Casino Arizona

Arizona is the equivalent, to many, as the Florida of the West. In a lot of ways actually. Both states offer the idea of warm sunny skies, but also have become synonymous with retirement. Ok, to some degree that is true. I may be different, but when I think about both states a semblance of fun seems to creep into my consciousness. Oh, yeah, there's one other similarity between Florida and Arizona...they both have casinos.

In Arizona, the number is growing but the featured casino today is the none other than the Casino Arizona. Located at 9700 East Indian Bend in Scottsdale Arizona, but has several satellite locations. Our focus is the Resort and Spa, because what's better than a resort and spa right? The Casino Arizona Resort and Spa. Why not right? Enjoy the fun of a casino and the joy of a resort and spa vacation. The gaming and or casino area has about 1600 multi denominational slot machines, not to mention full sections of black jack, poker and keno.

Let's not forget about top notch entertainment that you should expect at your casino. How do the names Don Rickels or shows like Beatlemania sound to you? Pretty good right? Well Casino Arizona has such great entertainment and more, not to mention nightly entertainment at the Pima Lounge and the Casino Arizona Piano Lounge.

In case you didn't know also another great similarity that the state of Arizona has with Florida is Golf. Yes the religion of the links. Check out Scottsdale Arizona's Official Site of Tourism to see all the options available to you with golf.

Enjoy your next trip to the Arizona Dessert. I'm sure you're already making plans.

Siena Hotel Spa and Resort Reno

I can still remember watching a movie called "King Pin" many years ago now. It's a story about a bowling legend that fell from grace and the face of the earth, but in a path to rediscovery he came across an amish man that changed his world. Without getting too much into a story that has nothing to do with this post, they ended up in Reno Nevada, "The Biggest Little City in the World" for the annual bowling world championships. Well Reno finds us taking a look at a featured casino there, the Siena Hotel Spa and Resort. 

The Siena Hotel Spa and Resort is located at  1 South Lake Street Reno and is ranked, if such a rating system existed, would have the resort scored at about a 3.5 out of 5 stars. The property is located in the River District of Reno. There visitors will find great local attractions such as the Harrah's Automobile Museum and the Pioneer Performing Arts Center. 

That's all well and good, but the "gold" of your visit really is your stay at the Siena Hotel and Resort. This place is awesome. Almost every guest room is positioned to get a view of the mountains or river, the spa is first class, and the gaming is incredible, that offers about 23,000 square feet of casino space and the theme and decor is that of a Tuscan Village. Don't forget about the dining where you can get anything from gourmet and upscale at Lexie's on the River or visit the 24 Hour Contrada Cafe.

The Siena Hotel Spa and Resort surely makes Reno a little more upscale and nipping at the feet  of the joints in Tahoe. 

Buckys Casino and Resort - Prescott Arizona

Buckys Casino and Resort is the subject of our newest casino review. Yes, I said Buckys Casino and Resort. Haven’t heard of it before? Doesn’t matter. This property and casino gaming hall is a charming little casino you may not have heard about before, but if you’re in Arizona taking an excursion to this place will no doubt be some fun.

Buckys Casino and Resort is located at 530 East Merritt, Prescott, Arizona. More specifically the casino is located inside the Prescott Resort Hotel. The casino offers slots, video poker, blackjack and poker. The property it’s located at offers 81 guest rooms and 80 guest suites. The average room rate for the guest room is $99 to $209 and the average rate for the guest suite is $199. It also has three restaurants and a bar.

The charm of the city of Prescott is wonderful. We’re talking about a city that is very much off the beaten patch and hours away from the big city of Phoenix. You’ll find yourself in the middle of majestic South West with mountains and valleys and everything you could imagine from an old cowboy movie. In the middle of it all you find the oasis of the Prescot Resort Hotel and of course the fun of Buckys Casino and Resort.

One thing that casinos and properties like this offer is the ability to come with a recreation vehicle and park, refuel and dump. To the folks that are used to places like Atlantic City, New Jersey and/or Las Vegas, Nevada, this may seem very weird, but this really is a growing trend for gambling casinos as they are developed.

Enjoy a bit of the South West at Buckys Casino and Resort or call (928) 776-1666 for more information.

ACES Train Service.

Many, many years ago a train came from New York City, down the coast line to the then sleepy down of Atlantic City New Jersey. Well recently a new era, that is taking it's cues from the olden days, finds a rail line from New York City to Atlantic City once again. 

The light rail line is called ACES, and travels from New York's Penn station to Atlantic City's Rail Terminal.  Service started yesterday, February 6th, for the inaugural train trip. 

The rail line is newly remodeled and is a multi-level rail line that is supposedly very comfortable for passengers to enjoy. There is a 300 person capacity in the 4 cars that make up the rail line, but there is so much more. The seating is comfortable leather chairs, there are several food and beverage kiosks available and there is also a private lounge. 

There are a few catches though. There is a short stop in Newark New Jersey, and pricing can be a bit much where the low end one way tickets are $25 and the high end tickets where you have access to the lounge can be as much as $300. A bit more than the simple AMTRAK rail from Atlantic City to Philadelphia and points west.  Also the rail line only runs on Friday, Saturday and Sunday twice daily. 

