Plus, stack up your chips at one of our 33 live action tables. Enjoy the best table games including craps, roulette, blackjack and live poker. The state-of-the-art room at Golden Gates is Black Hawk’s best poker parlor with 17 action-filled tables and a first-class poker setting.

  • Things to Do in Black Hawk, Colorado: See Tripadvisor's 1,000 traveler reviews and photos of Black Hawk tourist attractions. Find what to do today, this weekend, or in December. We have reviews of the best places to see in Black Hawk. Visit top-rated & must-see attractions.
  • Look to Ameristar Casino Hotel Black Hawk for all of your favorite casino table games and a variety of table limits. Enjoy Blackjack, Head’s Up Hold’em, Flop Poker, and our newest game High Card Flush. Our table games feature bets from $5 up to $100. Our dealers are ready to count you in.
  • Lady Luck Black Hawk. The Lady Luck Black Hawk Address: 340 Main St, Black Hawk, CO 80422. The Lady Luck Casino was the first large casino to be built in Black Hawk. Opening in 1993 originally as a casino only, the Lady Luck Casino offers a great variety of gaming options from their 1880s railroad-themed floor.

When it comes to gambling at a casino in the state of Colorado, Black Hawk is the only location you need to consider as it boasts the highest total of casinos in the state.

With there being such a vast selection, finding the best one can be quite the task. Luckily for you, we have amassed a list of the best casinos in Black Hawk, CO, to make a decision that little bit easier. If you want a piece of the action but can’t make it to the casino, you can always bet online with one of the many legal CO sportsbooks.

Those of you reading that believes that Las Vegas is the only place in the states where you can enjoy an enjoyable gambling experience is going to discover a lot of incredible casinos nestled in the state of Colorado. There are five towns in the state of Colorado that host physical casinos, that is if you count the two Indian Reservation casinos found in the southwest of the state. Out of them, Black Hawk has the biggest and most colorful gambling selection.

Now I know what you’re thinking, what is the best casino in Black Hawk, Colorado? The list contains the best and biggest gambling site listed by size in Black Hawk that you need to have a play at on your next trip to Black Hawk.

Ameristar Casino, Resort & Spa

Ameristar Casino Address: 111 Richman St, Black Hawk, CO 80422

Ameristar Casino Resort and Spa is the largest casino in Black Hawk. The AAA Four Diamond-designated hotel boasts a total of 536 guest rooms, including a whopping 64 suites. It has a full-service spa with a rooftop indoor pool, various dining options from fast and casual to buffet to black-tie choices. It offers a vast underground parking garage, including a free valet service.

If you wanted to know the answer to what casino in Black Hawk has the best slots? Look no further.

The Ameristar’s casino floor has over 1,250 slots and video poker machines, over 40 table games, and over 20 live poker tables, making it the most extensive poker room found in Black Hawk. Also standing at 33 stories tall, Ameristar’s hotel tower is the highest building in Colorado outside of Denver. The casino also has a sportsbook on-site.

If you are in CO and want to play poker, then you can check out what casinos offer real money poker tournaments on our Colorado Poker Tournaments guide.

Isle Casino Black Hawk

Isle Casino Address: 401 Main St, Black Hawk, CO 80422

Best

When Isle Casino opened its doors back on Dec. 30, 1998, it was the largest casino and hotel to ever open in Black Hawk. Although it might not be the biggest casino in town anymore, Isle Black Hawk remains a popular destination for many gamblers. The Isle offers over 400 hotel rooms, over 900 slot machines, over 25 table games, and even a live poker room with more than ten tables. It has got a large, free closed parking garage complete with complimentary valet. The Isle Casino & Hotel offers a table buffet, fast-casual dining, and a newly opened martini bar. Even more is that the Isle Casino is connected by skywalk to its sister casino, Lady Luck Casino Black Hawk.

