With Nanci Dixon
This week, RVtravel.com readers and Facebook friends had some great advice and also a few warnings about casino camping and gambling to pass along. Keep reading for an in-depth look at three reader favorites.
SEVEN FEATHERS CASINO RESORT, CANYONVILLE, OREGON
Our readers had a lot of good things to say about Seven Feathers Casino Resort. In fact, it seems to be a favorite among RVers in general.
Richard G. writes, “Try the ‘Seven Feathers’ on I-5 milepost 99 in Oregon. It has a free dry camping area as well as a pay area. In the free area, there is no registering. The pay area is like a full RV Park with no limits on stay.”
Jeff S. also mentioned Seven Feathers: “Seven Feathers (Canyonville, OR) offers two options: 1) full hookups in a BEAUTIFUL campground, or, 2) ‘dry-camping’ in a parking lot next to the casino. Generators can’t be run past 10:00 p.m., but it’s safe, secure, quiet, and free!”
We posted Robin G’s rave review last October but it deserves reposting again: “We love going to Seven Feathers Casino in Southern Oregon! When traveling on I-5 – headed south for the winter or returning home to WA – it is a must-stop! Although it is a 6-hour drive from our home, we often go there just to spend a week or so, too!
“You can boondock in their parking lot or stay in their small water/electric only lot, but we prefer staying in their beautiful RV Resort! They have a great process for getting you checked in and guiding you to your pull-thru or back-in site. It is one of the best-designed and laid-out parks we’ve stayed in! Each site has full hookups, a well-maintained grassy area and picnic table. They also have an indoor pool and hot tub, a workout room and a club meeting room, as well as several individual bath/shower rooms and laundry facilities in multiple locations. They have covered picnic table/grill areas and a group fire pit. All of that with great scenery (tree-covered hills all around and a creek running through the park, too).
“In addition, they offer free shuttle service to the casino and truck stop … or anywhere else you need to go in the area. Sometimes when we go just to stay there for a while, we don’t even bring our toad. They have shuttled us to the nearby golf course (clubs and all) and into Canyonville for a little shopping.
“Filling up our 40′ motorhome is a breeze thanks to their RV-only diesel lanes (RVs are welcome in the gas station area, too) – and, of course, the discount with our player’s card on fuel and our site is also appreciated.
“The casino itself is quite nice and large, with lots of gaming tables and slot machines. The non-smoking area is good-sized and even has a separate entrance and bar available. The multiple restaurants are great (good variety of choices).
“I didn’t even mention the great player club perks… We often have four or more free RV night stays!! Can you tell it is a favorite for us??!!”
Seven Feathers has been mentioned many times by readers as a favorite go-to casino RV park. Seven Feathers RV park has roomy sites and cabins to rent too. The RV park has 182 full-hookup sites, 104 are pull-throughs, six log cabins, three yurts, a heated pool, a fitness center, laundry, a BBQ pavilion, horseshoes, a playground, cable, shuttle service, Wi-Fi, and RV supplies. Some RV parks call themselves a resort and this one truly is.
The Good Sam rating is 10/10/10! They take a variety of clubs as memberships for a discount. Rates are based on availability, so they will fluctuate. However, if staying this week, the price with AAA discount is $65.70 a night. A cabin is $132. Weekends add a few dollars to the total.
Want to leave the RV behind for a night? You can get a one-night romance package cabin rental for $259 with champagne, keepsake flutes, an $80 dining credit and red roses. A spa package is also available. Ooh la la!
Don’t need the hookups and amenities? Free parking is also available at the casino.
Seven Feathers is located at 325 Quintioosa Blvd., Canyonville, OR 97417. Phone 541-839-3599 or 800-548-8461.
ROUTE 66 CASINO RESORT AND CAMPGROUND, ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO
Gary J. wrote in and said, “The Route 66 Casino Resort and Campground is a beautiful facility just off Route 66 near Albuquerque, NM. Wide open sites, plenty of space, easy to navigate even with the largest motorhome with trailers. Level, black-top pull-thru sites.”
Lorie S. was passing through and stayed here too. She writes, “On our way from Denver to Phoenix this past March, we stopped in Albuquerque at Route 66 Casino & RV resort. It’s right off of I-40, 20 minutes west of Albuquerque. The sites are level concrete. We didn’t take advantage of any of the amenities, but they looked nice. The park itself was immaculate! The staff was friendly. Liked it so much we stayed there on our way back after a month in Phoenix. We were thankful they were still open.”
Mark S. also liked Route 66. “We stayed at the Route 66 RV Resort associated with the Route 66 Casino. It was nice and quiet with a beautiful pool area and a shuttle to the casino.”
