As part of Massachusetts' Phase 3 reopening plan, casinos across the state are allowed to reopen, following specific guidelines detailed by the EVERETT — Encore Boston Harbor has officially reopened its doors to the public on Sunday, July 12, nearly four months after the casino closed its doors amid the worldwide coronavirus pandemic, reports. Efforts to temporarily halt poker action at the Wynn and Encore on the Las Vegas Strip and Encore Boston Harbor appear to jibe with a 23-page reopening plan released by the company last month.

1. Encore Boston Poker Room Reopening Today
2. Encore Boston Poker Room Reopening Date

A Message From Mohegan Leadership

First, we hope that you and your families are safe and well. The past few months have presented each of us with hardships that seemed unfathomable just a short time ago. But these hardships have also presented us with an opportunity to come together as one community. It has also made us appreciate life’s simple moments. While no one knows how long it will take for things to get back to ‘normal,’ we are here, prepared and ready to welcome you back.

Our team has tirelessly been working around the clock to develop and implement first-in-class standards and safety measures consistent with or exceeding guidelines by state and federal officials. These measures, which you will find below, have been endorsed by our Chief Medical Director and Tribal Health Department. We will continue to moderate and make changes as necessary to our procedures based off their guidance to ensure the highest level of safety for our guests and team members. This guidance and level of standards will be implemented at all seven resort destinations in North America operated and managed by Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment, some of which have already begun to reopen.

As we ramp up our next phase of reopening, which includes various openings of our dining, hotel, retail and other popular venues, we will continue to ensure we are responsible and appropriate with our approach. While we understand that the continued closure of some of these experiences may be inconvenient, we look forward to reopening them when the time is right. Our number one priority is the safety and well-being of all guests visiting Mohegan Sun as well as the health of all our passionate and dedicated team members.

We are thankful for our 6,500 team members, who are an extension of our Mohegan family, for their tireless efforts today and every day. We appreciate your continued loyalty and look forward to welcoming you back soon.

From the Mohegan Tribe, Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment and Mohegan Sun family, muykuhkukw qa wuyámukw (Be strong and be well).​

See How Mohegan Sun Is Keeping You Safe

By Working Together, We Win Together

Do Your Part, Stay 6 Feet Apart

Maintain a safe distance of 6 feet or more from others as much as possible.

Look for signs on the floor in places where lines may form to ensure distancing

4 Aboard – To practice safe social distancing, please limit elevator passengers to 4 at a time

Plexiglass has been added to transactional locations

Every other slot machine will be available for play and seating at table games will be arranged to allow for safe distances between players

Have Good, Clean Fun

Wash your hands often

Swipe a wipe - For your safety, please sanitize your hands and wipe down your machine or table and chair before you play

Hand sanitizing stations have been added throughout the property and are available on each table game

Know Before You Go Temperature Check

A simple, non-invasive temperature check will be performed on all guests and team members as they enter the property, and protocols are in place to monitor symptoms.

• Any person with a temperature reading higher than 99.9 degrees will be re-tested to confirm
• If the reading is still high, guests will be asked to return when they feel healthy and will be reminded to follow up with their health care provider

Be Social, Be Safe

It is mandatory for guests and employees to wear masks unless eating or drinking. If you do not have a mask, security will provide one to you.

At this time, smoking will not be permitted indoors anywhere. Please use designated smoking areas outside.

Relax & Recharge

Open restaurants and bars will reduce seating to allow for physical distancing during dining and only patio or atrium seating will be provided

There will not be any self-serve or drink stations

Seasons Buffet will be closed

Safe In Your Room

Turn down service will not be offered at this time

Housekeeping will be limited on multiple night stays

The Sky Tower Pool and fitness centers are now open with limited & monitored capacity, masks must be worn unless proper social distancing is maintained, jacuzzis remain closed.

Drive-Thru Testing Site Located at Thames Garage
Hours of Operation: Available daily from 7:30am - 5:00pm until further notice
Scheduling: Appointments are required and can be made by a physician placing an order or by utilizing our website. Answer a few questions and select an appointment time under MOHEGAN SUN THAMES GARAGE TESTING SITE
The website automatically generates an order

Who Can Get Tested?: Asymptomatic and symptomatic, all ages. If a child is under the age of 18, a parent or guardian must be present at the testing with him/her. All adults over 18 must bring a photo ID. Face masks are required. Unlimited tests per vehicle.
Billing: Insurance will be billed but we are not balance billing at this time (no cost to the patient)
Test Result Turnaround Time: Results may be available in as little as 48 hours
Test type: PCR (Swab)

THE PARTIES ARE ON HOLD BUT THE FUN ISN’T

For the safety of our guests and team members, we’re doing New Year’s Eve differently this year. Though we will not be hosting our usual New Year’s Eve events, we invite you to celebrate with us throughout the holiday season. Book a safe and relaxing stay at one of our two hotel towers, dine at your favorite restaurants, browse our shops and enjoy the thrills that await you at our slot machines and table games.

Due to restricted capacities, we advise all of our guests to book their experience in advance.

What's Open?

Casino of the Sky & Casino of the Earth
Comix Roadhouse & Comedy Club
Kids Quest & Cyber Quest
Mandara Spa
Mohegan Sun Golf Club
Race Book
Sachem Lounge
Sky Hotel & Earth Tower
Sky Tower Pool

A wider range of dining and retail offerings will be opening for dine-in and take out as well as expanding hours and services! Reservations are encouraged.

What's Closed...For Now?

