My recent Atlantic City trip
August 4th, 2013 at 9:29:28 AM
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Hello everyone, long time lurker, first time poster.
I took a trip to AC from NY on the 26th of July, and stayed until the 28th. I took about a month or two to familiarize myself with their set of games before I went, and get as much general info as I could find online about the casinos on the boardwalk. I had my heart set on playing "EZ Baccarat" (no commission) in Caesar's, but they had no EZ table set up despite being the only casino to list the game on their website.
I visited all the casinos in AC except the three northern ones (Borgata, Harrah's, and Golden Nugget), and the two most southern ones (Atlantic Club, and Tropicana). The impression I got in general was that the casinos themselves don't consider a good gambling experience to be paramount for their tourists. I don't write this with the sense that I got jipped, or that I'm setting out to complain, just that some of them seem to view gambling as more of a novelty than others.
Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino - I was surprised at how narrow their casino was on my one visit to it. You enter from the boardwalk, and then go up an escalator. Slots surrounding the main table hub. Out of the seven I visited, Trump Plaza was the one with the least table options, though their minimums were comparable to the others on the boardwalk. Not very many tables, to be honest, a small section of craps tables, and mostly blackjack (3/2) and three card poker, some ultimate hold 'em offered on the periphery. About two or three roulette tables; fifteen dollar minimums, even at 3 am.
Bally's Atlantic City - I think Bally's was the one I walked away from feeling as if the emphasis was on gaming. It's a great casino; enough variation to keep you in the doors, with widely varying table minimums, and an obscene amount of slot choices. Table minimums were generally around 15 dollars for most games, some 10 dollar 3/2 blackjack, 25 dollar baccarat tables, 10x odds on their craps tables. Fairly large, but high minimum asian room. I managed to squeeze into a $10 blackjack table for a few hours, and walked off with a small profit. Played at a ten dollar let it ride table for a while. Generally easy going, helpful dealers. Large smoking sections, although not all together. For the most part, it was a crowd but manageable casino.
Caesars Atlantic City - Caesar's is immediately south of Bally's on the boardwalk. I went in on to consecutive days, and it was rarely full of people. The largest crowd was unsurprisingly on saturday night, mostly drunk revelers, pardon the pun. The table minimums were higher than Ballys, but it's offset by the ease with which you can sit at a table and play. Baccarat tables were mostly closed on those two occasions, strong emphasis on the carnival games (three card poker, four card poker). As I said, Caesars is the only one with advertised EZ Baccarat, but they either removed it, or simply closed the table during my visit. Out of the two, Bally's and Caesars, Bally's had the greater emphasis on playing, with more attention paid to making sure tables are full of players, with decent if not favorable table minimums.
Resorts Atlantic City - Resorts is situated between a long section of boardwalk tourist shops, and right next to the Trump Taj Mahal. As soon as you walk in, it's like visiting a mall; small grills/eateries on the sides, with the main floor right in front. An impressive variety of slots, with a dedicated section for video poker, though I saw no 9/6 machines. Resorts has a large table games section, divided into two. One section sits on the side of the room, across from rows of slots, and a weird tiki bar in the middle of the floor. The second half of the tables were right in the middle of the floor centered around craps and roulette. In Resorts, no tables were closed, or unoccupied, which was a nice change. Mostly 15 dollar minimums, large selection of carnival games, though I found a double zero roulette table at a ten dollar minimum, and played until I was up sixty dollars. Helpful dealers, scantily dressed servers, and a massive slots section that extends from the end of the tables section almost into the front of building, by the hotel entrance.
Trump Taj Mahal - Possibly my favorite in terms of overall selection, and atmosphere. I spent the majority of my gambling time here, unintentionally. A nice wide table games area, with around five craps tables, and five or six roulette tables right on the side. An extremely large variety of slot machines, and one of the only ones with e-roulette stations (not rapid roulette). Large smoking sections, and a generally good amount of video poker, but no 9/6 machines to my knowledge. Large poker room, but mostly empty three days in a row. I focused mostly on blackjack (3/2). The Taj Mahal is the only casino I saw with a single deck 6/5 blackjack table. Thankfully, there was only one. Small section for high rollers right off the main floor. The place feels as if gambling is the their main priority owing to the lack of family oriented stuff, and their decor. Wide open casino floor, easy to navigate.