I (Nanci) also stop here when I can. When we are traveling from Arizona to Minnesota, this is always one of our overnight or two-day stops. While my husband spends his time and money away in the casino, I enjoy sitting next to the motorhome just relaxing, reading, and enjoying the view. The clubhouse is one of the nicest I have ever been in. The Art Deco bathrooms are amazing! Watch out for the entrance gate though, it is narrow and I hold my breath every time we enter or exit.
The Resort has 100 RV sites, a mix of 20 extra-wide pull-throughs, 37 12-foot wide pull-throughs, and 43 back-ins. The end sites are particularly attractive with views of the desert and vegetation. The well-appointed resort clubhouse has a fireplace, seating area, billiards, card table, games, exercise room, laundry, book exchange and FREE coffee!
The pool and hot tub area is well-designed; however, it’s closed right now due to COVID. If the occasion and RV park aren’t enough, there’s also a dog wash, two dog parks, putting green, pickleball courts, horseshoes and volleyball. They also carry propane and RV supplies.
Rates are $50 for a standard site and $60 for the extra-wide luxury sites. There is a 10% Good Sam and Military discount available. Signing up for the Rally Club membership gives a $10 a night discount for casino camping, pre-sale concert access and two free tickets to Tribute Band Concerts.
Route 66 Casino and RV Resort is located at 14500 Central Avenue SW, Rio Puerco, Albuquerque, NM 87121 (20 minutes west of downtown Albuquerque)
DAKOTAH MEADOWS, PRIOR LAKE, MINNESOTA
Traveling north for the summer? Mary D. likes this casino campground in Minnesota. “Dakotah Meadows Campground at Mystic Lake Casino in Prior Lake, MN, is a very nice park with reasonable rates. And it is very rare to find a park in MN that is open all year!”
Ralph P. shares a few tips when reserving: “When you call to make a reservation, ask about the availability of a shuttle. Also, ask about other services offered on-site. The RV campground at the Mystic Lake casino outside of Minneapolis has its own fuel pumps as well as an RV-sized car wash.”
I have also stayed at Dakotah Meadows and agree that it’s a nice, well-laid-out campground close to the twin cities. With the current issues surrounding campground crowding, it is difficult to get a spot, so try and reserve early. The middle rows are pull-throughs with RVs pulled up in opposite directions and utilities between them. This brings the other RV really close to the driver’s side. If you don’t mind backing in, the outside rows have more privacy. Open all year. We camped there at 10 degrees below zero! Only one night – we headed south quickly!
Dakotah Meadows has paved back-in sites and pull-through side-by-side sites. While there are not the standard RV resort amenities, they do have laundry facilities, a storm shelter, RV supplies, self-serve RV wash, RV gas station with gas and diesel, and shuttle service. The main draw is the proximity to Minneapolis and the popular Mystic Lake and Little Six Casinos.
Want to stay in something a bit more unusual or meeting up with family? Dakotah Meadows rents Tipis too.
The campground offers weekly and daily rates. Prime season: May 1 – September 30. Pull-throughs Sunday-Thursday, $40/night, Friday-Saturday, $45/night, and the weekly rate is $245. The roomier back-in sites are Sunday-Thursday, $45/night, Friday-Saturday, $50/night, and weekly is $275. Off-season rates are $34/night and $155 per week. Off-season rates have an additional electric charge. AAA, FMCA, AARP discounts are available.
Dakotah Meadows is located at 2341 Park Place, Prior Lake, MN 55372. Phone: 952-445-8800 or 1-800-653-CAMP
Stopping at a casino, or are you a casino camping newbie?
American Casino Guide provides not only information on casinos, it has a gambling primer on slots, video poker, blackjack, craps and other popular casino games and RV, hotel, restaurant information.
Casino Camping Guide to RV-Friendly Casinos is also a great guide and provides a lot of information particularly for RVers.
Join our Facebook Group Casino Camping for more casino information. Post your favorite spots too.
Read the last Casino Camping here.
Tell us about casinos you like that other RVers might like. If you have any tips or secrets about casino “camping,” tell us those too, please!
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More interested in free casino overnight parking and gambling tips (ie: casino camping tips)
Disappointed in this article. Headline was accurate, bi-line was not!
We stopped at the ROUTE 66 CASINO RESORT AND CAMPGROUND, ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO once about 4 or 5 years ago, and were treated so badly on arriving that we left without checking in. We Drove another , I think about 30 miles west, to Sky Casino and stayed at their very nice park with full hook ups. We have since stayed at Sky 2 more times. We travel from Lafayette Colorado to Apache Junction Arizona twice per year.
I have run into those type of problems. Treat me right or I go elsewhere. I normally never go back to a park I have been mistreated in but , several years later we went back to a particular park in Virginia where several years before we had been treated badly only to find the park had been sold and acquired by new owners who seemed like they really wanted our business. RV’ers normally demand courtesy so a park is not going to make it long term when problems like your exist Chuck. Just wait, it will eventually get better.