New Seminole Hotel & Casino Really Up’s The Experience

Immokalee, Florida has been a popular place to go if you are interested in a gambling trip, but this week news broke of a new hotel opening at the Seminole Casino Immokalee.

The hotel officially opened its doors on Thursday. It features 19 suites as well as 80 hotel rooms to be used by guests and visitors to the are and hotel. Tribal leaders as well as prominent members of the government and businesses associated with the casino were in attendance of the grand opening.

Tensions rise with the opening in light of a new bill being addressed that could limit gambling operations. Nonetheless, visitors are able to stay overnight at the on-site hotel. It has already been described as an upscale luxury experience that should not be missed.

The addition of the hotel is a wonderful advantage for gamblers and visitors to the area as well as for the casino business. In addition to that, the opening of the hotel is bringing over 100 new jobs to the area which will help the local economy. The areas affected by this include Immokalee and the surrounding areas.

The CEO of Seminole Gambling, Jim Allen commented on the boost to the job market. He said, ““We employ about 1,000 in this (casino and hotel) alone. More than 35,000 work for the Seminole tribe and all of its affiliate businesses.”

One reason why the casino was able to add on this addition is due to its growth in recent years. In the past five years alone it has doubled in size and then some. The casino opened its doors for business in 1994. It is one of 7 casinos in Florida that is owned and managed by the Seminole Tribe.

Most guests tend to be visitors who live around an hour and a half away from the casino but the new ambiance could change that. The new hotel experience will try to get guests to visit from other areas.

As the first upscale hotel in the area, this is the mark of true success and a growing economy. The starting price for a room on a Thursday is $399.90 according to the casino website. The rooms come with either two queens or a king bed.

• 450 square feet
• Ultra plush king-sized bed dressed in crisp white linens
• Large flat screen HDTV
• Complimentary Wi-Fi
• In-room safe
• Keurig coffeemaker with complimentary coffee and mini-fridge.

The suites are even nicer with things such as a balcony, an HDTV measuring 55 inches, and a walk-in shower a tub. These rooms are a little bit more expensive costing around $1,000 per night. For gamblers, though, this is not very expensive when the comps start rolling in.

The most expensive suites run about $1,300 during the busy winter season. These suites are top of the line and have a view of the pool as well as the Seminole Chickee Cabana.

While these prices do seem high, there are ways for repeat customers to the casino to stay for free. This is by accumulating points at the casino. These points can be used to reduce the room cost or even “comp” the room if they are considered big spenders on the casino floor.

The addition of the hotel is not the only thing the casino owners have in mind as an expansion. The owners are planning to bring in guests by having shows in the Seminole Center. These guests will come for the show and stay in the casino hotel.

The Seminole Center can seat 800 individuals indoors and up to 3,0000 outdoors. An upcoming show expected to bring in overnight guests will take place on Saturday, March 21st. KC & the Sunshine Band will be the headlining act.

The restaurant the Noodle House, is located near the slot machines across the grand entrance. It is designed to make getting food and getting back to playing a quick and easy task.

The gaming floor was also expanded to make room for a high limit room. This is where gamblers can go to spend a little bit more money than if they were at a typical table or slot machine. They added 73 slot machines, 10 blackjack tables, and two small baccarat tables to this area. The bet minimum begins at $50 for the table games and $5 on the slot machines. Gamblers can bet up to $100 on the high limit slot machines.

With all of these additions, the Immokalee Casino is becoming a real contender in the casino market. It is starting to look more and more like a real casino like the ones you would find in larger casino markets across the southeast, such as Biloxi, Mississippi and further into Louisiana. It will be interesting to see where it stands in the next five years.