Video poker

If you're a video poker player and haven't yet discovered the site videopoker.com, it's a good place to practice your skills. The site offers free play on some of the most popular video poker games. The site also offers memberships (nominal monthly fee), but if you don't want to join, you can still play most of the games for free with no limit on the length of time you play.

New and next to an interstate

If your summertime travels will take you into Pennsylvania this year, you may want to plan a stop to see the state's newest casino. Opened in February, Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course is a 365,000 square-foot state-of-the-art integrated gaming and racing facility. It's located just off Interstate 81 at exit 80 -- about one-half mile north of the exit ramp. The facility is in Granville, PA, home of Penn National, the parent company of the Hollywood Casinos that are located throughout the country.

There are over 2,000 slots and video poker machines on the first floor of the building. Live thoroughbred racining and full-card simulcasting are featured throughout the year. Dining options are at five restaurants including trackside, American & Italian restaurants, fast food and a sports bar & lounge.

For free RV parking with good security, look for the RVs in the open lot north of the casino building near the red barn. This is an "RV-friendly" facility, but there are no hookups.

Mississippi Casino Makes Good Sam Top 100 List

If you're down in the Bay St. Louis area, looking for a place to hang it up for the night, then the Good Sam Club has a recommendation for you: The Hollywood Casino RV Park has made the club's Top 100 in membership sales for 2007.

With 101 on-site concrete pads, full-hookups (30 and 50amps), free Wi-Fi internet, cable TV, picnic tables, barbecue grills, laundry facilities, bathhouse, water features, 24-hour security and a pavilion, Hollywood has a big game going. The outfit says you'll want to take advantage of their free shuttles available throughout the 600 acre property. The Hollywood RV Park costs $28.00 per night. Good Sam club members receive a 10-percent discount.

For more information on the casino and contacts, click here.

Bay St. Louis sunset photo, courtesy Belle Isle on flickr.com

What's new

In Ohio: With six months to go till election day in November, a group in Ohio has been collecting signatures to once again get a referendum on this year's ballot. The group, MyOhioNow, hopes to see a casino built in Clinton County which is southeast of Dayton. But attracting support in Ohio could be a huge challenge since Ohioans soundly defeated other gambling referendums in 1990, 1996 and 2006.

In Kentucky: Meanwhile, a proposal to add casino gambling at racetracks has been quashed. Kentucky's governor announced recently that he was not able to get enough support in the legislature for his proposal to add casinos at racetracks. Look for the proposal to resurface, however, at a future legislative session.

High fuel prices --- ugh!!!

Looking for free overnight parking? Anything that will help to save a few bucks these days is welcomed. Just a reminder: Appendix B in the current (3rd) edition of Casino Camping lists 88 casinos throughout the country that are located within 2 miles of an interstate exit, so you won't burn too much fuel getting to that RV-Friendly casino. Warning: There is one exception on that list -- Empress Casino near I-80 in Joliet, IL does not allow free overnight parking for RVs. They require you to pull into their (somewhat pricey) campground.

Downstate Illinois: Near I-24

Harrahs in Metropolis, Illinois is RV-Friendly and is convenient to Interstate 24 in the southern end of the state. It's a medium sized riverboat, docked on the Ohio River, with gambling on three levels. The gaming floors are roomy with roulette, craps and several blackjack & three-card poker tables on the second level and a poker room on the top level. Over 1,200 gaming machines throughout are upgraded as new slots and video poker machines debut.

There is a designated section for oversized vehicles on the quiet end of the parking lot. Free overnight parking is available. The casino is just 3.8 miles from I-24 exit 37.

We have visited lots of casinos throughout the country. From time to time we receive coupon offers for a free night at a casino hotel, but usually the offer arrives at our mailbox when we're hundreds of miles away from that particular casino. This week, when we knew we'd be passing through southern Illinois, we called to say we were in the area and to ask if the free hotel room offer (the one we received last year) could be used now. Surprisingly, they gave us the free room. I guess it was a slow week. So I got to enjoy a bubble bath...what a treat! (Only full-timin' RVing gals can identify with that.) The moral of this story is, it never hurts to ask for comps -- casinos are always willing to attract people to their gaming floor. Sometimes when you ask for a comp, they'll say no, but often they say yes. You never know unless you ask.

Slower paced casino-hopping in Nevada

There's no question but that Nevada is still the #1 destination for casinos, and Vegas is the most popular destination. However, for a slower-paced casino-hopping experience, we are really partial to Laughlin, Nevada. There are 11 casinos in Laughlin and they are all Vegas-style. There's live entertainment, lots of restaurants and plenty of non-gaming activity in Laughlin.

Laughlin is directly on the Colorado River where Nevada, Arizona and California meet. For us RVers, it offers a good variety of accomodations from the traditional RV Park to free dry camping. There are two full-hookup campgrounds. The Avi resort several miles north of town has a KOA where, you'll find quality sites and amenities consistent with KOA's high standards. Rates range from $23 on weekdays and can go up to $40 on holidays. The campground is noted for its spectacular beach area. The full-service resort has a 25,000 square-foot casino plus many other activities too numerous to mention. To get to the other casinos along the river, you'll need to drive there. Most casinos are along the river on Casino Drive. Don Laughlin's Resort has an RV Park with rates from $26. The town is hospitable to boondockers, too. The River Palms offers an area for dry camping for a nominal fee. Harrahs has two lots where RVs may park free for up to three days. For both River Palms and Harrahs you'll need to register for a parking permit. There is a dump station at the gas state near Harrahs; dump fee is $3.

About a year ago there was an attempt to pass local legislation to prohibit overnight parking in casino lots in Laughlin. Fortunately, the attempt did not succeed. At the time there was speculation that the concerns that prompted the prohibition attempt were environmental because irresponsible RVers were dumping grey water and, even worse, black water onto the casino parking lots in Laughlin. It is sad that -- as much as we appeal to RVers to be responsible -- such things do happen.

As frequent blacktop boondockers at casinos, as well as other businesses that are hospitable to RVers, Jack and I are especially sensitive to the issue. As often as RV publications run articles about the simple rules for overnight parking etiquette, we continue to see examples of RVers abusing the hospitality of businesses that allow free overnight parking. Just last week, we came through the Flying J in St. Augustine, FL for fuel. We observed about 15 motor homes & fifth wheels parked and apparently settled in for the night there. We couldn't believe what we saw. Several had their awnings out, chairs arranged in a socializing circle on the blacktop and the barbeques smokin away as the men grilled the dinner. From time to time, we've seen the same thing in casino parking lots. It makes me wonder how long it will be before places like Flying J and casinos will refuse the free overnight parking privilege altogether.