18 Year Olds Can Gamble at the Alcohol-Free Chocktaw Casino
Written: Jan 31 '09 (Updated Jan 31 '09)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Good odds, cheap cigarettes, 18 year old gambling, lots of promotions.
Cons: No players club, no alcohol (if that matters to you.)
The Bottom Line: When my sister, a frequent visitor to Atlantic City, raved about Chocktaw, I decided it's a local treasure worth writing about. A find for casino lovers.
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| frazzledspice's Full Review: Choctaw Casino, Pocola, OK |
I'm not much of a gambler myself, so when my city-slicker sister, a frequent visitor to Atlantic City, raved about our nearby casino, the Chocktaw in Pocola, Oklahoma, I made a mental note to learn more about it.
While visiting for my daughter's high school graduation, my sister won $800, my niece won $600, my hubby won $130, and yes, I lost about $20 :(
When my son came to visit, he won about $600 at Blackjack.
Friends tell me that their retired parents always find good entertainment there on Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. when they get Club 55 discounts, spend a day at the machines, enjoy a good low-cost lunch buffet, and often come out ahead.
If you're a smoker (and I'm not) you can always make up your losses by stocking up on cigarettes at the Choctaw Travel Plaza before heading home. I don't know all the prices, but I do know that a pack of Camel Crushes are $3.21, including all taxes, so I'm sure other cigarettes have similar discounts.
Perhaps the most unusual thing about the Choctaw Casinos, however, is that teenagers can legally gamble. In Atlantic City, you can't even walk through a casino unless you're 21 years old, but at the Choctaw Casinos, 18 year olds can gamble.
The tribe can get away with this loophole because their casinos are alcohol-free. At the Pocola Choctaw, the only buzz you can get is from caffeinated drinks at Jackpot Java, which serves up espressos, lattes, cappucinos, pastries, and snacks.
The Chocktaw Nation
The Chocktaw Tribe initially populated the Mississippi Valley and were forcibly removed to Oklahoma, traveling the Trail of Tears, primarily between 1831 and 1838, but some as late as 1903. The semi-autonomous Chocktaw Nation occupies 11,000 square miles in southeastern Oklahoma. There are 188,000 members of the Chocktaw tribe.
The nation runs casinos in Pocola, McAlester, Sallisaw, Stringtown, Grant, Broken Bow, and Idabel. Their largest facility, a casino-hotel in Durant, is located 90 miles north of Dallas/Fort Worth.
The casino I am writing about here, in Pocola, Oklahoma, is located about six inches from the Fort Smith, Arkansas border. The Chocktaw casinos seem strategically placed to draw visitors from adjacent states (Texas, Arkansas) that don't permit casino gambling.
Arkansas doesn't even have lotto yet (although it's recently been approved) and had even declared church bingoes unconstitutional until they figured out a way to get a lot of money out of them by licensing and taxing them.
The Slots
The Pocola casino, which was rebuilt and expanded a few years ago, has a huge array of nickel to $25 slots. My sister and niece had tremendous luck with a slot strategically situated right by the front entrance. When my hubby was ready to leave with a loss, they saw it was empty. He sat down and changed his luck within minutes. Because my city-slicker relatives go to Atlantic City quite a bit, they seemed to know which games were the most user-friendly and pointed them out (maybe that's why I don't go unless my "guides" are visiting.)
Cards
There are poker and blackjack tables. My son did well at blackjack. One of my friends has had great luck with Texas Hold 'Em, but she has the right combination of attributes for that game--she's one of those people who is brilliant and well-educated with a down-to-earth good old girl appearance. I'm sure she has the card sharks fooled.
There are various promotions and tournaments available at Pocola that can be accessed at their website, www.chocktawcasinos.com, including a Tuesday and Thursday night tournament at 7 p.m.
Bus trip visitors get coupons for free card plays along with their free bus rides. Any group of 30 to 55 people can get free bus transportation to Chocktaw, making reservations 24 hours in advance.
Entertainment
The main casino in Durant has recycled big names regularly--Chubby Checker is the last I saw advertised. Pocola has a stage setup with bands on some weekends. The last time I was there, however, they had Native American dancers accompanied by drums.
Dining
The Pocola Chocktaw has three dining options. The Stargazer Buffet, which gets four stars from the retired senior citizens I know, is only open for lunch and dinner (six hours for lunch, five hours for dinner.) They have private meeting rooms for groups (maybe I can get my Red Hat group to visit) and an extensive menu.
Jackpot Java, which closes at midnight during the week and 1 a.m. on weekends, offers typical Starbucks-like fare and light snacks.
Blue Moon Cafe, featuring burgers, fries, milkshakes, and diner-like fare, is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week (as is the casino.) When we ate at the Blue Moon, prices were reasonable and food was "OK, but not special."
Special Days and Nights, But No "Player's Club"
In your birthday month you get $10 in free play and a meal discount. In your wedding anniversary month you get $10 in free play and two meal discounts.
There are Ladies Nights tournaments on Monday, early bird tournaments and Sunday tournaments.
Although the Durant hotel casino seems to have a "players club," the smaller casinos don't, although the website says plans to offer a players club are in the works. Because of this, you won't receive any mail promotions from Chocktaw--if you're looking for a special promotion or activity, it's best to check the website or, if you live nearby, check the newspaper ads.
Gambling for 18 Year-Olds
Whether it's wise or not, it happens at Chocktaw. My daughter isn't much of a gambler (like me) but she has gone to Chocktaw on dates. She saw one young man she was dating go to Chocktaw on paydays, play, get ahead, and not stop until he'd lost $30 or $40. "He works hard for that money. I don't understand how he can just blow it all there," she said. "He should stop while he's ahead."
I do think that in the balance, however, people gambling in alcohol-free casinos are probably less likely to lose the farm.
Overall Recommendations
I've visited Chocktaw a few times when my family has visited from metro NY. They visit Atlantic City several times a year, and they thoroughly enjoyed their profitable visits to Chocktaw.
Local seniors who go there regularly seem to feel it's a good entertainment and dining value for the money, even on the days they lose a little.
Smokers love to stop by the travel plaza, where they can buy very cheap cigarettes at a drive-through window. (Since the federal government is planning on increasing taxes by $.50 and my state is planning on increasing taxes by $.60 a pack, I'm sure their cigarettes will be even more popular.)
There's plenty of parking and the facility is almost brand-new, neat and well-kept. There is adequate help at the cash-out windows, and the workers are pleasant and friendly.
If you're traveling across the country on Interstate 40, a short detour will get you there.
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Seniors
Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime
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