Operator News
Puerto Rico – El Tropical Casino opens in Playa la Fortuna
By James - 9 October 2023
A new casino has opened in Puerto Rico. The property is the first Fairfield by Marriott hotel in the Caribbean. Located in front of the Luquillo Beach Resort in Playa la Fortuna, the Fairfield by Marriott Luquillo Beach & El Tropical Casino has 104 rooms. Spanning 17,500 square feet, the casino offers 9,000 square feet dedicated to gaming and houses 300 slots, six gaming tables and an electronic roulette.
Federico Stubbe, Jr., chief executive officer of PRISA Group, developers of the project, said in a statement that the new hotel would drive tourism to the area:
“This project is a great bet on the region and its potential to become a world-class tourist destination. The people of Luquillo will provide the visitor with a unique experience and take this destination to a new and higher level of excellence. This will attract all those looking to be close to the beach,” he said.
The hotel along with the casino cost around $45 million and will employ around 185 people.
Tropical Casino is a Puerto Rican casino brand. There are three other Tropical casinos located in the municipalities of Bayamón, Ponce and Mayagüez.
The hotel also comes with extensive meeting and event spaces that are able to adapt to various configurations to meet market demands as well as a wide range of other amenities.
The mayor of Luquillo, Jesús Gerardo Márquez Rodríguez, stated that the new hotel was not only good news for his municipality but for the eastern region of Puerto Rico as well.
“The Fairfield by Marriott Luquillo Beach & El Tropical Casino is a solid step forward in the efforts that have been made to revitalize the region’s tourism industry. We are proud to see how the citizens of our municipality, and of neighbouring municipalities, have seen in this project the opportunity to work, develop and contribute to the growth of the tourism industry in the region. “
The new project was also welcomed warmly by Governor Pedro Pierluisi who said that the new hotel fitted in with the government’s plans to boost tourism.
“We have supported the tourism industry with a historic investment of $120 million in improvements to our natural and entertainment attractions. Just as this new hotel will do, thousands of jobs have been created in this industry, to the point that today we have more people working in the tourism sector than ever before in our history,” he said.
