Inside Asian Gaming

IAG JAPAN DEC 2019 28 COVER STORY cheaper for them to take a plane to Clark, play daily golf and fly back than to stay in Korea and book a single round of golf,” offers Manankil. “It’s cheaper to come to the Philippines, and of course there is the added bonus of the casinos which they can’t access back home.” It is with this in mind that Manankil has developed his vision of Clark as the MCE capital of the Philippines – a global tourist destination offering everything from world-class business and convention facilities to the very best in leisure and entertainment via luxury casinos, five star hotels, an abundance of golf courses and large-scale family theme parks. Likewise, Clark’s casino operators aren’t scared to admit they have Manila’s Entertainment City in their sights. “You know what we have in Clark that they don’t have in Entertainment City? ” asks Edwin D. Mendoza, a Director at D’Heights owner Donggwang Clark Corporation. “Quick access. They have their own airport and we have our own airport, but for them to travel from the airport to the casinos takes 20 to 30 minutes while it takes us less than 10 minutes. “Clark is just like Manila but without the traffic. All the facilities they have in Entertainment City we have here as well but what we don’t have is the congestion. “You’ll also notice when you drive around Clark that there are a lot of development projects, road widening projects, taking place and you might ask yourself, ‘Why are they widening the road when there is no traffic?’ “It’s called future planning. Foresight. In Clark, before the problem arises, we already have the solution. That’s the difference.”