The UAE is getting a casino. Not Dubai. Not Abu Dhabi. Ras Al Khaimah.
And the Wynn Al Marjan Island project isn’t some boutique gambling room tucked inside a hotel – it’s going to be larger than the original Wynn Las Vegas. That’s the headline nobody’s saying loudly enough.
Opening is set for Spring 2027. Construction is already past 55% complete.
What Is Wynn Al Marjan Island, Exactly?
Wynn Resorts is building a full-scale luxury resort on Al Marjan Island – a man-made island that curves into the Arabian Gulf. The entire property covers nearly 62 hectares. The hotel tower rises 352 meters across 70 floors. At the top? An exclusive enclave of ultra-luxury suites. At the base? One of the largest casino floors in the world.
This is the first legal casino resort in the entire UAE. Wynn holds the only gaming license in the country right now. The government has said publicly they won’t be issuing new licenses for years. So whoever gets there first – and Wynn is first – runs the table, literally.
The RAK casino carries the weight of that monopoly. Billions of dollars of construction, the UAE’s reputation as a new gaming destination, and years of regulatory groundwork all land on this one property.
Close Enough to Dubai, Far Enough to Feel Like Its Own World
Wynn Al Marjan Island sits in Ras Al Khaimah, about 50 minutes from Dubai International Airport. From Downtown Dubai, you’re looking at roughly an hour by road. Ras Al Khaimah International Airport is just 15 minutes away.
The casino in Ras Al Khaimah connects to the mainland via a dedicated road – Wynn Bridge. It’s a 548-meter roadway that links the resort directly to highways E311 and E611. Construction on the bridge is 48% done. Expected to finish in late 2026, right before the resort opens.
Three sides of the island face water. White sand beaches, 420 meters of private coastline, and a marina with 101 berths for superyachts up to 85 meters long. It’s designed to feel like you’ve arrived somewhere – not just driven to a hotel.
Two Casinos Inside One Resort
Here’s what most people don’t know yet: Wynn casino Ras Al Khaimah isn’t one gaming area. It’s two.
The main casino floor covers 20,900 square meters – around 225,000 square feet. Table games, slots, poker rooms. Everything you’d find in a major Las Vegas or Macau property. This alone makes the casino in Ras Al Khaimah bigger than Wynn’s flagship Las Vegas location.
Then there’s the second one.
On the 22nd floor, they’re building a sky gaming casino. Private. Exclusive. Designed specifically for high-rollers and VIP players. You can’t just walk in – you need an invitation or you need to meet certain betting thresholds. The views from up there stretch across the entire Arabian Gulf.
Together, both gaming areas make Wynn Al Marjan Island the largest casino resort in the Middle East. Nothing else comes close, because nothing else is legal yet.
The Hotel: 1,542 Rooms and One Very Exclusive Tower
The Wynn resort Ras Al Khaimah offers 1,542 hotel rooms spread across the 70-story tower. Floor-to-ceiling windows. Waterfront views on every level. The architecture was handled by Wynn’s own in-house design team, the same group behind their Las Vegas and Macau properties.
At the top floors, there’s Enclave. Think of it as a resort within the resort – 313 ultra-luxury suites with their own private entrance, a separate pool, and their own stretch of beach. It’s fully separated from the main hotel experience. If you’re staying in Enclave, you don’t have to interact with the rest of the property at all unless you want to.
Dining, Spa, Shopping
Twenty-two restaurants. That’s not a typo. Fine dining, casual spots, beach clubs – all conceived by name-brand chefs with serious credentials. Several restaurants have outdoor terraces facing the water, positioned specifically to catch the Gulf views.
The five-star spa comes with a full salon and fitness center. Shopping is handled through a curated boutique parterre – Rolex has already been confirmed as one of the brands opening there. There’s also Coral Court, a massive events center anchored by a 2,633 square meter ballroom. Suitable for weddings, corporate conferences, large private events.
The beach club and multiple pools with private bungalows and cabanas round out the picture. This is a full destination – not just a casino with a hotel attached.
Where Construction Stands Right Now
By end of 2024, structural concrete was 55% complete. The tower had reached floor 26, with roughly 73% of hotel rooms already in place.
Wynn’s target: complete the building’s structure by December 2025, then shift to interiors and finishing through 2026. Staff hiring began in May 2025. Casino dealers, restaurant managers, hotel operations – they recruit early for luxury properties, usually 18-24 months before opening.
Financing is locked. Wynn secured an AED 8.8 billion construction loan to see the project through. They’ve also bought an additional 70 acres on the same island, presumably for Phase 2 down the line.
Why Ras Al Khaimah and Not Dubai
Fair question. RAK has been aggressively repositioning itself as a luxury tourism destination for a few years now. Mountains, beaches, high-end hotels – but nothing that could pull the international gambling crowd away from Singapore or Macau.
Wynn saw it the same way they saw Macau in 2006. When they opened there, that single location eventually generated 75% of their global earnings. The Middle East is a similar bet – massive pent-up demand, wealthy regional visitors, proximity to European and Asian travel routes.
Dubai was never really in the running. Too much regulatory complexity, too much existing brand identity to protect. Abu Dhabi has its own trajectory. RAK offered the right terms, the right partner (Marjan, the island’s developer, plus RAK Hospitality Holding), and the right appetite for something this big. Investors are already moving – property near Al Marjan Island has been appreciating since the project went public. If you’re thinking about buying in the area, start with understanding how title deeds work in the UAE before anything else.
The UAE government formalized gaming regulations in July 2024. The General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority now oversees everything. Rules are modeled after Singapore and the US – proper licensing, age restrictions, responsible gaming enforcement.
What the RAK Casino Means for the Region
The Ras Al Khaimah casino project is the largest foreign investment in the emirate’s history. Total value: around AED 14 billion.
For visitors from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, and across the Gulf, this changes everything. Previously you had to fly to Macau, Singapore, or Las Vegas to access a major casino resort legally. Spring 2027, that option exists within a 1-3 hour flight.
The gaming floor alone will rival anything in Asia or the US. The sky casino adds a VIP layer that competes directly with the ultra-premium rooms in Monte Carlo or Macau’s Cotai Strip.
Wynn has also acquired Wynn Mayfair in London specifically to introduce European and British high-rollers to the Wynn Al Marjan Island property before it opens. They’re building the audience now.
Spring 2027: What to Expect
The resort opens in early 2027. No exact date yet, but Wynn has been consistent about the Spring 2027 target.
For now – construction continues, interiors get fitted, staff get trained. The casino in Ras Al Khaimah is coming. And given that Wynn holds the only gaming license in the UAE with no competition expected for years, it’s not just the first. It might be the only one for a long time.
That’s either a risk or a monopoly, depending on how you look at it. Wynn is betting it’s the latter.More on developments across the UAE and Northern Emirates at RP Dubai.