Showboat Casino - Showboat is directed adjacent to the Taj Mahal, through their front "house of blues" section. One of the older looking casinos. Large main floor, extremely large number of carnival tables, but it's offset by the number of craps, blackjack, and roulette tables. Large and packed poker room, around fifty bucks for tournament play. Generally one of the casinos I thought focused more it's novelty house of blues, or dining than it's gambling. Tables minimums, if I remember correctly, were usually 20 dollars, rather than the 15 elsewhere. No 9/6 video poker, anywhere.
Revel - I went twice, and I'm pretty conflicted about the place. It aims for exclusivity, and chicness, but doesn't pull it off well. It's the one that aims to be the stylish, modern casino, but it treats gambling as a secondary endeavor. It's a nicely designed building, quiet lighting, with a wrap around gaming area. The floor management was unhelpful, and the dealers, with the exception of one, were kind of surly, and treated people like they were a hassle. 15 dollar table minimums, but with an emphasis on higher price floors. It wants you to think it's a swanky place, even though for gambling, much better places are around. Originally, I planned to go because of their slots promotion (refunded losses) but that was a completely sleazy promotion, anyway. You can't get a cash refund. If I could have my way, I would've taken the seriousness of Bally's gambling, and merged it with the decor, and lighting of Revel to make a place where you could play for hours on end. Now that they're closing their poker room, there's even less of a reason to go and play at Revel.
No one does simple ring games to my knowledge. That's a severe drawback for people who want to play poker, but don't feel comfortable enough entering tournaments. I hope this is helpful for anyone looking to go to AC. My advice would be to find a casino to your liking, and get used to it, rather than go off and take all the casinos in. With the exception of the ones I didn't visit, like the Borgata which seems to draw the most people in, you can whittle down the eight boardwalk casinos down to essentially two or three, if you're there purely to play.
I took a trip to AC from NY on the 26th of July, and stayed until the 28th. I took about a month or two to familiarize myself with their set of games before I went, and get as much general info as I could find online about the casinos on the boardwalk. I had my heart set on playing "EZ Baccarat" (no commission) in Caesar's, but they had no EZ table set up despite being the only casino to list the game on their website.
I visited all the casinos in AC except the three northern ones (Borgata, Harrah's, and Golden Nugget), and the two most southern ones (Atlantic Club, and Tropicana). The impression I got in general was that the casinos themselves don't consider a good gambling experience to be paramount for their tourists. I don't write this with the sense that I got jipped, or that I'm setting out to complain, just that some of them seem to view gambling as more of a novelty than others.
Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino - I was surprised at how narrow their casino was on my one visit to it. You enter from the boardwalk, and then go up an escalator. Slots surrounding the main table hub. Out of the seven I visited, Trump Plaza was the one with the least table options, though their minimums were comparable to the others on the boardwalk. Not very many tables, to be honest, a small section of craps tables, and mostly blackjack (3/2) and three card poker, some ultimate hold 'em offered on the periphery. About two or three roulette tables; fifteen dollar minimums, even at 3 am.
Bally's Atlantic City - I think Bally's was the one I walked away from feeling as if the emphasis was on gaming. It's a great casino; enough variation to keep you in the doors, with widely varying table minimums, and an obscene amount of slot choices. Table minimums were generally around 15 dollars for most games, some 10 dollar 3/2 blackjack, 25 dollar baccarat tables, 10x odds on their craps tables. Fairly large, but high minimum asian room. I managed to squeeze into a $10 blackjack table for a few hours, and walked off with a small profit. Played at a ten dollar let it ride table for a while. Generally easy going, helpful dealers. Large smoking sections, although not all together. For the most part, it was a crowd but manageable casino.
Caesars Atlantic City - Caesar's is immediately south of Bally's on the boardwalk. I went in on to consecutive days, and it was rarely full of people. The largest crowd was unsurprisingly on saturday night, mostly drunk revelers, pardon the pun. The table minimums were higher than Ballys, but it's offset by the ease with which you can sit at a table and play. Baccarat tables were mostly closed on those two occasions, strong emphasis on the carnival games (three card poker, four card poker). As I said, Caesars is the only one with advertised EZ Baccarat, but they either removed it, or simply closed the table during my visit. Out of the two, Bally's and Caesars, Bally's had the greater emphasis on playing, with more attention paid to making sure tables are full of players, with decent if not favorable table minimums.
