Puyallup Casinos in Tacoma to Bring People by Air to Gamble

Casinos are getting creative when it comes to securing patrons. Some, such as The Puyallup Tribe’s Emerald Queen Casinos in Tacoma and Fife have vowed to ferry customers to the casino by air. The tribe has teamed up with Kenmore Air and has established a seaplane service from and to South Puget Sound, enabling locals to access the casinos if they want to.

Bringing More Patrons to Puyallup Casinos in Washington by Air

The Washington-based tribal casinos will be able to beckon Canadian gamblers who may be interested in getting on planes and flying down across the border. There are multiple starting destinations from which interested patrons may fly out, and they include the San Juan Islands and Victoria British Columbia. All flights will go directly to Tacoma, with the landing destination close to the casinos themselves. The tribes are planning to build a small terminal on a new piece of land bought in 2021.

Puyallup Tribe CFO Matt Wadhwani is confident that this would bolster visitations to the casinos and will secure direct access to the venues which may prove tempting to gamblers. Meanwhile, the tribe will continue running The Ram, its waterfront restaurant. Both casino properties are chugging along well and have been running for over two decades now.

The Fife Emerald Queen Casino has a 103-room hotel and 2,300 slot machines, along with a sportsbook to offer to all interested patrons. This is not all, as there is also the Emerald Queen Casino Tacoma to consider, the newest property by the tribe which launched officially in May 2020, as the pandemic was only getting started.

Newest Casino Property Keen to Get Foot Traffic

The property features 60 table games, 2,100 slots, and a 155-room hotel, along with numerous bars and restaurants. There is also a 250-seat sportsbook along with an outdoor concert space for more than 1,800 people. Despite the setbacks suffered during the pandemic, the tribes are confident that they can get more people in, if not by land, then by air, including the San Juan Islands and British Columbia residents.

The partnership with Kenmore could expand in the future and help ferry even more people over. While some logistical challenges remain, including whether there will be enough interest in the new destination, the Puyallup Tribe is confident in a successful outcome.