Tahoe Casino Suggestions?

My wife and I are taking a break from vegas this year and trying out Tahoe for a change a pace.

Just curious what everyone's thoughts were on the best hotel/casino to stay at or play at in Tahoe.

I'm more interested in the best gaming environment and my wife is more interested in nicer rooms/amenities/restaurants etc...

Look forward to your input and thoughts. :)

Quote: awakefield1983

My wife and I are taking a break from vegas this year and trying out Tahoe for a change a pace.

Just curious what everyone's thoughts were on the best hotel/casino to stay at or play at in Tahoe.

I'm more interested in the best gaming environment and my wife is more interested in nicer rooms/amenities/restaurants etc...

Look forward to your input and thoughts. :)

My wife and I were in South Lake Tahoe on the 18th and 19th December last year. We stayed at the Lakeside Inn which is about 1 mile away from the Stateline properties. I wouldn't reccomend this property but it served its purpose. It was clean enough but very small. The $14.95 steak and lobster dinner wasn't bad!
As for the casinos I would rank them in the following order:

1) Harrah's
2) Harvey's - Also a Harrah's property.
3) Montbleu
4) Horizons.....in fact don't even go here, it is a ghost town with only slots and a few electornic blackjack games. The place is a dump!!! It does have a movie theatre though!

I would probably suggest Harrah's even though you have to be a little careful with the gaming. Most lower limit tables are 6/5 Blackjack as well as Double on 8,9,10,11 only, DAS, Split aces once only, H17.
The best rules for Blackjack I found was at Lakeside Inn, H17, 3/2, Double any two, DAS, split aces once only. (Regular Vegas rules).
Harrah's have all the other games too, Roulette, 3CP, Let it Ride, Craps and I think I saw a 4 Card poker table too.
Harvey's has a poker room.
No idea what the rooms look like.

What i wish we had done was not stay on the NV side but rather stayed on the CA side. The hotels look nicer and the area is much cleaner and nicer. NV looks like downtown LV on a bad day.

Loads of skiers around (young CA hipsters).

Have a good time!

Mate, you'll need to find one with a race book.....

I went to South Lake Tahoe 4 months ago. Harrahs and Harvey's are nice big properties with lots of slots and lots of different table game options. Also they have some good restaurants to eat it. Those are the best two places and it is not even close.

Montbleu also a good option and it is right next to harrahs. Not as big though, but decent. I didn't play much the night I stopped by because literally every table was packed full.

Lakeside inn I would skip. I went there and I wasn't impressed. This is definitely the locals place to stay, so to speak. I went on a Sunday afternoon and no open craps tables. There was 2 bj tables and nothing else. In my opinion stick with harrahs, Harvey's, & montbleu... With that being said I still wanted to check out lakeside inn because of all the local talk.

Here is the link to my trip report

https://wizardofvegas.com/forum/gambling/trip-reports/15177-lake-tahoe-mini-trip-report/

Quote: treetopbuddy

Mate, you'll need to find one with a race book.....

I think there was one in either Harvey's or Harrah's but I very rarely bet on American racing unless it is the Kentucky Derby, Breeder's cup or another big race.

Quote: Tomspur

I think there was one in either Harvey's or Harrah's but I very rarely bet on American racing unless it is the Kentucky Derby, Breeder's cup or another big race.

Mate, betting on high end contentious races are the toughest to hit......bet the cheap claimers. That's were alot of cheating takes place and if you view the form with a jaded eye you can sometimes ferret out who's cheating.

Quote: treetopbuddy

Mate, betting on high end contentious races are the toughest to hit......bet the cheap claimers. That's were alot of cheating takes place and if you view the form with a jaded eye you can sometimes ferret out who's cheating.

I try to delude myself into believing that the sport I love is clean as a whistle. The big races may be harder to hit but the payoffs are MUCH bigger than teh 5 horse fields that go to post almost every day everywhere.....

The industry is sick and close to deaths door....unfortunately but we love what we love.

Quote: Tomspur

I try to delude myself into believing that the sport I love is clean as a whistle. The big races may be harder to hit but the payoffs are MUCH bigger than teh 5 horse fields that go to post almost every day everywhere.....

The industry is sick and close to deaths door....unfortunately but we love what we love.

Contentious deep fields are tough to get a handle on but your right the payoffs can be large.

The foal crop in Kentucky went from 35,000 horses in 2005 to approximately 23,000 2013. Lots of empty pastures out here.

