Macau Galaxy Launches

Asia’s newest and biggest gambling resort, the Galaxy Macau, opened for business May 15 on 550,000 square meters of Macau’s Cotai Strip.

The resort boasts a rooftop wave pool, more than 50 restaurants and bars and 2,000 rooms comprising three hotels – the Banyan Tree, the Okura, and the Galaxy.

To ensure everyone in the region will know about the opening, management has taken out 10,000 square meters of advertising space in Hong Kong’s busiest train station in Tsim Sha Tsui, through which almost every tourist to the city passes.

The Galaxy is also carrying out a blitz ad campaign in newspapers and on television throughout Asia, pointing out just how competitive the gaming market has become in Macau, which is now home to 33 casinos.

The far-reaching character of the ad campaign also indicates that the competition is farther afield. Though Singapore has only two casinos, their combined revenues amounted to $5.1 billion in 2010, the first year they were fully operational.

Though this falls far short of Macau’s $23.5 billion, it compares well with Las Vegas, which brought in $5.8 billion in 2010.
Business leaders in Macau are said to be worried because the Chinese government has taken note and vowed to limit casino development in the future.

For now, however, the former Portuguese territory is raking it in.

In terms of visitors last year, Macau had 25 million and Singapore 12 million. It has been reported that these numbers have greatly impressed neighbors in the region.

Vietnam and Fiji are not planning to increase their gaming industries. For its part, the resorts in Macau and Singapore will attempt to increase the number of concerts by international stars.