Ameristar Black Hawk

Reviews

• CH

  Corey Hart

  1 day ago
  1.0
  I'm very sad to say the Ameristar Hotel in Blackhawk Co. has failed me. Normally, this establishment would be held in the highest regard by me; however, my last stay has greatly diminished my opinion of the hotel. It began with the parking garage elevators having only 2 operational units, a mild inconvenience, but waiting 4 cycles until there was an elevator with room was a frustrating start to this long-awaited trip. When we arrived at the hotel desk, I was met with the most unpleasant staff member I have ever dealt with here. Despite my "kill her with kindness" approach, the interaction was sour until the end. I want to give a little leniency on this, because after discovering the rest of the problems, I realized she had probably had the most challenging day of her career at the hotel with upset patrons and complaints. During our interaction, she asked me which floor I would like and told me I could choose between the 10th and the 25th floors. I requested the 10th, to which she replied that I was already set on the 15th. I accepted that, although I was curious why she had asked in the first place. Either way, I didn't yet know that I should have pushed for that 10th floor after all. As it would turn out, on this Saturday night the elevators to the rooms were also experiencing problems, and for the 570 rooms and 34 floors there were only 2 or 5 elevators working. we were able to eventually get an elevator up to our room, but when we decided to go back to the car to retrieve the last of our bags, we were met with a 20-minute wait without even seeing an elevator door open. We ultimately decided to take the stairs down 14 floors, and with my bad knee and my wife in heels, we decided to abandon the last of our luggage in fear of wasting more time and being in pain from all the stairs. Unfortunately, there were further delays at the buffet, as there was an announcement that there was "special cleaning" that needed to take place, adding further delay to our evening, and we had also looked forward to visiting the rooftop pool and hot tub. The thought of climbing 34 floors of stairs ended any desire to visit the rooftop. Our day ended with no hot water in our shower and the odd remembrance of the water in the bathrooms downstairs being so hot that one couldn't properly wash their hands. This was by far my worst hotel experience in Blackhawk, and I hope they are able to get this establishment back on track, but before you go, I strongly recommend calling 1st and making sure those elevators are working. It's a LOT of stairs.
• BH

  Buddy Hunholz

  Oct 8, 2026
  5.0
  The room met every expectation. Excellent shower, private toilet room, and good double sinks with more than adequate water pressure. The lighting could be a little brighter, as a bathroom should have lights that "light up the room"! The beds, each with three pillows were excellent. The TV and remote control were easily navigable. The room was very clean, with a nice mini-fridge and safe for my valuables. The casino and amenities were all very nice. The only thing missing was a small store to buy things forgotten. I forgot my hairbrush at home and had to leave the hotel and find a store to buy one. Ameristar needs a small shop for things like orange juice, snacks, toiletries, and maybe even some beer! The town itself is very quaint, but there are no stores for items like I mentioned within several miles. If driving there, stop at a store and gather any supplies you may need. There is a fridge in the room, but there is nothing to put inside!
• DB

  Drea Bartholomew

  Oct 7, 2026
  5.0
  Here are the updated review options for Ameristar Black Hawk with no em-dashes, including the valet service and bellman/luggage cart details: Option 1: Standard / Detailed (Best for TripAdvisor or Google Reviews) We stayed at Ameristar Black Hawk with our dog in one of their pet-friendly rooms, and it was easily one of the best dog-friendly stays we have ever had. Usually, dog-friendly hotel rooms are a disappointment. They can smell, feel relegated to a run-down wing of the building, and cost a fortune in pet fees. In fact, the only other option in Black Hawk, Lady Luck, charges a steep $75 per night fee. Ameristar charges a very reasonable $50 per stay, which is such a fantastic value. The service starting right at valet was great. It is worth noting that there are no dedicated bellmen on staff, but you can easily grab luggage carts from the front desk by leaving your driver's license with them while you unpack. The room itself was clean, spacious, beautifully appointed, and features a super comfy bed. I stay at the Wynn and Encore in Las Vegas quite a bit, and while this room isn't quite that size, the bathroom setup reminded me a lot of Encore, complete with dual sinks, a large soaking tub, a walk-in shower, a private toilet closet, full-size toiletries including lotion (which is so useful in the mountain air), and plenty of extra towels. They catered to our pet so thoughtfully. The room included a nice built-in dog crate, elevated dog bowls with a food mat, an in-room refrigerator to store food, and a sweet welcome bag with goodies like poop bags. The rest of the property is beautiful as well. A couple of quick notes for future guests: a few elevators seemed to be down during our visit, which could cause a bit of a wait during peak hours. Also, the dog relief area is across the street. Traffic over there can be surprisingly busy with people speeding, so just exercise a little caution when crossing with your pet. Overall, we were thoroughly impressed by the quality, cleanliness, and thoughtful amenities. We will definitely be back!
• PP