Lady Luck Black Hawk

The Lady Luck Black Hawk Address: 340 Main St, Black Hawk, CO 80422

The Lady Luck Casino was the first large casino to be built in Black Hawk. Opening in 1993 originally as a casino only, the Lady Luck Casino offers a great variety of gaming options from their 1880s railroad-themed floor. The Lady Luck Casino offers over 400 slot and video poker machines, 12 table games, free parking, and more. The Lady Luck Casino has a second-floor restaurant that serves breakfast all day. Back in 2005, the Lady Luck Black Hawk added a 164-room hotel to its premises. A skywalk connects the Lady Luck Casino Black Hawk to its sister property, Isle Casino and Hotel Black Hawk.

The casino is partnered with the FoxBET Sportsbook.

Golden Gates Casino

Golden Gates Casino Black Hawk Address: 261 Main St, Black Hawk, CO 80422

Located in the heart of Black Hawk, the Golden Gates Casino is only a few steps from sister properties Golden Gulch and the Golden Mardi Gras. Opening in 1991, Golden Gates has been a constant source of casino gaming entertainment in Black Hawk for nearly three decades now.

The Golden Gates offers players 273 slot games, eight quality table games, and 18 live poker tables; it is definitely one of the largest rooms found in Black Hawk. Golden Gates Casino is known for hosting big poker tournaments, including the Heartland Poker Tour and the Colorado Poker Championship. Its 700-space parking garage is free, and the food and drinks on offer are plentiful. Golden Gates Casino has a centrally located bar on the casino floor.

DraftKings Sportsbook opened a physical sportsbook in the casino back in July 2020.

Golden Gulch Casino

Golden Gulch Casino Black Hawk Address: 321 Main St, Black Hawk, CO 80422

The Golden Gulch Casino is the younger sibling to the Golden Gates Casino, a smaller but still very active casino offering a collection of 140 slot and video poker machines and absolutely indulged in typical Colorado-style rustic mountain appeal. The Golden Gulch Casino even offers games in the old historic jailhouse, which you will find in the basement.

Mardi Gras Casino

Mardi Gras Casino Black Hawk Address: 300 Main St, Black Hawk, CO 80422

Mardi Gras Casino works extremely hard to personify the spirit of its name, with bright colors, regular over the top celebrations, and of course – there is plenty of Cajun food. Mardi Gras Casino is the largest of all its sister properties, the Golden Gulch Casino and Golden Gates Casino, boasting over 650 slot and video poker machines and over a dozen table games. Since it is connected directly by skywalk to Golden Gates, one of the largest gaming rooms in Colorado is always a short walk away. Oozing unique charm and character, you cannot miss the Mardi Gras Casinos’ steepled roof and their colorful, neon-adorned walkway.

DraftKings also has a sportsbook located in the casino.

The Gilpin Hotel & Casino Black Hawk

Gilpin Hotel & Casino Black Hawk Address: 111 Main St, Black Hawk, CO 80422

Gilpin Hotel Casino is a bit of an outlier compared to others on this list, as it no longer offers any hotel services. However, it does still provide plenty of casino-based action, with a slice of spooky local history tossed in the mix. The Gilpin Casino has 469 slot machines and video poker machines on offer, only 6 table games, but is open to players 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Back in the late 1800s, Gilpin Hotel had a one-room schoolhouse located upstairs. Local legend says that a teacher named Lucille Malone jumped off the hotel balcony after her lover, who was a local miner, was ran over by a wagon in front of the Gilpin Hotel. Guests have reported many sightings of the ghost of Lucille Malone, and the hotel’s restaurant bears her very name. The Gilpin Hotel is just a short walk from its sister casino, The Lodge Casino.

The Lodge Casino Black Hawk

The Lodge Casino Black Hawk Address: 240 Main St, Black Hawk, CO 80422

The Lodge Casino in Black Hawk has the fame of being the first casino in Black Hawk that offers hotel rooms when it opened back in 1998. Located in the core of downtown Black Hawk, the Lodge Casino is one of the largest of its kind in Colorado, offering an impressive collection of gaming options along with 50 guest rooms. The spacious, multi-leveled gaming floor has over 1,000 slot machines and 13 table games to offer. The Lodge Casino provides multiple dining options, from quick bites to fine dining. Just a short walk up Main Street is The Lodge’s sister property, Gilpin Hotel Casino.

