Goa to get new floating casino
A company is setting up a 50-room hotel for visitors who come to try their luck Goa’s Mandovi river is soon to be home to what is possibly the largest floating casino in India. Highstreet Cruises and Entertainment, a player in the gaming and entertainment industry, is ready to launch an offshore casino next month.
The company is also simultaneously setting up a 50-room floating hotel in Panjim to accommodate guests who come to try their luck.
Casino Royale will be housed in a ship that is being given its finishing touches and will have 50 gaming tables, over 30 slot machines, restaurants and entertainment areas in addition to live music on its rooftop, Highstreet Cruises director Jaydev Mody, who is at the helm of the casino venture, said.
In addition the ship will also have rooms and suites to house guests who want to extend their gaming session.
Casino Royale will be the first of the five such offshore casinos that are expected to based out of Goa in the next seven to eight months.
The state government is making a concerted pitch for the wallets of the large numbers of Indian and foreign casino enthusiasts who usually have to go to Nepal to gamble, which is illegal in India but Nepal has an extensive network of legalised casinos which find favour with the cash-rich Indian population.
Last year, the Goa government decided to increase the number of offshore casino licences and issue five licences so that the economy, largely dependent on tourism revenues, can get a further boost. Among those who have got these licences are the Salgaonkar group, hospitality player Leela Hotels and at least one casino group from Nepal.
“Goa is absolutely the right location for offshore casinos. About 65 flights come in every day including 30 charter flights full of tourists during season and all of them look for some form of entertainment in addition to the beaches,” Mody said.
The only existing licensed offshore casino in the state, Casino Goa is on a 110 million-Indian rupees (Bt86 million) yatch, the Caravela, and is a joint venture between Advani Pleasure Cruise and Casinos Austria.
The casino opened to much controversy and political uproar with the rival Congress party in the state raising sustained protest against the Bharatiya Janata Party government’s decision to allow a casino to operate in the state when it is illegal in the country.
The decision to host the casino off the mainland has been mainly taken to avoid similar political issues.
Highstreet Cruises and Entertainment will also leverage a regulation that allows gambling in the Union territory of Daman, and has plans to set up a five-star, 100-room hotel there.
“Daman has lovely beaches, has lot of industrial activity and the resultant footfalls, and is very near to Mumbai and Pune. It has great potential for entertainment and gaming activity”, Mody said.
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