Maine has two casinos. In Bangor, Hollywood Casino opened in 2005, and Oxford Casino opened in 2012. Although, they were unfortunately, reopening after the pandemic was not a positive experience for the Maine casino industry. As a result, Maine Casinos Lead New England in Revenue Decline.

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Maine Casinos 4th Worst In Country

In 2020, Maine casinos saw a 55% revenue decline in the first three quarters. So, Hollywood Bangor and Oxford Casinos led New England's revenue decline and achieved the distinction of being 4th worst in the country. This is out of 24 states that permit commercial casino gambling, not including states with only tribal casinos.

Safe Betting Sites Reports Revenues Slashed in Half

At that time, Oxford Casino and Hollywood Casino Bangor brought in $49.76m in revenues. However, casino revenues dropped 54.91% in the last nine months compared to the same period in 2019.

Safe Betting Sites research found Maine as the 4th worst state surveyed. The three states worse than Maine were

• New Mexico suffered the steepest drop in revenue, down over 71%.
• New York took the second spot with a 66.88% decrease and
• Michigan saw a revenue decrease of 57.99%.

What Caused the Decline?

Implementing COVID-19 health and safety protocols allowed casinos to reopen and continue to offer services. Maine residents make up the vast majority of guests to both properties. Using “quadrants” or zones on the gaming floor at each casino puts more pressure on getting their customers back. In addition, competition from other casinos in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and especially Connecticut caused more cause for concern. Connecticut's tribal casinos had a month's head start reopening in June, ahead of all New England states. Maine casinos were back in action in early July.

Recent COVID-19 Changes

Hollywood Bangor

In compliance with Governor Mills' Executive Order, both casinos had to change the hours of operation. Hollywood will still open at 9 am but closed daily at 9 pm. No one was allowed to enter after 8:30 pm. The Hotel opened and accepted reservations. Table Games were available daily from 11 am to 9 pm.

Hops House 99 was the only food option open daily from 9 am to 9 pm. The last seating will be at 8:30 pm Closures include:

• Banquet services will remain suspended.
• There will be no large drawings, tournaments, or special events.
• Take 2 Is closed for the winter.
• Epic Buffet will remain closed.
• Live Racing is over for the season. 

Oxford Casino

Oxford Casino's new TEMPORARY hours of operations will be:

• CASINO HOURS 6:00 am-8:45 pm
• TABLE GAMES 6:00 am-8:45 pm 
• FOOD & BEVERAGE SERVICE will end at 8:30 pm

Oxford has limited Table Games open and is located in Zone 3. Changes consisted of a maximum of 3 players allowed per table. Bet limits were higher than usual. A limited menu will be available at the Food & Beverage Service Area. The following amenities weren't available for the foreseeable future – the Coat check, Buffet in the Oxford Grill, self-service beverage station, Parking lot shuttle service, and the Event Center.

Summary

In the fall of 2020, COVID-19 hit the casino industry in Maine hard. However, Maine has shown resilience in the past ten years. Let's hope Hollywood and Oxford hold on to operate their respective properties fully.

Originally posted 2020-12-03 10:56:10.