Jeju’s KAL Hotel property that hosts MegaLuck Casino to be sold

Jeju’s KAL Hotel property will be sold, according to the hotel’s management, “to overcome its financial difficulties”.

South Korea.- KAL Hotel Network Ltd (KHN) has revealed through a letter sent to the Jeju Tourism Service Labour Union’s KAL Hotel branch that it will sell its Jeju KAL Hotel.

The measure was taken “to overcome its financial difficulties”. However, it is still unknown what will happen to the MegaLuck Casino that is located inside the complex.

A union representative told GGRAsia that the lease contract between MegaLuck and Jeju KAL Hotel is renewable annually, with six months’ prior notice required for termination. 

Last year, the casino company New Silkroad Culturaltainment that operates the MegaLuck casino reported zero revenue for the first half of the year due to the lack of tourism and the temporary closure of its venue amid Covid-19 countermeasures.

According to data from the Jeju Island Tourism Association, the number of tourists visiting Jeju in 2021 exceeded 12 million. However, 99.6 per cent of tourists came from the country.

Authorities pointed out that the total number is still down by about 20 per cent when compared to pre-pandemic levels. In 2019, 15.3 million tourists visited Jeju Island.

As MegaLuck is a foreigner-only casino, it was heavily affected by the Covid-19 countermeasures throughout 2020 and 2021.