The opening of the first integrated casino resort in Europe, Limassol’s €600 mln City Dreams Mediterranean, has been postponed again, pushing the launch date to the end of the year, from autumn.
Initially, the first casino resort was scheduled to open in Cyprus in 2021, mainly due to the pandemic and imposed restrictions on construction works; it was pushed back to late summer 2022.
Talking to state radio CyBC, Deputy Minister of Tourism Savvas Perdios said it was unfortunate the main volume of the project’s construction work coincided with the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.
Perdios noted that restrictions had resulted in a delay in importing raw materials overturning developers’ plans for Europe’s first Integrated Casino Resort.
“According to the information we have from the company’s board of directors, the operation of the casino is postponed until after September, as the company secured an extension from the government until September 30 to complete the project,” said Perdios.
The super casino is expected to attract 300,000 tourists to Cyprus annually.
The initial building license obtained from authorities foresaw that the project should have been completed by 2021.
With the coronavirus outbreak, the ICRC consortium, which consists of Melco Resorts & Entertainment and Cyprus Phassouri (Zakaki), a member of the CNS Group, had asked the government for time credit based on a new plan.
City of Dreams Mediterranean is to become the largest IR, and the only one of its kind in Europe, estimated to create around 4,000 local job opportunities during its construction phase and approximately 2,500 permanent jobs when it opens.
The resort will consist of a 14-storey, five-star hotel with more than 500 luxury guest rooms and suites, approximately 10,000 square meters of MICE space (Meetings, Incentives, Conferencing, Exhibitions), an outdoor amphitheatre, a family adventure park, and a variety of fine-dining restaurants and luxury retail outlets.
Its interior design is customised specifically for its development in Cyprus.
In contrast, its exterior design will feature Mediterranean elements with native plant species mirroring the character of the environment and supporting the landscape’s ecology.
Additionally, 130,000 new trees and indigenous species of flora will be planted, creating a holiday oasis for guests and at the same time reducing carbon emissions.
The resort will also include a retail promenade that bears a resemblance to the old town area of Nicosia.
The development has a high-tech water reuse system for energy-saving optimisation of the building’s orientation and shading.
