Those new visitors allowed a number of new attractions to be built on both sides of the river like the Louisiana Boardwalk, SciPort and Artspace, just to name a few.

With the onset of casinos, the area saw a boom in its tourism. It provided much needed revenue and allowed the area to dedicate sales tax funds for infrastructure and other quality of life improvements. Legislation was passed in 1992 that allowed riverboat gaming in Louisiana. It’s hard to imagine a time before the Red River was dotted with casino resorts, but gaming is just this side of 20 years old. Horseshoe Casino in Bossier City was the first of many Bossier casinos that would later be established.

Ever since the first casino went up in the area in 1994, they have been very popular with locals and visitors alike.