Mohegan Inspire Entertainment Resort held its Grand Opening on Tuesday, with more than 500 guests and dignitaries from South Korea and the USA coming together to celebrate the landmark event.
Touted as one of the largest direct foreign investment projects in the country, Mohegan Inspire also becomes Korea’s largest foreigner-only casino project, offering 150 gaming tables, 390 slot machines and a 160-seat electronic table games (ETG) stadium across two floors.
The full integrated resort offering boasts three hotel towers, MICE facilities, signature restaurants, an entertainment street and indoor water park – all opened in November – while a retail mall, outdoor experiential space, international food court, immersive content exhibition hall and indoor children’s playground are all scheduled to open by mid-2024.
Speaking at the Grand Opening, US Ambassador to Korea, Philip Goldberg, described it as “another key moment” in forging a strong bond between the two nations.
“Today we celebrate another major milestone in the US-Korea investment relationship,” he said, as quoted by The Korea Times. “This relationship between the United States and Korea, which started as a military alliance, has evolved into a global comprehensive strategic partnership.”
Korea’s Culture Minister Yu In-chon added, “We expect the opening of Inspire resort to go beyond the mere addition of a casino business site in the country. Instead, it is expected to represent a significant milestone in Korea’s culture and tourism industry.
“Through the exchange of goodwill and healthy competition, I encourage [the public] to pave the way toward a healthy, flourishing casino industry.”
Mohegan Tribe chairman James Gessner Jr noted that the opening in Inspire had already created almost 3,000 jobs for locals.
