Casino Upstate New York
When Americans think about gambling hotspots, the first places that come to mind are Las Vegas or Atlantic City, NJ. Although the latter has served many a New York gambler throughout the years, residents of NY know that there are a wealth of casinos in New York that offer a wide selection of casino games. Here is a list of the 10 best land-based casinos in New York. Each excels in numerous different areas.
(CBSNewYork/AP) — Sullivan, Schenectady and Seneca counties have been selected as sites for casinos in upstate New York, a panel announced Wednesday, bringing an end to a fierce competition among 16 developers and job-hungry communities. Turning Stone Resort Casino - so much more excitement, so much more entertainment, so much more comfort, so much more you. Join us at New York’s most awarded four-season resort destination. Upstate New York Casino Award-Winning Gaming. Experience 2,000 slot machines, 66 Vegas-style table games, one of the top three Bingo Halls in the world, the largest poker room in New York State, and so much more at New York. Albany, NY 12206 Rivers Casino & Resort Schenectady 1 Rush street, Schenectady, NY 12308 Saratoga Casino Hotel 342 Jefferson St, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866 Turning Stone Resort Casino 5218 Patrick Rd, Verona, NY 13478 Mohegan Sun 1 Mohegan Sun Blvd. Four new commercial casinos were opened in upstate New York between 2016 and 2018 as well. Native American NY Casinos. Turning Stone Casino Resort, Verona NY. Opened in 1993 by the Oneida Indian Nation of New York, Turning Stone was the first land-based casino and the first Native American casino in New York State.
This page is designed to be your one stop shop for all the info you need about New York Casinos. It’ll break down the different land-based gambling establishments located throughout upstate NY and the rest of the Empire State. In addition, I’ll discuss the legal history of the state and gambling halls. At the end of the page, you can find a complete list of casinos in New York.
Commercial Casinos in New York State
Contents
- Commercial Casinos in New York State
- What Else Should One Look for Besides Gambling?
The traditional casino is a commercial enterprise. Until recently, however, the state of NY has not permitted commercial gaming. The state’s historic gambling laws have placed lots of restrictions on casino gambling. This all changed in 2013 when the state agreed to legalize Las Vegas-style casinos, which had up until this point been constrained to Native American lands. The decision was made to help boost the state’s economy which had been experiencing sluggish growth in the years leading up to the decision. Today, commercial casinos generate more revenue than NY’s tribal gambling locations and the average New Yorker spends about $130 per/year per adult at casinos.
Today, the state has four commercial casinos in upstate New York. The land-based commercial casinos are the del Lago Resort & Casino in Tyre, Seneca County, Jake’s 58 Hotel & Casino in Islandia, the Rivers Casino & Resort in Schenectady, Tioga Downs in Nichols, Tioga & the World Catskills. These gambling sites offer huge selections of slot games as well as a nice collection of table & card games. Although there are racinos, or racetrack casinos in numerous locations throughout the state, most of these places don’t have live table games, only electronic versions of the tables. NY’s four upstate casinos are the only approved locations for sports betting. However, betting won’t commence until they have been provided the appropriate licences.
Pari-mutuel Casinos: Racinos
Racinos are technically commercial casinos, but I decided to talk about them in a different section because these gambling locations are not what people traditionally think of when you say the world ‘casino.’ Of the 12 commercial New York casinos, eight of them are racinos. The term is used to describe horserace tracks that hold licenses to offer casino games. In 2001, the New York State Legislature passed a bill, which allowed racetracks to have video lottery terminals (VLTs). VLTs are like slots, but often contain multiple gambling options. VLTs can be found in Delaware, Rhode Island, Louisiana, NY, Ohio and West Virginia.
Although racinos are immensely popular as evident by the love New Yorkers have for places like Batavia Downs, in fact, 5,000 people attended it’s opening night, racinos are slightly more limited when it comes to casino games. Racinos don’t carry live table games. So although most of these places will claim to have hundreds of table and card titles, these are always electronic versions of the games. Nevertheless, racinos remain a staple of the New York gambling scene and offer a lot of the same amenities (entertainment & dining) that other NY casinos do.
