philippines Okada Manila (Entertainment City): The Fountain & Cove Manila

**MTC** · May 18

Every evening at six o'clock, The Fountain rises. 739 water nozzles, 2,611 coloured LED lights, 23 speakers, 37,464 square metres of choreographed water, light, and music — the largest performance of its kind anywhere in Asia. It is the property's central daily ritual, and it explains why, among Entertainment City's four integrated resorts, Okada Manila is the unambiguously theatrical one. 1,001 rooms across twin Y-shaped golden towers. A butterfly-shaped pool with international DJ bookings. More than 40 dining venues. Universal Entertainment Corporation's flagship — The Pearl of Manila Bay, marketed as such, and the proof of what an integrated resort calibrated for spectacle can become.

Flying In

The drive to Okada is, in light traffic, the shortest of any Entertainment City property. Eight minutes from Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3. Twelve in rush hour. Most international carriers from Asia — Singapore Airlines, ANA, JAL, Cathay Pacific, Korean Air, Asiana, Emirates, AirAsia, Cebu Pacific international — land at Terminal 3, where the Newport district begins. From Terminal 1 — most European, Middle Eastern, and North American directs — the drive is ten to fifteen minutes via the NAIA Expressway south. From Clark International Airport to the north, ninety minutes to two hours via NLEX-SCTEX, longer when weekend traffic builds.

A complimentary luxury sedan waits at Arrivals for confirmed guests; the Pearl Wing booking tier earns a Mercedes S-Class or BMW 7 Series rather than the E-Class or 5 Series. Climate is set, water cold, the morning broadsheet folded.

What unfolds along Aseana Avenue is what the marketing department would call a gradual reveal. Solaire's two-tower silhouette appears first, four minutes in. Then a low stretch of reclamation district, the Westside City construction site, the Manila Bay sky line beyond. And then, three minutes further down the same boulevard, Okada's silhouette rises against the western horizon: twin Y-shaped towers, gold glass façades calibrated to refract the bay sunset, the Crystal Pavilion's glass-domed presence at the property's heart. From certain angles, the upper edge of The Fountain's lagoon is visible from the road. By the time the car turns into the porte-cochère, the property has already begun performing.

The Multilingual Welcome

A property that hosts the largest Korean and Chinese tourist segments in Manila has to make multilingual service a structural commitment rather than a back-office capability — and Okada does.

Korean and Mandarin speakers staff the front desk, the gaming floor, the concierge, and the Pearl Wing butler service. The Goryeo restaurant's hostess team and the dedicated Korean concierge handle the deeper questions — F&B requests, tour referrals, the translation calls during retail or service interactions. Japanese coverage runs throughout: the Universal Entertainment ownership connection means Japanese tourist groups and investor visits are routine, and the kaiseki team at Kappou Yoshi, the sushi counter at Enbu, and the Ginza-style operation at Ginza Nagaoka are staffed with native speakers. Cantonese speakers cover Hong Kong arrivals; Bahasa speakers cover Indonesian and Malaysian arrivals. The cumulative effect — for the foreign guest stepping into the lobby for the first time — is that the property speaks to you in your own language before you have finished asking.

At Okada

The glass doors part onto a register that is, immediately, brighter than Solaire's. The lobby rises tall and reflective; the gold glass façade pours daylight into the space; the marble floor catches and amplifies it. The scent design here leans floral, calibrated to rotate by season — a different botanical signature in March than in October. The air is the same cool, oxygen-rich casino air the other Entertainment City properties run, but the volume of it feels larger.

To the immediate left, the gaming floor opens. The energy is louder than Solaire's. Slot banks denser. Dealer voices more audible across the room. Cocktail server traffic more frequent. The carpet pattern is more elaborate, the table felt more saturated, the clay-composite chips carrying the same percussion across the floor. There is, predictably, no clock and no window onto the outside world.

Straight ahead, the corridor opens to The Fountain. Past Crystal Dragon — the property's flagship Cantonese and Sichuan restaurant, dim sum cart at lunch — past Red Spice (multi-Asian), past Kiapo (Filipino regional), the path leads through the interior toward the central lagoon. Even from the lobby, you can hear the water: a low continuous hush that becomes louder as you approach.

