Stratosphere

Best And Worst Craps Odds On The Vegas Strip

May 12, 2017 by Marc Leave a Comment

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, craps is my favorite game in the casino. Besides being fun to play, craps gives the casino one of the smallest house edges’ most casino games. Fun game and small house edge?! That’s a perfect combination!

You can actually decrease the, already small, house edge by playing greater odds. The higher the odds played the less the house edge. Unfortunately, the Vegas Strip doesn’t really offer the diverse craps odds that you find in Downtown Vegas. Thankfully craps still has a tiny house edge no matter what the odds.

Here are the craps odds on the Vegas Strip along with the house edge for the casino for each game.

100x Odds
The Cromwell
House edge: Pass 0.021%, Don’t Pass 0.014%

10x Odds
Stratosphere
SLS Las Vegas
House edge: Pass 0.184%, Don’t Pass 0.124%

3x-4x-5x Odds
Every other casino not listed
House edge: Pass 0.374%, Don’t Pass 0.273%

2x Odds
Circus Circus
Encore
Wynn
House edge: Pass 0.572%, Don’t Pass 0.431%

3x-4x-5x are the normal odds offered at casinos on the Vegas Strip and just about everywhere else in the country. The house advantage playing maximum odds is still better than most games you’ll play in the casino.

Casino Royale has the best craps odds on the Vegas Strip but usually only has one table open so it’s difficult to get in on a game. The craps game at Casino Royale is one of the cheapest you’ll find on the strip with $5 or $10 minimums, so there’s that.

4/24/16 Update: The Cromwell has 100x odds up to $5,000. Table minimums are usually $5 or $10. (Thanks to @John_Mehaffy for confirming)

Bottom line with craps on the Vegas Strip – play wherever you want. The odds in most casinos are the same. If you’re looking for a good craps game with good odds head to Downtown Vegas. Here are my 3 favorite craps games in Downtown Vegas.

Note: Craps odds are from the Wizard of Vegas craps survey.

Best Cheap Blackjack On The Vegas Strip

June 27, 2016 by Marc 12 Comments

There are about as many good cheap blackjack games on the Vegas Strip as you might have expected. In other words, there aren’t many. Where you do find good cheap blackjack you should expect that there are only one or two of these tables at most of the casinos listed below. They should be easy to spot since you’ll probably see a large crowd at these tables so you might have to wait for a seat.

For simplicity, I’m using $15 as the cut off for cheap blackjack and just listing the house edge of the games. I’m also listing the casinos alphabetically, and not by the smallest house edge. You can see the full survey here. The list is great and has information on all blackjack at every casino in Las Vegas.

Bally’s – House Edge: 0.57
Caesars Palace – House Edge: 0.57
The Cromwell – House Edge: 0.57
Excalibur – House Edge: 0.66
Flamingo (and Margaritaville) – House Edge: 0.57
The Linq – House Edge: 0.57
Harrah’s – House Edge: 0.55
New York – New York – House Edge: 0.48
Paris – House Edge: 0.57
Planet Hollywood – House Edge: 0.57
SLS Las Vegas – House Edge: 0.48
Treasure Island – House Edge: 0.46 and 0.48
Tropicana – House Edge: 0.57

Updated: March 10, 2017

Fireworks Return To Red Rock Resort And Green Valley Ranch On July 4th

June 18, 2014 by Marc Leave a Comment

Fireworks at Red Rock Resort Las Vegas — Fireworks at Red Rock Resort

ICYMI, people love fireworks.

Station Casinos brings in the heavyweights of fireworks, the Grucci family, to do their 4th of July fireworks show. “If you’re not going to hire the Grucci’s to do your fireworks show you shouldn’t bother”, says the guy who grew up with the Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks show in New York City.

Fireworks will go for 9 minutes at 9pm a both Red Rock Resort and Green Valley Ranch. Caesars Palace has done 4th of July fireworks on the Vegas Strip in the past but hasn’t made an official announcement yet.

Caesars Entertainment is probably too busy cleaning up the poop pipes that broke at The Linq over the weekend. I’ll just tweet that info when it comes out. Enjoy the best of the Red Rock fireworks video I could find on the YouTube.

