Philippines’ Boracay Welcomes First Casino After Years Under Gambling Ban

The Philippine island destination of Boracay finally has an operational casino. The boutique gaming hotel’s opening comes years after former President Rodrigo Duterte famously vowed to keep gambling off the world-renowned resort island throughout his presidency.

Kaban Hotel and Casino will hold a soft opening this Wednesday (Sept. 16), with a full opening set for Oct. 11, 2026. Located on Boracay Highway in the northwestern part of the island, Kaban overlooks Punta Bunga Beach alongside the Mövenpick and Crimson five-star resorts and spas.

The project is backed by the Philippines-based Golden TW Realty and Development Corporation, a hospitality, entertainment, and retail developer controlled by Zibin Liang.

Liang, a Chinese national who gained Philippine citizenship in 2021, built his wealth in the financial services sector and through a leadership role with Top Bank, a rural bank in the Philippines.

Boutique Gaming Footprint

Kaban Hotel and Casino features a boutique gaming floor equipped with 150 slot machines, 10 live dealer table games, and VIP gaming parlors—marking a much smaller scale than the massive integrated resort complexes in Manila, which feature thousands of slots and hundreds of tables.

The casino is complemented by an 88-room hotel, six restaurants and bars, a rooftop lounge, an indoor swimming pool, and dedicated space for small conventions and gatherings.

Licensed by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) and restricted to guests aged 21 and older, the venue brings modern electronic gaming and slots to the island.

A Scaled-Back Reality

The opening marks a major milestone for an island that was targeted in 2017 by Galaxy Entertainment, one of Macau’s six major gaming operators. Galaxy originally proposed a $550 million Las Vegas-style resort targeting international visitors from South Korea and China.

However, former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte ultimately killed the bid. Claiming divine guidance after speaking with God—who he said told him the population opposed gambling on Boracay—Duterte shut the project down.

“You know the billionaires? They want to build casinos there. I did not allow it,” Duterte said at the time, referring to Galaxy billionaire Lui Che Woo.

Duterte subsequently closed Boracay for a six-month environmental cleanup, infamously labeling the tourist hotspot a “cesspool” that “smelled of sh*t.”

While the aggressive government overhaul successfully repaired the island’s failing sewage infrastructure and restored its pristine white-sand beaches, it effectively froze major foreign gaming investment.

While Duterte’s successor, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., has maintained a hardline stance against offshore gaming operations (POGOs), his administration has taken a more permissive approach toward domestic casino expansion.

Kaban Hotel and Casino is expected to be the first of several small boutique casinos to open on Boracay in the coming years.