Not far from the waterfront rises the towering Curacao Plaza Hotel, situated within the walls of an old fort at a choice location at the entrance to St. Anna Bay harbor. Built in the 1950s, the hotel has a cornerstone laid personally by British Bernhard of the Netherlands. The year the hotel was ready for occupancy, 1957, marked the opening of its beautiful casino. This same year was the first in which gambling was legalized in Curacao. Games featured in its luxurious surroundings are blackjack, roulette, slot machines and craps. Blackjacks is played with four decks, with a minimum bet of $2 and a maximum bet of $200. The minimum bet on the roulette wheel is $1, and the maximum on any given number is $10. The crap table has a minimum of $5 and a maximum of $200.

The design of the casino's gaming coin features dice, the casino's name and the denomination on its obverse. The denomination, 50 Gulden, also appears on the reverse, together with a wheel, stylized dice and the legend Curacao Plaza casino, Netherlands Antilles.

The hotel itself features an elegant dining room, coffee shop, lounges and dancing.

At Curacao, nature cooperates with those at leisure by providing almost perfect weather. The island receives a scant 22 inches of rain per year, and the average annual temperature is a balmy 81 degree Fahrenheit, with tradewinds blowing almost constantly.