Update: September 15, 2008

We are continuing to assess damages our local hospitality partners sustained during Hurricane Ike. The Lake Charles/Southwest Louisiana Convention & Visitors Bureau building located at 1205 North Lakeshore Dr. in Lake Charles received minor damage from Hurricane Ike. We currently have a crew cleaning up the building and hope to reopen it to the public by the end of this week. We will continue to keep this blog updated as we gain more information on the status of the building.

In the meantime, we are working remotely from a hotel property in Sulphur. We can all be reached via e-mail and this blog site. Our Web site, http://www.visitlakecharles.org/, is also being updated as we receive information.


For Administration:
Shanna Landry, Director of Administration
slandry@visitlakecharles.org

For Sales:
Tico Soto, Director of Sales
tsoto@visitlakecharles.org

For Communications:
Katie Harrington, Public Relations Manager
kharrington@visitlakecharles.org

For Tourist Information:
Melissa Serrano, Tourist Information Manager
mserrano@visitlakecharles.org

Casino Update
Delta Downs Racetrack Casino & Hotel is temporarily closed.
800-589- 7441

Isle of Capri Casino Hotel will reopen at 6:00 p.m. tonight with limited availability.
800-THE-ISLE

L'Auberge du Lac Casino Resort: The hotel is open and accepting reservations. The casino and golf course are temporarily closed. For reservations call (866) 580-7444. We are offering a special $149 rate (Code AD149; Sunday – Thursday). Please see below for more information on the other ameneties for this property.

Hotel Properties Update
The following hotel properties are open with no availability.

Lake Charles
Microtel Inn & Suites Lake Charles (337-477-4230)
Sleep Inn & Suites Lake Charles (337-480-0898)
Super 8 in Lake Charles (337-477-1606) Comfort Inn & Suites Lake Charles
Comfort Inn & Suites Lake Charles (Prien Lake Road)
Treasure Inn (337-721-8001)
Motel 6 Lake Charles (337-433-1773)
Sunrise Inn Lake Charles (337-437-8339)
America's Best Suites Lake Charles (337-439-2444)
Baymont Inn & Suites Lake Charles (337-310-7666)
Belmont Motor Inn Lake Charles (337-433-9291)
Best Western Richmond Suites Lake Charles (337-433-5213)
Econolodge Inn & Suites Lake Charles (337-491-1000)
Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites Lake Charles (337-491-6600)
La Quinta Inn Lake Charles (337-436-5998)
Days Inn (337-433-9461)
Inn on the Bayou (337-474-5151)

Sulphur
Candlewood Inn & Suites
Quality Inn & Suites in Sulphur (337-626-7000)
Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites in Sulphur (337-625-2500)
Best Western Executive Suites in Sulphur ((337-625-9000)
Sulphur Inn (337-528-2061)
Crossland Economy Studios (337-625-5923)
Days Inn Sulphur (337-312-0108)
Super 8 Sulphur (337-626-8800)
Fairfield Inn by Marriott (337-528-2629)
Microtel Inn (337-527-1000)
LaQuinta Inn (337-527-8303)
Econolodge Inn & Suites (337-527-8146)
Windgate by Wyndham (337-527-5151)
Hampton Inn (337-527-0000)

Iowa
Howard Johnson Express Iowa (337-582-2440)

The following hotel properties are temporarily closed:
Lake Charles
Oasis Inn (337-494-7270)

Campgrounds
The following campgrounds are open with spots available:

Lake Charles
Jellystone Yogi Bear Park (337-433-1114)
VFW 2130 RV Park (337-477-7546)

Westlake
Tall Pines RV Park (337-433-2038)

Bed & Breakfasts
The following B&B's are open with availability:
CA's House (337-439-6672)

Museums
The Childrens Museum and DeQuincy Railroad Museum will reopen tomorrow with normal business hours. The Imperial Calcasieu Museum in Lake Charles and the Brimstone Museum in Sulphur are open today with normal business hours.

