Inspire Entertainment Resort opened temporarily on Yeongjongdo, Incheon after about four years of phase one construction1. South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said it granted the resort final approval for a foreigner-only casino business on the 23rd of the month and announced the decision on the 24th1.
An 11-member panel of experts assessed on the 19th that Inspire met all legal requirements for a casino license and had carried out the integrated resort plan it submitted during pre-screening1. The license conditions include continued investment in the non-casino entertainment segment and delivery of further investment plans1.
Inspire is a Korean corporation wholly funded by Mohegan, which operates eight integrated resorts worldwide1. It was selected in March 2016 under the ministry's integrated resort tender and later received a pre-screening suitability notice, a form of preliminary approval for a foreigner-only casino business1.
It is the second large integrated resort on Yeongjongdo, after Paradise City, which opened in April 2017, and is expected to become Northeast Asia's largest integrated resort once a fourth phase, scheduled for completion in 2046, is finished1.
"인천국제공항과 인접한 지리적 이점을 바탕으로 복합리조트 내 시설과 연계한 다양한 관광상품 개발 등을 통해 일본과 싱가포르 등 동아시아 복합리조트 개발 경쟁에서 나름의 역할을 할 수 있을 것으로 보인다"
What it means for players
The casino at Inspire Casino Incheon is licensed for foreign passport holders only, as the license is a foreigner-only casino business1. South Korean nationals are not covered by this license. The resort joins Paradise City as the second large integrated resort on Yeongjongdo, near Incheon International Airport1. Details of table games, floor hours, entry requirements and minimum ages at Inspire have not been reported in the source. For the general rules on who may enter casinos in the country, see Can I Gamble in South Korea? and Casinos and Integrated Resorts in Asia.
What happens next
The license conditions require continued investment in the non-casino entertainment segment and delivery of additional investment plans1. A fourth phase is scheduled for completion in 20461. No opening date for the casino floor itself has been reported.
Sources1 sources
- 문체부, 영종도 인스파이어 외국인 카지노 허가…19년 만에 신규 | 연합뉴스, yna.co.kr
