An honest guide to Canada's grandest and most storied casino resorts — a copper-roofed chateau, a marquee tower over the Falls, a landmark on the border and a chandeliered lakeside Hilton. We stay, we play and we rank them.
Some casino resorts are places you happen to sleep; a few are places you travel to see. This guide is about the second kind — the grandest and most storied casino resorts in Canada, where the building is as much of the draw as the floor.
We review Canada's landmark casino resorts and rank them out of ten. For each we weigh four things: the casino floor, the rooms, the dining and extras, and the location and value. The scores are our own — we take no payment for a place in the ranking.
Every resort here has a real, licensed casino on the property, is strictly 21+ at the gaming floor, and is a place to relax first and play second. Figures are approximate and change, so confirm the details with the resort before you travel.
Every resort below pairs a real casino with genuine grandeur — heritage or spectacle. Here is how they stack up.
A copper-roofed chateau on a cliff above the St. Lawrence, opened in the 1920s and rebuilt grander still, with the elegant Casino de Charlevoix attached. The most storied and most beautiful casino-hotel in Canada.
The marquee resort of Niagara: an enormous gaming floor high above the Horseshoe Falls, with a tower of rooms, a dozen restaurants and a 1,500-seat theatre. Grand in the modern, big-room sense.
A grand lakeside Hilton wired straight into the chandeliered Casino du Lac-Leamy, minutes from downtown Ottawa. Four-star polish, a handsome casino and a genuine sense of occasion in the capital region.
A landmark riverfront resort across from the Detroit skyline, with a huge casino, two hotel towers and the 5,000-seat Colosseum. A long-established, Vegas-style grand resort on the border.
A big, long-established resort on Lake Couchiching, with a large casino, a comfortable hotel and an entertainment centre that has hosted a who's-who of touring acts. A cottage-country grande dame north of Toronto.
The casino, the rooms and our score for every resort in the guide.
| # | Hotel | City | Casino | Rooms | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu | La Malbaie, QC | Casino de Charlevoix | Around 400 rooms | 9.4 |
| 2 | Fallsview Casino Resort | Niagara Falls, ON | One of Canada's largest | Around 370 rooms | 9.2 |
| 3 | Hilton Lac-Leamy | Gatineau, QC | Casino du Lac-Leamy | Around 350 rooms | 9.0 |
| 4 | Caesars Windsor | Windsor, ON | One of Canada's largest | Around 750 rooms | 8.8 |
| 5 | Casino Rama Resort | Rama, ON | Large gaming floor | Around 290 rooms | 8.6 |
We stay, we play and we score against the same four measures every time. Read the full method on our Dreamresortpicks page.
How grand and how good the gaming is — the table games, the poker room, the slots and the private rooms — and how it feels to play in a landmark setting.
The quality, comfort and character of the hotel, and how easy it is to get from the felt to a good night's sleep.
The restaurants, bars, spa, theatre and other reasons to stay that turn a gaming trip into a grand occasion.
Where it sits, how easy it is to reach, what else is nearby, and whether the grand package is worth the money.
Where these landmark resorts sit — the St. Lawrence, the Falls, the capital region and the Detroit border.
Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu in Charlevoix is a copper-roofed chateau above the river — the most storied casino-hotel in the country.
Fallsview sits directly above the Horseshoe Falls, the marquee big-room resort with the best view of any.
Hilton Lac-Leamy joins a four-star hotel to a chandeliered casino in Gatineau, minutes from downtown Ottawa.
Caesars Windsor brings a Vegas-style resort and a 5,000-seat theatre to the riverfront across from Detroit.
Casino Rama on Lake Couchiching is the long-established weekend grande dame north of Toronto.
New to Canada's grand resorts? Begin at the top of the ranking, or pick the landmark you most want to see.
In our view Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu in Charlevoix — a copper-roofed chateau on a cliff above the St. Lawrence, a landmark since the 1920s, with Casino de Charlevoix attached — is the grandest and most beautiful in the country.
Yes — every resort in this guide has a real, licensed casino on the property or directly attached, so you can play and stay without leaving the building.
The venues in this guide operate a strict 21+ door policy. Bring valid photo ID, checked at the casino entrance.
No. This is a guide to real, land-based casino resorts you can visit in person. It is not an online casino, and no real-money play takes place on this site.
Each resort is scored out of ten against four measures — the casino floor, the rooms, dining and extras, and location and value. Scores are our editorial opinion; we take no payment for the ranking.
A grand resort should be entertainment first. We only recommend visiting within your means — and every venue here is strictly 21+ with ID at the door.
Decide your budget and time before you play, and treat the casino as one part of the trip.
Confidential provincial helplines and ResponsibleGambling.org are there whenever you need them.
Every casino in this guide is for adults only, with photo ID checked at entry.
Start at the top of the ranking, or pick the landmark you have always wanted to see and build a stay around it. Every review is an honest, independent take — stay, play and enjoy responsibly.