Galleries
The following galleries are open today with normal hours of business:
Arts & Humanities Council
Art Associates Gallery
Black Heritage Gallery
Historic City Hall
Henning Cultural Center in Sulphur

The following galleries will reopen tomorrow with normal business hours:
Abercrombie Gallery at McNeese State University

Restaurants
The following restaurants are open with normal business hours:
DI's Cajun Restaurant
Popeyes
Aucoin's Cajun Restaurant
Bennigan's Grill and Tavern
Blue Duck Cafe
Boiling Point
Cajun Cafe
Cajun Charlie's Seafood Restaurant
Carino's Italian grill
Casa Ole in Lake Charles and Sulphur
The Coffee Beanery
Chinese King Restaurant
Hollier's Cajun Kitchen
Lagniappe Cafe
Majestic Downtown
Mr. Gattis
Olive Garden
O'Charley's Restuarant
Panda Super Buffet
Pujo St. Cafe
Richard's Boudin & Seafood Restuarant
Ryan's Buffet
Seafood Palace
Southern Spice
Steamboat Bills (Broad Street Location)
Steamboat Bills on the Lake
Texas Roadhouse
The Sausage Link
Tony's Pizza
Wagon Wheel Burgers & More
Longhorn Truck and Car Plaza (Hard Country Cafe)

The following restaurants will reopen tomorrow with normal business hours:
Casa Manana
Luna Bar & Grill
Mazen's Restaurant

Golf Courses
Pine Shadows is open with normal business hours.
Frasch Park in Sulphur and Mallard Cove in Lake Charles will reopen tomorrow with normal operating hours.

Festivals and Events
St. Theresa's Carlyss Bon Temps Festival is still on for this weekend.
Calca-Chew Festival is still on for September 28.
Country Club Arts & Craft Fair is still on for October 10-11.
Town of Vinton Heritage Festival is still on for October 11.

Other information:
Updated L'Auberge Operations for 9/15/08
L’Auberge Property Amenity Update
September 15, 2008
L’AUBERGE DU LAC UPDATES

The L’Auberge casino remains closed at this time. The vessel is not damaged but crews are working to repair damaged entry ramps. We are targeting a Wednesday night reopening date, pending regulatory approvals and successful ramp repairs. All roads leading in and out of the property are clear and Contraband Bayou Golf Club has largely drained, although we have repair work ahead on the greens.

As a service to the community, the following guest amenities are available – please note that additional food outlets become operational today. During post-storm recovery, L’Auberge WILL allow to-go orders from all property food outlets (buffet excluded):

Ø The hotel is OPEN and now taking new reservations at http://www.ldlcasino.com/ or (866) 580-7444. We are offering a special $149 rate (Code AD149; Sunday – Thursday). Come enjoy a hot shower if your power is out!
Ø Le Beaucoup Buffet is OPEN serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. Current specials include:
o Breakfast $10
o No lunch service today
o Dinner $16.99
Ø Lattes is OPEN with a full menu of coffee drinks, pastries and sandwiches; open until 10:00 p.m.
Ø Snake River Grill opens at 5:30 p.m. for bar service; full dinner service at 6:00 p.m. Let us do the cooking for you!
Ø Jack Daniel’s Bar & Grill opens at noon today featuring the Nevie Beach Club menu for lunch:
o Monday Night Football will be available at 7:30 p.m.
o Jack Daniel’s Bar & Grill full menu available for dinner.
Ø Asia is open Noon to Midnight.
Ø Le Café will open at 4:00 p.m. and remain open until 2:00 a.m.
Ø Room service will resume today at 4:00 p.m.
Ø L’Arcade is OPEN today.
Ø Modele is OPEN today.
Ø Spa du Lac is OPEN; appointments can be made by calling 395-7768 (limited services available). The Fitness Center is OPEN to hotel guests for a $10 fee.
Ø L’Sundries is OPEN until 1:00 a.m.; snacks, soft drinks and spirits are available for purchase.
Ø The pool are will open Tuesday, September 16 with full bar service.
Ø Contraband Bayou Golf Club remains closed due to storm surge flooding.

We will bring additional amenities online as our employees are able to return to work.

The Chicago concerts scheduled for September 19 and September 20 will take place as planned; we are receiving numerous calls from ticketholders regarding the status of the show Le Ann Rimes tickets are now on sale at http://www.ticketmaster.com/ for the scheduled October 17 and October 18 in the L’Auberge Event Center.

Our thoughts are with the citizens of Southwest Louisiana as we all work together to help those affected by Hurricane Ike.


From the City of Lake Charles
Effective Monday, September 15, at 6 a.m., the City of Lake Charles Transit system will resume with limited service. Citizens requesting pickup should call 491-1253. Transit buses will be used to assist in the return of evacuees.
Regular scheduled Transit service should resume Tuesday, September 16.