Casino hotels have long been part of the image of major international gambling destinations. When people think of Las Vegas, they often imagine large resort hotels with restaurants, shows, elegant casino floors, slot machines and gaming tables all under one roof.
Dubai already had many of the other ingredients of such a destination when this article was originally written in 2018: spectacular hotels, international restaurants, nightlife, shopping, beaches and a large number of visitors from around the world.
It was therefore understandable that tourists sometimes searched for a Dubai Casino Hotel. What they would not find in Dubai in 2018, however, was a conventional casino hotel comparable to those in Las Vegas or Macau.
Casino Hotels and Dubai in 2018
Dubai’s luxury hotel industry was already among the most impressive in the world. Visitors could stay in five-star resorts, enjoy fine dining, visit beach clubs, attend international events and experience a nightlife and entertainment scene that continued to expand.
Casino gaming itself was not part of these Dubai hotels.
This distinction is important because the term “casino hotel” traditionally describes a resort in which a regulated gaming floor forms part of the hotel and entertainment complex. Dubai’s luxury resorts offered many forms of entertainment, but they were not conventional casino hotels.
Costa Fortuna – A Casino at Sea
One unusual connection between Dubai tourism and casino entertainment during this period came from international cruise ships.
The Costa Fortuna, for example, included a casino among its onboard entertainment facilities and was used on cruise itineraries connected with Dubai and other destinations in the region.
This offered an interesting contrast to Dubai’s hotel market: passengers could travel aboard a cruise ship equipped with a casino even though Dubai itself did not have conventional land-based casino hotels.
The ship’s casino should not, however, be described as a casino in Dubai. Casino operations aboard cruise ships depend on the ship’s location, applicable maritime rules and the policies of the cruise operator.
Casinos in Dubai
From Casino Hotels to Online Casino Games
Another reason people searched for Casinos in Dubai was the rapid growth of online casino gaming.
By 2018, players no longer necessarily had to travel to a traditional casino destination simply to discover casino games. Slots, blackjack, roulette, baccarat and poker were increasingly available through international online casino platforms.
This was a very different experience from staying at a casino hotel. A physical casino resort combined gaming with restaurants, entertainment and hospitality, while an online casino concentrated primarily on digital games that could be accessed through a computer, tablet or smartphone.
International online casinos should not, however, have been described as physical or locally licensed “Dubai Casino Hotels” simply because their websites could be accessed through the internet.
Playing Online in Arabic
One development that made online casinos more interesting to players from different parts of the world was the increasing availability of multiple languages.
Some international casino platforms began providing Arabic-language pages, customer support or game interfaces, making it easier for Arabic-speaking players to understand games and navigate casino websites.
The quality of Arabic support varied considerably between operators. For players who preferred Arabic, language support could therefore be one of several features to compare alongside game selection, usability and payment options.
Variety of Online Casino Games
Online casinos also offered something that was difficult for a physical casino hotel to reproduce on the same scale: a very large selection of games in one place.
Popular categories included:
- Online slots
- Blackjack
- Roulette
- Baccarat
- Poker and casino poker games
- Live dealer games
Different versions of the same game could also be offered. Roulette, for example, was available in European and American variants, while blackjack could be played under different rules and table formats.
This variety became one of the defining characteristics of online casino gaming.
Casinos Dubai – Bonuses and Payment Methods
People searching for Casinos Dubai online also encountered another feature of the digital casino market: promotions.
Welcome bonuses, free spins and other promotions were commonly used by international casino operators. Their real value depended not only on the advertised amount but also on the conditions attached to the offer.
Payment methods were another important difference between online casinos. Bank cards, bank transfers and electronic wallets were among the methods used internationally during this period.
Availability depended on the casino, payment provider and user’s location. There was therefore no single payment method that could be assumed to work at every online casino or in every country.
Dubai Casino Hotel
Casino Hotel Dubai was an interesting concept in 2018 precisely because it combined something Dubai already had in abundance – spectacular luxury hotels – with something the city did not have: a conventional casino floor.
It was easy to imagine how such a resort might look. Dubai already had luxury suites, internationally known restaurants, spas, pools, beach clubs, nightlife, shopping and live entertainment.
A casino hotel would theoretically add another entertainment component to this existing resort model, with gaming tables and slot machines forming part of a larger hospitality experience.
At the time, however, this remained a concept rather than an existing Dubai hotel category.
What Makes a Casino Hotel Different?
A genuine casino hotel is more than a hotel located near gambling facilities. The casino itself normally forms part of the resort.
International casino resorts can combine:
- Hotel rooms and suites
- Casino gaming floors
- Restaurants and bars
- Live shows and entertainment
- Shopping
- Spas and pools
- Nightlife
- VIP hospitality
This integrated-resort concept helps explain why the idea of a Dubai Casino Hotel attracted interest even when no such resort existed in the city.
Update: The Casino Hotel Idea in the UAE Today
Editor’s note: This article was originally written in 2018. The UAE gaming landscape has changed considerably since then.
The UAE has since established the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA), creating a federal regulatory framework for specified forms of commercial gaming.
Dubai itself still has no publicly announced licensed conventional land-based casino hotel project.
However, the casino-hotel concept that seemed largely hypothetical when this article was written is now becoming reality elsewhere in the UAE.
Wynn Al Marjan – The Integrated Gaming Resort Near Dubai
Wynn Al Marjan Island is being developed in Ras Al Khaimah rather than Dubai. Its operating entity, Island 3 AMI FZ-LLC (DBA: Wynn Al Marjan), is listed by the GCGRA as a Land-Based Gaming Facilities Licensee.
The project combines luxury accommodation, restaurants and lounges, entertainment, shopping, beach and pool facilities, a spa, a private marina and a substantial gaming area.
This makes Wynn Al Marjan particularly interesting when looking back at an article about the idea of a Dubai Casino Hotel written in 2018.
The integrated casino-resort concept is no longer merely theoretical in the UAE – but the confirmed development is in Ras Al Khaimah, not Dubai.
Dubai Casino Hotel – Then and Now
| 2018 | Today |
|---|---|
| No conventional casino hotel in Dubai | No publicly announced licensed conventional casino hotel in Dubai |
| Casino Hotel Dubai primarily a search concept | Still a future-oriented Dubai search topic |
| Cruise ships provided an interesting casino connection | UAE now has a regulated commercial gaming framework |
| No GCGRA | GCGRA regulates and licenses commercial gaming |
| No licensed UAE integrated gaming resort under development | Wynn Al Marjan under development in Ras Al Khaimah |
Dubai Casino Hotel – A Concept That Became More Relevant
Looking back at this article from 2018 is interesting because the basic question behind it has not disappeared.
Dubai was already a world-class luxury hotel destination, but without conventional casino hotels. Online casinos and even casino-equipped cruise ships offered very different forms of gaming entertainment, but neither should have been confused with a physical casino resort in Dubai.
What has changed is the wider UAE market. Commercial gaming now has a federal regulatory framework, and an integrated gaming resort is being developed in Ras Al Khaimah.
Whether Dubai itself will eventually add a casino hotel to its enormous hospitality industry remains an open question. Until an appropriate project is officially announced and licensed, Dubai Casino Hotel remains an interesting possibility rather than an existing category of Dubai resort.