The beautiful new Wild Horse Pass Hotel & Casino near Phoenix is a perfect spot for a holiday getaway.

“A Star Spangled Shoot Out!” is this year’s theme for the popular Fourth of July celebration hosted by Rawhide Western Town and Steakhouse near Wild Horse Pass Casino and Resort in Chandler.  An evening of fun activities and performances, live music and steakhouse dining will culminate in a big holiday fireworks show.  Events begin at 5:30 p.m. with admission of $10 per person (ages 6 & up.)  Kids 5 years old and under are free.  Admission cost includes Rawhide attractions, entertainment and fireworks display.

After the show, head over to Wild Horse Pass Casino and enjoy your favorite slot and table games.  Make a night out of it — and miss all those crowds on the I-10 Freeway! — by staying overnight at either Wild Horse Pass Hotel & Casino or the nearby Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort & Spa.  Rates from hotels.com at press time were just $112 for the casino resort and $125 per night for the Sheraton.  Both are beautiful properties with plenty of dining options and resort amenities.  So stay, play and catch some fabulous Fourth of July fun!

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Beat the Field is just one of the many fun new slot machines at Casino Arizona's recently-opened Talking Stick resort.

Casino Arizona’s posh new Talking Stick gaming and resort property is shaping up to be Scottsdale’s newest go-to gambling destination.  The 240,000 square foot gaming area plus the resort’s many restaurants and the live entertainment showroom are now open at the Loop 101 and Indian Bend location.  The hotel portion of Talking Stick  has struggled to open and is — at this writing — still awaiting final occupancy approvals.  A recent visit to the new casino near Phoenix showed continuing construction on the hotel with the outdoor pool and spa area looking far from completion.  We found out by phone that casino staffers are taking reservations for hotel rooms beginning July 1 and gave a mid-August date for the pools to be open to guests.

We’ve made several visits to this newest Arizona casino and found both pluses and minuses to the property.  Here are some of our observations beginning with the most important part of any casino — the gaming!

Gaming at Talking Stick

Machine Selection — There is a huge variety of both flashy new games — think Sex and the City with Mr. Big as your host — and old customer favorites on the Talking Stick floor.  Some of the hottest slot machines on the market can be found here.  You can play a game new to Arizona, Monopoly™ Planet Go™, where the beloved Mr. Moneybags encounters aliens and other space-themed icons.  There is also the community-based horse racing slot game, “Beat the Field,” which I recently saw hit for a $1,136.19 progressive.  Not bad for a 2¢ game!

Other new slot machines include a  “Life of Luxury” progressive plus slot game “Great Wall” which offers players a progressive that pays in free games. Talking Stick visitors will also find machines based on popular TV shows such as “Happy Days,” “Stargate SG-1” and the aforementioned “Sex and the City” with its four-game screen filled with colorful icons depicting stiletto heels, posh cocktails and of course, the gorgeous stars of the hit show.  Be sure to check out all the floor-wide progressive games, too.  A busy High Limit room rounds out the gaming area.

Poker – The new Poker room maintains its status as the largest in Arizona.  The state-of-the-art room features fifty tables to accommodate players of Texas Hold ‘Em, Seven Card Stud and Omaha Hi-Lo as well as a full schedule of poker tournaments and events.

Table Games — More than 50 tables of Blackjack, Three Card Poker, Let Ride and Lucky Ladies are dealt around the clock. Casino War is also available at Talking Stick.

Video Poker — They’ve taken out our (and many other players!) favorite games:  nickel Spin Poker Deluxe and Fifty Play poker.  (You’ll find lots of the Spin Poker “regulars” now playing at Casino Arizona at Salt River.) They’ve added All-Star Poker with its menu of games such as Chase the Royal and Super Times Pay.  All Star machines include a Spin Poker game but the denomination here starts at 10¢ and playable lines are maxed out at nine.  Pay tables on all the games we saw left a lot to be desired as well.  Also, it was disappointing to see that free play bucks — or as the casino calls it “Power Percs” credits — are not accepted on All Star machines.

Keno — There is a small Keno lounge conveniently located near casual restaurant, the Black Fig, and a circular sports-themed bar.

More to come on the new Casino Arizona at Talking Stick including a review of our yummy lunch from the Black Fig. Have you been to the new casino and if so, what is your take on it?

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Casino Arizona's luxurious new Talking Stick Resort (shown under construction) will open April 15th for Phoenix area gamers and visitors.

