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Las Vegas we love you, but every now and then we like to play a slot machine or make a baccarat bet sans garish billboards, rowdy bachelors and exorbitant resort fees. As it happens, 30 states now offer legalized gambling and casino resorts have sprung up everywhere to meet the demand of gaming fans less committed to making the Vegas schlep. Here are 7 casino hotels where you can win big—even if you’re not a gambler.

RELATED: 8 best day trips from Las Vegas

Best Location: Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Lake Tahoe

Lake Tahoe, California, Hard Rock

We’d argue that any hotel located in Tahoe, the freshwater lake tucked away in the Sierra Nevada mountains and jewel to both California and Nevada, is blessed with the perfect location, but just look at the awesome views afforded from some of the Hard Rock’s guest rooms! Located right on the Cal-Nevada state line, the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino is part of the bustling South Lake Tahoe area which boasts ski lifts, pristine beaches, hiking trails, horseback riding, flashy eateries, bumping nightlife and gambling. But if you’re able to snag a room with a view, why would you ever leave it?

Coolest Pool Scene: Harrah’s Resort SoCal

Harrahs SoCal, California

A casino floor isn’t exactly the best place to get a tan. Enter Dive, the pool experience at Harrah’s Resort SoCal which is located about an hour northeast of downtown San Diego. Dive gives the Vegas pool party a run for its money with features like a 400-foot lazy river, swim-up bar, multiple hot tubs and poolside entertainment. Its poshest perk might be its themed cabanas like the bachelor and bachelerette-themed Bro- and BabeBanas and the birthday-themed Cabananza. And yeah, SoCal weather is basically perfect year round.

Most Rock ‘n’ Roll Cred: The Fillmore at Harrah’s New Orleans

rock and roll, guitar

It’s not hard to find top-notch entertainment at casinos anymore. (Lady GaGa is at the height of her career and in the midst of a Vegas residency.) But when the legendary Fillmore (of San Francisco fame) announced it was building a 2,200-seat theater on the second floor of Harrah’s New Orleans, casinos officially gained rock ‘n’ roll cred. The Fillmore opened in early 2019 and is already boasting acts like Foo Fighters, Garbage, Collective Soul, Kacey Musgraves, Rob Zombie, Carly Rae Jepsen and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, among others.

Best Gaming: Foxwoods Resort Casino

foxwoods, connecticut

Bingo doesn’t earn a casino much money which is why you don’t see it on the Vegas Strip. But Foxwoods Resort Casino in Ledyard, Connecticut (about 150 miles north of NYC) has a bingo hall that seats nearly 4,000 people and paid out a cool million to a single winner as recently as July 2018. It also boasts nearly 5,000 slot machines, more than 250 table games and the Rainmaker Stadium where players can toggle between multiple games at once while sitting at play stations featuring phone charging devices. Did we mention the resort as a whole occupies 9 million square feet?!

Coolest Rooms: Nemacolin Woodlands Resort

casino, pennsylvania

You know how rooms at casino hotels kind of look super samey (and by that we mean kinda bland)? Not so at Nemacolin  Woodlands Resort, which is located about 70 miles south of Pittsburgh near the state borders of West Virginia and Maryland. Nemacolin actually offers numerous room types—everything from Prairie Style (a nod to nearby Fallingwater) to Paris chic. In fact, you might not notice the gaming aspects at all. This historic family-friendly hotel offers a little something for everyone including golfing, paintball, ropes courses, zip lining, tennis, art classes, swimming pools, winter sports, numerous restaurants and, yes, an encounter with Lady Luck!

Tastiest Restaurants: Atlantis Bahamas

Atlantis Bahamas

We know the Bahamas are not technically in the U.S., but considering the flight from Miami to Paradise Island takes less than an hour, we say close enough. And the food scene at Atlantis… holy cow. Master Chef José Andrés recently debuted Fish; Chef Nobu Matsuhisa boasts an outpost of his eponymous Nobu; and then there’s Moon Bar with its marine habitat swimming around you as you imbibe. Casual dining rules here as well. Among the dozen options, there’s Julie Lightbourn’s Sip Sip where diners nosh oceanside on “Caribterranean” bites while staring at azure blue waters. Take that, Sin City.

Most Grandeur: West Baden Springs Hotel

French Lick, Indiana

How does a casino wind up on the National Register of Historic Places? Long story short, the West Baden Springs Hotel in Southern Indiana was considered the “Eighth Wonder of the World” when it opened in 1902. Constructed to resemble a European spa resort, it flourished as a retreat for the wealthy until the Great Depression caused its eventual closure in 1932. It changed hands several times and eventually fell into decline until preservation efforts rescued the building in the early ’90s. Its now a thriving resort once again and also boasts gaming thanks to the addition of the French Lick Resort in 2007. To get a full sense of the hotel’s splendor, check out the 200-foot atrium, the hotel’s stunning focal point.

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Tagged: Bahamas, California, Caribbean, Midwest, New Orleans

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Jason Heidemann

Jason Heidemann

Jason is a Lead Content Specialist for Expedia Group, and manages content initiatives across numerous Expedia-owned brands. His work has been featured in the Chicago Tribune, Time Out, the Huffington Post, Chicago Magazine, Passport and many others.

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