Entry 01
Montreal Casino & Hotel
Montreal, Canada
The casino occupies the former French and Québec pavilions from Expo 67, on Île Notre-Dame in the middle of the St Lawrence, which gives the property one of the stranger and better silhouettes in the business. Guests stay nearby on the island and in the surrounding city, and the draw is as much the setting as the building: parkland, the rowing basin, the Formula One circuit tracing the island's edge. Restaurants, a cabaret theatre and event spaces run alongside the gaming floor, and the whole thing is operated by the province rather than an international group. It reads as a public building that acquired a second life, because that is exactly what it is.
In brief. Housed in the French and Québec pavilions of Expo 67; located on Île Notre-Dame; operated by Loto-Québec.
Entry 02
Fallsview Casino Resort
Niagara Falls, Canada
Fallsview is built into the escarpment above the Horseshoe Falls, and its hotel tower exists largely to sell that view, floor by floor. The property is a full resort: several hundred rooms, a spa, a theatre that books touring names, a set of restaurants at different price points, and a gaming floor somewhere in the middle of it all. Because it sits on the Canadian side, the falls are directly in front rather than off to one side, and the upper rooms look straight down the gorge. It runs busiest in summer and over the winter light festival, and quiet weeks are genuinely quiet.
In brief. Set on the escarpment above the Horseshoe Falls; several hundred rooms, spa and theatre; part of the Niagara Falls resort district.
Entry 03
River Rock Casino Resort
Richmond, Canada
River Rock sits on the Fraser River in Richmond, a few minutes from Vancouver International Airport and on the Canada Line into the city, with its own marina at the back. The hotel is the largest in Richmond and is used heavily by people passing through — early flights, connections, a night either side of a longer trip — as well as by guests coming for the show theatre. There is a spa, a row of restaurants reflecting Richmond's food culture, and a gaming floor that operates as one part of the property rather than the whole of it. The river frontage is the thing most guests remember.
In brief. On the Fraser River with its own marina; near Vancouver International Airport and the Canada Line; show theatre and spa on site.
Entry 04
Casino Rama Resort
Rama, Canada
Casino Rama stands on the Chippewas of Rama First Nation land near Orillia, about ninety minutes north of Toronto and on the edge of the Muskoka lakes. It was the first of its kind in the province and remains closely tied to the community that owns it. The hotel runs to several hundred rooms with a spa and a large entertainment centre that has hosted touring acts for decades; in summer the surrounding lake country accounts for much of the traffic, in winter the concert calendar does. The gaming floor is one facility among several on a site that functions as a regional resort.
In brief. On Chippewas of Rama First Nation land near Orillia, Ontario; several hundred rooms; entertainment centre seating several thousand.