Tribal Gaming in New York State
The most abundant gambling option in the US is by far the Native American/Tribal/Indian Casino and the same goes for NY. There are more Indian casinos in New York than any other type of gambling site. Up until the state’s 2013 decision to open new casinos in New York, Native American gaming was the only gambling option in the Empire State. The first tribal gaming location opened in 1993 after the passage of the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. The first site was run by the Oneida Indian Nation, which is one of four tribes that operate NY’s federally approved casinos. The other tribes are the Seneca Nation, Cayuga Nation, and the St. Regis Mohawk tribe.
Tribal gambling remains the most popular form of casino play in New York because it offered the first Vegas-esque experience in the state. Residents near the state line always had the option to pop on over to Canada or New Jersey, but the approval of gambling licenses for Native American tribes finally gave New Yorkers options for in-state play. Places like Turning Stone are considered some of the top casinos in New York. The resort has been in operation for over two decades and has won Casino Player Magazine’s #1 Best Overall Gaming Resort in New York award multiple times.
What Else Should One Look for Besides Gambling?
Of course, there are more than a few factors that determine the quality of NY casinos. Of course, gambling is a huge draw when it comes to selecting one establishment over another, but many people prefer one site over another because of the amenities it offers alongside its gaming entertainment. Below you can find some of the things you should keep an eye out for when planning your next casino get away. All of these criteria were considered when selecting our top land-based casinos in New York, and many of the sites in our top casinos list have won numerous awards for their entertainment offerings.
Location
Residents of Upstate New York are spoilt when it comes to casino options because most of the commercial gambling locations are based in the northern part of the state. This is because the law which allowed the opening of commercial gambling establishments, did so with the assumption that casinos would boost the economy of an economically depressed region of the state. Residents of the Big Apple are limited to one option, which is the Resorts World New York City Racino in Queens. For traditional table games, players will have to travel out of the city. That’s why it is important to find a gambling establishment located in a place suitable to your needs.
Hotel
If you plan to make a trip out of your gambling outing, you’ll want to be sure to choose a resort that has a nice hotel suitable to the needs of you, and if you have one your family. Many of the tribal and commercial gambling resorts have put a lot of effort into their hotels that feature amenities such as golf courses, spas, pools, and lounges.
Entertainment and Dining
Similar to Las Vegas and Atlantic City, the best casinos in New York offer a wide-array of exciting entertainment options alongside their gambling options. At the most popular resorts, you can expect to find concerts, comedy shows, world-class dining, clubs and more. The Seneca Allegany Resort even features a large outdoor venue, which can accommodate famous musical acts. Travis Tritt, Toby Keith, Jackson Browne and Ringo star are only a few of the big names that have graced the resort’s outdoor stage. As you can see, there are many things that make for a great overall experience, and these things should be considered when looking for the ideal gaming location.
New York Casino Market Overview
The Empire State houses 12 land-based casinos and racinos which are overseen by the New York State Gaming Commission and 15 tribal casinos, which are not regulated by the state. The NY casinos market ranks in the top five of the United States. It generated a gross revenue of over two billion dollars in the year 2017 and generated a total tax revenue of 1.02 billion for the state (this figure doesn’t include other forms of gambling such as sports betting, lotteries, poker or horse racing).
These figures are especially impressive considering casino gaming is a relatively new and the state’s market faces some steep competition from its neighbors. New York is a big state, that could benefit from casino gaming, but a lot of the money spent goes to tribal gaming establishments as well as out-of-state casinos in places such as Pennsylvania, Connecticut and New Jersey. NJ benefits from its close proximity to NYC, which only has one casino in the five boroughs (Queens).
Casinos in New York are split into two types, Class II and Class III. Class III gambling establishments are the only sites allowed to carry your standard casino games like slots, roulette, blackjack, and more. Most ‘racinos’ and gambling locals fall into the class II category. These sites can only carry social-type games such as bingo. Below you can find a list of all the casinos in New York state.
All the Casinos Available in the State of New York
New Yorkers are surprisingly spoiled when it comes to land-based casino options. Not only are there heaps of casinos in Upstate New York, but you’ll also find racinos and tribal gaming centers spread throughout the other regions of the state. Below is a list of every casino that offers real money games in NY. The map below shows every legal casino in the state.
Blue: Tribal Gaming Red: Racinos Green: Commercial Casinos
