Hollywood Casino reopens

Wednesday marks three months since Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course closed its doors because of the coronavirus pandemic.

On Friday, slot machines will ring out again while customers will be able to play table games and place wagers on sporting contests and horse races in person.

The property located in Grantville, Pa., will have many rules and coronavirus mitigation practices in place as Dauphin County enters the green phase of Gov. Tom Wolf’s reopening plan at 12:01 a.m. on June 19. The casino won’t actually open, however, until 9:30 a.m.

After Friday, it will stay open daily from 7 a.m. – 3 a.m., and it will close from 3 a.m. to 7 a.m. for deep cleaning and sanitization.

If you plan to go, our FAQ guide aims to tackle everything you need to know, and be sure to check out the photo gallery above for images of what you might encounter once inside.

The information below is provided courtesy of a casino news release and also a Wednesday tour of the property with Penn National at Hollywood Casino Vice President and General Manager Dan Ihm and Susan O’Connell, who is Penn National’s Vice President of Marketing

What areas of the building will be open?

Guests will have access to two levels: The casino floor and the third floor, which will be reserved for betting on and watching simulcast and/or live horse racing.

The property located in Grantville, Pa., will have many rules and coronavirus mitigation practices in place as Dauphin County enters the green phase of Gov. Tom Wolf’s reopening plan at 12:01 a.m. on June 19. The casino won’t actually open, however, until 9:30 a.m

After Friday, it will stay open daily from 7 a.m. – 3 a.m., and it will close from 3 a.m. to 7 a.m. for deep cleaning and sanitization.

If you plan to go, our FAQ guide aims to tackle everything you need to know, and be sure to check out the photo gallery above for images of what you might encounter once inside.

The information below is provided courtesy of a casino news release and also a Wednesday tour of the property with Penn National at Hollywood Casino Vice President and General Manager Dan Ihm and Susan O’Connell, who is Penn National’s Vice President of Marketing.

Where will I enter the casino?

There will be two options.

Queuing lines will be set up at both the front entrance, otherwise known as the valet entrance, and the parking garage entrance, which is on the south side of the property near where coach busses can park.

Only the first two parking garages floors will be open to limit how many guests use the elevators, as well.

Guests will have to answer a series of illness-related questions at the door before they are allowed in. You can see what they are in the photo below, but they pertain to if you have COVID-19 symptoms, if you’ve been in recent contact with someone who has the coronavirus, or if you’ve traveled recently to a “high risk” area inside or outside of the U.S. If someone answers yes to a question, they will be asked to return home. Temperature checks will not be required.

Do I have to wear a facemask?

Yes, facemasks will be required at all times except when one is taking a drink or smoking.

Employees will also be wearing facemasks, while some dealers will have face shields on.

How will my gaming experience be different?

The first thing you’ll notice is the queue line at the front of each entrance. Customers will wait there if the capacity limits are reached.

Next, you’ll see signs encouraging social distancing and also ones requiring mask-wearing. Additionally, the list of questions security will ask before allowing entry will be posted, as well.

Then, hand sanitizer dispensers start popping up at every corner, and there are bottles containing wipes like you might find at a gym or fitness club to wipe down your machine or seat if you wish to do so.

Every other chair has been removed from most slot machines, so if a bank of slots usually allows for four people to line up side by side, the middle two seats are now gone and only the end machines remain open. Most machine banks will look like that.

However, a select number of slot machines that the casino recognizes as customer favorites will not have every other seat taken away. Instead, those games have plexiglass barriers between each seat.

Finally, only six people will be allowed at a craps table, four at a roulette wheel, and three at card game setups such as blackjack, Spanish 21, three-card poker, and so on.