A “soft opening” is planned for April 15 for the newest addition to the Phoenix and Scottsdale gaming scene — Casino Arizona’s luxurious new Talking Stick Resort.  Located just off the 101 freeway at the Indian Bend Road exit, the new casino features 240,000 square feet of gaming space and will be home to more than 800 slot machines.  Also on-board:  a non-smoking card room offering such games as Texas Hold ‘Em, Omaha and 7-Card Stud plus more than 50 table games including Blackjack, Three Card Poker and Let It Ride. A Keno lounge along with a high-stakes area will complete the gaming floor.

A major part of the new property is the soaring 497-room resort which also opens April 15th.  Spacious suites and lavish high-tech guest rooms await visitors to the hotel which sits adjacent to the world-class golf facilities already in place at the Talking Stick Golf Club.  Designed by Ben Crenshaw and Bill Coore, the two distinctively different courses have received numerous awards and are gaining great admiration from the golf community.  A spa, numerous dining outlets and entertainment lounges plus meeting space, a ballroom, retail areas and relaxing pool area are also part of this newest Phoenix-area casino resort.

We’ll be posting more info after we tour the property on Thursday.  Note: Not all facilities will be opening on “Tax Day.”  Planned features and amenities will continue to be completed with a “grand opening” for the property slated for sometime in June.

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Hosted by colorful pro, Phil “The Poker Brat” Hellmuth, the popular event brings to Arizona an exciting group of poker stars including such well-known players as Pam Brunson, Todd Brunson, Phil Laak, Clonie Gowen and others for this stellar three-day tourney.

Scheduled events for this “Official Satellite Tournament of the World Series of Poker” begin at noon on Thursday and continue through to Saturday’s big game happening at 8 p.m. when the top two players from both Thursday’s and Friday’s Main Events and Saturday’s High Roller Tournament vie for the Grand Prize – one $10,000 seat to the 2010 World Series of Poker.  Buy-ins start at $115 and go up to $1,000 for Saturday’s “High Roller” game.

In addition to the card games, golfers also get a chance to play for this good cause during Friday’s “Celebrity Golf Tournament” at WeKoPa Golf Club at the
Radisson Fort McDowell Resort-Casino. Registration begins at 11:00 a.m. for players who want to join country music recording artist Mark Wills, World Series of Poker Champ Hellmuth, “Home Improvement’s” Richard Karn and many more celebrities from the worlds of poker, television, music and professional sports in an 18-hole “Best Ball” Scramble golf tournament.

All the event details including a list of scheduled pros and celebrities plus rules and regulations can be found at the Taser Foundation site or visit the Fort McDowell Casino website.

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A glimpse of the gaming floor at the new Wild Horse Pass Casino in Arizona.

More than 1,000 slot and video poker machines, 46 table games and 25 poker tables will greet guests as the Gila River Indian Community unveils its striking new Wild Horse Pass Hotel & Casino to the public on Friday, October 30 at 9 p.m. Called an “overall entertainment package” by CEO Harold Baugus, the new casino resort offers much more than just gaming with its wide assortment of dining venues, five bars and lounges, a Vegas-style nightclub (opening in November) plus the new Ovations LIVE! 1400-seat entertainment venue.

Amid the bustle of last-minute construction touches, casino staffers and management were on hand this week to give members of the media a first-hand look at the stunning new property. Punctuated by soaring ceilings in the main gaming area, the casino design features the use of gorgeous natural materials plus striking design elements such as sparkling hand-blown glass lighting sculptures.

Players will no doubt enjoy the wide array of gaming machines including 600 of the newest slots such as the smokin’ hot “Wizard of Oz” and interactive “Star Trek” (both from WMS Gaming) plus 400 popular games brought over from the former location. Card players will be pleased as well with the new poker room’s spacious design and posh décor. High-limit gaming is available in a separate section of the casino with $5-and-up slot machines plus table games currently offering $25 – $500 limits. (Look for possible higher limits in the future.)

Shula's American Steakhouse at Wild Horse Pass features photos of the '74 Super Bowl champs.

Guests hungering for more than gaming will have their needs satisfied in style with the resort’s new restaurants including the first Arizona outlet of “Shula’s American Steak House.” With its dark wood floors and tables elegantly outfitted in white linens, this tribute to the famous coach’s ’74 Super Bowl champs features a high-end menu of corn-fed beef, seafood entrees and traditional sides such as creamed spinach and a variety of spud preparations. For a more casual meal, the downstairs “Ling & Louie’s Asian Bar & Grill” will offer the chain’s menu of oriental specialties with a contemporary bent. (We’ve been to the restaurant’s Shea Boulevard location and are big fans of the Asian Pear Martini, the Lemon Chicken and the Buddha’s Feast with Chicken!) Other dining spots include a food court with a Fatburger, a Boar’s Head Deli and more plus the casino’s own Café 24/7 with its delectable selection of baked goods.

