Casino Hotels
Four Canadian resorts, read as buildings on their own ground.
4 hotels
Numbers 09–12
Coordinates C1–C4
These four hotels are in Canada and they are described exactly like the rest of the sheet: which way the main body of the building is turned, what is on that side, and what stays behind it. Three of the four keep their front towards water. The gaming floor is not described here and is not judged.
Casinos are for adults only. In Canada the minimum age is 19 in most provinces and 18 in Québec; elsewhere it depends on where you are.
No. 09
Casino Hotels
Montréal Casino & Hotel
Île Notre-Dame, Montréal, Québec, Canada
Expo pavilions on an island, with water on one side and the Montréal skyline beyond it
Built from the French and Québec pavilions of Expo 67, the complex stands on Île Notre-Dame with faces turned towards the water on more than one side. The main frontage looks across the Saint Lawrence towards the city, while the approach and parking come from the island road.
On the water side are the channels and basins left from the 1967 world exposition, the rowing basin, planted parkland and paths used by cyclists all summer. Beyond them the towers of central Montréal stand across the river, close enough to read as a single line of building.
Behind the frontage the island continues with the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, the Biosphère and open park. Traffic reaches the site by bridge and by metro, and that side of the building carries entrances, service doors and car parks rather than any outlook.
Work out the bridge or metro route to Île Notre-Dame in advance, because parking on the island fills on event days.
Sheet dated: September 2027
No. 10
Casino Hotels
Fallsview Casino Resort
Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada
Glass is set on the gorge side, while the entrance is kept towards the town behind
The resort sits on high ground above the Niagara gorge, and its glazed side is turned to the drop. Public floors are lifted so that the front of the building clears the roofs below it. Vehicles and pedestrians arrive from the town side, through a covered approach and a garage.
On the gorge side are the falls themselves, the river below them and the parkland strip that runs along the Canadian bank. Across the water is the American shore with its own buildings. Mist rises off the drop and drifts over the ground between the resort and the edge.
Behind it stands the tourist town: hotels, restaurants, car parks and the streets that climb away from the river. The theatre, the spa and the restaurants are held inside the same volume, so that side of the resort is mostly wall, doors and access.
Settle your parking or drop-off arrangement before arriving, because streets near the gorge are one-way and busy.
Sheet dated: September 2027
No. 11
Casino Hotels
River Rock Casino Resort
Richmond, British Columbia, Canada
The resort is turned to an arm of the Fraser and to its own moorings
Long low volumes stand along the Middle Arm of the Fraser in Richmond, with the water side treated as the front. A walkway, a hotel tower and the marina share that edge. The road approach, the transit station and the car parks are set on the opposite side of the site.
On the river side are moored boats, a floating dock, tidal flats at low water and the flat delta land of Sea Island opposite. Aircraft using Vancouver's airport pass over that channel through the day, and the dyke path along the bank carries walkers and cyclists.
Behind the resort is Richmond itself: an arterial road, the elevated transit line, warehouses and newer housing blocks. The show theatre, the spa and the restaurants sit within the building, so the landward side shows service entrances and parking decks.
Plan the transfer from the airport in advance, and check whether a marina berth has to be arranged separately.
Sheet dated: September 2027
No. 12
Casino Hotels
Casino Rama Resort
Rama, Ontario, Canada
The resort stands on Chippewas of Rama land and is turned towards Lake Couchiching
Set on the lands of the Chippewas of Rama First Nation, north of Orillia in Ontario, the resort keeps its open side towards Lake Couchiching. The hotel tower rises from that edge of the plan, while the entertainment hall and the arrival canopy are placed towards the road.
On the lake side there is Couchiching itself, shallow and wide, with a golf course and open ground between the buildings and the shoreline. The far bank is low and wooded. In winter the lake freezes hard enough for ice fishing huts to appear on it.
Behind the resort is mixed forest and the road that runs in from Rama and Orillia, with parking spread between the trees. The concert hall, the restaurants and the spa are inside the block, so that side reads as walls, canopies and coach bays.
Check the road route from Orillia before setting off, and arrange transport back if you plan a late finish.
Sheet dated: September 2027
Direction here is read off maps, plans and published photographs, never measured by us, and never given in degrees. It says how a building is turned, not which side is worth asking for. The date in the last cell of an entry is when those sources were opened.
If gambling stops being a game: in Ontario, ConnexOntario 1-866-531-2600; in Québec, 1-800-461-0140; in British Columbia, 1-888-795-6111. Outside Canada, look up the helpline for your own country.