The Borneo Convention Centre Kuching, soon to be joined by the timber-framed BCCK2 as the city makes room for larger events.
Kuching has spent the past 18 months rearranging its furniture. Pullman Kuching has given its Colosseum Grand Ballroom a distinctly Sarawakian look, Hilton Kuching has emerged from a top-to-toe renovation, and the former Century Kuching Hotel has returned as voco Kuching. At the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching (BCCK), the frame of a second convention centre is taking shape. The city is not just redecorating, it is making room.
For most of its 20 years, Business Events Sarawak (BESarawak) has sold Kuching on character: rainforest, river, culture and legacy-minded hosting. The harder sell has been scale and access. That is changing, and the stakes are rising. In 2028, Kuching is due to host the International Water Association World Water Congress and Exhibition, an event that will demand more air seats into the city, more rooms and larger halls.
Change is in the air, and it is visible
AirBorneo, the Sarawak-owned carrier that took over MASwings' network on 1 January, began jet operations on 20 July with Kuching-Kuala Lumpur flights and launched its first international route, to Singapore, two days later. It plans to grow from two wet-leased Boeing 737-800s to five jets by the end of the year and 17 aircraft by 2030.
“Once we get a few more aircraft, that is where we ramp up to double daily, and also maybe by the first quarter next year, we will see a third daily flight,” AirBorneo CEO Megat Ardian Aminuddin told The Star after the Singapore launch. A third daily flight would make same-day business trips between Kuching and Singapore possible. Sarawak Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg has also said a Kuching-Jakarta route will launch this month.
Other carriers are adding capacity too. AirAsia will lift its Kuala Lumpur-Kuching service from 63 to 77 weekly flights from November, Firefly will move to 14 weekly flights on the route from February 2027, and Malaysia Airlines will add frequencies next year.
The airport itself is under strain. Kuching International Airport handled 5.7 million passengers in 2025, above its design capacity of five million, and a proposed new airport at Tanjung Embang remains a long-term project.
Room to celebrate: BESarawak's 20th-anniversary gala filled voco Kuching's Rainforest Ballroom, which opened in June 2026.More rooms, refreshed ballrooms
On the ground, Kuching has gained new supply and refreshed product. Opened in June as IHG's first voco hotel in Malaysia, voco Kuching adds 321 rooms and more than 2,400 sqm of event space, including a Rainforest Ballroom for up to 1,350 guests. The hotel has since hosted the PATA Gala Dinner and a series of government and institutional functions, and served as the artist hotel for the Rainforest World Music Festival.
“The combination of accommodation and event capacity allows us to support larger groups and more complex programmes under one roof,” said director of sales Ivan Chai, who added that interest from corporate and association groups is growing.
Pullman Kuching has taken a different route. Rather than enlarging its Colosseum Grand Ballroom, which seats up to 1,000 for a banquet and 2,000 theatre-style, the 389-room hotel has used its renovation to build a stronger sense of place. The ballroom takes its design cues from the limestone formations of Gunung Mulu, while the lobby draws on Sarawak's forests.
“The proposition is not simply about providing a larger venue, but about giving organisers a more distinctive sense of place, combining the scale and functionality required for conferences, galas and corporate events with an experience that is recognisably Sarawakian,” said director of sales Elisha Bibiana.
Hilton Kuching completed its renovation in 2025, including a redesigned Grand Ballroom, while Sheraton Kuching's pillarless ballroom seats up to 700. Properties such as The Waterfront Hotel, Imperial Hotel Kuching and Riverside Majestic Hotel add further options. Citywide, room supply of more than 9,000 is expected to reach about 10,000 ahead of the SEA Games in September 2027, according to the Malaysia Association of Hotels Sarawak Chapter.
Hardware alone will not win the business, argues BESarawak CEO Jason Tan Chin Foo. “When a venue or hotel sells their property, they are not selling a property. They need to sell the destination together,” he said at a recent industry panel in Kuala Lumpur.
What planners should know now
The upgrades will not all arrive at once. Kuching's hydrogen-powered Autonomous Rapid Transit (ART) system begins pilot operations only this quarter, with full service planned for 2027, and a new airport is years away. Planners should also expect tight room availability around the SEA Games.
BCCK doubles up
The biggest change is still under construction. Targeted for completion in March 2028, the RM550 million (US$134 million) BCCK2 is designed as one of the world's largest single-floor timber structures, with 15,500 sqm of covered space, a 42m clear span and room for up to 9,500 people.
Together, the two buildings will operate as one integrated campus, with two main halls, a multipurpose hall, 34 meeting rooms and capacity for up to 15,000 people at one time.
“A major congress could be taking place in one part of the campus while another event runs at the same time, or a single large event could spread across both buildings,” said Abby Beti Philip, marketing manager at BCCK.
Forward bookings have already begun. The World Water Congress is confirmed for 2028, and BCCK is in talks on exhibitions, corporate events, live entertainment and other large-scale events. “BCCK2 opens conversations which were previously much harder to have,” Philip said.
“For Kuching, it gives us the opportunity to compete for events that previously may have looked at the city and said the venue capacity was not quite there,” she added. “From 2028, that conversation changes.”