  Peter Pham

  Sep 29, 2026
  4.0
  I have been a loyal Ameristar guest for well over a decade and have lost hundreds of thousands of dollars here over the years, yet I have always come back. I have also been an extremely generous tipper, sometimes tipping dealers $500–$1,000 in a single session. Recently, after losing more than $5,000 in one session—and nearly $8,000 just two days earlier—I temporarily ran out of cash and chips at the table. I told the dealer, Vee, that I was waiting briefly for my friend to bring me more money so I could continue playing. The casino was quiet, there were only two players including me, several empty seats, and nobody waiting. Yet Vee told me, **“I can’t continue dealing while you remain at the table,”** in a tone I found unnecessarily bossy and dismissive. In all my years playing here, I have routinely seen players sit out or take breaks while remaining at a table. I could have argued or called a supervisor, but I simply got up and left because I did not want a confrontation. I don't believe my losses or tips entitle me to special treatment. But I do expect basic human courtesy, whether I have thousands of dollars in front of me or temporarily nothing. This experience changed the way I tip. I will still tip good dealers, but no longer at the levels I did before. Instead, I will redirect more of that generosity to servers, housekeeping, security, cleaning staff, and other employees who also take care of guests. One dealer does not represent everyone at Ameristar, and I have met many wonderful employees here. But this experience taught me something: **Basic human respect should not depend on how many chips you have in front of you.**
• JD

  Julia Davis

  Sep 24, 2026
  1.0
  This was my first time staying at Ameristar and will also be my last. I came here for my birthday expecting to have a relaxing and fun night, but instead, I ended up spending about an hour dealing with issues with our room before I could even settle in. It was honestly a very disappointing way to start a birthday stay. When we first walked into our room, I was immediately shocked by how dirty it was. There was dirt on the bed, crumbs everywhere, and the room just did not feel like it had been properly cleaned before we arrived. I understand that hotels can occasionally miss something during housekeeping, but this was more than just one small oversight. When you’re paying to stay at a hotel, especially for a birthday celebration, you expect the room to be clean and ready when you arrive. We ended up getting switched to another room, but unfortunately, that room had cleanliness issues too. The tub and toilet were dirty, which was extremely frustrating after we had already gone through the trouble of changing rooms. At that point, I was just hoping we could finally settle in and enjoy the night without having to deal with another issue. Then, the next morning, I woke up with bug bites on my legs and abdomen. I obviously can’t say for certain what caused the bites or that there are bedbugs at the hotel, but given everything else that had already happened with the cleanliness of the rooms, it was definitely concerning and made me question the cleanliness of the room even more. That was not exactly how I wanted to wake up after coming here for my birthday. Unfortunately, even the actual casino came with its own issue because the craps machine ended up taking my money, and a formal investigation had to be done on the machine. I understand that technical issues can happen, but when you’re already dealing with multiple problems during your stay, having another unexpected issue just adds to the frustration. I really wanted this to be a fun and relaxing birthday stay, but instead, I spent a significant amount of time dealing with problems that I shouldn’t have had to deal with in the first place. Having to switch rooms because the first one was dirty, finding cleanliness issues in the second room, waking up with unexplained bites, and then having an issue with the casino machine made the entire experience feel like more hassle than it was worth. The pool, hot tub, and casino had some positives, but unfortunately, those things weren’t enough to make up for everything else. This was my first time staying at Ameristar, and based on this experience, I don’t think I’ll be rushing back. I usually stay at the Monarch, and after this trip, I think I’ll be keeping it that way. For what I expected to be a relaxing birthday getaway, it was way more stressful than it needed to be.

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