A variable separation approach is used to obtain localized coherent structures in a generalized (2+1)-dimensional nonlinear Schrödinger system. Applying a special Bäcklund transformation and introducing arbitrary functions of the seed solutions, the abundance of the localized structures of this system are derived. By selecting the arbitrary functions appropriately, some special types of localized excitations such as dromions, dromion lattice, peakons, breathers and instantons are constructed.