Embassy Suites in Dorado inaugurates $14M Blue Dolphin casino
The Embassy Suites by Hilton, located in Dorado, recently inaugurated its Blue Dolphin Casino at the Dorado del Mar Club, representing the return of this type of entertainment venue to the property, which had a casino that closed in 2019.
The new casino features more than 175 slot machines, electronic and traditional roulettes, and other gaming tables, Blue Dolphin Director Erick Rodríguez confirmed.
The Blue Dolphin will generate about 130 new direct and another 200 indirect jobs, hotel officials said.
The gaming facility is associated with the Embassy Suites by Hilton at Dorado del Mar Beach Resort and the Dorado del Mar Club, which will have a golf course, bowling alley, go-kart track, laser tag game center, a gaming arena, restaurants, and other entertainment options.
During the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Eduardo Artau — one of the members of the local family of investors that bought the 174-room property in 2019 — said the bowling alley and other children’s entertainment areas will likely open by year’s end.
“When we purchased this property, one of the first things I saw was that people who came to the hotel had nowhere to go,” Artau said, flanked by Dorado Mayor Carlos López.
“They would go to the beach, and the pool, but some people complained that they had to get in a car and go to the San Juan metro area. So, we began to look at what we had to create so those who came here, would be comfortable,” he said.
That was when the task of rebuilding the casino and adding other amenities took off, he said. In all, the owners will invest another $10 million in the other areas, which should open next year.
The Blue Dolphin Casino at Dorado del Mar Beach Resort joins the tourist conglomerate of the Artau-Feliciano family known as the Costa Bahía Hospitality Collection, which includes the Costa Bahía Hotel and Convention Center at Guayanilla, the Costa Bahía Urban Hotel at Paseo Caribe, the Aquarius Vacation Club at Dorado del Mar Beach Resort, the Aquarius Vacation Club at Boquerón Beach Resort, and the Blue Dolphin Casino at Costa Bahía Hotel and Convention Center at Guayanilla.
The new casino is the 18th gaming facility of its kind operating inside a hotel in Puerto Rico, which generated a combined $326 million for the government’s coffers last year. The money is split among the University of Puerto Rico, the government’s General Fund and the Puerto Rico Tourism Co.
