The first casino ship in Hong Kong came into being in 1988, a refurbished container ship that was renamed the Oriental Princess.
Hong Kong strictly regulates gambling. The mainstay is horse racing, overseen by the Jockey Club that brings in massive tax surpluses for the government.
No casinos are allowed in Hong Kong.
The handful of casino ships get around the strict regulations by shuttling guests 12 nautical miles out into international waters, where a ship’s flag determines laws that apply.
People , mainly Chinese can get their tickets for around 500 HKD to board the casino ships floating in the harbor, for night of gambling, karaoke,buffet, and room and board. Ship’s facilities are casino, karaoke nightclub, bar, massage room, hairdresser, Mahjong room, slots machines, restaurants and even a gym.
At around 8:30pm, the boat leaves its mooring in eastern Victoria Harbor.
Around 9:30pm the staff announces (in Mandarin, Cantonese, and English) that the casino is open for business, at the time the ship arrives in international waters.
In the casino starts an intense activity, with the mostly clientele handling stacks of chips that combined can easily total a million Hong Kong dollars .Most play baccarat, a few play blackjack, and there are also tables for dice .
The minimum buy-in at the standard tables is HK$100 , but it is high-roller tables with a minimum bet of HK$500 that are crowded with. The ships operate around the clock, seven days a week .
By 8am the boat sits moored in the stillness of Hong Kong harbor.
Investing in Hong Kong’s casino ships might have seemed like a good idea just a few years ago, but with the shaky economy, and the restrictions of China to money leaving the mainland, the industry became not as lucrative.
In the beginning, people flocked to the boats , a cheaper alternative to Macau casinos avoiding costs of transport and hotels.
Since 1988, depending on the state of the economy, the number of ships has waxed and waned since then.At one point, there were about 14 of these ships cruising Hong Kong’s harbor and heading out every night to international waters.On 2016 it seems that only four voyage to nowhere casinos would be operating.
We show above some of the floating casinos.

BUT WHERE ARE THE CHIPS????