Witthe amount of closed race courses and tracks in trouble, I'm not really surprised. The breeders can't just pump out infinite numbers of horses when there are not enough buyers at their price points in order to make money.

Again, as with gaming, the only places that can indefinitely survive are the tracks in Hong kong (as with Macau) because of the sheer volumes of money that is traded on the parimutuels there.

Seems like the game is eating itself from the inside here......

US horse sales are being propped up by international buyers.

I sold a yearling that went to Hong Kong and an other to Japan.

Quote: treetopbuddy

US horse sales are being propped up by international buyers.

I sold a yearling that went to Hong Kong and an other to Japan.

And there is still a market out there for importing horses too, especially turf horses who have some breeding outlook.

The problem I see is that that the breeding industry in the US is reallly controlled by a very few top dogs. For the smaller breeder to breed and continue to operate is very tough. I'm sure you know all about that!

I'm still planning on a syndication busienss when I get back. I'm going out on my own first and buying a few claimers in Cali, get them over their correct track and trips, win a small feature with them and then syndicate......sounds so easy right? :)

thanks for the input from the first two folks, Tomspur and Beardgoat. Looks like "where should I stay in Tahoe" turned into horse-racing somehow. No worries - i think I got what I needed.

Quote: awakefield1983

thanks for the input from the first two folks, Tomspur and Beardgoat. Looks like "where should I stay in Tahoe" turned into horse-racing somehow. No worries - i think I got what I needed.

Sorry, I thought Tomspur was the OP......he likes horse racing so I suggested he find a race book. Didn't realize you were OP....didn't scroll up I guess......my bad

Interesting horse talk, but for the OP; Harrah's for location, dining, gaming. Montbleu is smaller and more European if you prefer that ambience.

I drive to reno every weekend and have a home there...and have taken the 90 min drive to tahoe many times over the last 10 years.

I dont ski so that big advantage of tahoe is lost to me. I have stayed at Harrahs before I bought the home and the rooms were nice and clean, with nice views .

However I find outside of gambling thereis nothing that interests me. It is picturesque, and there are alot of young folks there this time of year for the skiing and drinking and partying. If you are into that this is a great time of year to go.

So it depends on what you are looking for. I fyou are looking for 4 or 5 casinos in walking distance of each other for a week of gambling only...then its a cool place to be.

You are probably flying in to reno....which has a bigger selection of casinos, not as picturesque, but better selection of everything. And you could still drive into tahoe for the day just to take a look at the lake and mountains.

If you are flying in to reno and driving to tahoe, remember the winding mountain road to get there can be treacherous if its snowing, or icy.I have been on icy roads in June.
But usually by may the threa tof ice and snow is almost gone.

I fyou stay in reno, you could also take a day trip to virginia city 60 min away or historical truckee with shops that the wife would like.

I dont know how many days your plan to stay or what your interests are..so if you give more info I can give more info in return.

Not sure if you're into the winter sports, but the snow is pretty sparse as there have now been three straight dry winters.

Harrah's is generally nicer than Harvey's, but Harvey's may be free during the week even at the lowest TR level. Both places will charge resort fees, however. They are connected via tunnel that runs under US 50. There is a Cabo Wabo on that level, so it's not like you'll be walking in a dangerous area or anything.

They both generally have the same table games (BJ/3CP/LIR/Craps/Roulette). Harrah's has Ultimate while Harvey's has Texas Hold'em Bonus.

Harvey's has poker and a larger sportsbook. I've never been to the Sage Room Steakhouse (but it is where the guy from the Howard Stern contest choked before he could get to the brothel). I have eaten at 19 and it is pretty good.

Never eaten at the upstairs restaurants at Harrah's other than the buffet (which is also pretty good). Harrah's has a 24-hr coffee shop downstairs that is pretty forgettable imo.

Montbleu is OK, but small. Horizon is a wasteland.

the buffet at harrahs may be the best buffet in tahoe...but that is not sayig much. Compared to the buffets at the atlantis and peppermill in reno it doesnt compare...and compared to a buffet in vegas like at the Rio....it is substandard. The food at the buffet isnt terrible, its ok...but not alot of selection. Nice view if you sit by the window.

The "larger" sportsbook at Harveys is still small and on weekends is generally filled up if you want a seat.

In my opinion accomodations, food, and gambling may be just average.....but its the other stuff like skiing and boating that makes people leave with a big smile on their face. That is what people at tahoe are looking for. Thats why the people fly into reno airport and drive 75 minutes to tahoe, rather than stay at reno or spraks.
Reno and sparks dont have boating or skiing.