Patrons welcome reopening of Caesars casino Friday
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Hoping for a bit of first-day-back luck, locals were excited to be welcomed back through the doors at Caesars Windsor casino on Friday.
The casino opened at 50 per cent capacity Friday morning, though some patrons were invited for a sneak preview Wednesday.
Rick and Alicja Traczuk, from London, were among those customers invited in early and said they enjoyed their visit Thursday night and Friday morning.
“I wonder if people are still a little nervous to go places,” Alicja said, of the number of people in the casino: not as many as she thought there might be. “There wasn’t much competition at the machines.”
Alicja said the casino felt “spacious” with 50 per cent capacity. Rick said the pair were comfortable with the pandemic measures in place, which included blocking off some machines to ensure social distancing.
“We’d go to Las Vegas a few times a year and haven’t been able to go with the shutdown,” Rick said, adding the trip to Caesars was a little getaway for the couple.
Casino patrons are asked to enter the casino via the third floor sky deck from the parking area, so that people can be counted and screened. All other doors are closed to control the flow of people in and out. Face masks are required though patrons do not need a reservation.
For now, just the slot machines and a couple of restaurants are open. The casino plans to reopen more restaurants in the coming weeks, while table games are set to reopen July 28, pending approval. The casino’s hotel is currently closed.
Casinos were permitted to open last week under Step 3 of the province’s reopening plan. At 50 per cent capacity, Caesars can accommodate about 3,000 guests, officials said.
Scott Jenkins, the casino’s director of advertising, said Friday’s reopening has gone smoothly thus far and the casino is anticipating a busy weekend.
“We have received an overwhelmingly positive response from our guests and look forward to continuing to open more amenities and welcome back more guests and employees in the coming weeks,” Jenkins said.
Feedback from guests has been positive and many guests have appreciated the safety protocols in place, he added.
Caesars has been mostly closed since the onset of the pandemic in March 2020, with brief reopening last fall.
Shelly Davis was just walking by on Friday morning when she decided to make a pit stop at Caesars.
“I was out exercising and as I walked by I realized ‘hey the casino’s open, let me pop in and see'” Davis said. “Maybe it’s first day luck.”
While generally more of a bingo fan, Davis said she set herself a $20 limit and played the slots for a bit of fun. Pre-pandemic she mainly visited the casino for entertainment, while also looking forward to concerts and shows coming back.
But in the meantime she was comfortable amid the casino’s pandemic safety measures.
“I didn’t feel nervous at all, they have a lot of sanitation and were abiding by the regulations,” Davis said.
