InMaricopa readers earlier this month polled 3-2 in favor of Harrah’s Ak-Chin Hotel and Casino as their preferred place to game, imbibe on Margarita Sunday and rock like a cover band.
Our readers preferred Ak-Chin over Wild Horse Pass Casino and Resort, Maricopa’s second-closet gaming location to punch a slot. According to Arizona Department of Transportation data, some 85% of working adults who live in Maricopa drive past the south Chandler casino every weekday.
But when it comes to the top five “most luxurious casinos” in Arizona, Wild Horse Pass, owned by the Gila River Indian Community, comes in second by a “respectable” nose. Harrah’s Ak-Chin ranks near the bottom.
That’s the results of Casinos.com analysis , using TripAdvisor reviews, sent to InMaricopa today.
“By checking each review for mentions of certain keywords such as ‘luxurious, magnificent and fancy,’ we were able to rank the casinos on our special luxury scale,” spokesperson Colm Phelan said.
Wild Horse Pass’ second-place finish was determined through 186 reviews, 124 of which gave the casino-hotel a four- or five-star rating with “luxury” in mind.
This casino’s reviews had multiple mentions of the words ‘pleasure’ and ‘indulge.’ Here’s one of them: “It’s a nice size casino with a nice variety of machines for your entertainment purposes. It has several places to eat if you’re inclined to indulge. It was clean and spacious.”
Harrah’s Ak-Chin was rated No. 10 of 13 tribal gaming brands in the state. There are no commercial casinos in Arizona.
Wild Horse Pass was given a luxury score of 14, more than triple the luxe of Harrah’s Ak-Chin, given just four-and-a-half points.
Casinos.com’s study concludes Flagstaff’s Twin Arrows Casino edges out Wild Horse for first place by less than half a point, gleaned from 236 reviews with 161 giving a four- to five-star review mentioning “luxury.”
Coming in third place was Apache Gold Casino and Resort in San Carlos with 113 reviews, 53 of which posted four- or five-star rating, mentioning luxury.
More than 51,000 people are currently employed by the gambling industry in the state, and the economic impact was $7.8 billion last year, the American Gaming Association’s latest figures show.
Right at the bottom of the list is Casino Arizona in Scottsdale with a meager 1.78%, Phelan said, “ and what could you really expect from a place with such an uncreative name?”
He added: “Out of 281 reviews, only five mentioned one of our keywords, and one of the most scathing reviews said, ‘Don’t expect any amenities that are listed on the website, everything is closed except the machines. No pool, no showers for the RV park, and the buffet is closed.’”
Ouch.
“Second from the bottom was Bucky’s & Yavapai Casinos, which, we have to admit, at least has a more interesting name than Casino Arizona,” said Phelan.
This one got a 3.3 on the scale, but reviews called out unhelpful customer service and dirty facilities.
See the full analysis here.
This post Wild Horse Pass ranks No. 2 in ‘luxury,’ says Casinos.com appeared first on InMaricopa .
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