Paradise Sega Sammy – South Korea’s first integrated resort – has been given an opening date of March 2017 following a groundbreaking ceremony for the US$1.7bn (€1.4bn, £1.1bn) casino, hotel, spa and theme park project.

A joint venture between Japanese entertainment company Sega Sammy Holdings and Korean casino operator Paradise Group, the resort will cater to both business visitors and tourists. It will offer a five-star hotel, a foreigner-only casino, convention centre, retail, an indoor theme park, restaurants and a standalone healing spa where foreign visitors will be able to experience a Korean public bathhouse or “jjimjilbang”.

Included in the hotel will be 711 bedrooms, some of which will be pool villas. There will also be both indoor and outdoor pools, a fitness centre and a spa. The hotel will also house the casino – the largest in South Korea – with VIPs given access to an exclusive, private casino on the hotel’s top floor. A boutique hotel with 103 bedrooms is also planned.

K-Plaza – a complex housing multiple visitor attractions – will include a theme park using 3D hologram technology, a museum dedicated to South Korean culture, Korean restaurants and an art gallery.

A total of 330,000sq m (3.5m sq ft) of land for the project is being leased from Incheon International Airport for a period of 50 years, with Paradise and Sega Sammy holding a 55 per cent and 45 per cent stake in the venture respectively.

Several major architectural firms have signed up for the project, including WATG-Honolulu, Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo, G.A Design International, Hirsch Bedner Associates, Hawkins Brown, Lifescapes International and Gansam Architects & Partners.