WanLi Jeju Casino ‘grand opening’ pending ramp up of linked Sheraton Jeju Hotel: exec

The operator of WanLi Jeju Casino – a foreigner-only gaming venue on the South Korean holiday island of Jeju – is yet to decide on its “grand opening” date, following a soft launch this month. The full opening is subject to the associated and freshly-launched Sheraton Jeju Hotel running “more smoothly”, said the gaming venue’s chief operating officer Vincent Loi in comments to GGRAsia. The circa 400-key Sheraton Jeju Hotel (pictured in an artist’s rendering) represents a revamp from the complex’s former Ramada Plaza by Wyndham Jeju Ocean Front. The rejigged hotel opened on September 14. The refreshed and rebranded hotel is yet to see all guest rooms made available, Mr Loi told GGRAsia. WanLi Jeju Casino – also a rejig from the former onsite Gongzi Casino – had a soft launch from September 2. The rejigged gaming venue has a focus on mass play, Mr Loi told GGRAsia in a previous interview. Since that soft launch date, the gaming venue has been hosting 44 gaming tables, with circa 70 percent of them – or 30 tables – for baccarat play, Mr Loi confirmed to GGRAsia in his latest remarks. Of the 30 baccarat tables, 18 are for VIP play. WanLi Jeju Casino also offers Texas hold’em poker, blackjack, and the Chinese card game Niu Niu, according to Mr Loi. The executive observed there had been a “positive” hotel room booking trend among patrons for the upcoming October Golden Week holiday season. The latter is a Chinese festive period. It encompasses China’s National Day on October 1, and is a peak season for outbound travel for mainland Chinese. This year, the holiday is from October 1 to October 7, and was preceded by the lunar-calendar based Mid-Autumn Festival on September 25 to September 27. Within South Korea, there are two holidays in October: the substitute public holiday for National Foundation Day on October 5 (a Monday this time), and Hangeul Day on October 9 (Friday).