The casino will launch a sportsbook in partnership with SuperBook.

Monarch Casino Black Hawk

Monarch Casino Black Hawk Address: 488 Main St, Black Hawk, CO 80422

If you choose to take the Colorado Highway 119 to enter the city of Black Hawk, the Monarch Casino would be pretty tough to miss. Its bright sign and a newly added 1,350 space parking are among the first things you will spot when you first enter the city. The butterfly-themed casino offers 750 slot and video poker machines, over 15 table games, and an impressive 250-seat buffet restaurant. Monarch Casino is also nearing completion on a larger renovation project that will see their gaming space double and with the addition of a 23-floored hotel tower featuring a pool, spa, and 500 rooms and suites.

Saratoga Casino

Saratoga Casino Black Hawk Address: 101 Main St, Black Hawk, CO 80422

The Saratoga Casino is one of the newer casino properties in Black Hawk, opening in 2013 as a replacement for Fitzgerald’s Casino. Saratoga offers more than 500 slots and video poker machines, a great selection of table games including blackjack, roulette, crabs, and three-card poker. The Saratoga Casino offers a brilliant selection of Bars, Cafes, and Lounges for all your eating and drinking wants and needs, and also gives players free covered self-parking.

Betfred is the sportsbook partner of the Saragota Casino.

Blackjack

Z Casino Black Hawk

Z Casino Black Hawk Address: 101 Gregory St, Black Hawk, CO 80422

Z Casino is part of the famous Z brand Family. The brand has recently expanded into Central City through the Grand Z Casino Hotel. First opening its doors to players in 2014 in the former location of the legendary Bullwhackers, Z Casino features a sizeable 36,000 square feet of casino gaming space, with 400 slot machines, nine gaming tables, and a high stakes poker table. Drinks and casual dining are in abundance at the Z Casino, with a casual restaurant found on the lower floor and a second-floor cafe that serves Starbucks coffee and pastries.

Red Dolly Casino

Red Dolly Casino Address: 530 Gregory St, Black Hawk, CO 80422

The Red Dolly is the oldest casino found in Black Hawk; the Red Dolly first opened for business in May 1992 and still has the same management running the floor today. The small but bustling floor offers 130 slots, ranging from old classics we all know and love to brand new slots that will excite anyone. The Red Dolly Casino offers casino excitement in a comfortable environment. Look for its distinguishing red awning out front.

EliteSportsbook is partnered with the Red Dolly casino.

So there you go, the list of the best casinos in Black Hawk Colorado. Now its a matter of jumping in your car and heading to the casino floor.

Just like you’ll find in New Jersey and Pennsylvania — where gambling has recently been expanded after the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act was found unconstitutional — Colorado has a lot of restrictions around gambling, casinos and sportsbooks. However, there are three cities in Colorado that have legal casinos. Those are the historical districts in Black Hawk, Cripple Creek and Central City.

Black Hawk casinos are legal for anyone over the age of 21, but there are definitely some restrictions that the casinos have to deal with.

Beyond the casinos, Black Hawk is a beautiful mountain town that’s absolutely worth visiting whether you’re a fan of gambling or not. It’s an incredibly tiny town that only has about 100 residents!

But for all that, Black Hawk definitely doesn’t do things small. You’re going to be amazed when you’re driving on winding, twisty mountain roads, only to see some crazy high-rise casinos popping out from behind the mountains!

Black Hawk is well-known for having some incredible high-class buffets, hotels, bars and restaurants that make you feel like you’re in Las Vegas or Atlantic City, but when you combine that with the fact that you’re at an altitude of almost 9,000 feet in the mountains breathing clear, crisp air, well, that’s something you can’t really beat.

Gambling in Black Hawk casinos

You don’t really have to worry much about those restrictions mentioned earlier. When you visit Black Hawk, you can focus on fun — the restrictions are something the casinos deal with and handle.

The main restriction that might rub you wrong is the fact that you can only make a maximum wager of $100, so if you’re used to gambling in Las Vegas or Atlantic City or something like that, you’ll have to keep going if you’re looking for those high-limit tables where all the whales gamble.