Resorts Atlantic City - Resorts is situated between a long section of boardwalk tourist shops, and right next to the Trump Taj Mahal. As soon as you walk in, it's like visiting a mall; small grills/eateries on the sides, with the main floor right in front. An impressive variety of slots, with a dedicated section for video poker, though I saw no 9/6 machines. Resorts has a large table games section, divided into two. One section sits on the side of the room, across from rows of slots, and a weird tiki bar in the middle of the floor. The second half of the tables were right in the middle of the floor centered around craps and roulette. In Resorts, no tables were closed, or unoccupied, which was a nice change. Mostly 15 dollar minimums, large selection of carnival games, though I found a double zero roulette table at a ten dollar minimum, and played until I was up sixty dollars. Helpful dealers, scantily dressed servers, and a massive slots section that extends from the end of the tables section almost into the front of building, by the hotel entrance.
Trump Taj Mahal - Possibly my favorite in terms of overall selection, and atmosphere. I spent the majority of my gambling time here, unintentionally. A nice wide table games area, with around five craps tables, and five or six roulette tables right on the side. An extremely large variety of slot machines, and one of the only ones with e-roulette stations (not rapid roulette). Large smoking sections, and a generally good amount of video poker, but no 9/6 machines to my knowledge. Large poker room, but mostly empty three days in a row. I focused mostly on blackjack (3/2). The Taj Mahal is the only casino I saw with a single deck 6/5 blackjack table. Thankfully, there was only one. Small section for high rollers right off the main floor. The place feels as if gambling is the their main priority owing to the lack of family oriented stuff, and their decor. Wide open casino floor, easy to navigate.
Showboat Casino - Showboat is directed adjacent to the Taj Mahal, through their front "house of blues" section. One of the older looking casinos. Large main floor, extremely large number of carnival tables, but it's offset by the number of craps, blackjack, and roulette tables. Large and packed poker room, around fifty bucks for tournament play. Generally one of the casinos I thought focused more it's novelty house of blues, or dining than it's gambling. Tables minimums, if I remember correctly, were usually 20 dollars, rather than the 15 elsewhere. No 9/6 video poker, anywhere.
Revel - I went twice, and I'm pretty conflicted about the place. It aims for exclusivity, and chicness, but doesn't pull it off well. It's the one that aims to be the stylish, modern casino, but it treats gambling as a secondary endeavor. It's a nicely designed building, quiet lighting, with a wrap around gaming area. The floor management was unhelpful, and the dealers, with the exception of one, were kind of surly, and treated people like they were a hassle. 15 dollar table minimums, but with an emphasis on higher price floors. It wants you to think it's a swanky place, even though for gambling, much better places are around. Originally, I planned to go because of their slots promotion (refunded losses) but that was a completely sleazy promotion, anyway. You can't get a cash refund. If I could have my way, I would've taken the seriousness of Bally's gambling, and merged it with the decor, and lighting of Revel to make a place where you could play for hours on end. Now that they're closing their poker room, there's even less of a reason to go and play at Revel.
No one does simple ring games to my knowledge. That's a severe drawback for people who want to play poker, but don't feel comfortable enough entering tournaments. I hope this is helpful for anyone looking to go to AC. My advice would be to find a casino to your liking, and get used to it, rather than go off and take all the casinos in. With the exception of the ones I didn't visit, like the Borgata which seems to draw the most people in, you can whittle down the eight boardwalk casinos down to essentially two or three, if you're there purely to play.
August 4th, 2013 at 9:48:31 AM
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Welcome, and nice first post.
August 4th, 2013 at 9:54:05 AM
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No one does simple ring games to my knowledge.
Do you mean cash games in a poker room? Every casino in town has them all the time. If not whats a ring game?
Do you mean cash games in a poker room? Every casino in town has them all the time. If not whats a ring game?
August 4th, 2013 at 10:01:15 AM
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Quote: vendman1No one does simple ring games to my knowledge.
Do you mean cash games in a poker room? Every casino in town has them all the time. If not whats a ring game?
Yeah, I mean cash games. I checked out around four poker rooms, and it was all tournament play. The weird part is that no one was manning the front desk area. I would've asked them. I tried the Taj Mahal, Showboat, Revel, and another, but I forget which. I would've loved to just sit down at a cash game. Maybe next time if I hit up the Borgata.
