With just 90 hectares of a 1,000-hectare property currently in use, Hoiana Resort & Golf has an ambitious plan for how high to set the bar in Vietnam. The integrated resort has dialed in on VIP and premium mass, with its golf offering a primary driver.

Improving infrastructure and the return of international tourism will see integrated resorts in Philippines’ Clark and Cebu regions, and the IRs in Vietnam tipped for a strong rebound over the next few years, says industry veteran Dennis Andreaci. 

Corona Resort & Casino, on Phu Quoc island in Vietnam, said that a reported dispute over a payout to a player has been resolved and involved one of its junkets and not the casino itself.

Corona Resort & Casino, the only operating casino in Vietnam where locals are allowed to gamble, has closed until further notice due to a spike in Covid infections.

Avril Baynes, a resident of Australia’s Northern Territory for three decades, was appointed general manager of the Mindil Beach Casino & Resort in Darwin in November 2020 with a mandate to lead the facility through and beyond the era of the Covid pandemic.

We start the week with a zinger as Blackstone has made an A$8 billion takeover bid for Crown Resorts.

To round out the week we have our Face to Face video interview series, this time with Vicky Melbourne, head of industrials, property, and consumer for South Asia and Southeast Asia at Fitch Ratings, who discusses her analysis of the capital investment plans of Asian gaming firms amidst the pandemic.

The Vietnam Ministry of Finance is looking to extend its three-year casino pilot program to 2024,  which will continue to allow locals to gamble in the Corona Resort on Phu Quoc island in the south and in a yet to be opened resort in Van Don in the north.

The island of Phu Quoc is hosting a series of events aimed at boosting tourism. Called the Mega Series, the events include a poker championship. The island is home to the Corona Resort & Casino, the only one in Vietnam that allows locals to gamble.

Vietnam is targeting some 17 to 18 million international visitors in 2024, with tourism receipts expected to reach some VND840 trillion ($34.7 billion).