Lake Charles, Louisiana Area

Our Lake Charles area survey includes four facilities: Isle of Capri and Harrahs in Lake Charles, Coushatta Casino Resort in Kinder, and Delta Downs Racetrack & Casino in Vinton.  A fifth facility is due to open soon, L'auberge du Lac Hotel & Casino in Lake Charles (http://www.ldlcasino.com/), scheduled to open in May, 2005.  We expect to survey this new casino on our next visit.  The Isle of Capri and Harrahs facilities are riverboats, with each casino consisting of two boats joined by common areas. 

COUSHATTA CASINO RESORT (KINDER, LA)

Map/Directions
777 Coushatta Drive
Kinder, Louisiana 70648
Phone: 800-584-7263
Website Link:  http://www.gccoushatta.com
Cash Back:  Unknown
Number of Video Poker Machines:  Approximately 100
Casino Size:  107,600 square feet

Coushatta Casino Resort, in Kinder, Louisiana, is owned and operated by the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana.  It is one the larger casino facilities in the state (Indian casinos are not required to be on water in Louisiana, and therefore can operate outside the confines of a riverboat).  We found the casino to be clean and in excellent condition. 

The high limit area some excellent games, but the $25 denomination is a bit much for most players.  The typical player will find a good supply of Aces & Faces, Double Aces & Faces, as well as some Bonus Poker in the video poker area of the casino, at more typical 25c/$1 denominations.  There are good, playable games here, but the selection of games and denominations is limited.  Unless you find some of these games specifically to your liking, it is probably best to drive the 30 miles or so to Harrahs in Lake Charles, where a broader selection of games and denominations are available.  We liked this facility, but found the selection just a bit too limiting.

SURVEY DATE: APRIL, 2005

DELTA DOWNS RACETRACK & CASINO (VINTON, LA)

Map/Directions
2717 Delta Downs Drive
Vinton, Louisiana 70668
Phone: 800-589-7441
Website Link:  http://www.deltadowns.com
Cash Back:  Unknown
Number of Video Poker Machines:  Approximately 55

While we were surprised at how nice the Delta Downs facility is, the video poker was disappointing.  We were able to locate just a few good games, but most video poker at Delta Downs was as bad as it gets.  We found only a few games -- some 9/6 JB and 8/5 Aces & Faces, but these machines were few in number, difficult to find, and even more difficult to get a seat at.

In particular, avoid the High-Limit area which has no good games, and the large number of short-pay machines near the front of the casino.  There are a few Triple Play machines, but the best games on them are 9/5 JB.  We would strongly recommend that anyone interested in playing video poker pass on Delta Downs altogether.  There is excellent video poker to be found only a few miles down the road at Harrahs.

SURVEY DATE: APRIL, 2005

HARRAHS (LAKE CHARLES, LA)

Map/Directions
505 North Lakeshore Drive
Lake Charles, Louisiana 70601
Phone: 800-427-7247
Website Link: http://www.harrahs.com
Cash Back:  None (bounce-back, minimal)
Number of Video Poker Machines:  Unknown

Harrahs in Lake Charles has two boats in a side-by-side configuration, "Harrahs Star" casino and "Harrahs Pride" casino.  Most of the video poker is located in the Star casino, and when we visited there was a sign indicating that all games were being moved from the Pride casino to Star.  However, Harrahs Pride still contained some good video poker, as described below.

Harrahs has the best games in Lake Charles.  The lower floors of both boats should be avoided, as we found no good games on the lower floor of either boat.  But you'll 9/6 JB, 8/5 Bonus, 9/7 DB, and NSUD in 25c various denominations.  Also, one bank of machines at Star Casino included 9/5 Triple Bonus Plus, a 99.8% game. 

The bar on the second floor of Pride Casino offers a fairly unique opportunity, in that there are 50c full-pay progressives with 9/6 JB, 8/5 Bonus, and 9/6/4 DDB.  The 9/6 JB becomes a 100% game at $2,440, while the 8/5 Bonus is a breakeven game at $2,794.  Visitors to Harrahs should keep an eye on these progressives for advantage play opportunities.

In Lake Charles, Harrahs is the place to play. 

SURVEY DATE: APRIL, 2005

ISLE OF CAPRI (WESTLAKE, LA)

Map/Directions
100 Westlake Avenue
Westlake, Louisiana 70669
Phone: 800-843-4753
Website Link:  http://www.isleofcapricasino.com/Lake_Charles
Cash Back:  Unknown
Number of Video Poker Machines:  Approximately 75 (both casinos combined)
Casino Size:  48,900 square feet

The Isle of Capri in Lake Charles consists of two riverboats.  Most of the video poker is located on the larger of the two boats on the lower floor (the upper floor contained no video poker that we could find).  Games were generally poor, with only a couple of exceptions.  9/6/4 DDB is available on many machines within the casino, including 25c, 50c, and $1 machines.  However, you should be careful -- there are also a number of 9/5/4 DDB games.  The only other good games in the larger boat were along the back wall of the video poker area, where we found SOME of the Triple Play games having 9/6 JB, 8/5 Bonus, as well as other better games; these were interspersed with shorter-paying games, so be sure to examine closely the pay tables and seek out these better games when playing there.

If playing at the Isle of Capri, your best bet is to go to the smaller "Isle of Capri 'Crown'" casino.  The games are $1 and $5 only -- but have the excellent pay tables of the aforementioned Triple Play machines.  You'll find three $5 machines, three $1 machines, plus eight games at the bar (avoid the High Limit area's 9/5 JB games in favor of these machines).  If playing at the Isle, these games are worth seeking out.  In particular, DW players will appreciate the NSUD games in $1 and $5 denominations.   

If you're not able to play these few good games at the Isle of Capri, we recommend crossing the bridge to Harrahs, where you'll find the best video poker in Lake Charles. 

SURVEY DATE: APRIL, 2005