Banned from Swinomish Casino and RV Park WA

[omega]

I left this review on Tripadvisor about Swinomish Casino, RV Park, Bingo Hall and Lodge 12885 Casino Drive Anacortes WA 98221, which has resulted in me receiving a threading phone call to my home from Dallas Widmark (Lodge Manager) and being banned from Swinomish. Swinomish will go to any lengths to manipulate their ratings and travel reviews. To a point where they will ban people who post a review they do not like, you have to wonder what they do to get so many positive reviews? You will see in his response on Tripadvisor he confirms the review as correct. After I reported the threats to Tripadvisor and the banning from Swinomish I found out my account with TripAdvisor had been disabled.
This review is my first hand experience and is meant for my fellow travelers and RV’ers. I do not expect any action by Swinomish as their responses to my reviews has been inappropriate in the past
They charge RVs to park, $10+ in their parking lot, they do not charge cars. I do not understand why they want to send customers to other RV friendly Casinos, which are close by. Their RV Park is substandard.
They have become RV unfriendly and have redesigned their parking lots making it difficult to park RVs or any over sized vehicles.
They have no washrooms (or services) in their RV Park, I have witnessed some disgusting activity by RV’ers that did not have adequate self contained RVs. It is a long walk to the lodge to use the washroom and at night the sprinklers may be on, you can hear them but cannot see them.
The RV Park has low power, which can damage the electronics and electrical systems in your RV.
Most food is spicy, I think due to their customer base of Mexican/Spanish customers.
They supply coffee whiter not milk in the Casino and Bingo Hall for coffee. They do have free soft drinks in the Casino located by the Sports Bar.
There is a busy train track that runs beside the RV Park, behind the Lodge, that sounds its horn, night and day when it crosses the Rail Bridge.
There is a large A/C about the size of a city bus at the rear of the Lodge that can be quite noisy, making it difficult to sleep in the RV Park.
There is a sewer treatment building just west of the RV Park. The smell can be quite strong around the Bingo Hall and RV Park when the wind is blowing in their direction.
From time to time they have live entertainment on the stage in the Casino that can be extremely loud I carry earplugs to protect my hearing.
They have some very nice people working in the Bingo Hall.
· Stayed January 2015, traveled as a couple
o Location
o Cleanliness
o Service
Was this review helpful? Yes 36

Ask Bill W about Swinomish Casino & Lodge
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Dallas W, General Manager at Swinomish Casino & Lodge, responded to this review, 3 weeks ago
Thank you for reposting your review.

Unfortunately there will be no immediate action on the construction of an rv building, the increase of individual site power capacity, the relocation of HVAC equipment at the back of the property, or a new sports bar menu, nor is there a plan to turn our RV Park into a free park. Should you decide to return, please be aware that upon your return you will discover these aspects of our property unchanged. Hopefully this is helpful in your decision to return or not.

We here at Swinomish Casino & Lodge aim to provide memorable hospitality & gaming experiences to each and every guest with our guest service & array of amenities. We take great pride in our successes, and enjoy reading positive reviews from our guest on this site and others.

Best Regards,

Dallas Widmark
Lodge General Manager
Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC
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[magnusfide]

Naio wrote:
I found the review informative, and I don't see why people here are so down on you. And if the casino banned you, they should be ashamed of themselves.

If people only write positive reviews, then reviews become useless.

Same here. All positive reviews are useless in that kind of system. Sad that others badger a person who had a terrible experience and reported it. My wife is allergic to the soy in creamers and has to have milk so we understand that too.

We do use Trip Advisor and we do read the negative reviews for a balance to the positive. Negative reviews will sometimes mention issues that are important to us like the food allergy issue.

Thanks for the heads up.

[Tvov]

So the original poster didn't like the place, fine. What is important to me is if the advertisements for the place are false - I mean, "more false" than your typical advertising. I've seen a few casinos describe their RV parking areas as just that, a place (possibly with power) for RVers to spend the night and use the casino - it is pretty obvious that the "accommodations" are a parking lot.

So, if the place misrepresents themselves than a bad review is justified. Otherwise it is, what it is.

[westernrvparkow]

Dog Folks wrote:
Let's look at the rant and what he expected to be changed;

1. Change sprinkler time or illuminate the sprinkler coverage.
2. Upgrade the power system
3. Change menu
4. Supply milk for coffee
5. Move train track or force trains to break the law by not sounding horns.
6. Relocate A/C unit
7. Make city relocate sewer treatment plant or change prevailing winds.
8. Eliminate live entertainment

Now once that is all complete he may come back and spend his pricey sum of $10.00. Too funny.


We had camper complain about the positioning of the trees near the road. He was trying to go into a narrow road AGAINST the traffic pattern, despite being advised to the contrary just minutes before.

