Caesars Virginia LLC got the green light on Wednesday to operate its temporary casino in Danville from the Virginia Lottery Board.
Caesars Entertainment, which operates the Caesars Sportsbook Virginia, has already said that the permanent gambling resort won’t be ready until next year.
But the temporary facility will begin welcoming guests and taking bets on May 15, according to a tweet from Caesars Entertainment.
In collaboration w/ venture partners EBCI Holdings and Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, & local minority investor, the Wright family, we are pleased to announce that Danville Casino, future home of @CaesarsVirginia, plans to open and take its first bet on May 15, 2023. pic.twitter.com/vSyFI4GdBN
— Caesars Entertainment (@CaesarsEnt) April 26, 2023
Opening Will Give Virginia Three Casinos
Caesars is the third casino operator to get a license to operate a land-based casino in the commonwealth. The two previous licensees, currently running casino facilities, were Hard Rock’s Bristol Casino and Rivers Casino Portsmouth. In addition to standard casino gaming, both facilities take wagers on sporting events, adding another option to a state that has operated Virginia sports betting apps since January 2021.
The Rivers Casino Portsmouth is a $340 million resort that opened in January. The HR Bristol is currently a temporary facility that opened in July 2022 with a permanent casino planned.
To offer perspective on the timing between licensing and opening the doors to the public, the Bristol casino was licensed in April 2022 and opened as a temporary facility in July 2022. The Portsmouth casino received its license approval in November 2022 and opened in January 2023.
Caesars is one of the online sports betting operators offering Virginia sportsbook promotions to its customers.
Plans For Permanent Virginia Casino in Danville
Plans for the permanent Caesars Virginia casino to open in 2024 include a 500-room hotel tower and a gaming floor with over 1,300 slots, 85 live table games and 24 electronic table games, according to a Caesars Entertainment website. Also, in the plans are a WSOP poker room and a Caesars Sportsbook.
Other anticipated features of the Caesars Virginia are a full-service spa, pool, bars and restaurants, a 2,500-seat live entertainment theater, and meeting and convention space.
Looking at how casinos are faring in the early going in Virginia, for March, the total adjusted gross revenue (AGR) from the two operating casinos was about $37.43 million. That was down 2.51% from the February Virginia casino revenue report.
Tax money to the commonwealth from the two casinos from Virginia March casino revenue was almost $6.74 million.