In a time where Atlantic City, and the Casinos that make up a substantial part of the market place, are really falling on hard economic times, something novel and unique like this should fire up some excitement. The thing is will New Yorkers "buy into" this concept and get on the train is the big test. Again, the rail line only offers two trips a day out of NYC for the three days and, at most, can only hold up to 300 people. So at most you're getting an additional 1800 people a week to Atlantic City to NYC. Only time will tell. 

Penn National Gaming.

I almost find it funny that I can even write this blog with an attitude of fun. The fact is that Casinos have been a haven for people. Good or bad as that might be, whether it be a person's only form of entertainment, a good investment or the very institutions that create jobs and opportunities for a region Casinos have something. 

Well with all the great vision in Atlantic City some 30 years ago, it seems like the bloom may very well be off the rose and the armor is starting to show it's vulnerability. Penn National Gaming, one of the Giants in gaming across the globe has announced that they will no longer be pursuing the development of a stretch of Route 30 in Atlantic City for a Gaming Casino. 

This is just another sad story in what could have been a very bright path that Atlantic City should have taken during the course of 30 years. Sure the economy is very much to blame, but the powers to be and the inability to see the magnitude of which the casino industry has helped not just the region but the entire state has been abysmal. Now Pennsylvania and every other state is adopting casino legislation. The workers in Atlantic City casinos pressed for a smoking ban also making the casino's lose there competitive appeal. Add in the big fact that they won't allow Sports Books to run in casinos and it almost seems like Atlantic City wanted to fail.

Penn National Gaming's decision to not pursue this development is a frightening look and glimpse into the future of where Atlantic City is headed. Today a major casino developer pulls out. Tomorrow an existing casino goes out of business. The trend is too unbearable to think about.

Spotlight on the Spotlight 29 Casino in California.

To add a little bit of irony to these posts I recently came across a casino named the Spotlight 29  Casino that is located in Coachella California. More specifically the casino is located at 46-2000 Harrison Place in Coachella.  The Spotlight 29 Casino is another beneficiary of the Indian Gaming laws and is owned by the 29 Tribal Bands that are descendents of the Chemehuevi Indians that once were located in the South West and Western United States. 

You'll find a very nice charming experience at the Spotlight 29 Casino. First the casino is centrally located to some great areas of California including San Diego, Fontana, Santa Anna and Ocean Side. For those of you that have been able to visit the San Diego area, I'm sure you can agree that the region is sun drenched, clean and beautiful. Second, the property has a lot of fun to offer. So if you're planning a trip to San Diego, although San Diego has several gaming properties in the area, the Spotlight 29 Casino is a nice diversion from the hustle and bustle of the city areas. 

As far as the gaming that is offered the Spotlight 29 Casino has it all. Table games include several versions of Black Jack, Pai-Gow and Mini Baccaret. There's also a complete selection of slot games to keep any one busy if that is your poison.  The Spotlight 29 Casino offers over 2000 slot machines from  penny slots all the way up to $100 machines. What would be a casino without poker? Well to me not much of one at all, but a glorified bingo hall. Fortunately by my standards the Spotlight Casino offers several versions of poker including great poker tournaments. 

The fun doesn't stop there as you can have your choice of great places to eat and have fun. For great upscale food check out the JEM Steakhouse. For great entertainment the Spotlight 29 Casino caters to great country western music. Some great headliners include Richie McDonald who was the former front man for the group LoneStar, Tracy Lawrence and Tracy Byrd.

As you can see the glitz and glamour of the casino life is not just found in Las Vegas or Atlantic City. The tiny town of Coachella California has shown us that. Take time to visit Spotlight 29 Casino when you find yourself out west. 

Happy New Year and Best of Luck for all Your Casino Visits.

I guess in the grand scheme of things I'm a little tardy getting to the official and obligatory "Happy New Year". It is only January 2nd, but it already seems passe. Regardless, better late than  never so Happy New Year to all my friends, family, followers and contributors. 

No doubt for the casino industry, 2008 has the same stigma as it has with the rest of the world....just bad. Workers were laid off in droves, many of the best performing and traditional powerhouses of casinos and gaming had not only losses, but some of the most significant in each of their respective histories. Destinations like Atlantic City, Las Vegas and Reno suffered major set backs. Yet here we all still stand. One such obvious point is that I still have a relative loyal following of readers and posters, and a regular barrage of emails and notes. Sure casinos cut back on work force levels, but they still stand. Better or worse, one thing I'd "bet on" in the long run is that casinos will weather the storms. My hopes and best wishes go out to all the down trodden and other business industries, but in terms of probability, casinos, games of chance or whatever you want to call it as a collective, has been around long before recorded history and will continue to do so. 

So let us all look to this new year, this year of 2009 with great anticipation. That through it all we'll weather the bad storms, and 2008 was a doosey. That fun and games are still important to the basic needs of the human spirit.