Biloxi was holding pretty well compared to Las Vegas and Atlantic City, but after this report, not looking too good…
June was a wake-up month for Mississippi casinos, which saw the kind of bad hand dealt casinos in Las Vegas and Atlantic City for well over a year.
The gross casino revenue reported monthly by the Mississippi State Tax Commission showed Coast casinos down 28 percent compared to last June. The river casinos were down 13 percent and the state overall saw a 20 percent drop in casino revenue.
June 2008 was the fifth- best month on record, when the Coast casinos won $114.6 million.
There are 11 casinos now compared to 12 before Hurricane Katrina.
August 2008 was the last time the Coast casinos saw a better month than the previous year.
This the 10th straight decline.
Biloxi casinos are ranked eighth in the nation’s top 20 U.S. casino markets with 2008 revenues totaling $951.3 million, according to American Gaming Association’s 2009 State of the States. The renovations and the Casino deals that Biloxi Casinos now offer are the best in the USA. The hotel are plush and cool, the Beau Rivage is the pinnacle of Casino Gaming in the Southeast and is better than many Las Vegas Casinos. Click here for great deals and coupons for Las Vegas
Also, Biloxi Casinos are now offering much better deals for room rates and specials. The Hard Rock Hotel and Casino has room rates during the week for 30-50 dollars a night. This can’t be beat. The Treasure Bay casino is still the casino to go to and stay out if you want to enjoy classic Biloxi. If you want to taste the new Biloxi, then you want to stay at the Imperial Palace and the New Palace. These are the most fun Casinos in the town that is now rated as one of the best places to gamble in the United States.
On Wednesday, the Southern Gaming Summit at the Mississippi Coast Convention Center will include a financial roundtable that will bring together bankers and analysts to address the recession and global credit crisis.
That’s followed by a State of the Industry report from Virginia McDowell, president of Isle of Capri Casinos; John Payne, president of Harrah’s Entertainment’s Central Division, and Tom Wilmott, president of Penn National Gaming, parent company of Boomtown Biloxi and Hollywood Casino Bay St. Louis.
They know first hand the casino industry in Biloxi has many of the same challenges as businesses around the country.
“Right now everyone is aware of the financial constraints in the market,” said Larry Gregory, executive director of the Mississippi Gaming Commission. Almost all new development is on hold, he said, and most existing casinos are waiting on expansion plans.
Some progress is being made on new casino projects, but John Ellis, one of the developers of Blue Water Bay Resort, said it is probably three years before the casino resort near Pass Christian will be operational.
More info at SunHerald.com
