Magnolia Quality Development Corporation (MQDC) plans to invest more than 20 billion baht to develop The Happitat, a themed destination in the 398-rai mixed-use residential project The Forestias, combining real and virtual experiences across a vast area.
Orada Kerdhong, president of Storied Place at MQDC, said The Happitat is set to elevate destination development to new heights, with the aim of being a place that people will want to constantly return to.
"Every visit will give them new experiences as a result of a year-round calendar of indoor and outdoor activities, a rich mix of lifestyle pursuits and the integration of virtual reality experiences across many aspects in the future," she said.
MQDC's goal is to evoke a consistent sense of excitement and pleasure of discovery in people during each visit, while also creating a sense of cosy familiarity and comfort.
"That's why we've called it The Happitat, a combination of the words 'habitat' and 'happiness'," Ms Orada said. "We want The Happitat at The Forestias to be a place where people create unforgettable memories."
The Happitat's footprint of almost 60 rai will include the forest at the heart of The Forestias, numerous gardens, parade grounds, hundreds of shops, food and beverage providers, and other service outlets.
There will also be learning and entertainment facilities, cultural and social facilities, multiple marketplaces, a science museum, and offices. The project will include three buildings with a total gross floor area of around 211,000 square metres.
Ms Orada said MQDC engaged some of the world's most eminent international experts in destination planning and entertainment to draw up The Happitat's masterplan.
"It's an ingenious layout that lets people move from a cityscape and city life along the main highway at the entrance of The Forestias, through various stages that ultimately brings a visitor to quiet nature at the edge of the 30-rai forest," she said.
It will also be a fulfilling journey from a busy urban environment to an extraordinary natural environment. This new themed destination of happiness will engage multiple generations with diverse activities.
The horizontal movement from city life to deep forest takes people through a route in which there are multiple magical experiences throughout. Visitors can linger along the way and simply enjoy parts of the journey, or enter and exit the journey at any point.
In the future, with the addition of mixed virtual reality experiences, this journey will become not only fun, but also educational, as well as creating commercial opportunities for co-creators to reach more customers with a wider selection of offerings.
One of the most important functions of The Happitat is to act as a lively hub for The Forestias community and its multiple components and residential projects, as well as for visitors from outside of the development.
Cultural and social facilities, such as 4,000 sq m dedicated to theatres as well as space for various events and live performances by members of The Forestias resident community, cultural groups and professional performers, all aim to help create a sense of community and to transform everyday places into vibrant locales.
"We want families to be able to spend more time together," Ms Orada said. "To make that possible, we're ensuring that every member of a family, across multiple generations, will be able to find lots to engage them productively and pleasurably, whether it be activities they pursue individually or together, and even including their pet family members, too."
Among the outstanding features is an event plaza and avenues that will host parades and events throughout the year and which will become a signature experience of The Happitat.
Many of these activities are intended to be magical for children, enchanting them and engaging them through meet-and-greets with fantasy characters as well as through direct participation.
"The Happitat will be the first destination in the world to bring together three elements to create the most exceptional destination development project, being space, events, and the virtual world," said Ms Orada.
The first element will be about having beautiful spaces where all generations and entire families can spend time together, whether they choose to dine, pursue leisure, lifestyle, health and wellness or entertainment activities, learning activities or cultural activities, and be in close proximity to nature in a safe and healthy environment.
"We combine that with events, shows and parades that aim to amaze and thrill people of all ages," Ms Orada said. "We will provide facilities and create opportunities for people to go beyond observing such activities to conduct their own events and be active participants in community initiatives."
The third element is to do with the virtual world, where people of any age can enjoy and learn from mixed virtual reality experiences, or even fully enter virtual reality worlds and engage in activities and leisure pursuits, individually, as a family, or even with other members of real and virtual communities.
In the future, these experiences will be embedded throughout The Happitat and extend right into the forest so that people can learn about nature and interact with animals with the help of augmented reality.
"These are things never before done together on such a scale, and we've already covered an enormous amount of ground to make this all happen," Ms Orada said.
Kittiphun Ouiyamaphun, MQDC's president responsible for The Forestias development, said investments in The Happitat will exceed 20 billion baht in just its first phase.
"We're investing heavily because it is an important part of fulfilling The Forestias's promise to be a town that is built from the ground up for healthy and happy living," he said.
It is a key component that will help bond The Forestias community as well as draw families closer together in line with the company's goals to create not just a clean, green, and orderly community, but also one that is fun and filled with vitality.
Construction and other preparations for The Happitat are around 70% complete.
