1980s In 1984, the
Government of Western Australia proposed, at the suggestion of Perth businessman
Dallas Dempster, that a casino complex be constructed at Burswood Island on the Swan River, east of the
Perth central business district. This was the site of a large
landfill facility, The winning bidder to build the complex was Tileska Pty Ltd, a joint venture between Dallas Dempster and
Genting Berhad, a Malaysian casino operator. At the time, there were allegations by rival bidders of misconduct against Dempster and
Premier of Western Australia Brian Burke, but, after a thorough investigation of these accusations, the
WA Inc Royal Commission found no impropriety in that regard. This consortium planned a two-stage construction. The first stage was initially expected to cost $200 million, and involved futuristic-looking buildings comprising a 135-table casino, 400-room hotel, 18-hole golf course, convention and exhibition centre, tennis courts, amphitheatre and other amenities, together with a beautification of the Burswood Island area. Construction of the resort was approved by the
Western Australian Parliament in March 1985 in the
Casino (Burswood Island) Agreement Act 1985. When it opened on 30 December 1985, Burswood Island Casino (as it was then known) was the largest in Australia, It was expected to receive two to three million visitors per year and have an annual gross profit of $100m. The public interest in the casino proved so much in its early months of operation that it posted a gross profit of $1 million per day for its first two months, far outstripping expectations. In its early weeks of opening, people were reportedly forced to queue at the entrance for hours as the gaming floor was at its full legal capacity. Not sharing in this financial success, the Burswood Property Trust encountered financial difficulties and sold the hotel operations in the under-construction Burswood Island Hotel to Japanese investor Brisney Pty Ltd, a joint venture between investment company Yunan Development Co Ltd and hotel operator Kanematsu Trading Co Ltd. On 28 August 1987, the Burswood Dome indoor sports stadium was opened to the public, and was noted as being by far the largest auditorium in the southern hemisphere. The hotel's opening was delayed by 85 days, largely as a result of inclement weather and industrial disputes. the hotel's management reportedly allowed one of the casino's highest rollers to stay there a day early, during which time he won $1.4 million, In 2004,
Publishing and Broadcasting Limited, whose principal shareholder was
Kerry Packer, acquired full control of the Burswood International Resort Casino, and in 2005 re-branded the site as "Burswood Entertainment Complex". On 1 August 2005, the Holiday Inn Burswood opened for business after 29 months of construction. Construction finished three months early and was A$2 million under budget. In March 2012 it was confirmed that the hotels on site would also be re-branded in line with sister complex
Crown Melbourne upon completion of a $750 million refurbishment. InterContinental Burswood became Crown Metropol Perth from 27 June 2012, while the Holiday Inn Perth Burswood was officially rebranded Crown Promenade on 20 June 2012. On 1 August 2012 it was revealed a new 500-room "
six star" hotel would be built at Burswood at a cost of $568 million. The hotel, Crown Towers, was built by
Multiplex and opened in December 2016. It is Perth's largest, taking the casino's hotel capacity to 1,200 rooms.
Colin Barnett, the then-premier of Western Australia also made the announcement saying his government was also backing a bid by Crown to increase its number of poker machines by 500, and the number of gaming tables by 130.
2020s In February 2026, the Urban Food District, a new food precinct opened; it is the first major development to open at the resort in more than a decade. The precinct consist of several eateries and bars, and includes outlets from both local brands and international chains such
Chatime and
Eggslut. ==Casino==