The Wrest Point Hotel Casino was Australia's first legal casino

Casino

In modern English, a casino is a facility which houses and accommodates certain types of gambling activities. Casinos are most commonly built near or combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships or other tourist attractions...

, opening in the suburb of Sandy Bay

Sandy Bay, Tasmania

Sandy Bay is a suburb of the city of Hobart, Tasmania, Australia, located immediately south of the central business district.The suburb is home to many large homes, and adjoins the waterfront Salamanca area and Battery Point. The suburb is known as one of the city's prestigious areas...

 in Hobart

Hobart

Hobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Founded in 1804 as a penal colony,Hobart is Australia's second oldest capital city after Sydney. In 2009, the city had a greater area population of approximately 212,019. A resident of Hobart is known as...

, Tasmania

Tasmania

Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...

, on 10 February 1973.

History

The Wrest Point Riviera Hotel , Designed by Architect Keith Wildman and built by Arthur Drysdale and opened in 5 December 1939, was originally constructed on the site of the current Wrest Point Casino. During World War II the hotel was "booming" and the hotel was sold to Australia's oldest hotel group, Federal Hotels

Federal Group

The Federal Group owns and operates tourism, entertainment and gaming businesses in Tasmania. It is also known as either Federal Hotels, or Federal Hotels and Resorts on websites.-History:...

, in March 1956.

In the 1960s, The Federal Group attempted to secure Australia's first casino license. At the time, Tasmania's natural scenery and beauty were not widely known elsewhere, and as a result the state wasn't attracting many tourists. The company hoped that a casino would be the draw-card that would kick-start Tasmania's tourism industry.

John Haddad, one of the company's executives at the time, was assigned the role of getting a casino license. He met with then Tasmanian Premier Eric Reece

Eric Reece

Eric Elliott Reece, AC was Premier of Tasmania on two occasions: from 26 August 1958 to 26 May 1969, and from 3 May 1972 to 31 March 1975.-Biography:...

 and other state officials. A state referendum

Tasmanian casino referendum, 1968

The Tasmanian casino referendum was a one-question referendum held on 14 December 1968, which concerned the granting of Australia's first casino licence to the Federal Group to operate the Wrest Point Hotel Casino in Sandy Bay.-Background:...

 was held, and narrowly passed.

The development of the casino included the construction of the 17-storey hotel tower, with a revolving restaurant, designed by renowned ground-breaking architect Sir Roy Grounds

Roy Grounds

Sir Roy Burman Grounds , wasone of Australia's leading architects of the modern movement.-Biography:Born in Melbourne, Grounds was educated at Scotch College and then Melbourne University and worked for the architectural firm of Blackett, Forster and Craig...

, a landmark that is nationally identified with Hobart, and the 64-metre octagonal tower is still the city's tallest building.

After the centre's opening in 1973 (after which it was known as Wrest Point Hotel Casino) the casino kick-started the nation's casino industry, with 12 additional casinos opening across the country. This included a second Federal Group casino in Tasmania, the Country Club Casino

Country Club Casino

Country Club Tasmania is a casino in Launceston, Tasmania and is used for a variety of local events and is home to a 18 hole golf course. Targa Tasmania uses the casino as a starting point for the race....

, which opened in Launceston

Launceston, Tasmania

Launceston is a city in the north of the state of Tasmania, Australia at the junction of the North Esk and South Esk rivers where they become the Tamar River. Launceston is the second largest city in Tasmania after the state capital Hobart...

in 1982.

Since the opening of the casino, the state's tourism industry has boomed, as its management had hoped.

The building has been extended in recent years, including the conference centre which was opened in 1984, and the boardwalk in 1996.

Bars and restaurants

Wrest Point has a number of bars and restaurants.

• The BirdCage Bar (Jazz and Cocktail Bar)
• The Onyx Bar
• The Point Revolving Restaurant
• The Point Lounge Bar
• Pier One Restaurant and Bar
• The Coffee Shop (Buffet Restaurant)
• The Loft Bistro
• Riverview Snacks
• Boardwalk Bar

The casino bar (on the main gaming floor)

External links

• Wrest Point Hotel Casino official site
• Tourism Tasmania article