Airport Charter Partner Beau Rivage Celebrates 25 Years
By Chaille Munn, Director of Marketing
Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport
Beau Rivage Resort & Casino opened its doors in Biloxi on March 15, 1999. In response to Beau Rivage’s arrival, the Coast casino market grew from $814 million in 1998 to top $1 billion for the first time in 1999 — a whopping 27 percent increase in a year. This year, the property celebrates 25 wildly successful years.
“Achieving the success Beau Rivage has experienced since 1999 has been a true collaboration of our employees, our guests and our community,” says Brandon Dardeau, Beau Rivage President and Chief Operating Officer.
The anniversary festivities have included a spectacular drone show, an employee celebration, a New Orleans-style second line parade throughout the resort, a packing party for local charity and even the re-release of the original Biloxi Blonde beer in partnership with Chandeleur Brewing Company. Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport joined the celebration by offering a St. Patrick’s Day welcome, and hopefully a dose of luck, to Beau Rivage’s air charter guests on March 15.
Beau Rivage is the only resort in the Southeast with a scheduled charter flight program servicing more than 90 cities nationwide with more than 500 flights per year.
“We’ve grown, and we’ve grown our customer base. We run an air program called MGMAir, and we’re bringing customers from all over the country,” says Dardeau.
The MGMAir team, along with partners Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport and Sun Country Airlines, works diligently to bring in guests from all over, showcasing the beautiful place we call home. The air program launched in 2009 and hit a huge milestone of 1,000,000 passengers served in 2022.
GPT Executive Director Clay Williams says, “Beau Rivage has worked strategically over the years to exponentially grow its air charter program. With this effort to attract additional fly-in visitors, the Beau Rivage air program has grown to compose approximately 25 percent of the air service at Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport.”
Cheers to Beau Rivage Resort & Casino on 25 years of unparalleled success and the many
more certain to come. Thank you for flying GPT!