Adjoining the casino is the resort’s 242-room hotel which features 39 suites along with a spa and pool. The hotel also offers 12,000 square-feet of meeting space.

We’ll be posting more info here in coming days so check back for updates.  Also, visit the Wild Horse Pass Casino website for opening details.

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The Mirage Las Vegas heats up the Strip with its new volcano show and hot room deals this summer.

Looking for an affordable last-minute vacation before summer ends? One of the most popular road trips is for Arizonans to head for the bright lights of Las Vegas. In this summer of 2009, the question isn’t whether you can save money on your Las Vegas trip but how much money you can save!

With travel — and particularly convention travel — way down in Las Vegas, hotel deals are everywhere. Yes, it is hot in Sin City in August but then those of us who live in the Arizona desert are used to the heat and Las Vegas offers lots of interesting and fun things to do inside to beat the sweltering summer temps.

We just got back from a great trip to Las Vegas where we spent eight days divided among Green Valley Ranch, The Bellagio and Planet Hollywood resorts. Great restaurants, lots of video poker including some of the latest games like Ultimate X Poker™, pool-time in beautiful settings, a high-energy show plus sight-seeing all added up to a wonderful trip. You can read about the trip at our sister site, RoyallyFlushed.com, where we start our round-up with a review of “Peepshow” starring Holly Madison at Planet Hollywood.

Some of the best hotel deals on the Las Vegas Strip right now are available at MGM Mirage properties, at Planet Hollywood, and at some of Harrah’s casino resorts. Check out these super deals and be sure to use the links provided to get the best rates:

Luxor from just $60 per night plus lots of great resort credits! Luxor “Luxury Getaway” Rates from $60/nt (2nt min). *Plus, one $30 dining credit at Tender Steak and Seafood Restaurant, One $20 Spa Credit for Spa Services, One 2 for 1 admission to The Spa at Luxor, $10 in Free Slot Play for New Player Club Members (*See site for additional details and restrictions). Jul 8, 2009 – Feb 28, 2010. Promo Code: PLUX (Exp 2/26/10)

Wow! The Mirage is celebrating 20 years on the Strip with great rates and lots of add-ins from just $81 per night. Mirage “20th Anniversary” Rates from $81/nt. *Join us at The Mirage and enjoy a $50 Cravings Buffet Credit during your stay and 4 Secret Garden passes.(*See site for additional details and restrictions). Jul 15, 2009 – May 31, 2010. Promo Code: WEBPROMO (Exp 5/31/10)

Planet Hollywood — cool rates for a hot center-Strip location: Planet Hollywood from $69 per night!

Hit up this site and check out the rates for Bally’s, Harrah’s and the Flamingo with its fabulous pool area: Great Vegas Hotels from $20

Tip:  If you do drive, be aware that construction around the Hoover Dam area is intense and can easily add an hour or more to the trip.  Consider using 95 as an alternate route.

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Stay and play at the beautiful Radisson Fort McDowell Resort and Casino during MEGA Splash 2009.

If you missed taking an escape over the July 4th weekend — or if you’re just ready for another quick vacation! — here’s a cool idea for a great budget-friendly Arizona getaway — the “MEGA Splash 2009” at the Radisson Fort McDowell Resort and Casino this weekend.  “Stay and play” at the Radisson for only $79 per night this Friday and Saturday, July 10th and 11th, and enjoy hanging out with all your favorite MEGA 104.3 FM deejays.  Radio station MEGA 104.3 FM will be on-hand at “The Fort” this weekend with happy hour parties, poolside games and events, casino cash and more and all at a recession-busting room rate.

For just $79 per night you’ll get a deluxe guest room at the absolutely gorgeous Radisson resort, a special MEGA gift bag, $50 in spending money to the casino, MEGA food specials and lots of  live entertainment all weekend long.

Here’s a quick look at the events that are planned –

Friday Night: Free “Happy Hour” with Raul Torres mixing it up live in the Fort McDowell Casino’s Lucky 7 Saloon plus a MEGA Splash Slot Tournament.

Saturday: Fun and games at the Radisson’s beautiful pool complex featuring tons of activities for the whole family including poolside bingo, volleyball and water balloon tourneys plus a “Dive-In” movie that night.

Sound good?  Rooms were still available at post-time so call the hotel at (480) 789-5300 or toll-free at 1-800-395-7046 to make your reservations.  Be sure to ask for the MEGA room rate!   You can also go to www.radisson.com/mega to book your room for this exciting event.

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