IMGL Magazine January 2023

MENA REGION

A review of developments in the Middle East and North Africa IN THIS MAJORITY MUSLIM REGION IT MAY SURPRISE READERS TO LEARN THAT CASINO AND OTHER GAMES ARE NOT ONLY PERMISSIBLE BUT NEW DEVELOPMENTS ARE COMING ONSTREAM. ANDREW COTTON AND ALASTAIR HOLLAND SHARE DETAILS

One of the most significant and interesting developments in the land-based casino industry is starting to take shape in the United Arab Emirates – yes, you read that correctly! Ras Al Khaimah, an Emirate that is about an hour’s drive from Dubai, seeks to triple the number of tourists it attracts to three million by the end of the decade and along with Dubai has created man made islands “off shore” to help it achieve that ambition. In January 2022 Wynn announced plans to develop an integrated resort in the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah. On 10th November Wynn Resorts confirmed that it would open a gaming area at the luxury resort being constructing on Dream Island, part of Ras Al Khaimah’s Al Marjan Island project built on land reclaimed from the sea. Unlike the rest of Al Marjan Island, Dream Island has seen no development.

the ‘Wynn Integrated Resort’ will be the only hotel on Dream Island, as all other resort projects are spread across zones known as Breeze Island, Treasure Island and View Island. The development is the first beach resort being developed by Wynn Resorts globally. The current plans includes a 1,000- plus room hotel, a high-end shopping mall, a state-of-the- art meeting and convention facility, a spa, more than 10 restaurants and lounges, a wide array of entertainment choices and other amenities, including a gaming area. The proposed resort is set to be constructed on a site of some 250,000 sq m. Wynn’s CEO Craig Billings announced in November that the casino element would be around 18,500 sq m in size and so will become one of the ten biggest casinos in the world and almost double the size of the one in Wynn’s Las Vegas Resort. When Wynn announced its plans a year ago it confirmed it would only enter a market where gaming legislation is in place. It is not clear whether this condition has been fulfilled or even whether the requisite gaming legislation has been drafted although it has been reported that it will be modelled on regimes in Singapore and the United States. The Ras Al

Wynn Resort Ras Al Khaimah - the detail announced to date

Under the current plans for the Al Marjan Island development

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IMGL MAGAZINE | JANUARY 2023

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