I'm wanting to drive down there this Spring or Summer to take the tour. However, does anyone know if they plan on eventually having rooms available? I did a little research but couldn't find out much. Thanks.

I thought they went broke, again, and someone else bought it?  I prefer to rent cabins when I go down there, if I am not camping.  I suppose when the casino hits the area will jump up, of course then you can kiss Patoka Lake good bye.  Next they will open up the WMA to sell off the lakefront land.

Enjoy the area while you still can, I think the casino will most likely stink it up.  Hence the reason I just drive on down to Kentucky now to hunt.

They are eventually going to put rooms back in the West Baden Springs, but now they are remodeling the French Lick Springs first. I think the Casino will be good for the valley. Heck, I deer hunt about 4 miles north of  there and will be able to gamble when I come to town for lunch.

Yeah, i've been wanting to go check out the West Baden Springs Resort as well.  I saw it several years ago before the latest round of renovations.  Some of the pictures I've seen in the last year of the dome and gardens are just amazing.    I've heard several people at work say its definately worth seeing.  I can't wait until the open it again.  It's truely an inspiring structure.

As for the rooms, I recommend the French Lick Springs Resort for now.  Its very classy in that old, hometown Indiana sort of way.

The French Lick hotel is closed until December, the Villas are still running though I think. Lots of contruction and demolition work going on. There are limited tours of the West Baden Dome. Right now it seems like all of French Lick and West Baden are for sale. Land prices are skyrocketing here  in Orange County. rcoers  I will see if i can find out if they are going to open and have rooms available. As for the lakes, try Tucker Lake if Patoka gets too crowded it's off of 145 as well.

A friend of mine graduated from the culinary arts school at West Baden Springs.  He took me through the place and it was quite spectacular even in it's old run down state.  Are they restoring or rebuilding?

Thanks for all the responses! I've decided to defenitely take a drive down there on a nice Spring or Summer day and check the place out.

A good friend went over last summer to take the tour and he said it was very cool.

There is a really nice winery/resteraunt across from the Fast Eddies gas station and behind the only ATM and the VIllager resteraunt. It's in the the old Kimbals piano plant. Watch out for the speed trap  by the water treatment plant. If you go out on Abeydell road you will go past Larry Birds house, look for all the Basketball Courts. The Dome is stituated behind the Springs valley Bank & Trust you cant miss it. There are also train rides fromthe train station near the site of the future casino, kind of fun. Most times a old western reenactment group will "rob the train and a stage coach" there excellent horseman  and do lots of Blank shooting.

Many years ago, I got laid up in the cupola on the roof of that place. I was going with a chick that was going to school there when it was Northwood Institute.

It's a really remarkable building. As I remember, there are over a million hand laid tiles in the atrium and it WAS the largest unsupported dome in the world until the astrodome was built.

The place is chock full of history! Back in the '20s, it was a world class hotel where Al Capone used to hang out. He would come down from Chicago on his private rail road car which would be parked on the Hotels' siding. There used to be a 40 piece orchestra that was lowered from the ceiling of the atrium on a platform for performances nightly.

The West Baden Springs Hotel had stables, an astronomical observatory ( I got some in there too), several mineral springs, trap and skeet shooting, and a bunch of other cool stuff.

The Jesuits bought it and turned it into a monestery. They really screwed the place up. They filled the springs up with concrete and other stupid stuff. The Singer Corporation bought it from them and that is the period that Northwood Institute ran it as a Hotel Management school.

It's worth a trip to see it....and if you make it up to the cupola on the roof....look for my name on the wall.

Hey PCSutton sounds like you had a good time and about the same years i hung around there some. I remember going through the Northwood I when it was a school we went to a car show there one year back like 1970 or something like that and in 1972 we had our high school Jr prom at the French Lick Hotel.  Got in alllllllllllll kinds of trouble that night lol tried to slip up to rooms and well use  your emagination guys lol.  Ive been to countless wedding recp at the hotel. It is a neat place to visit. Im playing golf at the new course this summer i got a free game there with buddies its only a 45 min drive for us. Been to Larry Birds place many times and i even played basketball AGAINST Bird when in high school  i gaurded him and we did beat them (springs valley high) well go see the area if you get the chance its interesting.

They have apparantly started some renovation work.