Macau casino operator Sands China Ltd has confirmed to GGRAsia that the remodelled former Pacifica casino at The Londoner Macao gaming resort (pictured) opened on Thursday (September 26).
“We are pleased to confirm that The Londoner Grand Casino opened to the public at noon today,” said a company spokesperson.
A recent note from brokerage Goldman Sachs (Asia) Ltd had mentioned – citing conversations with Macau gaming managements on a recent investor trip to the city – that the rejigged casino space at The Londoner Macao might open “around the Golden Week holidays”.
October Golden Week is a major festive break for mainland China consumers and a peak trading period for Macau’s casinos, and this year runs from October 1 to October 7 inclusive.
A December timeline for the gaming space opening, and a fresh branding as Londoner Grand Casino, was mentioned by Robert Goldstein, chairman and chief executive of Sands China’s parent Las Vegas Sands Corp, on the group’s second-quarter earnings call in July.
Goldman Sachs had stated that pending the revamp, the former Pacifica gaming area – a portion of the overall gaming space at the Londoner Macao – had been closed, “with some 20-plus tables being shifted to another temporarily set-up premium mass area”.
The institution added that the refreshed space would be “serving both premium and base mass customers”.
The research note also discussed the remodelling of hotel space at The Londoner Macao. It stated: “Roughly 2,500 to 3,000 [former] Sheraton hotel rooms are closed for renovation, versus 1,500 to 2,000 in second-quarter 2024.”
The refreshed hotel space has also been rebranded as Londoner Grand, and is to be marketed under The Luxury Collection Hotels & Resorts system of Marriott International Inc.
According to corporate information, the relaunched Londoner Grand hotel towers will have 2,405 rooms compared to the Sheraton-branded towers’ pre-renovation 3,968. The number of suites within that total will go up to 1,500, from 360 previously.
The renovation of the Sheraton and Conrad hotels, as well as the revamp of the former Pacifica casino space, are part of Phase II of the transformation of the British-themed The Londoner Macao property in Cotai, which has a price tag of US$1.2 billion, according to the casino firm.
Following a US$1.35-billion investment for Phase I, the Londoner Macao now features the architecture of the Palace of Westminster in London, including the clock tower popularly known as Big Ben. An additional US$400 million was spent on developing Londoner Court, an accommodation tower with circa 370 suites.