Update: Stratosphere announced that will have fireworks at 9:15 sharp.

Photo: Vegas News

Cheap Hotels On The Vegas Strip

March 19, 2013 by Marc Leave a Comment

Las Vegas lost almost 300 cheap hotel rooms when Bill’s Gambling Hall closed in February. The plan was to replace it with a ultra-cool-young-hip-celebrity-friendly boutique hotel. Caesars Entertainment did that by partnering with Gansevoort and Victor Drai for the new Gansevoort Las Vegas.

As with every new casino Gansevoort Las Vegas will open with prices starting at the top of the market, currently $249, and why not? Last year at G2E a rep from MGM Resorts said that across all of their properties room occupancy is at 90% or more. Cosmopolitan says that they’re regularly almost at 90% capacity. Room rates will continue to rise with increased visitation. Last year I wrote about that the low rates at luxury hotels in Las Vegas were nice while they lasted but things are changing.

Don’t worry there are still plenty of hotel rooms on the Vegas strip (let alone downtown and off strip) that can be had for as low as $20 a night. Of course, you get what you pay for. Here are the least expensive hotels on the Vegas strip.

Bally’s
Best Western at Casino Royale
Circus Circus
Excalibur
Flamingo
Luxor
The Mirage
Monte Carlo
New York New York
The Quad
Stratosphere
Treasure Island
Tropicana

There are almost as many luxury hotel rooms on the Vegas strip as there are non-luxury hotel rooms. Las Vegas hotel room rates will continue to rise as demand increases with the better economy. The excess room supply that hurt Las Vegas during the recession will allow overall room rates to remain relatively stable in the future.

For the most part you get what you pay for in Las Vegas and you won’t get the same quality amenities at these hotels as you would at new and/or luxury hotels. This list is a great place to start if you’re looking for hotels with less expensive prices on the Vegas strip. If you’re looking to save even more money look away from the strip. Check out the list of cheap places to stay in Las Vegas.

For now…VIVA LAS VEGAS!

Photo: Las Vegas Guide

Claire Sinclair: The New Face Of Las Vegas

January 21, 2013 by Marc Leave a Comment

Claire Sinclair isn’t new to many people that follow Las Vegas. She was introduced to many on an episode of “Holly’s World” by Holly Madison, who was previously the (unofficial) face of Las Vegas. With Holly Madison knocked up and out of commission for a while, Claire Sinclair is stepping into the role as the face of Las Vegas. Claire Sinclair, like Holly Madison, is a former Playboy playmate. Claire Sinclair is actually a super playmate since she was also 2011 Playmate of the Year.

If you follow the Las Vegas media you’ve been seeing her everywhere for the past few months and that will continue. Up next, Claire Sinclair will be headlining a new show, “Pin up”, at the Stratosphere on February 25. Here’s how the Strat describes the show.

PIN UP™  features Claire Sinclair  – PLAYBOY’s 2011 Playmate of the Year® and Bettie Page Clothing model – in a high-energy, original show that brings to life the classic pin up calendar girl with a sexy, modern twist.

“This show brings the classic pin up girl calendar to life month by month through incredible live music, dance and variety,” said 21-year old Sinclair. “PIN UP  is classy, sexy and most importantly, fun.”

Featuring an impressive cast of dancers, singers and a live six-piece band with a horn section, PIN UP  is a fast-paced, swingin’ production that will transport audiences to a modern version of a vintage era, where red lips, corsets and garter stockings grace the most beautiful of women.

You can find more information on the show and buy tickets on the Stratosphere’s website. If you stay at the Stratosphere the tickets are 2 for 1. Follow Claire Sinclair on twitter to see what the new Ms. Las Vegas is up to.

Tweet me @eastcoastgamblr

Best Craps On The Vegas Strip

January 2, 2013 by Marc Leave a Comment

As the year ended I looked at the best craps in downtown Las Vegas and didn’t find anything too surprising. Main Street Station has the best odds for a craps game downtown.

