Two Saratoga tracks, one town
Visitors often mix the two up. Saratoga Race Course, across Nelson Avenue, is the New York Racing Association’s thoroughbred track with a summer meet and the Travers Stakes. Saratoga Casino Hotel is a harness track with a gaming floor and hotel. They are separate businesses, though the casino takes simulcast bets on its neighbor’s races.
That is why a search for the Saratoga racino lands here. The term describes a racetrack with machine gaming, and the Jefferson Street track fits it, while the Race Course has no casino at all. Our what is a racino guide explains the category and how New York licensed these gaming floors at harness and thoroughbred tracks.
From Saratoga Raceway to a racino
The track opened in 1941 as Saratoga Raceway, one of the first in the state with pari-mutuel betting on harness races. It drew Grand Circuit stars in its best years, faded with the rise of off-track betting and became the Saratoga Equine Sports Center in the 1990s. A 2001 state law allowing machines at racetracks changed its fortunes.
On January 28, 2004, the track became the first in New York to open video lottery gaming, converting the ground floor of the grandstand. Purses rose sharply. It was renamed Saratoga Gaming and Raceway, then Saratoga Casino and Raceway in 2011, and Saratoga Casino Hotel after the hotel opened in 2016 on the site of the old training track.
Ownership of the Saratoga casino
The property belongs to Saratoga Casino Holdings. Churchill Downs Inc. bought a 25 percent stake in 2014 and the two companies bid together that year for the Capital Region casino license, which went to Rivers Casino in Schenectady instead. In 2018 Churchill Downs swapped its Saratoga stake for full control of Ocean Downs in Maryland.
Inside the Saratoga racino
The floor holds more than 1,200 machines with reel games, video poker, progressives and keno. Electronic table games deal blackjack, roulette, three card poker and craps on terminals. All of them run on the New York Lottery system described in our video lottery terminals guide. The casino is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 a.m.
The minimum age is 18 for the machines, horse betting and casino restaurants, but Vapor, the live music and events venue, admits only guests aged 21 and over. The Saratoga Club tracks play for promotions and drawings, and higher-tier members can use a private VIP lounge. A Lottery Claim Center on site cashes winning New York Lottery tickets.
Harness racing on the half-mile
The 85th season began on February 1, 2026, and runs into mid-December, a long meet by New York standards. The infield landscaping has earned the oval its local reputation as one of the most attractive half-mile tracks in the country. Fans watch from the rail, the grandstand, the lower clubhouse or Lucky Joe’s.
The biggest race of the year is the Joe Gerrity Jr. Memorial, a free-for-all pace run in August that has drawn top national pacers since it became a single race in 2013. Summer weekends bring Sunset Saturday Racing with food trucks and giveaways. Track announcer Mike Sardella publishes daily selections, and our pari-mutuel betting guide explains the wagers on offer.
Saratoga Casino Hotel restaurants
Morton’s The Steakhouse is the only branch of the chain in the Capital District. Lucky Joe’s serves pizza, sandwiches and salads with a view of the track, Mane Bar is the sports bar with screens all around, and Perks Marketplace stays open around the clock. Fortunes hosts private events. All casino restaurants require guests to be 18.
Staying at the hotel
The hotel holds a AAA Four-Diamond rating. Rooms range from double queens of about 400 square feet to the Harriman Suite with a stone fireplace. Guests have an indoor pool with a spa whirlpool, an outdoor fire pit, a fitness center and a shuttle, and the property offers over 3,000 square feet of meeting space.
Getting there and nearby racinos
Saratoga Springs lies north of Albany along Interstate 87. The property has three entrances, on Jefferson Street, Crescent Avenue and Nelson Avenue, free EV chargers for up to ten cars and a few spaces for RVs. Vernon Downs is the nearest other racino to the west, and Empire City in Yonkers is about three hours south.