To the right, hotel registration splits two ways. The Pearl Wing carries Okada's premium-tier accommodation, with its dedicated check-in, butler service, and private elevator access. The Coral Wing covers the broader hotel base. The two wings are joined by sky bridges. Once Pearl Wing guests have stepped through, you do not see them again.

The Pearl Wing, The Coral Wing, The Tower Villas

1,001 rooms. Twin Y-shaped golden towers connected by sky bridges. The exterior — the gold glass façade refracting Manila Bay's sunsets — is one of the most-photographed pieces of integrated-resort architecture in Southeast Asia.

Inside, the room product carries Italian marble bathrooms, heated bathroom floors, plush bedding, and advanced in-room technology across categories. Pearl Wing rooms run larger; Coral Wing covers the broader booking flow. The signature category — Tower Villas — are Okada's first indoor villas: oversized footprints, panoramic views of both The Fountain and Manila Bay, and the property's most-booked premium accommodation for the multi-night stay.

The Fountain

The Fountain is what Okada built. It is what the property markets. It is what guests come for.

The central lagoon's performance covers 37,464 square metres of choreographed surface. 739 water nozzles, 2,611 colour-changing LED lights, and 23 speakers combine into a multisensory production that runs every evening on a programme rotating by season. Water columns rise to heights of tens of metres at peak; the lighting palette moves across the full spectrum; the music selection rotates from classical scoring to contemporary popular and Filipino selections. Each programme runs approximately thirty minutes, with multiple performances across the evening.

The optimum viewing positions are the property's outdoor pool deck, the dedicated Fountain Deck restaurants, and the window tables at Crystal Dragon. From the Tower Villas and the Pearl Wing Fountain-facing rooms, the show plays at altitude. For first-time visitors, The Fountain is the property's defining sensory moment — and, alongside Cove Manila, the feature that distinguishes Okada from every other Entertainment City integrated resort.

Cove Manila

The other signature: Cove Manila.

The property's butterfly-shaped pool with cabanas, oversized water surface, and a bar-and-DJ programme has, since opening, become one of Manila's most-photographed nightlife rooms. By day, Cove operates as a pool club — lunch-and-cocktail register, daycation packages, family programming on weekends. By Friday and Saturday evenings, the venue transitions: international DJ bookings, choreographed lighting, the swim-and-dance crowd that the marketing team would, accurately, call experiential. For affluent guests on multi-night stays, Cove is the after-dinner social meeting point, and for the headline bookings, the centrepiece of the trip.

The Gaming Floor

Okada operates among the largest gaming floors in the country by table count and by slot-and-electronic-gaming-machine count.

Baccarat dominates among the Asian clientele, with blackjack, roulette, sic bo, poker, Texas hold'em, and casino war supporting. The floor's central feature is stadium-style baccarat — dozens of electronic terminals surrounding a live dealer pit, the operating format favoured by the Asian high-volume player. Clay-composite chips carry the floor's characteristic click-clack. Dealer dress is formal black tie. Private VIP gaming salons sit off the main floor, with segregated entrances and dedicated host service; the junket programmes Okada operates skew heavily Korean and Chinese.

Multi-currency operations accept Korean won, Hong Kong dollar, Singapore dollar, US dollar, and Philippine peso at selected tables. Standard-floor minimums typically range ₱500 to ₱5,000, varying by table and time. VIP salon minimums vary by programme and arrange in advance through the host system. The non-smoking section runs along one side of the floor, glass-partitioned and perceptibly cooler.

The Dining Spread

More than forty dining venues — the broadest spread among Entertainment City's four integrated resorts.