Most gaming on the Vegas Strip is worse than those offered in downtown Vegas but that’s not entirely true when it comes to dice. Craps on the Vegas strip is almost the same at every casino but there are a few locations that stand out being better than the rest. Here’s the breakdown.

100x – The Cromwell
10x – SLS Las Vegas, Stratosphere
3-4-5x – Aria, Bally’s, Bellagio, Caesars Palace, Casino Royale, Cosmopolitan, Encore, Excalibur, Flamingo, Harrah’s, The Quad, Luxor, Mandalay Bay, MGM Grand, Mirage, Monte Carlo, New York New York, Palazzo, Paris, Planet Hollywood, Treasure Island, Tropicana, Venetian
2x – Circus Circus, Wynn/Encore

3-4-5 Craps is the norm on the strip and that’s fine. Regardless of the odds craps still has some of the lowest house edges in the casino. The difference between 3-4-5 and 100x odds is fairly small and not enough to make me go somewhere I don’t want. That said, if Cosmopolitan or somewhere nice had a 100x odds game they would likely find me at the table.

Note: If you know different odds at any of the casinos please leave a comment. This craps survey was updated 3/2018.

Photo – flickr jcnikon

New Years Eve In Las Vegas

December 28, 2012 by Marc Leave a Comment

Without a doubt New York City is the best place in America to ring in the New Year if you’re looking for a large public gathering. With that being said, Las Vegas has recently launched itself into the second best to celebrate New Years Eve. Las Vegas is definitely the #1 place to celebrate New Years Eve in the Pacific time zone.

Whether you’re looking to party in a club with some of the best DJ’s or gather outside and watch fireworks or live music there’s definitely something for you. Along with the awesome party come some things to know about.

FIREWORKS

7 Las Vegas strip casinos will shoot off fireworks for New Years Eve. Gathering is not confined to one area as fireworks will be shot off from MGM Grand on the south end of the strip all the way to the Stratosphere on the north end of the strip.

LAS VEGAS STRIP CLOSING

The chaos of 300,000+ people on the Las Vegas strip for fireworks means that the Las Vegas strip will be closed much of the night on New Years Eve. If you have plans elsewhere get back to your hotel early. Better yet, don’t leave the strip.

DOWNTOWN VEGAS

If confined spaces and live music are more to your liking then you may want to head to downtown Las Vegas. This year’s Downtown Countdown will cost anywhere from $30 to $40 but you get concerts and “fireworks” show on the awesome Fremont Street Experience canopy. This is 21+ only…NO KIDS! (YAY)

Photo – aiBOB

Best Video Poker On The Las Vegas Strip

December 11, 2012 by Marc Leave a Comment

Royal Flush Video Poker at Red Rock Resort — Royal Flush!

I’ve been taking a look at the best video poker from Atlantic City to Las Vegas recently. Today I decided to look to see which casinos offered the best video poker on the Las Vegas Strip. The Vegas strip does NOT include places just off the strip like Palms and Hard Rock Casino.

Most casinos offer good video poker games in their high limit rooms with games starting at $5 so I decided to look at the best video poker games under $5 since that’s what more people play.

The good video poker games listed here are between 10 cents and $2 with max bets from 50 cents to $10. The pay table percentages are all based on max bets. Once again casinos are listed from best video poker to worst.

Circus Circus 100.25% Aces and Eights
Excalibur 99.58% Triple Double Bonus
Luxor 99.54% Jacks or Better (JoB)
New York-New York 99.54% JoB
Treasure Island 99.54% JoB
Mandalay Bay 99.20% Loose Deuces Wild
Aria 99.17% Bonus Poker (BP)
Casino Royale 99.17% BP
Riviera 99.17% BP
Tropicana 99.17% BP
MGM Grand 99.11% DB
Mirage 99.11% Double Bonus (DB)
Wynn 99.11% DB
Caesars Palace 98.45% JoB
Flamingo 98.45% JoB
Palazzo 98.45% JoB
Planet Hollywood 98.45% JoB
Venetian 98.45% JoB
Bally’s 98.01% BP
Cosmopolitan 98.01% BP
Encore 98.01% BP
Harrah’s 98.01% BP
Paris 98.01% BP
The Quad 98.01% BP
Monte Carlo NA
Stratosphere NA

The biggest surprises from this research is that there are positive returning machines on the Vegas strip (Circus Circus) and that the Stratosphere has absolutely no playable video poker games according to vpFREE. Monte Carlo has playable video poker but all are $5 machines.

