SINGAPORE — The venue of popular dance music festival Ultra Singapore was changed at the eleventh hour because organisers wanted to give participants a “fully immersive indoor experience” without worrying about the weather.

Amid talk circulating online that the event would be cancelled earlier in the week, organisers confirmed on Tuesday (June 4) night that the show will be moved indoors.

It will now take place at Basement 2 of the Sands Expo and Convention Centre, at Marina Bay Sands (MBS).

In response to TODAY’s queries on why there was a change in venue, a spokesperson for Ultra Singapore said: “With the weather always on our mind, the (MBS) Convention Centre has always been part of our contingency plan.

“We were notified of the last minute availability of a large suite of rooms totalling 17,000 sq metres and took the opportunity to engage our fans with a fully immersive indoor experience.”

However, because of the smaller venue, organisers had to cut some local and regional acts from the lineup, and limit the remaining number of tickets, said the spokesperson.

She added that there “will be a reshuffle in staging”, but the headline acts will remain the same.

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‘AIR-CONDITIONED COMFORT’

The annual festival, scheduled to take place over this weekend (June 8 and 9), was originally supposed to be held at Ultra Park, an outdoor field near MBS.

With an indoor venue, however, attendees will be able to enjoy the festival “from the moment they arrive rather than waiting for the sun to set to experience the lasers and pyro shows”, the spokesperson added.

“Furthermore there won’t be any complaints about the rain, the sun, the heat (and) the mud, as our guests take advantage of the air conditioning.”

There was some uncertainty earlier in the week over whether the event will be held, as netizens noted that the construction of the festival's three stages had not started on the field, with less than a week to go.

However, on Monday (June 3) night, some attendees had received e-tickets indicating that there would be a change in venue.

One of them was Ms Belinda Chong. She said she had bought her tickets a month ago but only received her e-ticket on Monday night.

The 24-year-old designer, who works in the advertising industry, said she was relieved after receiving her e-ticket via e-mail. “I was worried because I had already booked and paid for a hotel stay because of the festival. I can get a refund on the ticket but not the hotel stay,” she said.

While the indoor venue is “very small”, there is “nothing (festivalgoers) can do to change that,” she added.

Some of the biggest names from the electronic dance music world, including Skrillex, Martin Garrix and Porter Robinson, are set to headline Ultra Singapore this year.

The annual music festival is now in its fourth year. Last year's edition attracted 41,000 revellers over two days.