Trip report 9/23-9/25

Just got back from my 3rd Vegas trip of the year. This was a solo trip and was able to focus on gambling and relaxing.

Tropicana - I have read many good things about the updates and wanted to give it a try. Honestly I hate the place. The white color scheme is interesting but am not a fan. Played blackjack in high limit(tables are 50 min) and was not impressed. Dealers lacked training and drink service was not existent. Room was empty on a Friday night and dealers had a bad attitude.

MGM - Played baccarat in the mansion. The dealers here are the best on the strip in my opinion. They seem more vocal and personable then Wynn/Encore. This is no way putting down the wynncore dealers but seems more of how dealers are trained/managed.

Mirage - They have added a second tiles table on the floor. I am a huge fan of this as I prefer to play alone at tiles. Drink service seems improved as I felt it had gone down a bit over the past year.

Luxor - Played blackjack in their high limit room. Pit boss and dealers are always pleasant here. I had a particularly bad couple shoes but overall a positive experience. Hosts at this property seem aggressive and actively seek players on the floor to give a card and ask if there is anything they can do. I understand they generally have fewer high betting players but they do show great initiative to seek them out.

Venetian - Played tiles here and did not have a pleasant experience. On one hand in particular the dealer flipped his tiles set them and cleared them before I had a chance to see what he had. I asked what he had and he basically told me I shouldn't be playing if I didn't know what he had. I told him it wasn't that I don't know how to play but that he took it away so quick I didn't see it. I find this casino to be the least inviting place for an American to play. General questions on setting a hand here are not taken well.

Wynn/Encore - Played tiles, craps, and baccarat here. I find this to be the best casino for tiles. When I first learned to play the game(2 years ago) the pit boss made it clear if I have any questions just ask and they are happy to help and not worry about slowing the game down. This is not the case many other casinos. One difference I find is that the pit seems to be much more customer friendly than anywhere. I mentioned earlier that the mansion dealers are more personable. It seems that wynncores pit bosses have much more interaction and rely on the dealers to just deal the game and stay quiet. Craps dealers were very proficient and after a few rolls understood exactly how you were betting and didn't need much explanation on how you are progressing your bets. Baccarat here is obviously very popular and excellent service is delivered to players regardless of bet size. On the table I was playing I was betting 100-300 per hand and had others betting as high as 10k per hand. Dealers didn't skip a beat and pit provided excellent service across the board.

Thanks for your post. What's involved in gambling at the mansion? I know what the mansion is, but now it connects to the casino. Can anyone play there? What are the limits?

Quote: scottndindy

Venetian - Played tiles here and did not have a pleasant experience. On one hand in particular the dealer flipped his tiles set them and cleared them before I had a chance to see what he had. I asked what he had and he basically told me I shouldn't be playing if I didn't know what he had. I told him it wasn't that I don't know how to play but that he took it away so quick I didn't see it. I find this casino to be the least inviting place for an American to play. General questions on setting a hand here are not taken well.

From your post and the Wizard's experience, it seems like the Venetian is not the place to play tiles anymore. For what it's worth, my favorite place to play tiles in Vegas is Harrah's, but the last time I was there the smoke drove me away.

I played craps at the Mirage for the first time ever last trip ($5 minimums during the day!) and was amazed at the professionalism and efficiency of the dealers, as well as the tremendous amount of action from some players. It was kind of cool to be betting $5 on the line next to a guy laying $900 against the point.

During the day there was mini-bac with a 25 dollar limit. Midi baccarat the minimum was 100 and later on 300 so it fluctuates dramatically. There is a front area that can be seen from the outside. If you walk farther in you will find there is a large room that you can't see from outside. It is almost like a hidden high limit area. There was blackjack with 300 minimums. There was additional baccarat tables with 500 minimums towards the back. Anyone can walk in but you will get some looks if you seem like you don't belong.

Quote: scottndindy

MGM - Played baccarat in the mansion. The dealers here are the best on the strip in my opinion. They seem more vocal and personable then Wynn/Encore. This is no way putting down the wynncore dealers but seems more of how dealers are trained/managed.

Wynn/Encore - Played tiles, craps, and baccarat here. I find this to be the best casino for tiles.

I did not play tiles at Wynn but I have at MGM Grand, and I really enjoyed the dealer there. I was by myself, which helped, but I banked every other hand. The other nice thing is they don't have quarters on the game, so you can bet $25 (table min) and only pay $1 in commission.

Otherwise, I find the MGM dealers to be a bit less surly than Bellagio... but not by much.

Quote: Tiltpoul

I did not play tiles at Wynn but I have at MGM Grand, and I really enjoyed the dealer there. I was by myself, which helped, but I banked every other hand. The other nice thing is they don't have quarters on the game, so you can bet $25 (table min) and only pay $1 in commission.

Good tip. Effective 4% commission.

I was playing at MGM last weekend, too.

A suit I was talking to told me that this past weekend there was an Asian fellow in the mansion betting $100,000 at baccarat, regular as clockwork.

He regaled me with the tale of another Asian fellow, I think from LA, who lost $45,000,000 over a period of some months.

They comped his entire stay at the mansion, of course.

Heck, it's the least they could do.

Quote: scottndindy

Luxor - ...Hosts at this property seem aggressive and actively seek players on the floor to give a card and ask if there is anything they can do. I understand they generally have fewer high betting players but they do show great initiative to seek them out.

Thanks for the interesting report. I suspect the aggressive hosts mean Luxor is the "audition" area for new talent to make a name for themselves before moving up the MGM ladder to, hopefully, Bellagio and Aria.