If you haven’t gotten started on your late-summer and fall travel plans the time is now and the place is Mystic Lake Casino Hotel in Prior Lake. They’ve made it easy to ‘follow the lights’ with their iconic beams of light reaching into the night sky. Summer is well underway, so it’s time to make the most of every moment at Mystic Casino Hotel with its blazing live entertainment calendar, great dining and drinks, luxurious accommodations of all kinds and of course the largest gaming floor in the Midwest. Let’s not forget the 18-hole Championship Golf that stretches out into the pristine meadows that give the course its signature name, The Meadows at Mystic Lake. All amenities are at your fingertips 24/7.  

Entertainment comes hand-in-hand with casino fun and Mystic Lake Casino Hotel is bringing the goods. From the end of July through the end of the year a handful of events stand out: The Great Midwest Rib Fest returns with three days of world-class food and a music lineup of double-header band nights that includes Clay Walker & Pam Tillis, The Fray & American Authors and Rick Springfield & Tommy Tutone. Headlining the Mystic Amphitheater and Mystic Showroom in chronological order of the date is the Steve Miller Band, Halestorm, One Night of Queen (tribute show), Daryl Hall with Todd Rundgren, The Australian Pink Floyd Show, Chevelle & Three Days Grace, 311, Ringo Starr, Ben Harper. You can see from this list… the rock is on at Mystic Lake. Evidence that the entertainment venue planners have created a real center-of-gravity for its music calendar was the early July concert for a newcomer, Nashville artist Jelly Roll. The 7,000 seat amphitheater sold out in 15 minutes for this star-on-the-rise. A younger demographic show for sure, more good news that ‘following the lights’ isn’t just an aging boomer’s game.

The ‘stay’ in stay and play was never a second priority consideration at Mystic Lake Casino Hotel. These rooms with their assortment of options and amenities could stand right alongside any first-rate hotel in the Twin Cities. Knowing your room is comfy and well-curated allows you to focus on the important things during your stay like the spa, golf, concerts, a buzzing gaming floor and fine dining. With 766 rooms and three levels of accommodations, you can pick and choose the type of room you please. The Promenade Tower offers upscale guestrooms with expansive golf course views, comfortable sun bay seating areas, vestibule entrances and a homey, residential layout. The rooms come equipped with complimentary Wi-Fi, on-demand movies, individual climate control, in-room safe and hair dryers. Choose from king beds or two-queens – both in ADA accessible versions. There is also the Lobby Tower selection and an unparalleled collection of Suites that feature contemporary furnishings, original artwork, wet bars, powder rooms, oversized bathrooms, and expansive living areas… your home away from home. Your stay can be upgraded to include one of the three package offerings that spell out exactly what you might have in mind, Let’s Play, Let’s Romance or Let’s Celebrate. Any of these is guaranteed to deliver a package of surprises and fun.     

The ‘playing’ side of stay and play can mean many things at Mystic Lake Casino, but one thing it certainly means is availability to world-class championship golf. The Meadows at Mystic Lake is a sprawling par-72, 7,135-yard championship layout that was designed by golf course architects Garrett Gill and Paul Miller with a balance of calmness and challenge that brings a blended strategy into a single design while utilizing the natural setting as much as possible. With mature trees gently framing many of the rolling fairways, silky smooth greens, and lots of water features that play host to an abundance of wildflowers and prairie plants that only adds to the beauty of the course. 

Back in 2002 the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community purchased Lone Pine Country Club. In 2003, the course was completely remodeled, and then reopened in the summer of 2005 as The Meadows at Mystic Lake. Since its opening, the golf course has drawn many prestigious awards and recognitions from high-profile publications like GolfDigest, Golfweek, Tee Times Magazine and Midwest Gaming and Travel. Architects Garrett Gill and Paul Miller teamed together at Gill Miller, Inc. to bring The Meadows at Mystic Lake to life by combining their passion for the game of golf, their masterful skills in golf course architecture, and the expertise they gained from having completed over 200 golf courses in 33 states. Surely one of the more nationally recognized golf architectural teams in the business – no small statement.

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community (SMSC) is a federally recognized, sovereign Indian tribe located in the southwest quadrant of the greater Twin Cities area. The SMSC provides many services for its members in the areas of education, health, and general welfare. Its mission and focus are on being a good neighbor, a good steward of the earth and a good employer. The SMSC is also committed to building and strengthening community partnerships, providing charitable donations, maintaining a healthy environment, and a strong economy.

If you must ‘stay and play’ and I strongly suggest you do, then you will be looking to satisfy your hunger with some dining options. You are in luck because Mystic Lakes offers not 2 or 3 or even 5 choices, but 10 different restaurant and bar choices. This variety of venues gives you everything from a ‘grab and go’ quickie meal to a gourmet steak and lobster dinner with a deep wine cellar. So, if prime rib is your thing, they have it, if pan-seared red snapper is your thing, they have it, you get the idea, the menu is first-class at the Mystic Steakhouse. There are several locations for a juicy hamburger as well (my personal favorite) and I might recommend you enjoy that burger in the window filled Meadows Bar and Grill. Located near the golf pro shop it includes a seasonal patio for dining outdoors and taking in the views of the stunning golf course while enjoying a refreshing beverage and some tasty appetizers. Hang around and transition into some dinner fare where the flatbread and burger sandwiches take center stage. For drinks with friends or sweethearts the Promenade Bar, the Drinx Bar and the Lobby Lounge are great choices. 

Taking a spin on the course you will quickly come to realize where the ‘meadows’ comes into play – the answer is almost everywhere. As the meadow pokes and rims the outer fringes of many holes there is also a 1/3-mile-long stream that flows through the course in many directions creating some stunning, picturesque water features including five waterfalls that can be seen and heard but certainly appreciated as you navigate the course. Thirteen of the holes incorporate some form of water hazard or design highlight that also includes 20 fountains. The water is a welcome design feature on hot summer days. The water is prominent, but don’t forget the bunkers – all 80 of them!  Hopefully your sand game is up to speed. I know mine sure isn’t. Being part of a customer centric business model, The Meadows has insured you plenty of elbow room and no waiting with 12-minute tee times.   

This is just one ‘more’ example of how Mystic Lakes Casino Hotel thinks about its customers first as they follow the lights towards non-stop fun.