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Monday, June 16, 2014

Arizona casinos yank RV overnight welcome mat

Not long ago this notice came out: "Gila River Casinos will no longer allow overnight parking for recreational vehicles, Truck/Trailer RV combinations, or Semi-Trucks." For many who travel through Arizona, this is a blow. Gila River Casinos operate three different facilities.

Wesley Fryer on flickr.com
What was the cause? While the outfit didn't specify what the direct cause was, plenty of RVers have their suspicions. Wrote one on an RV forum, "When we arrived this week, people were camped out, some for months. Chairs and rugs were out, and one family allowed their children to play. Children are not allowed on the property here at Lone Butt [sic]. We ate in the casino everyday to give them business, and we gambled in the amounts that a RV park would charge. Most didn't. Two different men had been there since November."

Casino parking lots are a staple of many RV "pavement campers." Getting the bum's rush can definitely make life difficult. It wouldn't be surprising if the Gila River decision came in part -- maybe in large part -- due to dubious behavior on the part of the few that reflects badly on the many.

For our part, we've spent more than one night on a casino lot. While we don't gamble, we're plenty happy to spend a few bucks in a facility restaurant, make sure we pick up any trash we find left in the parking lot, and vamoose within a day or two -- not turning the place into a semi-permanent residence. Hopefully what's happened at Gila River properties won't become a common occurrence.

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5 comments:

  1. AnonymousJune 21, 2014 at 5:40 AM

    Like most rules and laws. They are made because of the behavior of a few and the majority pay the price.

    ReplyDelete
  2. MarkJune 21, 2014 at 4:19 PM

    So, the casinos didn't want to throw out some offenders and threw out everyone. NO loss for me but a loss for the casinos. I visited one casino in Michigan several years ago. We had to register and we were given 3 - 1 night tickets. We had to present them inside daily or management assumed we were leaving and assigned the site to someone else. Pretty simple. If we wanted to stay an extra day we could get a pass providing there were vacancies and no one waiting.

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  3. living.boondockingmexicoJune 22, 2014 at 5:52 AM

    I'm not buying it. We have been through many casinos over the last two months of a four month U.S./Canada trip. I see rvers at casinos but have never observed that behavior. Some casinos who in the past allowed rv parking, are now charging and some are creating hookups as much as $35 for a night. I think it's about business. If it is a casino on reservation land, it is another way to bring in revenues for the group. I think they see future business.

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  4. BusyretireesJune 22, 2014 at 10:59 AM

    We stop at casinos that offer free overnight RV parking and use their facilities to eat and do a little gambling. If they want to charge me to gamble and eat, then I will go to a real campground and not bother to go to the casinos. Their loss, not mine.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Janet GealJune 25, 2014 at 12:06 PM

    This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete

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