August 4th, 2013 at 10:08:02 AM
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Next time there, hit up the marina side. Harrah's and Borgata are the two nicest (and most profitable) casinos in AC. Some people like Golden Nugget, but Mrs and I don't.
Your take on the other properties is about right, IMO, but you give Showboat too much credit. It's a dump.
Your take on the other properties is about right, IMO, but you give Showboat too much credit. It's a dump.
A falling knife has no handle.
August 4th, 2013 at 10:15:35 AM
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Quote: MoscaNext time there, hit up the marina side. Harrah's and Borgata are the two nicest (and most profitable) casinos in AC. Some people like Golden Nugget, but Mrs and I don't.
I'd like to do that. I should've this trip, but I stayed a block away from Resorts. AC is a damned abyss, it was kind of shocking. Small tourist section among such poverty. I figure the next trip I take would be to Foxwoods/Sun, but I'm interested in the Borgata.
August 4th, 2013 at 11:13:20 AM
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Quote: BirdgangYeah, I mean cash games. I checked out around four poker rooms, and it was all tournament play. The weird part is that no one was manning the front desk area. I would've asked them. I tried the Taj Mahal, Showboat, Revel, and another, but I forget which. I would've loved to just sit down at a cash game. Maybe next time if I hit up the Borgata.
Can I ask what time of day? Must have been very early or very late. The poker rooms at the Taj and Bally's in particular are very busy and always have cash games going. Showboat too. If you were at the desk and it was unmanned wait a few minutes. Often whomever is in charge is off dealing with a tourney or something. They always come back. There is usually a monitor going showing what games are being played and the initials of the players on any kind of waiting list. Did you see the monitors?
Also as Mosca said next time do yourself a favor and check out Borgota and Harrahs on the Marina side. They are the two largest and nicest gaming floors in AC. Also the poker rooms at both properties are very active. It's a little bit of a pain to get to but worth the trouble. Harrahs runs a free shuttle from any of the 4 CET properties if you are staying at one. Or the Jitney is only a couple of bucks if you don't mind risking your life(they drive fast). Hope you check out AC again.
August 4th, 2013 at 12:56:38 PM
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Quote: vendman1Can I ask what time of day? Must have been very early or very late.
I checked them around midnight, roughly. I think the monitor I saw listed a bad beat jackpot; there wasn't much on it. I think it was at Revel.
August 4th, 2013 at 1:01:40 PM
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Quote: BirdgangI checked them around midnight, roughly. I think the monitor I saw listed a bad beat jackpot; there wasn't much on it. I think it was at Revel.
Revel is closing their poker room, and has cancelled all tourneys effective immediately (a few days ago). So, you may have witnessed one of the last tourneys ever in that venue:-)
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
August 4th, 2013 at 2:33:51 PM
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It really is a shame. As gaming spaces go, Revel definitely has the nicest one in AC besides Borgata. I did notice on a recent trip they upped the craps odds to 5X from 3-4-5X at Revel. That casino is DEAD, though. They may want gamblers, but they sure aren't getting too many. A dealer there mentioned they took high-limit baccarat out of the high-limit pit and moved it to the main floor ($50 minimum squeeze game), which just seems odd, given almost every other casino in AC segregates baccarat off in its own area.
For lower-level players, though, I have yet to see anyone beat the Trop for a balance of offerings and nice ambience. $5 craps game with 5X odds up to 8pm on a Saturday night, $10 blackjack at 9:30pm on a Saturday night, $15 EZ Baccarat on a Saturday night.
For lower-level players, though, I have yet to see anyone beat the Trop for a balance of offerings and nice ambience. $5 craps game with 5X odds up to 8pm on a Saturday night, $10 blackjack at 9:30pm on a Saturday night, $15 EZ Baccarat on a Saturday night.
August 5th, 2013 at 11:05:40 AM
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Quote: BirdgangI checked them around midnight, roughly. I think the monitor I saw listed a bad beat jackpot; there wasn't much on it. I think it was at Revel.
Ah that explains it. Revel's poker room is dead. They are closing it for good soon. If you are interested in good Poker action the best AC casinos, in order, are probably, Borgata, Taj and then either Harrahs or Bally's.
