“They want more and more, and in Minnesota, there’s only so much we can offer, but I think we’re holding our share of the market in how we do off of that.” “Kids are growing up today where practically everything they do is electronic, and they’re really well-versed with that,” said John McCarthy, executive director of the Minnesota Indian Gaming Association. In Mystic Lake’s summer concert lineup, Kesha appeals to a different crowd than baby boomer standbys such as Styx and Hank Williams Jr.Īt Canterbury Park, Alex Holmquist played a hand of blackjack - which rated as a more popular game among younger crowds than the average casino customer. The casinos are also adding or more heavily promoting spas, fitness centers and other entertainment options. To lure younger crowds, Minnesota’s tribal casinos are banking on table games, such as blackjack and baccarat, which demand some degree of skill but are also more costly to operate. In Atlantic City, free-throw basketball shooting contests, pinball and games based on smartphone favorites like “Angry Birds” and “Words with Friends” are replacing the dated, cartoonish characters of early slot machines. The Foxwoods Casino in Connecticut added a tattoo parlor last fall Las Vegas is now operating the world’s tallest, LED-lit Ferris wheel. Like their counterparts across the country, they’re being forced to “rethink their casino floor” to lure the up-and-coming gambler, said Dave Palermo, an author who has studied tribal governments and casino gaming for more than two decades. Minnesota’s 18 casinos, especially the most successful ones like Mystic Lake in Prior Lake and Grand Casino in Onamia and Hinckley, are at a generational crossroads. “It’s not fun for me to sit in front of a screen and press buttons.”

That’s proving a tough sell to a generation looking for Instagram-worthy nights out and reared on interactive games on their phones that make some traditional but lucrative casino games seem boring.

The challenge emerging for casinos in Minnesota and across the country is to get Vejtruba and others like him to stay longer - and come back for more. Paul, who celebrated his 18th birthday on a recent Friday night with a stop at the blackjack tables at Mystic Lake before heading to his ultimate destination, a downtown Minneapolis nightclub. The first visit to a casino remains a rite of passage for a group of newly minted adults like Jared Vejtruba of St.

Canterbury park poker twitter