The management of Jeju Sun Hotels & Casinos has a foreign-only game center in Jeju, a South Korean holiday destination, and is confident of a post-pandemic business recovery with the support of its parent company, the Philippines-listed Bloomberry Resort.
This could include bringing customers to Jeju from the Philippines, where Bloomberry Resorts operates Solaire Resorts and casinos in the capital Manila, and taking advantage of the marketing experience of Filipino parents, Jeju Sun’s gaming director and the venue’s chief executive, respectively.
Jeju Line resumed hotel and casino operations on Oct. 3 at the request of local governments for the entire casino industry on the semi-autonomous island. 경마사이트프로
Casinos on the Jeju line offer 44 table games – 38 baccarat tables, 2 roulette, 3 blackjacks, 1 dice camera die, known as sicbo in the Macau market. The property also has 51 slot machines and 8 electronic table games.
Lee Sung-yeol, CEO of Jeju Sun Hotel and Casino, told GGRAcia in an on-site interview conducted at the property, “It was difficult to establish a post-pandemic strategy because the period of the COVID-19 pandemic era was unpredictable.”
Nevertheless, Lee explained the advantages of his wealth in the Jeju market.
“Our headquarters, Bloomberry Resorts, owns Solar Resorts and Casino in Entertainment City Manila. So we were able to leverage our marketing skills and customer service know-how.”
Regarding the operation of Jeju Island, he added, “We also own our hotel,” which he said does not apply to other foreign-only casino operators on Jeju Island.
Regarding the scope of the new business relationship between Jeju Sun and its parents, Amiel Menes, the game director of Jeju Sun, told GGRAcia, “For example, we can plan to promote Solaire’s invitation to the Jeju Sun to VIPs and public players.”
Airplane ramp up, request lifting ban
Jeju Sun CEO Lee said, “For the prosperity of our business, it is very important to increase the number of direct international flights to Jeju.” According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, a total of 41 direct international flights from East Asia to Jeju are scheduled every week from October 30 to March 25 next year.
This is still only a fraction of the total number of international round-trip passenger air services per week linked to Jeju in the year before the 2019 pandemic deal, according to ministry data reviewed by GGRAcia.
“When direct flights from the Philippines to Jeju are opened, we expect an influx from the Philippines because Filipinos now have a great desire for Korean culture,” Menes said.
Lee said South Korean authorities can help the Korean industry by allowing advertisements at foreign visitors’ arrival points, with 16 of the country’s 17 casinos only for foreign players.
“We want to exclude casinos from the list that prohibit casino advertising in public places, including airports,” he told GGRAcia. He added that this “deregulation” would help “casino sales and marketing activities.” Related restrictions are covered by two separate laws in Korea.
According to data from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, regarding Jeju Sun’s regional competitors, Menes is the property of Korea-listed Paradise Co., LtdAccording to Is Casino Jeju Grand’s walking distance from Jeju Sun, FaradaThis Jeju has 36 table games and 38 slot machines.
Regarding Jeju’s potential competition with Macau for foreign players, the latter said it would like to reduce its dependence on mainland Chinese players in the future and attract more customers from abroad. Mr. Menes said, “The Macau casino industry is a ‘world’ completely different from Jeju casinos, so it’s hard to compare at the moment.”
Although he added that if Japan’s integrated resort (IR) industry starts operations, Jeju operator Jeju Line will expect “synergy” rather than zero-sum competition due to the “close proximity” of the Japanese market. Mr Menes said Nagasaki, a Japanese community competing for IR, is “only 300 kilometers from Jeju.”
The ongoing lobbying activity within the Jeju casino industry is to obtain permission to provide “agent bets” to foreign players who do not physically exist in local casinos. Mr Menes noted that a proxy betting bill is currently being presented to the National Assembly. “We have proxy betting experience,” he added, through his parents’ Solaire operations in Manila. “That’s another advantage for us,” the executive said, compared to other Korean casinos.
