Foreign Tourist Boom for Casino and Hotel: Jeju Dream Tower Overcomes Middle East Uncertainty, Achieves First 60 Billion Won Sales in April
Lotte Tour Development’s Integrated Resort Reports Growth
Increase in Foreign Visitors Despite Middle East Conflict
Casino Hold Rate at 22.6%, Approaching Macau Average
Hotel Revenues Rise Alongside Surge in Foreign Guests
The Jeju Dream Tower Complex Resort, operated by Lotte Tour Development, continued its strong performance last month as the influx of foreign tourists increased despite the ongoing impact of the Middle East conflict.
On May 4, Lotte Tour Development announced that Jeju Dream Tower Complex Resort recorded a total revenue of 63,492,000,000 won from its two main divisions, casino and hotel, in April. This figure marks a 38.9% year-on-year increase and represents the highest April result in the resort’s history.
For the month of April, net sales from the foreigner-only casino division (total sales minus agent commissions and other fees) reached 48,842,000,000 won, driving overall performance. This amount represents a 20.9% increase compared to the previous month (40.4 billion won) and a 48.5% jump from the same period last year (32.9 billion won). The table drop amount (the sum exchanged for chips to play casino games) was 205,339,000,000 won, up 8.7% year-on-year. The number of visitors rose 27.9% to 58,534. On a daily average basis, the figure was 1,951, the second highest ever after September 2023, when it was 1,968.
The hold rate (the percentage of money the casino wins from customers in table games) also came in at 22.6%. The company emphasized that this figure is close to the average hold rate of 26.1% (as of 2025) at nine mega casino resorts in Macau’s Cotai region, such as Galaxy and Venetian, which are known for the world’s highest profitability.
The hotel division (Grand Hyatt Jeju) posted sales of 14,650,000,000 won last month, up 14.1% from a year earlier (12,838,000,000 won) and 19.5% from the previous month (12,264,000,000 won). The number of rooms sold for the month totaled 42,064, pushing the occupancy rate (OCC) to 87.6%, a 14.2% increase from the prior month. During this period, the proportion of foreign guests reached an all-time high of 77.3%, up about 12 percentage points from 65.7% in the same period last year.
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Additionally, food & beverage (F&B) sales amounted to 3,428,000,000 won, up 9.6% from last year (3,127,000,000 won) and 14.5% from the previous month (2,995,000,000 won). A Lotte Tour Development representative stated, "In April, which is typically considered an off-peak season, we alleviated concerns over instability in the Middle East by achieving monthly sales in the 60 billion won range—surpassing even the peak season results of July (58.9 billion won) and August (59.6 billion won) last year." He added, "In May, the hotel has continued to be fully booked, following the Korea-China-Japan Golden Week holiday and into the middle of the month."
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