Gambling Conditions in Indiana

For those of you that are considering taking a trip to gamble at the Indiana riverboats, I thought would let you know how gaming conditions are different in Indiana compared to some of the other gaming destinations you may be use to. I also want to state up front my knowledge is limited to primarily Caesar’s Indiana, Casino Aztar and the New French Lick Casino, but most of these comments will apply to all Indiana casinos.

No free Alcoholic Beverages
By state law the Casino’s aren’t allowed to offer free alcoholic beverages to patrons so expect to pay for your drinks. I suspect for some of you this will be a deal killer. The prohibition on free alcoholic drinks has been with us since riverboat gaming was first legalized in Indiana as one of the many concessions to gaming opponents. As time has gone on, a lot of these concessions/restrictions on gaming have been lifted, but this one has remained. I have heard it speculated that the state won’t lift this restriction because it doesn’t want to lose the tax revenue on the paid drinks. (Indiana has an excise tax on alcoholic beverages)

Kids Aren’t Permitted on the Casino Floor and the Hotels aren’t Kid Friendly
It seems like a no nonsense sort of thing, but Indiana’s restrictions are actually much stricter than Nevada’s or even Mississippi’s. In Both Nevada and Mississippi those under 21 are generally permitted to cross the casino floor to get to the restaurants, shops and room elevators. In Indiana they are not, and a natural result has been the buffets, most of the restaurants, most of the shops and the room elevators are located a good walking distance from the casino floor. The 3 Indiana riverboats I am most familiar with all have snack bars and or a café adjacent to their casino floors, but in all 3 cases the best dining, all of the shopping and the buffet are a good hike from the casino floor. Also, there are numerous restrictions on those under 18 even in non-gaming areas. Simply put they are not allowed in the non-gaming areas of the hotel/resort including the swimming pool without being accompanied by someone that is at least 18. So unless your kids enjoy being pinned up in a hotel room I suggest you leave them at home.

Expect a long Walk
When Riverboat gaming was first legalized in Indiana the boats were required to cruise and you could get on and off the boat only at set intervals. Thankfully, that restriction has been lifted, but because the boarding areas were designed to accommodate long lines waiting to board the boats at the start of a new session there is a long walk to get on the boats. The notable exception is the new French Lick casino which was built after the cruising requirement was lifted. At French Lick you basically walk directly onto the casino floor from the parking garage causeway.

There is long driving distance between Casinos
At least with the 3 Riverboats I mentioned above it is a long car ride to get to the next one and casino hopping isn’t very realistic. I am talking bare minimum an hour and a half to get to the next casino.

All of this may lead you to believe I am down on gambling in Indiana, but I am not. There are many great reasons to gamble in Indiana to name just a few: Caesar’s Indiana has one of the largest poker rooms in the country, The two historic hotels that were restored in the French Lick area as a result of that casino opening are truly a sight to behold, Southern Indiana is beautiful in the fall, people are generally speaking friendly, good video poker pay tables can be found at Caesars and overall gaming conditions represent a better value than the Las Vegas Strip. Indiana must be doing something right as it is tied for 3rd in gaming revenues with Mississippi despite having less than half the number of casinos of that state.

Tunica Mississippi the best gaming value

The bad news is my annual late November guys’ trip to Las Vegas has been canceled this year, but the good news is that I will be going to Tunica MS. Instead. There are two reasons for the change. The first is that is simply cheaper for me to get to Tunica, and get around once I get there instead of Las Vegas. Secondly, Tunica is just a much better gaming value right now.
For me to get to Vegas It is a four hour car trip to one of the two airports with lower fares within reasonable driving distance from me. I usually depart from Nashville (BNA) or Indianapolis (IND) to get to Las Vegas. It is only on rare occasions do I find competitively priced flights out of Louisville (SDF) which makes for a shorter drive. Once I get to the airport then it is a four to five hour flight to Las Vegas. And finally upon arriving in Las Vegas another hour or so is devoted to ride the shuttle to the new consolidated Rent-a-Car facility, and do the paperwork for my rental car. If I want to go to Tunica I simply hop in my car and make a six hour drive. Since my car is already down there, I don’t have any transportation expenses to speak of once I get there. So by going to Tunica I don’t have the expense of an airline ticket or a rental car. The gas works out to be about the same. So conservatively speaking I have approximately $500 -$600 more to spend on the tip simply by making the decision to go to Tunica Instead of Las Vegas.

Over the last several years it has become clear to me that as a gambling destination Vegas is just not the value it once was. I still get my rooms comped as well as the meals at the casinos I frequent, but if I want to eat some place other than at a Harrah’s or a Boyd Gaming property the prices are astronomical. Even at a lot of the casino video poker bars they now want you to gamble 10 coins at a time on a machine with a horrible pay table to score a free drink. Most of the non-gaming attractions seem to have tripled in price over the last five years. For me the worst part of the Vegas experience is the aggressive up sell you get everywhere you go in Vegas. Overpay to visit a Vegas attraction and at least 2-3 times during your visit to that attraction you will be hit with requests to buy photographs.

As far as gaming conditions in Vegas go video poker conditions are just horrid on the Strip and the table games aren’t any better. In Vegas to get a good video poker pay table you have to head downtown or elsewhere off strip. Now don’t get me wrong if you go to Vegas for fine dining, shows and high end shopping Tunica would likely leave you very disappointed, but for a trip that is primarily for low to mid level gambling purposes Tunica is a much better value. I am convinced you can sign-up for a rewards card at almost any casino in Tunica, run very little money through the slots and receive very generous room offers. I have played very little at Resorts, Sam’s Town and Hollywood yet I consistently get free room offers from all of these properties.