Las Vegas Poker Room Primer - Expectations

If you've ever been to Vegas and stayed at any offlops in an hour as a typical online cash or tournament
the hotels on the Strip, you'll know all the hotels havegame. This slower pace gives you the ability to
casinos for you to gamble in. With the ever growingdecide more thoughtfully, whether to call, fold, or
popularity of Texas Hold'em, every major casinoraise.
hotel also has a separate poker room, and someSome places have very aggressive players (i.e. MGM
hotels even offer a "poker room rate", which is aGrand) and some are more casual, with many limpers.
discounted hotel room rate if you play enough hours(i.e. Circus Circus).
at their poker tables (see the bottom of this articleTo find comments about Vegas poker rooms, so
for hotels offering poker room rates).that you are prepared before- hand to trying a
There are over twenty poker rooms on the stripparticular poker room, you can search for comments
alone to chose from.about someone's Vegas poker trip on popular poker
Some of the major hotels like the Bellagio, Wynn,discussion forums or read reviews on a Vegas Poker
Venetian, Mirage, and MGM Grand have 25-30 tablesRoom Review website.
available; Caesar's Palace has over 60! A typical pokerUnlike online poker websites which offer limits as low
room on the Vegas Strip, like the Aladdin, Mandalayas $0.01/$0.02, the lowest betting limit in a Vegas
Bay, Monte Carlo, Luxor, Circus Circus, and Harrah'spoker room is $1/2 NL Hold'em. The minimum amount
has 9-15 tables.to sit down at these tables is $50 at some casinos
Another area to experience Vegas poker isand $100 at others. The maximum amount ranges
downtown on Freemont Street. One of the mostfrom $200-300. You will also find $2/5 NL, $3/6 Limit,
famous, where many say poker first started, is$4/8 Limit as well.
Binions. Alongside Binions, you will find hotels: GoldenTo receive a discount rate for your hotel room, you
Nugget, El Cortez, Plaza, and Fitgerald.will have to play about 6 hours/day on the weekdays
You will find with just as many hotels hosting poker(Sun-Thursday) or 8 hours/day on the weekend for
rooms on the strip, that there are just as manya minimum of 40-50 hours to get the rate. When you
hotels hosting them off the strip (i.e. Arizona Charlie's,check into the poker room, they log your hours.
Boulder Station, Gold Coast, Green Valley Ranch,The hotels listed below offer discount hotel rates.
Hilton, Palace Station, Red Rock, Rio All Suites,You can call these numbers to find out what their
Silverton, South Coast, and Tuscany)current discount rates are:
The one thing a new poker player playing at any ofBally's (888-742-9248)
these poker rooms should keep in mind is:Bellagio (702-693-7290)
Playing at a live casino is not as intimidating as youCaesars Palace (800-634-6001)
think.Circus Circus (702-836-6606)
You might feel that your first time sitting at a table,Excalibur (702-597-7625)
that everyone can read your every move. You'veFitzgeralds (702-388-2400)
been playing on a computer screen up to this point,Flamingo (702-733-3485)
with only your betting patterns and response speedLuxor (702-730-5510)
as the only "tells" you give off. Now you may feelMandalay Bay (877-632-7800)
nervous that the other players can actually see youMGM Grand (702-891-7434)
and know exactly what you are holding.Mirage (702-791-7291)
But the players in a live room are just the same asMonte Carlo (702-730-7780)
the ones you play with online. In fact, you may find itPlaza (800-634-6575)
even more fun playing with people face to face.Sahara (702-737-2317)
Many of the face to face players also aren't asTreasure Island (702-894-7291)
serious and are looser than those you find in onlineVenetian (702-414-7657)
play.Wynn (702-770-3090)
As with most gambling in Vegas, many come to haveHopefully this primer has given you an introduction to
a good time and are expecting to lose money playingthe list, variety, size, and types of poker rooms
poker as their payment for "entertainment." Typicallyavailable in Las Vegas such that you can be better
live casino play is more personable and social as wellprepared for which room you may want to try out.
as a slower paced game. You will not see as manyGood luck at the poker tables!