RALEIGH, N.C. — A new casino is open with hopes of generating profit, jobs and entertainment for people in both Virginia and the Carolinas.
Caesars Casino in Danville, Virginia is about 45 minutes from Greensboro, making it closer than casinos within the state.
Caesars Virginia is about 60 miles north of the Triangle, about 70 miles from Winston-Salem and it takes a little over two hours to drive from Charlotte to Danville.
Mike Pace and his daughter Tori Pace said it was a 40-minute drive from Mebane. They got to Danville around noon on Tuesday, ready to hit the machines.
“You just have to hit the button and hope you win,” said Mike Pace.
The Danville casino is 90,000 square feet of gaming space, including nearly 1,500 slots and 79 live table games. It has a hotel with 300 rooms, becoming one of the company’s biggest properties outside Las Vegas and Atlantic City.
“I’m really happy,” Mike Pace said. He said he sees a lot of people from out of town when he visits the casino in Cherokee, North Carolina. He believes it will be the same way in Danville.
“Go out in the parking lot, take a right, you're going to see all kinds of North Carolina cars,” said Mike Pace.
Tori Pace said her dad took her to a casino for the first time on her 21st birthday. She said, she doesn’t care which casino they go to, as long as she and her dad can keep bonding over the slots.
“This is just kind of always been our thing," Tori Pace said.
The manager for Caesars Virginia said they anticipate seeing about two and a half million visits a year. He said he hopes more people from neighboring states will visit the casino