Wynn Resorts has moved the opening of Wynn Al Marjan Island from March 2027 to September 2027 and raised the construction budget by $600 million. Chief executive Craig Billings gave both figures on the company’s second quarter earnings call on 4 August 2026.
Most of the coverage has reported that $600 million as the cost of the regional war. That is not what Wynn said. Billings said approximately half of the increase is directly attributable to disruption from the regional conflict. The other half is not.
What Wynn actually said about the money
| Component | Amount | What Wynn attributes it to |
|---|---|---|
| Regional conflict disruption | about $300 million | Material costs, shipping costs, and pre opening and capitalised interest from the longer timeline |
| Everything else | about $300 million | Remeasurement, trade coordination and other project costs that Billings called independent of anything happening in the region |
| Total increase | $600 million | Announced on the second quarter call |
The distinction matters for anyone trying to read the UAE construction market from this one project. A war premium of about $300 million on a $5.1 billion build is roughly 5.9 per cent. The rest is the ordinary way very large hotel projects behave when they are remeasured and the trades are re sequenced. Treating the whole $600 million as a war cost overstates the regional risk by about double.
The project in numbers
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Opening date | September 2027 |
| Previous opening date | March 2027 |
| Total project cost | $5.7 billion, about AED 20.9 billion |
| Cost before the increase | $5.1 billion |
| Increase | $600 million, or 11.8 per cent |
| Wynn Resorts stake | 40 per cent of the joint venture |
| Wynn cash injected to date | about $1.1 billion |
| Rooms and suites | 1,530 |
| Restaurants, lounges and bars | 22 |
| Marina | 98 berths |
At $5.7 billion across 1,530 rooms and suites, the build works out at roughly $3,725,490 per key. That is a resort being built to a standard the UAE has not seen priced this way before, and the per key figure is the cleanest way to understand why the budget moves in hundreds of millions rather than tens.
The staffing number that is being misquoted
A figure of 9,000 employees has been attached to this project in several places. It is worth being precise about it, because it is not a payroll.
| Figure | What it actually measures |
|---|---|
| 9,000 plus | Direct and indirect jobs expected across Ras Al Khaimah and other emirates. An economic impact estimate, not a headcount |
| 3,000 | Employees Wynn Al Marjan expects to have on its own books by 31 December 2026 |
| 2,750 | Roughly the number it plans to recruit ahead of opening |
| 251 | Employees it actually had at the end of the fourth quarter of 2025 |
So the resort itself is hiring toward about 3,000 people, from a base of 251 at the end of 2025. That is a jump of 2,749 in a single year, and it is the number that actually affects housing demand in Ras Al Khaimah. The 9,000 figure includes suppliers, contractors and downstream employment across more than one emirate.
Why this is still a landmark for the UAE
Wynn Al Marjan Island holds the first Commercial Gaming Facility Operator licence issued in the UAE. The General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority issued it to the developing entity and Wynn announced it on 4 October 2024. When it opens it will be the first integrated resort with commercial gaming in the country.
A six month delay on a project of this size is not unusual and it does not change that. It moves the opening from the first quarter of 2027 into the third, which pushes the first full season to 2028.
Method and limits
Sources. The opening date, the $600 million increase and the split between conflict and non conflict costs come from Craig Billings, chief executive of Wynn Resorts, on the company’s second quarter 2026 earnings call on 4 August 2026, as reported by Khaleej Times, CDC Gaming and iGaming Business. The $5.7 billion total and the $5.1 billion prior figure come from Gulf News. Staffing figures come from the Wynn Al Marjan 2025 annual report. The licence detail comes from Wynn Resorts’ own newsroom release.
What we did not do. This page carries no price claim about Ras Al Khaimah property. Our market pages are built from the Dubai Land Department sales register, which covers Dubai only. We hold no Ras Al Khaimah transaction data, so we are not going to tell you what this resort will do to prices on Al Marjan Island. Anyone quoting a precise RAK price effect from this announcement is estimating, not measuring.
Limits. Every figure here is a company disclosure or a report of one, not an independent measurement. Construction budgets are estimates until a project completes and this one has already moved once. The split between conflict and non conflict costs is Wynn’s own characterisation and we have no way to audit it. We have left the villa count out because sources conflict on it. Currency conversions use the pegged rate of 3.6725 dirhams to the dollar.
Frequently asked questions
When will Wynn Al Marjan Island open?
September 2027. Wynn Resorts chief executive Craig Billings confirmed the date on the second quarter 2026 earnings call on 4 August 2026. The previous date was March 2027.
How much did the Wynn Al Marjan budget increase?
By about $600 million, taking the project from $5.1 billion to $5.7 billion. That is an increase of 11.8 per cent.
Was the whole increase caused by the regional war?
No. Billings said approximately half, about $300 million, is directly attributable to disruption from the regional conflict. He attributed the other half to remeasurement, trade coordination and other costs independent of the region.
How many people will Wynn Al Marjan employ?
Wynn Al Marjan expects about 3,000 employees on its own books by the end of 2026, up from 251 at the end of 2025. The widely quoted 9,000 figure is an estimate of direct and indirect jobs across Ras Al Khaimah and other emirates, not the resort’s payroll.
Will it be the UAE’s first casino?
It holds the first Commercial Gaming Facility Operator licence issued in the UAE, granted by the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority and announced on 4 October 2024. It will be the country’s first integrated resort with commercial gaming when it opens.
Talk to us
Cresco Real Estate works the Dubai register every month and we will show you the source behind any number on this page. Umer Shauket is the founder. RERA ORN 34288 and BRN 59655. We have a Dubai office and a United States office at 1800 N Vine St Suite 346, Los Angeles CA 90028.