Mississippi’s Casinos, Golf & Spas

Combine a down-home buffet with a day of golf or pampering at a luxurious spa. Top it off with a gourmet dinner and a show by country music singer Trace Adkins or blues legend BB King and you have a winning holiday at one of Mississippi’s casinos.

From the Delta to the Gulf Coast, the resort casinos pack in a variety of activities and entertainment to make your stay as much fun as possible. The shows alone are worth a visit some of the country’s most popular performers can be found on stage at the casinos any time of year.

The fact that entertainers are drawn to Mississippi comes as not surprise. After all, the state gave birth to the blues and to Elvis, the King of Rock and Roll. Settle into the Bottleneck Blues Bar at Ameristar Casino in Vicksburg for live music that includes national acts as well as free performances by local and regional bands. Bayou Caddy’s Jubilee Casino in Greenville also gives equal billing to both well-known entertainers and local up and coming talent.

Music and good food go hand in hand, and most casinos feature at least one fabulous restaurant. Tunica has nine casinos that offer some of the finest dining in the South from artfully seasoned specials at The Steakhouse by Sheraton Casino & Hotel to the sautéed Gulf shrimp with stone-ground grits at Magnolia: A Delta Grille in the Horseshoe Casino and Hotel.

Three spas cater casino guests at the Robinsonville and Tunica areas including the fabulous Bellissimo Spa in Harrah’s Terrace Hotel. The coast provides additional opportunities for indulging, including The Spa at the Isle of Capri Casino in Biloxi. Choose a Tropical Breeze massage, a Southern Rose body polish or Private Island Romance Ritual for two. After your treatment, head to the heated Infinity Pool for a long relaxing dip. For sheer indulgence, hire a cabana (complete with a TV, telephone and refrigerator) poolside at the Hard Rock hotel & Casino, also in Biloxi.

The posh Beau Rivage in Biloxi includes another elegant spa and a gorgeous pool that overlooks the Mississippi Sound. Beau Rivage offers more than a dozen shops for browsing, lively nightspots including Eight75 and 11 restaurants, among them the upscale Olives, Jia and BR Prime. A $550 million post-Katrina renovation resulted in plush hotel rooms with marble baths, artwork and custom furnishings. For an incredible view, reserve a room facing the Gulf.

In all, the Mississippi coast boasts 11 casinos that offer distinctive dining and entertainment, with a heaping handful of golf courses and spas thrown in for good measure. More than half a dozen new casinos are scheduled to open along the coast over the next few years, including one with a tropical theme named for songwriter Jimmy Buffet’s “Margaritaville”. Two more are planned for Natchez. Combined with a dozen others already anchored on the waterways between the coast and the Tunica area, that adds up to one fine state of state of entertainment.

Don’t Miss…

• At Emerils Gulf Coast Fish House, chef Emeril Lagasse showcases his distinctive culinary style. Look for it in the Island View Casino Resort, Gulfport.
• Tien Asian restaurant at the IP Casino Resort Spa in Biloxi is the place to go for Oriental cuisine. Choose your favourites from China, Vietnam, Japan and Korea.
• Any of the “flaming” desserts at the Chicago Steak House in Tunica’s Gold Strike Resort make a grand finale that worth the calories.
• At ’37, the hottest upscale restaurant at Harrah’s Tunica, it’s a toss-up as to which is better, the aged beef or the fresh seafood, so compromise and order both with the Surf & Turf.