Box Office
Line Run and Charter Buses
Mohegan Sun Arena
Poker Room
Earth Tower Pool
Seasons Buffet
Valet Parking
Wolf Den

Both hotels are open for reservations and are adding more rooms. Reservations are open to all guests and no longer limited to local states. Some changes have been implemented to promote social distancing. Valet parking will not be available but you can still pull up to the hotel, place your luggage on a cart, and self-park your car. The Sky Tower Pool and fitness centers are now open with limited & monitored capacity. The Earth Tower pool will remain closed until further notice. Masks must be worn when entering and exiting the pool area, but may be removed unless proper social distancing cannot be maintained. The Jacuzzi will remain closed until further notice due to its small size and the inability to properly social distance. We will not be offering turndown service and housekeeping will be limited during multiple night stays. All rooms will be cleaned and disinfected according to CDC guidelines including using sanitization fogging after each stay between guests so you can settle in as soon as you arrive. Room service will be available but will be placed outside your room for you to pick up.
FOR MORE INFORMATION

Casino of the Sky and Casino of the Earth are open with safety measures in place. Slot machines and chairs at tables will be limited to encourage distancing between guests. Disinfecting wipes and hand sanitizer are located throughout the property for your use to wipe down machines or tables before you play. Playing cards, dice and high touch points will be cleaned and sterilized frequently. At this time, the Poker room will remain closed.

To uphold the highest safety standards for our guests and team members, our open restaurants and bars will maintain compliance with Connecticut State guidelines. Open restaurants and bars will reduce seating to allow for physical distancing during dining, reservations are encouraged. There will not be any self-serve or drink stations. Menus, check presenters and other high touch points will be disinfected after each use. Dining rooms will have last calls for in-restaurant food service no later than 9:30pm. Please check individual dining and bar pages to stay up to date on specific changes during this time.

At this time, no smoking will be permitted indoors. Please use designated smoking areas outside and maintain physical distance from other guests.

Sachem Lounge has reopened for our Soar guests with new safety guidelines. The following rules are now in effect:

• Seating is at 50% of normal capacity as we have removed half of the tables and chairs from the lounge
• Soar access only until further notice
• Limit of 4 people total (cardholder +3) at all times
• Due to limited seating, we will have a 1 hour time limit during busy times
• All guests must have a seat as we cannot allow extra guests to be standing
• Sachem Lounge is re-opening as a non-smoking area
• Masks should be worn by all guests when not eating/drinking

ASPIRE CHECK-IN

At this time Aspire and Thirty Three are not open. In an effort to maintain the safety of our guests through social distancing and utilize our spaces wisely, Soar members and above can check-in at the Aspire Desk.

Beginning on October 9th at 9:00am VIP's & Soar members and above can check-in at the Aspire check-in area. The check-in area will be open from:

• Sunday - Thursday: 9:00am - 10:00pm
• Friday & Saturday: 9:00am - Midnight

No Aspire amenities will be available such as private concierge, valet and bell service. If a guest would like to drop off their luggage, they will be asked to pull up to the main Hotel lobby and self-park. A Bellman will be there to assist any Guest who requires assistance.

No food will be offered to any guest at check-in. Only sealed beverages such as bottled water and soft drinks will be available.

Massachusetts is the next in line to reopen its casinos after this process started in May. Casinos were shut down due to the coronavirus outbreak, and now are slowly coming back to life.

However, they will offer limited options for gamblers to adhere to social distancing guidelines provided by state regulators. The three casinos that will open their doors again in Massachusetts will not offer poker because of that.

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission made the final adjustments to the guidelines that the casinos need to follow as a part of the reopening process. One of the most important decisions is that gamblers should not be allowed to carry their beverages with them while they are inside of a casino.

However, the majority of rules were made for games, and the Gaming Commission decided to really narrow down possible gambling options in land-based casinos. The games that you’ll not be able to play in casinos until further notice are craps, roulette, and poker.

On the other hand, players will be able to enjoy blackjack, but the maximum number of players that can sit at the same table is capped at three. Moreover, those who want to play blackjack will have to accept the fact that there would be plexiglass dividers between them and the dealer to ensure maximum safety.

Encore Boston Poker Room Reopening Today

Possible Reopening Scenarios For Poker Rooms

Many casinos in the US adopted different measures to lower the spread of the COVID-19 disease among the staff and the visitors. For example, as soon as some poker rooms in Florida reopened, they immediately placed plexiglass dividers on poker tables.

Since the regulators in Massachusetts are extremely careful about this, it wouldn’t come as surprising to see poker rooms in the state reopen with the dividers.

In other words, the regulators will force Encore Boston Harbor and MGM Springfield to adhere to the safety guidelines if they want to reopen parts of the property where players can play poker cash games and tournaments.

Poker, roulette, and craps will not be allowed until the regulator feels it’s safe enough to do it. Therefore, we could expect them to reopen as soon as the Massachusetts Gaming Commission decides to relax some of the regulations related to land-based casinos and social distancing.

When it comes to slots, they will be available to all players but will be regularly cleaned (every four hours). Moreover, they will be spaced throughout the gaming floor, so that there’s enough distance between the players.

Massachusetts is a newcomer to the gambling industry. It only hosts three land-based casinos, but there are numerous racinos around the state, where visitors can play slots.

The biggest casino in the state is Encore Boston Harbor, which is still fairly new as it was opened in 2019. It did not work for a full year before it had to close its doors due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The only other casino in the state that operates a poker room is MGM Springfield, which is also fairly new as it was built two years before Encore Boston Harbor.

The casinos in the Bay State could reopen as soon as June 29. However, there is still no official news coming from Governor Charlie Baker. Therefore, casino goers in the area will have to wait a bit — but hopefully not for too long.

On the other hand, live poker fans will have to remain patient or continue playing online poker until its live counterpart is available. But then again, online poker is booming right now, as all major tournaments are on the web.

Encore Boston Poker Room Reopening Date