the Banyan Gallery Showcase and the GREEN-HOUSE HangOut sustainability weekend market, as well as a visit to the newly opened Curiosity Cove - Singapore's largest indoor nature-inspired playscape located just a short walk from the resort. Close to 100 beneficiaries from President's Challenge programmes also attended the festival preview, with more than 2,000 beneficiaries invited throughout festival week.
The grand opening day then continued with the premiere of The Journey, a twelve-minute short film tracing Banyan Group's evolution and stories of impact from its beginnings in Phuket to its 100th milestone in Singapore, followed by an intimate In Conversation session with Founder and Executive Chairman Mr Ho Kwon Ping and Co-Founder and Senior Vice President Ms Claire Chiang.
The programme also featured a City in Nature dialogue introduced by Ho Ren Yung, Deputy CEO at Banyan Group, which explored Singapore's City in Nature vision and the role of regenerative design, nature-positive development and collaborative stewardship in shaping future cities. Moderated by Dr Mark Watson, Group Director of Sustainability and Impact at Banyan Group, the dialogue brought together leading voices from conservation, design and architecture, including Mandai Wildlife Group Deputy CEO of Life Sciences and Chief Life Sciences Officer Dr Cheng Wen-Haur, DesignSingapore Council Executive Director Dawn Lim and WOW Architects Co-Founder Wong Chiu Man.
The Grand Opening Day concluded with an appreciation dinner honouring partners and collaborators. Hosted by emcee Paul Foster, the evening featured performances by Min Lee and young talents from Wolfgang Violin Studio, singer-songwriter Shazza, vocal band MICappella and Cultural Medallion recipient Dick Lee, whose rendition of "Home" closed the evening on a heartfelt note.
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