Crystal Dragon runs Cantonese and Sichuan, with a dim sum programme at lunch that the Manila Chinese community treats as a destination. Goryeo is the Korean fine-dining presence. Kappou Yoshi, Ginza Nagaoka, and Enbu carry the Japanese programme from kaiseki through izakaya to a serious sushi counter. Red Spice covers multi-Asian; La Piazza runs Italian; Kiapo carries Filipino regional. Medley is the multinational buffet. The Lobby Lounge, Sinag Luna, and Pearl Lounge fill the rest, alongside the Fountain Deck specialty restaurants. The dining team is large enough that the property functionally hosts forty restaurants under one operator.

The Okada Rewards Club

Okada's Okada Rewards Club tier-recognises gaming, hotel, and dining activity. Structure climbs from base through Platinum and Elite tiers, with comps redeemable across hotel stays, food and beverage, Cove Manila reservations, Fountain Deck programming, and member-exclusive events. For the affluent regular guest, Platinum aligns with consistent multi-property engagement.

How Okada Compares

For the affluent traveller choosing among Entertainment City's four integrated resorts, the question is one of register. Solaire is the refined-luxury reference — quieter, Forbes 5-Star, the strongest fine-dining roster. Okada is the spectacle — The Fountain, Cove Manila, the brightest exterior, the largest Korean and Chinese tourist segments, more than forty dining venues. City of Dreams Manila is the design-and-art property — Nobu Hotel centrepiece, contemporary art programming, the strongest celebrity-chef cluster. Newport World Resorts is the convenience property — direct pedestrian bridge from NAIA Terminal 3, the most diverse hotel cluster (Marriott, Hilton, Sheraton, Holiday Inn, Hyatt).

For the first-time affluent international visitor prioritising spectacle and energy, Okada is the choice. For the return calibrated to a different register — Solaire for quiet luxury, City of Dreams for design, Newport for transit efficiency.

When to Visit

The Fountain runs every evening, year-round. Cove Manila runs as a day club on weekends; night-club programming Friday and Saturday evenings, with international DJ headliner bookings driving the calendar. For visiting guests planning around the music, Cove's schedule often determines the date.

Korean Chuseok in autumn and Lunar New Year in February drive the deepest Korean and Chinese tourist surges; the property runs at full energy across both windows. Chinese New Year, Easter, and Christmas-New Year are equally peak. Hotel reservations during peak windows require three or more months of lead. Weekday afternoons and weeknights — Monday through Thursday — deliver the property at its quietest operating register.

Related — All Properties Under Philippine Casinos and Integrated Resorts

Entertainment City — Operating

Quezon City — Operating

Solaire Resort North (Quezon City): 5-Star Casino & Vertis Premium Hotel

Metro Manila — Upcoming Integrated Resorts

Cebu and Mactan

Clark, Pampanga — Operating

Clark, Pampanga — Upcoming

Hann Reserve (Clark, Pampanga, Phase 1 2027): Banyan Tree, Sofitel & InterContinental Mega-Resort

La Union, Rizal, Subic

Nationwide PAGCOR State Brand

Casino Filipino: PAGCOR Chain & Branches Across the Philippines

Parent thread: Philippine Casinos and Integrated Resorts: Operating Floors & Upcoming Mega-Resorts

Other Threads of Interest

Metro Manila Hotels: Luxurious — for the standalone Manila luxury hotel cross-reference
Metro Manila Malls: Most Loved — for Manila Bay retail context
SM Mall of Asia (Pasay): Bayfront Views & MOA Arena Entertainment — the adjacent MOA bayfront district
Best Philippine Beaches: Most Beautiful — for the post-casino island extension to El Nido, Boracay, or Bohol

Your turn. Pearl Wing versus Coral Wing reports. Tower Villa observations from guests who have stayed with The Fountain in the window frame. Cove Manila DJ headliner experiences. Crystal Dragon dim sum and Kappou Yoshi omakase reports. The Fountain seasonal-programme comparisons. VIP gaming salon experiences (Korean junket versus direct host). Okada-versus-Solaire-versus-City-of-Dreams-versus-Newport for the multi-night international guest. Share your visits.

— Bizman

Responsible Gaming: Gaming venues in the Philippines are regulated by PAGCOR. All licensed properties operate Responsible Gaming programs, including self-exclusion options for guests who wish to limit or stop their play.

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