All information from vpFREE2, the best place to research video poker. Each casino links to their respective page on vpFREE.

Also see: Best Video Poker Downtown Vegas. Best Video Poker in Atlantic City.

I practice video poker with the WinPoker app on my iPhone. It’s $9.99 and worth every penny. It’s the best way to practice video poker.

Just What is Vegas International?

April 24, 2012 by Marc 4 Comments

Yes, I’m a bit late on this but I’ve also been out of town. Now that I’m back and catching up I wanted to touch on this. Last week on the VegasTripping boards Twitter friend @vespajet noticed that American Casino Entertainment Properties (ACEP), owners of the Stratosphere, have registered the trademark the name Vegas International Hotel and Casino. The logo they registered is above and ACEP has also registered the domain vegasinternationalhotel.com.

The discussion began with some surmising that the Stratosphere could be renamed soon. However, in a later comment, Vespajet made the point that “ACEP is a subsidiary of Whitehall Street Real Estate Funds, which is a subsidiary of Goldman Sachs. Whitehall Street owns a 40% stake in the LVH and Goldman Sachs last Fall filed for foreclosure on the LVH due to missed payments on a loan.”

I think that is the smoking gun I mentioned in a VegasChatter piece on Wednesday that the LVH still has yet to replace any signage. All signs either have Hilton covered up or removed, but no new LVH signage has been added. I made the comment that LVH is clearly a holding name, like when the Atlantic City Hilton became ACH and then The Atlantic Club.

When you factor in that the original name of the former Las Vegas Hilton was The International, the name makes some sense. It gives the property an identity beyond some initials. However a new name won’t simply make the place great. Hopefully along with the name will come the much needed maintenance and upgrades the property so desperately needs.

Nobody Likes Caesars Palace

January 18, 2012 by Marc 7 Comments

Yesterday I realized that nobody likes Caesars Entertainment properties in Las Vegas. This is nothing new and not really a surprise to me, but it’s definitely a fact. I’ve been living in Vegas for just over a year now and have a lot of visitors. Some will stay at Caesars properties since they get great rates through Total Rewards but, in generally, nobody chooses a Caesars property to meet for a drink or meal. Since I live here I usually let other people choose where we’re going to meet when they’re in town.

Not once in my 14 months living in Vegas has anyone ever chosen to meet me at a Caesars property.

Most people know I’m Diamond status with Total Rewards (some know that I’ve been Diamond for a few years) and can get free drinks and/or snacks at the Caesars properties but they choose other places to meet even if Caesars properties are all around. I’ve been a supporter of Caesars properties since Atlantic City was my hub for gambling when I was on the east coast. For the most part, they’ve always treated me well.

While you may think people are choosing the new joints (Cosmopolitan or CityCenter), they aren’t. They are choosing places up and down the strip from Mandalay Bay to the Stratosphere. In the past week I’ve come to Bellagio 3 times. No biggie. I love Bellagio. I’m actually writing this at the sportsbook bar while I wait. Note, there is a pretty big selection of of smaller breweries on draft here. Nice.

Anyway, I love stopping at different casinos to meet people and don’t mind paying for a drink or a meal. I just find it interesting that zero percent of people have cared to visit a single Caesars property when visiting Vegas.

UPDATE: Since I drafted this yesterday, the people I met with let me in on their thoughts (they had no idea about this article). One person was staying at Caesars Palace and said that he didn’t mind staying there when he was alone, but he would never go there with his wife (he had a room in the forum tower that was is major disrepair). The other person was staying at a newer room at Hard Rock and loves the newer room and said he doesn’t visit Vegas unless he’s living it up. Caesars properties don’t do that for him.