The casinos in Black Hawk are only allowed to offer “limited gaming” which means they can’t offer any games they want (which unfortunately includes some favorites like baccarat).

However, they can offer blackjack, slot machines, craps, poker and roulette, and they can offer as many different variations on those core games as they please as long as the games are basically unchanged.

Plus, if you’re familiar with slot machines, you’ll know that there are tons of different types of slot machines available to play, so you won’t really have to worry about not finding something fun to do while you’re in a Black Hawk casino.

Another big benefit that has come recently to the casinos in Black Hawk is that sports betting is now allowed, with May 2020 as the target date for many sportsbooks in Black Hawk gaining approval. This is all thanks to the fact that Colorado passed the gambling legislation HB19-1327.

The major benefit of this law is that you can make much, much larger maximum bets at a sportsbook. Essentially they’re infinite, so if you’re all about big bets that have a high amount of risk, then you can definitely partake in that particular vice in the Black Hawk casinos that open their sportsbooks after May 2020.

You can learn more about the particulars of HB19-1327 here.

Sportsbooks in Black Hawk

Best blackjack in blackhawk co slot

When you’re gambling in Colorado, you have access both to sportsbooks inside a physical casino in Black Hawk (and any other city that allows legalized gambling), but you can also make your bets online using a mobile application or a website after May 2020.

Best blackjack in blackhawk co real estate

Here’s how it all works.

Betting at a sportsbook inside a casino in Black Hawk

Just like in other states where sports betting is legal, you’ll go into the casino, find the sportsbook and place your bets.

Then you can sit back, relax, have some food or a few drinks, and watch your chosen game, match, race or what have you. This of course assumes that the casino you’re in has a sportsbook, and given the fact that the passage of the law has led to a big backup in approvals, you might have to wait until 2021 or 2022 for your favorite casino in Black Hawk to open its own sportsbook.

Sports betting online

If your goal while on your trip to Black Hawk, Colorado, is to bet on sports, you might need to spend some time playing online instead.

Best blackjack in blackhawk co jail

There are a wide variety of sportsbooks available online and via mobile apps that will allow you to place wagers on a variety of sporting events after May 2020, and unlike the casino games like poker or blackjack, you can actually play from anywhere in the state!

That’s right, as long as you have a computer with internet access that’s physically located in the state of Colorado (and that bit is important — it won’t work once you cross state lines), then you can bet on any of the available sports that a sportsbook offers.

To get started, you’ll have to download an app from one of the approved sportsbooks or log in to the website, make a profile, deposit some funds, confirm your age and then wait for approval. You’ll be able to gamble as long as the website or app can confirm that you are located within the state of Colorado.

These sites confirm your location by using the geolocation features of your device, whether that be your mobile device or your computer. One of the things it will check is your IP address, but there are other features that it will check to make sure you are in Colorado.

Best Craps In Blackhawk Colorado

The software that checks your location is highly sophisticated and will be able to tell if cheaters are trying to spoof their location and gamble from a state where sports betting online or through a mobile app is illegal, so don’t even try to trick these sites and apps.

The best casinos in Black Hawk

While Black Hawk is well known for having some of the best and most lavish casinos in all of Colorado, there are a handful of casinos that truly stand out from the crowd. Here are some of the best that you should definitely check out when you come to stay in Black Hawk.

Lady Luck Casino

Not only is the Lady Luck Casino the very first large casino that was built in Black Hawk, but it’s also got some incredible history — it was used as Colorado Central Station for decades.

There are many incredible features to this casino that make it worth mentioning. Like many casinos in Colorado, the Lady Luck Casino is non-smoking and is open 24/7, but Lady Luck Casino is also known for having some of the highest-quality rooms in all of Black Hawk. The online ratings speak to the fact that this casino is loved by most of its guests, and while of course it doesn’t have a perfect ranking, what casino does?

There are plenty of other reasons to visit Lady Luck Casino, including a restaurant that offers breakfast all day and allows you to see some truly incredible views of the Rocky Mountains while you’re dining. You’ll also find all your favorite casino games here, including slots and video poker.

