ShareWynn Resorts reported that it plans to build a multi-billion-dollar luxury resort featuring a "gaming area" on the artificial Al Marjan Island in Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates.
According to the company's statement, the proposed facility would feature a luxurious 1000 room hotel with ten restaurants, a convention center, shopping areas, a spa, and a gaming area.
The new resort would be "built with considerable foreign direct investment by Wynn Resorts," according to Wynn. Furthermore, when it comes to the hotel industry in the United Arab Emirates, this project is the biggest of its type. The upscale resort is projected to positively influence the local economy by creating employment, promoting tourism, and boosting hospitality.
This news coincided with the Ras al-Khaimah Tourism Development Authority (RAKTDA) announcement revealing the creation of a new section dubbed the Department of Entertainment and Gaming Regulation to regulate "integrated resorts," hinting that they may ease entertainment regulations.
Integrated resorts are hotels that include casinos and other entertainment options. The first aim for the new agency, according to RAKTDA, will be a regulatory framework that ensures "the responsible practice of recreational gaming at all levels."
In the hotel and leisure industry, "gaming" is commonly used as a synonym for "gambling", even if it isn't clear whether this refers to cash betting. A statement from Ras al-Khaimah's government communications office, RAKTDA, RAK Hospitality Holdings, and Wynn Resorts has yet to be issued on the possibility of allowing gaming in the Emirate.
According to diplomats, the UAE may seek to allow 'gambling' as part of broader legal revisions to keep its dominance as a tourism and economic center in the face of increased regional competition.
Casino and hotel operator Caesars launched its first non-gaming project, a resort on Dubai's Bluewaters Island, in 2018. Ras al-Khaimah government and Wynn have stated that the construction of the Wynn resort will be completed in 2026.
Abdulla al-Abdooli, chief executive of Ras al-Khaimah's master-developer Marjan, stated: "The integrated development, featuring a world-class hotel, entertainment, and gaming amenities, will add to the Emirate's destination strategy to attract tourists from across the world."
Alcohol use in the United Arab Emirates has been permitted, but gambling has not been legalized and is prohibited in Islam and all six Gulf Cooperation Council states.
