SkyCity Entertainment casinos in Hamilton and Queenstown, New Zealand, are now free to operate without Covid-19 restrictions such as social distancing. The precautionary measures are still in effect in the company’s casino in Auckland, Australia’s most populous city.
After getting the Covid-19 pandemic under control in the early summer, Auckland witnessed a further outbreak in early August which forced SkyCity to once again suspend operations at SkyCity Auckland. As of August 31 it has been permitted to resume operations under physical distancing and other restrictions.
According to Inside Asian Gaming, the New Zealand government announced that most of the country, excluding Auckland, would revert back to Covid-19 Alert Level 1, which requires no physical distancing restrictions on mass gatherings.
Flagship property SkyCity Auckland remains under Alert Level 2 conditions with entry restricted to rewards members and other safeguards in place. The Auckland casino closed for a second time on August 12 due to a wave of Covid-19, and reopened under restrictions earlier this month. It had previously closed for two months in March when the pandemic first hit, reopening in mid-May.
New Zealand reported just three new cases of Covid-19 over a recent weekend, with 62 active cases nationwide.
