Caribbean tourism betting on casinos

As I tweeted about the passing of the casino gambling bill in Jamaica earlier this week, I wondered how much of an impact casinos really have on tourism. Tourism, was, after all, one of the reasons given for the introduction of the bill which has been undergoing debate for almost a year.

Senator Arthur Williams, Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, reminded Jamaicans that the Casino Act 2010 would expand their tourism product, increase earnings, generate employment and increase tax revenues. In short, it would provide a much needed economic boon.

Instead of allowing the wanton establishment of casinos all over the island, the Act cleverly allows casinos in the context of luxury integrated resort developments, of which casino gaming will be but one component. It is expected that these resorts will also provide other tourist attractions such as shopping, sports and service centres. The Act states that casino gaming should be no more than 20 per cent of the total investment in any such approved resort.

Casinos are not new to the Caribbean; islands such as the Bahamas, which is facing a challenge from the US where more and more states are legalising gaming, has had a long-established relationship with casinos.

However, in recent times, it seems more islands are latching on to the idea of gambling as a tourism revenue earner, possibly as a response to the drop in tourist arrivals experienced last year.

Guyana, for one, welcomed its first in-house casino in March when the Princess Hotel opened theirs under legislation which states that the issuance of casino premises licenses will be granted only to a new hotel or resort complex which has a minimum of 150 rooms allocated for accommodation.

President Bharath Jagdeo, who apparently finds gambling distasteful, said his government is allowing it as a way for investors in the hotel business to accelerate their profitability. He also said the number of casinos in the country will be limited and they will be strictly monitored.

Barbados, which my Internet research shows has only one casino, is currently working on legislation to allow cruise ships to open their casinos while docked on the island. This is all part of the government's attempt to develop the island's cruise tourism and a task force has been set up to look at how they could improve in that area.

So are all these countries on the right track in choosing casino gambling as a boost to their tourism product?

Moral and spiritual arguments aside, casino gambling can serve to help with the development of the tourism industry.

Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes explored this topic in a research paper on the question: How can casino gaming be used to maximise the benefits for tourism destinations?

The authors, Ki-Joon Back and John Bowen, argued that "casinos that target tourists maximise the benefits to their region's citizens and minimise gaming's negative effects. Las Vegas' transformation from a gaming destination into a meeting destination with gaming provides evidence of how gaming can support tourism."

They said a well-managed gaming operation, which provides a good value proposition to its target market, with fair government regulations and taxation, can produce good income. "We believe that a positive use of this income is to create amenities, such as restaurants, entertainment, and spas that can be used as a catalyst to attract both business tourism, in the form of meetings, and leisure tourism. These amenities can become profit centers in themselves; so, once created, they also provide a return on their investment."