MICE life: The four top contenders of Kuala Lumpur’s thriving event scene

With an economy powered by the service industry, tourism is an essential component of Kuala Lumpur’s growing success. And, as the Malaysian capital’s reputation as a holiday destination grows so does demand for its MICE activities and locations. While it may not have the international clout as previous entries in my series on the Asia’s best locales for meetings and events, KL has plenty of hotels and conference centres to satiate all MICE fans.

Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre

Built as a part of the sprawling 40,4686 sq. metre Kuala Lumpur City Centre’s ‘city within a city’ development, handily located just a few minutes from many of the city’s top hotels such as G Tower, Mandarin Oriental, Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur (more on that later) and the InterContinental Kuala Lumpur hotel. This dedicated convention centre is a temple to all things MICE.

Easily able to handle any type of event that springs to mind, the post-modern architecture of the ‘the Centre” features 22,659 sq. metres of function space; two auditoria, the 470-seat Plenary Theatre and the multi-tier 3000-seat Plenary Hall; adaptable Grand Ballroom, with a total capacity of 2000, as well as a further 23 meeting areas, six exhibition halls. There is even a 2,600 marquee available, should the need arise.

As you would expect from such as slick operation, Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre has a group of experienced and skilled tech-heads and even planners on site, to handle the audio-visuals and IT needed to bring your MICE dreams into reality.

The St. Regis Kuala Lumpur

Located in Kuala Lumpur Sentral, the 208-room St. Regis Kuala Lumpur, has approaching 5,000 sqm of meeting space, made up of 16 different function areas including: the Reading Room, great for business pow-wows and medium sized receptions; the Screening Room, an intimate private cinema space for eighteen guests, and the Grand Ballroom.

Without claiming to be the biggest in town, the St Regis Grand Ballroom still has plenty to crow about, being “the only ballroom in Asia with seamless projection technology”. Put simply, this is an array of 47 screens formed into LED curtain walls which the ballroom turning it into a ‘digital canvas’, able to transform the space and reflect the unique vision of every individual event.

It’s this versatile tech, and the attentive, knowledgeable conference team, that makes the St Regis my choice for eventing in KL.

Hilton Kuala Lumpur

Just a mere 28 minutes from Kuala Lumpur International Airport, the Hilton’s conference centre is well-placed to strike from out when guests want to discover the thriving city when winding down after a day of speechifying and powerpointing.

Spread over 2322 sqm, the hotel offers 14 meeting rooms, including the pillarless Grand Ballroom, (home to KL’s highest ballroom ceiling), which can handle up to 1,500 reception guests or 1,100 for gala suppers and banquets. The Sentral Ballroom on level six is where you will find the Hilton’s five meeting rooms Sentral Exchange A and B, the Sentral Workroom, Sentral Accord and Sentral Network.

LeveL7even is the Hilton’s crown jewel. This multi-use, high-tech event facility is easily repurposed to fit all manner of MICE activities but is tailor-made for business needs, from team building to corporate AGM’s and town halls. All this is only complemented by the state-of-the-art facilities, audio-visuals and highly competent staff available.

Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur

Closing this week’s list is the mighty Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur. As mentioned earlier, this gleaming tower is situated adjacent to the Kuala Lumpur City Centre development, and the nearby Golden Triangle shopping and entertainment district.

With over 3,300 sq. metres of prime MICE space, the Grand Hyatt houses: the oval 1,045 sqm chandelier-lit Grand Ballroom with a maximum capacity of 1,450 for standing guests and 700 seated; the Grand Salon for events of between 60 to 450 attendees; and the Grand Residence spanning 1,000sqm and comprised of two lounges, four private function rooms and even a loft kitchen.

On top of that (quite literally) is the Sky Lobby Lounge, a rooftop bar par excellence ideal for cocktail receptions and swanky soirees, in full view of KL’s impressive skyline and the iconic Petronas Twin Towers. The whole operation is aided and abetted by high-spec audio-visuals, business centre and a crack squad of event specialists.