Around the world, casinos are usually located in key tourist cities or near luxury hotels and resorts, so they are associated with the luxury aspect. In Vietnam, this trendy form of entertainment is no exception. 6 casinos in Vietnam are licensed to operate in areas and provinces with developed tourism such as Haiphong, Lao Cai, Da Nang, etc.
However, most of the casinos in Vietnam serve foreign visitors. This type of entertainment has been around for a long time, but the Vietnamese did not have access to it. Fun fact is that Vietnam is a country with massive use of cryptocurrency in the world.
Vietnam’s large casinos are unlikely to be viable if locals cannot play at them. The number of such international standard projects, initiated, under construction, or announced at the national level, each of which usually costs several billion US dollars, has increased in recent years.
Promising new complex
Vietnam may soon be home to a new $ 2 billion integrated casino resort on Hon Tre Island in Khanh Hoa province, positioned on the south-central coast. According to local media news, the entertainment and hotel company Vinpearl Co, which is a part of the Vingroup Joint Stock Company, has offered a new complex, which will include a casino, a luxurious hotel with 1200 rooms, conference rooms and a transport system. It is also planned to prepare the area for another luxurious hotel. The cost is going to be around US $ 2.2 billion. Vietnam’s gambling regulations require investors to invest a minimum of US $ 2 billion in any new complex in order to obtain a casino license. Nowadays there are 8 legal casinos in Vietnam, including the Hoiana outside Hoi An, which opened recently, in June last year.
Vinpearl’s proposal includes a number of projects that are in progress on Hon Tre Island, such as several hotels, golf fields and villa projects. The first round of the development process will include an investment of US $ 1.1 billion and will include a brand-new casino, which will start to operate in 2024 and will include more than 200 table games and 2000 slot machines. The second round is expected to be finished in 2025, will have a 1200-room hotel, conference center, transport, other technical infrastructure, and a larger entertainment complex that will house a casino. When they get approval from regulatory bodies, the casino will become the second biggest in the Khanh Hoa region, along with the KN Paradise Cam Ranh project, which was approved in 2019, and is planned to start operating in 2023.
Chinese factor
Recent events, including not only the Covid-19 pandemic but amendments to the Chinese legal code banning so-called “cross-border” gambling, pose problems for any casino business model in the Asia-Pacific region focused on attracting foreign players, especially Chinese ones.
The biggest casinos in Vietnam
Casino Do Son was the first to be approved to operate gambling in Vietnam, and this brand started working two decades ago. This casino is one of the most heavily guarded and Casino Do Son does not allow Vietnamese people to gamble or even enter. Casino Do Son also confirmed that the use of cameras, bags and similar objects is prohibited, and people under the age of 18 are not accepted to enter. This brand has a long history in Vietnam, and the company had many great and bad times in financial terms. In particular, after the first 3 years of losses, Do Son Casino made a profit in the following years. They started to make a profit again in 2005 and they earned more than US $ 45 billion. So far, the market share of Casino Do Son has been declining due to aggressive competition from newer and more modern casinos.
Ha Long Casino, or more known as Royal Casino Ha Long or Royal International Gaming Club, is placed in the lively resort area Bai Chay. This casino was established in 2003 and covers massive 7000 square meters. The modern Ha Long Casino has a variety of tables and around 70 slots, as well as games such as baccarat, roulette, Sic Bo, Blackjack and Texas Hold’em poker. The casino is never closing, it is open 24 hours a day, 7 days in a week.
Ho Tram Strip Casino emerged on the gambling market in 2013. This casino is located in one of the most attractive places in the famous resort of Ba Ria – Vung Tau and today is the largest casino in Vung Tau. Placed in the luxurious Ho Tram tourist resort, this complex was built with a total investment of US $ 4 billion for the entire project, and it is one of the top-performing modern casinos in Vietnam and in the whole region.
Ho Tram Strip Casino had more than 90 table games, over 600 slots and is the first casino in Vietnam to be licensed to operate with foreign players. The whole area is upgraded and completed in 2020 and the casino now has more than 180 tables and over 2000 slot machines.
Vietnam in the future
Vietnam, last month confirmed that Imex Pan Pacific Group has permission to start with making a proposition, that would help Da Nang to grow into ‘a regional-level finance center’ as part of an initiative to transform Vietnam into a highly developed nation by the end 2045. The country leader supposedly at the public signing session, several weeks ago, announced that his administration will start working with international companies that are specialized in a specific field, such as finance, construction, hotel resorts, and casinos.
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Source: Vietnam Insider