DECONFINEMENT - The casinos will be able to reopen Tuesday June 2 in the green zones, but only the slot machines and the electronic forms of games will be authorized, the table games remaining prohibited for the moment, announced the profession this Friday May 29.
Following the announcements of Edouard Philippe Thursday on the second phase of deconfinement, a decree will be published over the weekend concerning the resumption of activity of casinos, while bars and restaurants are authorized to reopen on June 2 in “green” areas, but only on the terrace in “orange” areas like Ile-de-France .
"The casinos will be able to reopen their doors from next Tuesday in the green zone, and will be able to welcome their customers in perfect health security," said in a press release Casinos de France, the leading employers' organization in the sector.
“Traditional” games will wait a little longer
Some 200 casinos are active in France. Only the establishment of Enghien-les-Bains is in the “orange” zone, as are the eight game clubs in Paris.
“We can resume electronic slot machines and table games” like electronic roulette or blackjack, “but not traditional table games yet, due to the application of physical distancing“ but also related problems handling chips, ”said Fabrice Paire, chairman of the board of the Partouche group, whose 39 French casinos will reopen on Tuesday.
“Our imperative is to secure spaces as much as possible, so that customers are in an impeccable environment. Beyond the hydroalcoholic gel and disinfectant wipes, almost all of our slot machines will be separated by Plexiglas, and the others will be sufficiently spaced ”, he puts forward.
The Barrière group, which owns 33 casinos and a games club, but also 18 hotels and more than 140 restaurants and bars, announced in a press release the “gradual reopening” of its establishments.
“Today, we want to take an active part in the economic recovery of tourism in France and be a player in the return to conviviality and serenity”, comments Dominique Desseigne, CEO of Barrière, who underlines that “all the measures of Health and safety are implemented to ensure the reception and the quality of the stay of the customers, with the greatest respect for government announcements ”.
