Betting in Acapulco
Acapulco is located on the Pacific coast of Mexico. The seaside resort became a popular getaway destination for millionaires and Hollywood stars in the 1950s and this led to the area’s famous reputation. Today, Acapulco still attracts huge volumes of tourists who come to visit the sandy beaches, luxurious hotels and restaurants, as well as to experience the city’s high-energy nightlife. Despite the abundance of recreational activities on offer, gambling is a fairly new activity on the city’s scene. The government are firmly against gambling but have made an exception for casino-style entertainment for the purpose of tourism only.
Currently, there are only half a dozen official gambling venues to be found in the city of Acapulco, including the “Bingo Sportsbook”, which is extremely popular with the locals and the “Caliente” which offers sports betting opportunities.
The “Emotion Casino Group” owns two gambling establishments, both providing sports betting opportunities such as horse and dog racing, football, baseball, basketball and boxing. They also facilitate bingo slot machines; however, poker rooms and gaming tables are not available due to these forms of wagering being illegal in Acapulco. Both venues include restaurants and bars, opening from 10am until 3pm during the week or until 4pm at the weekends. One venue is located in the $20 million Fiesta Alegre Jai Alai Stadium, the other in Condesa.
Another two gambling halls can be found in the shopping malls of Acapulco. One, known as PlayCity, has achieved great success, becoming the largest provider of games machines, bingo and sports wagering services in Acapulco. Due to the limited games on offer, the media have nicknamed their venue in Gran Plaza, “Casino-lite”.
PlayCity’s casino in Acapulco has room for approximately 300 customers. The company uses similar business practices to those of the global brand Caesars, such as the “Rewards” club. Their networked slot machine system regularly offers jackpots in excess of $1m. In Acapulco and indeed Mexico, slot machines are known as “Electronico”. Players have to purchase credits which are then added to the machine and winnings are paid by hand. This may come to a surprise for newcomers who are familiar with casinos in other parts of the world.
A Mexican entertainment company called Grupo CIE owns the other mall casino in Acapulco known as Casino Yak 8. The casino can accommodate over 300 punters and is popular with locals who are partial to Mexican Bingo and sports wagering. Grupo CIE also manages theme parks and auditoriums in Latin America.
The Mexican National Lottery is available in Acapulco. Lottery “Scratch Cards” are sold at numerous outlets such as supermarkets and alcohol stores. Cash prizes can amount to thousands of Pesos.