After pointing out which trees he wanted cut down, he said in the same breath, that he was never coming back.

Seems to me that solves the problem. Cancel the chain saws!

Right on! We use some great software that includes the option to flag a problem customer. If someone was to write a similar review about one of my parks, negatively commenting on ridiculous items like complaining that we water the grass, that we don't serve fresh cream with the coffee or that we won't request guests move from their current site because the newcomer wants that site for themselves we will be sure to never have a vacancy for them in the future. Just good business, why set yourself up for failure.
It has been proven time and time again that firing your worst customers is a good business strategy. It allows you to spend more time on the good customers and decreases the negative energy generated by the whiners and complainers.
I agree with the others, I see nothing to indicate the guy had been banned from the property. The response was reasonable in that they just pointed out certain things weren't going to change, either by management's choice or the fact the property can't do anything about it. It is just another example of why responding to any review is a questionable endeavor at best. There really is nothing to gain.

[Bird_Freak]

Sounds to me like you expect everyone to cater to you. Wow, they have the nerve to charge you $10.00 to park in their parking lot. Never mind the fact you were to cheap to stay in their CG or that you would take up 3 or 4 other parking spots for REAL customers. How dare them not supply milk for your free coffee or make the trains be silent when coming through.
Sorry but all I see here is a whiner that wants everything his way and for free. :S

[amandasgramma]

coolbreeze01 wrote:
Is crying allowed in any casino?

Only when you didn't pay the limit on a progressive and have won the jackpot!!!! :B

[coolbreeze01]

Is crying allowed in any casino?

[nevadanick]

I drove by that casino 2 weeks ago to get to Pioneer Trails RV Park which is a wonderful place to stay.

[Dog_Folks]

Let's look at the rant and what he expected to be changed;

1. Change sprinkler time or illuminate the sprinkler coverage.
2. Upgrade the power system
3. Change menu
4. Supply milk for coffee
5. Move train track or force trains to break the law by not sounding horns.
6. Relocate A/C unit
7. Make city relocate sewer treatment plant or change prevailing winds.
8. Eliminate live entertainment

Now once that is all complete he may come back and spend his pricey sum of $10.00. Too funny.


We had camper complain about the positioning of the trees near the road. He was trying to go into a narrow road AGAINST the traffic pattern, despite being advised to the contrary just minutes before.

After pointing out which trees he wanted cut down, he said in the same breath, that he was never coming back.

Seems to me that solves the problem. Cancel the chain saws!

[msgtord]

pros and cons to everyplace you stay.

[gbopp]

omega wrote:
They supply coffee whiter not milk in the Casino and Bingo Hall for coffee.

I'm definitely taking this casino off my bucket list. :R

[mikebreeze]

Thanks to the OP for his post. I probably won't ever get out to the left coast with my RV but if I do, I won't stay there.

[rr2254545]

paula b wrote:
I didn't see where you were banned from the park....I just saw complaint after complaint about where you stayed.

You either need a resort type of experience or a WalMart experience.

Ever heard the saying your on wheels.....move to a place that meets your expectations?

Sorry dude, no sympathy from me!

x2 Just another person who joined today to slam a company - bet this is his last post, just like his screen name he chose would indicate

[Blazing_Zippers]

Shucks, you could get the same amenities at the rest stop at Boardman, OR. A train track is 100 ft. away, the road noise is loud, and a refer truck and a bull hauler will park alongside you--all for free. And, parking there is a gamble whether or not you'll have all yer wheels in the morning.
Sorry about the bad experience you had.

[Tom_Barb]

I agree with the OP. it isn't a place I'd stay either. I live close by too. and have checked it out. I don't like trains, and loud music either.

And his Bitchen about it is a personal opinion, and he's welcome to it. Not every camp ground in this country is up to every one's standard.

[Pangaea_Ron]

We live close to the Swinomish Casino and (RV Park?) and are amazed by this posting/review.

Trains (oil trains to the refineries) only come 1-3 times a day. I hear their horns. . . 2 long, 1 short, 1 long, and I actually enjoy the sound. Each engineer has a bit of style in announcing their arrival.

We have spent time in their RV Park in our MH (not their parking lot) for community events at the casino and have enjoyed the experience. They are a great asset to the community and work to be be cooperative and a good neighbor.

The have recently redone access to both the parking areas and the RV park which is a huge improvement.

The food in the casino (sports bar) which you think was mainly spicy and Mexican (as are the patrons) is not representative of what is actually available. The food in their 13 Moons Restaurant is the best available in the area.

Music available in their venue is located inside the building and should not be noticeable outside the building.

I'm not sure why you had such a unsatisfactory experience, and as the management suggests, perhaps another location might better meet your expectations.