Solaire Resort and Casino, the first premiere and luxury destination to rise and operate at the ambitious multi-billion dollar Entertainment City in Parañaque, has officially raised the standards of quality in the tourism and gaming industries to a whole new level.

At its press launch at The Peninsula Hotel Manila, the top brass of Solaire trumpeted the opening of its first phase in March 2013 along with just what its future guests and high rollers can expect from the $1-billion flagship project of Bloomberry Resorts Corp. (BRC).

Based on the speech of Solaire president and chairman, Enrique Razon Jr., only the best will be had from this much-anticipated development. “I envision Solaire to be an exceptional destination resort and gaming complex, the likes of which have not been seen nor experienced in the Philippines,” he stated.

Razon, who is also the chairman and chief executive officer of BRC, also revealed his reasons for investing in such an outstanding project:

“In my many travels abroad, I have taken in the sights, sounds and tastes of many high-end tourist destinations, and experienced their world-class leisure facilities and amenities. And I always wondered, why can’t we have this in the Philippines? All we need is a premium class resort and facility that can offer superior amenities and leisure options all within easy reach, and improvements in our transportation infrastructure.”

The end result of his formula is Solaire. “With Solaire Manila, we are going to achieve all that and help put the Philippines firmly on the world tourism map,” he declared.

The event also marked the fulfillment of the Entertainment City, an economic development zone that aims to be Manila’s very own Las Vegas-style gaming and entertainment hub. It covers 120-hectare of reclaimed land along Manila Bay in Parañaque City.

The Philippine Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) is the government agency that will regulate this economic zone. So far, Pagcor has only licensed four companies to develop resorts and casinos in Entertainment City, including BRC.


By the numbers
When talking about high stakes, it’s all about the numbers. And with Solaire, the numbers are truly quite awesome.

Phase 1 sits on a superb 8.3-hectare reclaimed land along Manila Bay. This huge area will integrate a resort, a casino, a spa and several restaurants into an a destination master plan, conceptualized and designed by renowned Nevada-based designer and architect Paul Steelman of Steelman Partners.

Solaire’s resort will meanwhile boast of the most spacious rooms: Its standard rooms average 50 square meters; 50 luxurious and modern suites measure 75sqm to 165sqm; and four VIP bayside villas range from an astounding floor area of 600 sqm to 1,000sqm complete with a separate lounge and private pool. In total, Solaire will have an average of 500 rooms, suites and villas.

The casino is another numbers marvel. It will occupy a sprawling 18,500-sqm area in two levels, with 6,000sqm for exclusive use of patrons and 1,300sqm allotted for an outdoor themed casino. The rest of the stretch is set to offer 300 gaming tables featuring favorites like Baccarat, Blackjack, Casino War, Craps, Money Wheel, Pontoon and Roulette, and 1,200 popular and state-of-the-art slot machines.

Solaire premium amenities and facilities will also include a column-free grand ballroom that can accommodate no less than 1,000 guests, and a parking area for 1,500 cars. A spa and fitness facility with an area of 1,300 sqm will also open next year.

Lastly, a total of 14 casual and fine dining destinations will also be opened together with the first phase of Solaire. Signature Chinese, Italian and Japanese restaurants, a steakhouse, an international buffet, a noodle house and a food court, are among the flavorful spots set to operate.

 
Topnotch team
Also present at the press event was Solaire’s topnotch executive and management team, comprised of Michael French, chief operating officer; Dennis Andreaci, senior vice president for gaming; and Adrian Ort, general manager and vice president for hotel operations.

“Our goal, put simply, is to raise the bar for entertainment offerings in Manila, as it is our ambitious vision to be the ultimate gaming resort in the country,” statd French.

The COO also shared that Solaire is set to cater to a very special mass market, most especially from South East Asia, so as to not compete with Macau’s market. He, however, added that Solaire will still aim to become a prime destination for Asian high rollers from Korea, Japan, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Wolfgang Fischer, meanwhile, is in charge of food and beverage as Solaire’s culinary director. “The environment of the restaurants alone will be world-class,” promised the former chef of Emirates Palace

Besides the executive team, Bradley Stone, president of Global Gaming Asset Management (GGAM), which manages Solaire, was also in attendance and spoke positively of Razon’s vision. “Everything begins with a man who wants a top-class product,” he praised.

Joining Stone in this Philippine posting are two other GGAM high officials, William Weidner, chairman and chief executive, and Garry Saunders, executive vice president. They are also part of the team responsible for putting up some of the most high-class resorts and casinos in the world including Venetian Las Vegas, Palazzo Las Vegas, Sands Macau, the Venetian Macau and Marina Bay Sands in Singapore. GGAM holds the reputation as the first developers of casinos in Macau.

“There will be nobody better than us. We’re changing the quality and service level of gaming in the Philippines. It will be the real deal,” Stone promised.