City: Cincinnati, OH

Category: Parks & Recreation

Address: 777 East Eads Parkway, Lawrenceburg

Description: Lawrenceburg is currently the destination of choice for most gamblers. It’s closer to Cincinnati than Rising Sun and the other vessels, and the riverboat operation there is one of the biggest. From downtown Cincinnati, the quickest route to Indiana is (trust us) via Kentucky. Take Interstate 471 or Interstate 75 south and pick up Interstate 275 west. Immediately upon crossing the Ohio River into Indiana, take the first exit (16). From there, numerous signs point you to Lawrenceburg and the casino. (From the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, you’re even closer—about a 15-minute drive.)The Argosy VI is the length of a football field, with three decks. Not only is it one of the largest riverboat casinos in the world, it’s one of the two largest passenger vessels of any kind on America’s inland waterways. Passenger capacity is 4,000, with a crew of 400. The gaming areas are certainly roomier and better ventilated than those in most casinos we’ve seen, riverboat or otherwise. There are 104 table games and 1,870 slot machines. The tables include blackjack, roulette, Caribbean stud, minibaccarat, and craps, and there’s a full array of video poker units. Plenty of ATMs are onboard. High rollers have their own stake on the third deck, the high-denomination area.Nonsmoking areas are available. A snack shop on the third deck purveys hot dogs and sub sandwiches, and free munchies such as cheese cubes and carrot sticks are available. The adjoining resort hotel has full-service restaurants.Indiana law no longer requires the riverboat to cruise to the middle of the river for gambling, so it remains docked. See the Hotels and Motels chapter (West section) for information on the adjoining Argosy Casino Resort.