Even though the Lady Luck Casino is located way up in the mountains, you’ll still find over 400 of the most advanced slot machines in the world in this casino, so if slots are your thing, this is a great casino to visit.

Best Blackjack In Blackhawk Co Poker

In addition, you’ll find all your favorite table games (well, at least all your favorites that are legally allowed under Colorado gambling laws), and you’ll be pleased to learn that Lady Luck Casino has an excellent players’ club that is always flush with great deals.

Additionally, Lady Luck Casino is connected to another great casino — the Isle Casino Black Hawk — and has a regular shuttle service to Central City (another big gambling hub in Colorado) that’s free to ride.

And if that’s not enough to tickle your fancy, Lady Luck Casino is also extremely close to Eldora Ski Resort, so if you find yourself worn out from sitting at the tables and just want to get out and exercise your body, the ski resort is right there and waiting for you to hit the slopes during ski season (or hike the trails during summer).

Golden Gates Casino — the poker fan’s paradise

For many fans of gambling, poker has been and always will be the king of games — even most amateur gamblers have heard of the World Series of Poker and know all about how Texas Hold ’em works.

So if poker is your thing, then the Golden Gates Casino should be your go-to destination in Black Hawk. Known as Black Hawk’s best poker room (and possibly the best poker room in all of Colorado), the Poker Parlour is known statewide for providing an incredible, action-packed experience.

With 17 tables and a five-table overflow room for tournaments, Golden Gates Casino is the perfect casino for poker fans of all shapes and sizes. You’ll find poker tournaments happening here every single day, and the casino even boasts about the fact that you can earn comps while playing poker here — how many casinos actually advertise their comps? Not many!

Because poker is basically what Golden Gates Casino specializes in, you probably won’t be surprised to learn that it’s the home of the Colorado Poker Championship, a tournament with a prize pool of $500,000 — enough to rival some of the biggest poker championships around.

You’ll also find the Heartland Poker Tour and the Mid-States Poker Tour here (the Heartland Poker Tour is televised and can be watched all over the world). Over the years, tens of millions of dollars have been awarded in this poker room, so it’s definitely worth a visit just to drink in all that good luck!

On top of that, you’ll find more slot machines and video poker machines than even at the Lady Luck Casino — upward of 600 — and you’ll also find plenty of other table games, including blackjack, roulette and craps.

Oh, and despite the name, the casino has no relation to San Francisco — sorry, California fans!

Ameristar Black Hawk

If you’re looking for a gambling experience that feels less like gambling in the Wild West and more like gambling at a high-end casino in Las Vegas, then Ameristar Black Hawk is the casino for you.

Boasting well over 1,200 slots and video poker machines and an incredible spa, Ameristar Black Hawk is aimed at serving the high-class gambling aficionado who takes luxury seriously.

All the machines are state-of-the-art slot or video poker machines and allow you to bet up to $100 in some cases.

As you might imagine, you’ll also find many of the classic table games here, including poker and blackjack, and you’ll actually find more tables here than at Lady Luck or Golden Gates — Ameristar has 40 table games and 22 live poker tables.

Something we really love about Ameristar is the level of opulence you can experience here. First of all, you’re going to find something that you’ll be hard pressed to compare to any other casino in the world — a rooftop pool that lets you look over the Rocky Mountains! If you’ve never had a swim at 8,500 feet, then this is an experience you won’t want to miss.

Best Blackjack In Blackhawk Co Slot

Beyond the pool, we love the spa. Ara is its full-service day spa that includes hot tubs, saunas, steam rooms, and six treatment rooms for both men and women. You’ll find everything you expect from a high-end spa, including massages, scrubs, facials, manicures and pedicures.

The hotel is also home to a free fitness center for guests who need to get away from the tables for a little bit and get their blood flowing with some of the nicest cardio and weight machines around.

Best Blackjack In Blackhawk Co Jail

The spa opens early and stays open late (until 9 p.m.), so you can spend your whole day at the poker tables and then relax in the evening with a massage.

Other Black Hawk Casinos

Best Blackjack In Blackhawk Co Real Estate

If you are looking for a few more options, check out these reviews of Saratoga and Golden Mardis Gras Casino.