The final part of this three part series on Vegas tips concludes with some general tips on gambling and poker playing. Millions upon millions of dollars are won and lost in Vegas and here’s where the action is.
Cash Games
Virtually every hotel has its own casino, which will nearly always be offering poker of one kind or another.
The smallest games are around the $1/$2 mark and play is generally quite loose, especially compared to online, partly as people tend to be holidaying in Vegas and are happy to part with some cash and partly as the staff offer you free alcoholic drinks whilst you are playing.
Most tables will be NLHE, but search around and you will find other games such as limit Hold’em and Omaha/8, PLO/8 and straight up Omaha. There are some Stud games offered too, though these are rarer.
Probably the best time of year to play is during the World Series Of Poker. Vegas is packed to bursting with poker players at this time of year and you should have no problem finding juicy tables all over town whilst the WSOP is in operation, especially at the Rio – the current host for the WSOP.
Many cardrooms offer a loyalty card, which you can use to rack up points while you play. These can then be exchanged for things such as cheaper rooms, free meals etc., depending on that casino’s particular promotions.
Tournaments
Again there is a wide spread of tournaments and where you play will depend partly on what you are looking for. Over the summer, the WSOP will be running – its tournaments having buy-ins ranging from $1,000 to $50,000. This is your opportunity to win a bracelet and write your name into the history books.
If you are looking for something a little more affordable, Caesar’s Palace offer a spread of medium buy-in tournaments typically from $100-$1,000 and The Venetian offer the opportunity to play deep-stacked tournaments for lesser buyins than the WSOP.
Other than this, most casinos offer their own tournament schedules, some with buy-ins less than $100, although be aware the structure of many of these tournaments is pretty fast. That can be useful though, meaning you can get some poker in quickly, then enjoy some of the attractions Vegas has to offer later on.
General Gambling
Apart from poker there are lots of other opportunities to gamble, with casinos offering the usual staples of roulette and blackjack, along with some lesser-seen table games such as Caribbean Poker and Pai-Gow.
You can have a good time in Vegas just visiting a casino bar with your friends and playing the video poker on offer there. The barman will be happy to keep feeding you free drinks while you play, and might have some interesting stories or inside information to share with you while you play.
Again though, remember whilst playing and being served drinks that the staff appreciate being tipped, and slipping them an extra few dollars here and there will make sure they are super-attentive to your needs.