Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Opens Smoke-Free Casino
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tampa is opening a smoke-free area called The Breeze: A Smoke-Free Experience By Hard Rock. The resort's smoke-free information page lists the grand opening as Thursday, November 19.
The resort announced the name on October 1, in a newsroom release, saying the experience is designed for guests who prefer a completely smoke-free environment from the moment they arrive until the moment they leave.
What Becomes Smoke-Free
The renovation covers portions of the casino floor stretching from the Elvis piano display to the Cipresso restaurant, along with the hotel lobby and L Bar. According to the resort's page, the transition has applied to those areas of the floor, the lobby and L Bar since September 25. Work includes new carpeting, chairs, gaming table felts and ceiling treatments.
The smoke-free resort experience extends beyond gaming to a smoke-free arrival with valet, lobby areas, restaurants, bars, spa and pool amenities. Restaurants named on the page include Cipresso, Constant Grind, Council Oak Steaks & Seafood, Fresh Harvest Buffet, Hard Rock Cafe, Rise Kitchen & Deli, Rock 'N Raw, Sugar Factory and The Rez Grill, with L Bar, Plum Lounge, Pool Bar & Grill and The Draper Room among the bars and lounges.
Temporary Casino In The Event Center
To keep gaming running during the work, Hard Rock Event Center has become a temporary, 24-hour smoke-free casino. It has 682 all-new slot machines and 34 table games relocated from the main floor, and it stays open while the resort builds a permanent smoke-free gaming space inside the property. The resort lists 6,185 slots across the property.
All restaurants, bars, amenities and hotel accommodations remain open throughout the work. Existing smoke-free spaces include the Draper Room poker room, which has 44 poker tables and 12 live table games, the Rock Spa & Salon and the Mezzanine Casino.
The Operator's View
Resort president Travis Lunn said team members helped pick the name and that The Breeze captures the experience being created. The resort says the changes were developed in response to guest feedback, and further details will be announced closer to the opening. The October release said the renovation was expected to finish in November.
The resort's own page now confirms the November 19 date, although it does not spell out how the temporary Event Center casino will be wound down once the permanent smoke-free gaming space is ready. Guests who prefer a smoke-free visit can already use the Event Center, the Draper Room and the Mezzanine Casino, and the resort says every restaurant and amenity stays open throughout.
Smoke-free gaming has been a live issue across the US industry. We have looked at which casinos in the US ban smoking, and at operators such as Mohegan Pennsylvania, which opened a smoke-free gambling lounge.
The Tampa property is owned by the Seminole Tribe of Florida, has more than 800 smoke-free guest rooms across two towers and employs nearly 4,300 team members, according to the resort.
