Prairie Meadows Racetrack and Casino

CasinoCamper Note If you're going to be in the area more than one night there is a large, full-hookup RV park across the street at Adventureland, (515) 265-7384. - CasinoCamper Report, October 2 2009 Stayed here again, "no overnight" signs are gone. Casino was very crowded on a Saturday. Parking spots in the Truck/Bus/RV area are pretty tight and fill up every night. Trucks and RV generators can be a little noisy. We ate at the buffet, called Triple Crown Dining, and it was VERY good. We had brunch on a Sunday and it was significantly better than the dinner buffet we had in 2007. 15% discount with the age 55 and up player's card. We also ate at AJ's (the steakhouse) and it was good. Also gives the 15% discount for age 55 and up. OK wine list including a nice selection by the glass. Happy hour for appetizers, wine, and martinis until 7pm. Very good wait staff. They still have 9/6 JOB at the dollar level and with 0.33% comps it's one of the better VP plays in the area. If you like to watch the pony's run too this place is a good choice overall.

- CasinoCamper Report, September 14, 2007 Last night we were passing through Iowa, and looking for somewhere to get a bite to eat and catch some sleep. I noticed the Prairie Meadows Casino was convenient. I gave them a call and asked if they had a place that I could park an RV. They said sure, park with the trucks, it's a big parking lot and you can't miss it. I checked vpFREE before we arrived, and saw they have 9/6 JOB and 9/7 DB. Sounds good. I looked at their web site and they have a poker room too -- excellent! When we arrived we saw about a dozen 18-wheelers there already, and looked like space for about 40 total. It's a good level concrete parking area, and very clean. Shuttles run to the casino every 5 minutes, and it's not too far to walk either if you want a little exercise. Chris saw a small red sign at one end of the parking lot that said "No Overnight Camping"... uh-oh. When the shuttle picked us up I asked him if they get many RV's staying in the truck lot and he said yeah, all the time. So it sounds like the policy isn't enforced unless there's a problem, and we had no intention of being a problem. Also we're not "camping", no lawn chairs, BBQ grill, etc. So Chris hit the video poker and I hit the live poker. I found a cash no-limit game $1/$2 with a $300 buy-in. Loose pre-flop and typical mix of styles with a few locals and a few travelers. About 8:30 we wanted to eat. They have a steak house and a buffet. We picked the buffet, and it was all right. Good variety, but some food wasn't kept hot. Nice selection of desserts. Stir fry and pasta to order (which I missed but Chris noticed). Chris returned to the machines after dinner and I went home. She played another couple of hours and came home just as I was heading to bed. We got a good night's sleep and back on the road this morning.