Lake Tahoe area casinos and craps minimums

My wife and I are thinking about a Tahoe trip this spring. I have never been there so the plan is to site see and hike around the lake and play some craps. What are your favorite places to play, table minumums and max odds? Thanks for any info and have a great weekend.

David

What part of spring? The way the weather has been going through San Francisco on its way to Reno/Tahoe, I wouldn't be surprised to see snowstorms in March or April, and some slopes could even be open as late as Memorial Day.

I used to spend about two months of every year in Tahoe. Nowadays when we go up there it is not to gamble and we own a home up there, but before I used to stay at Harrah’s, Harvey’s, Horizon and Caesars Tahoe.

On a recent trip we stayed at Harvey’s anyway, even though we didn’t need to stay in a hotel, just because I wanted to see how it is these days.

Nowadays Caesars has become MontBleu, and Horizon, the Hard Rock.

When we stayed at Harvey’s a few years ago, it had definitely gone downhill from its glory days, but I understand that they put $41M into renovations that were completed in October 2020.

Harvey’s is on the lakeside side of Hwy. 50 (the main drag that goes through Tahoe), and Harrah’s is across the street from it. Actually, the best lake views are at the Hard Rock. MontBleu is across the street from the Hard Rock.

It has been years and years since I gambled in Tahoe, but I think not much has changed. I don’t think they have anything other than mini-Baccarat as far as Baccarat in the casinos these days, but plenty of Blackjack. I recall the Blackjack rules as not being that great – allowing doubling only on 8,9,10,11 on the single and double decks, but I used to win a lot at their Blackjack, especially the single deck, anyway.

If indeed Harvey’s has renovated their rooms nicely, I would recommend staying there. Be sure to dine at their classic steakhouse Sage Room (since 1947). Try to get Teddy or his son to be your waiter. Teddy, if he is still there which he was a few years ago, has worked at the Sage Room since 1987.

The Springs in Tahoe are still sometimes pretty cold, especially at night, and the snow on at least the ski resorts sometimes continues clear through Memorial Day. Other than that it may get windy, the best weather in Tahoe is during the summer. Be sure to take the 1 mile hike (more of a walk really, although it’s an uphill climb on the way back) down the trail to the Vikingsholm castle.

There are other trails for hiking around Tahoe, including the multi day 165 mile Tahoe Rim Trail.

During the non-snowed in days, people ride mountain bikes over some of the hills in Tahoe. Take the gondola up to Heavenly’s Observation Deck to see all of Tahoe. The gondola is walking distance from the Stateline, NV casino hotels.

You may visit the beaches including Zephyr Cove. There is a beach right next to Harvey's that is nice (Lakeside Beach), but they started charging for access a couple years ago.

Water skiing, boating.

Over all, during non-ski season Tahoe is pretty sleepy as far as things to do, it’s more about enjoying the scenery and nature.

We don't have a date set in stone yet. I would imagine it would be from Memorial Day to early/mid June. Another couple is talking about going with us so their schedule may dictate when we schedule. I have heard the craps is better in Reno but I am not sure we will spend much time there. Any idea of craps table minumums and max odds?

When I used to play craps they had as low as five dollar minimums (today that is probably more like $15.) at the Stateline casinos on weekdays. It was standard 3 4 5 odds.

Here ya go...

http://www.nextshooter.com/reno

Damn that's jarring. Nice low minimums, but many at double odds, and with low maximums.
Reno / Sparks: Cal-Neva, Atlantis, Reno Hilton, Harrah's, El Dorado, The Peppermill,
STATELINE-LAKE TAHOE: Harvey's, Harrah's, Montbleu, Horizon,
...are casinos I would pick to play craps at if my bankroll was what I would like it to be, which it ain't.

NextShooter.com hasn't been updated in a dog's age. That info is way out-of-date.

I've done an extensive reconnoitering of Tahoe/Reno area casinos. Table games are dying in NNV. Fewer and fewer blackjack and especially craps tables. Smaller casinos like Western Village, Bonanza, Sands Regency and Circus Circus got rid of table games entirely. Everywhere else has cut their pit. No $5 games anywhere -- don't bother looking for one. $10 maybe at slow times and small houses, $15 otherwise, and $25 at busy times like weekends at Tahoe. Odds 3x4x5. Some 5x.

All the four Stateline casinos have craps, although Montbleu's (now Bally's) is rarely open, and Harvey's tends to close their pit at times and direct all players across the street to Harrah's. Very limited food options in the casinos. They close restaurants a lot at inopportune times. The cafe in Harrah's is abysmal.

Harrah's is the best run house in Tahoe. Best dealers, experience, etc. Hard Rock has a nice vibe. Don't bother setting foot into Montbleu. Their hotel can be a bargain (fine rooms), as can Harveys (good for hotel only. Do your gambling at Harrah's). Lakeside Inn closed. None of the North Shore casinos have table games (I THINK), but Hyatt might be the best overall casino resort on the lake. If you can score a package or a discounted rate it is an amazing facility.

Down the mountain in Reno none of the properties are really up-to-snuff. Peppermill and Atlantis kind of compete for the mid-range crowd, and they are fine. Lots of smoke in both. "The ROW" downtown is dismal -- they have no idea how to market it. But they do have dice. Club Cal-Neva is my choice for craps. You can get a good game for low limits with decent dealers. I like the dirty games :) Cal-Neva is a trip; absolute artifact.

Bottom line: Craps is dying in Northern Nevada, but Tahoe is amazing and you should absolutely visit. One of my favorite places on Earth.

10-15 years old, sorry chumpster

For posterity, there was a time, before the pandemic.

You mentioned hiking... I was there about 10 years ago in mid-May. At that time, the lower altitude trails were open (I did the Skunk Harbor trail down to the lake). However, the higher altitude trails were buried in snow. I tried to do the Mt. Rose trail, and I could only get a couple hundred yards before the snow was waist deep.

It all depends on how snowy the winter is, but you may find some trails impassable in May.

Thanks for all the recent replies. We did go to Reno last spring. It was my first ever trip there and I was pretty dissappointed. We went with 2 other couples and spent evenings gambling after the March Madness games of the day. My favorite was Club CalNeva. What a dive but I had a blast there. We went in the main casino looking for a craps table and only found slots. On our way out I asked an employee where their table games were and he directed us down the block to the white corner door!! I was pretty sure we were going to get rolled but instead we enjoyed a fun $5 game with ok odds and a great 2 man crew. We played for an hour or so and all made a little money. We did ok the next day at Silverado and Peppermill but their games were at least $10 no matter what time of day. The best game of the entire trip was at the Winners in Winnemucca on our way down there. A nice $5 game but only 2x odds. I played my first Darkside session there and did pretty good. We switched to pass line betting when a couple of young guys got on the table. It was their 1st time playing. We finished up at 2:30am up a couple hundred in spite of heavy tipping to the dealers and cocktail servers which kept the gin and tonics coming all night. Man I need another Nevada trip!!!!!