South Korea’s only casino at which locals are allowed to gamble, Kangwon Land, reopened Monday following its latest two-month closure.
Kangwon Land announced via a filing and on its website that it was reopening from 10am on Monday 15 February with a capacity limit on the casino floor of 1,200 people. The property had been forced to close on 8 December 2020 as South Korea introduced restrictions to combat a growing wave of COVID-19.
That wave, which saw daily infections surpass 1,000 at its peak, has now eased to an average of 375 nationwide over the past four days – prompting the government to reduce the national alert level from 2 to 1.5, and from 2.5 to 2 in the greater Seoul metropolitan area.
The eased restrictions for areas outside of Seoul remove curfews on multiple businesses as well as lifting closure orders on nighttime entertainment venues.
Kangwon Land had been forced to suspend casino operations twice previously in 2020, having only reopened in mid-October before closing again in December.
The casino is located at the foot of a ski and golf resort in a remote area of Gangwon Province.
