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Uruguay – New law to allow Uruguay’s casino cruise ships to remain open

By - 5 January 2017

Carlos Camaño the Director of National Hydrography in Uruguay, a government department which oversees port activity and maintains and develops local waterways, has revealed a bill is now being prepared which would allow for casinos in cruise ships to remain open when they arrive in both the ports of Montevideo and the Atlantic resort of Punta del Este.

The new law if approved will also allow cruise ships to remain longer and will as a result increase tourist spend in Uruguay.
The closing of casinos in cruise ships while docked in Uruguayan harbours is one of the reasons why they have in the past only stayed for a few hours in Uruguay according to the government official.

The new law would encourage passengers to spend more in Uruguay and also encourage visitors to explore Uruguay more extensively.

Minister of Tourism Liliam Kechichian, confirmed that “this is a proposal that cruise companies have been putting forward for some time. As a counterpoint we are going to request that ships spend more time in Uruguay: at least one night. That extends the area of work and business around a product that is growing a lot,” she said.
Data provided by the Ministry of Tourism show that during the the 2015-2016 cruise ship season, 196,000 passengers and crew arrived in Montevideo while 121,000 arrived in Punta del Este. Spending in Montevideo stood at US$7.6m while it stood at US$3.5m in Punta del Este. Meanwhile spend per person in Montevideo stood at US$38.9 and in Punta del Este US$29.

Uruguay is not the only Latin American country looking to make its laws more flexible for cruise ships when it comes to gaming. Mexico’s new gaming law now currently under consideration could possibly allow casinos on cruise ships according to an article which appeared in local press in 2014. Under current rules, it is illegal for casinos on cruise ships to open their doors to their passengers while either docked in Mexican ports or while sailing in Mexican waters unless they are given permission in advance by the Interior Ministry.

Meanwhile Chile changed its laws in 2011 after the number of cruise ships arriving in Chile had reduced significantly after the 2005 Casinos Act which required that all cruise ships had to close their casinos when they passed within 13.8 miles of Chile’s shoreline. After laws were changed the number of cruise ships arriving in Chile reached the highest levels in seven years in 2016.

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