Melco International Development’s new Cyprus casino claims attendance is on the rise since the property opened three weeks ago.

On Wednesday, the Cyprus Mail quoted Craig Ballantyne, Melco’s top man in Cyprus, saying the new Cyprus Casinos (C2) ‘pop up’ venue had welcomed 34k guests since its June 28 opening. Ballantyne claimed that the figure had “exceeded our expectations and we are very gratified with the response from our guests.”

That’s a far different reaction than Ballantyne offered earlier this month, when he said the 7k unique visitors over the property’s opening weekend was “below expectations.” This week, Ballantyne said attendance was “accelerating,” driven by “strong, positive word of mouth and self-discovery by the market.”

C2 is the temporary venue Melco was allowed to open while its primary City of Dreams Mediterranean integrated resort – scheduled to open in 2021 – is being built in the Limassol area.