Inside Asian Gaming

IAG JUL 2021年7月 亞博匯 22 COVER STORY Dutch-inspired theme park Huis Ten Bosch is the selected site for a Nagasaki IR. 長崎IR的選址地是荷蘭主題公園豪斯登堡。 A fter a stagnant and coronavirus-affected 2020, the race for Japanese integrated resorts has intensified in 2021. Of the four contests in the Japanese locations to have formally declared their interest in being one of up to three Japanese IR sites, the quest to become Nagasaki’s officially selected operator is arguably the most competitive. With MGM in Osaka and the Clairvest-led consortium in Wakayama both enjoying “last man standing” status, and Yokohama down to a Genting Singapore versus Melco Resorts two-horse race, which neither may win if the 22 August mayoral election result goes the wrong way, it is Nagasaki providing the intrigue right now for IR industry commentators. After launching its RFP process on 7 January this year, Nagasaki culled five interested parties down to three in March. The winner is currently slated to be announced in late August. Nagasaki has consistently and vigorously promoted itself as a candidate IR site for years, while arguably more attractive locations across the length and breadth of the Japanese archipelago have come and gone. The site is long established: the Huis Ten Bosch (HTB) theme park some 20 minutes’ drive south of the center of Sasebo City. Located on Omura Bay, the theme park opened in 1992 and features recreations of Dutch buildings including a Royal Palace. After some early success, the theme park fell on harder times in the 2000s and