![]() Newsletter Signup
Stay informed with the
NEW Casino City Times newsletter! Related Links
Related News
Recent Articles
Best of Dan Ippolito
|
Gaming Guru
Top 10 casinos I’ve visited in the last year9 August 2021
10. Mohegan Sun Just last month, I took a quick drive to Connecticut with my father and brother for a weekend at Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods. With over 300 table games to choose from, Mohegan was surprisingly crowded on a Sunday afternoon and night. However, I was able to find a seat at a blackjack table or a spot at a craps table without much issue. Despite it being a session where I found myself slightly down, it was still a fun experience being at Mohegan. It was a very clean casino with table limits from $10-$100 in the games I was interested in. 9. The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas opened up on the Strip nearly 11 years ago and it was one of the nicer casinos that I stepped foot in during my trip. So you may be wondering why this is so low on my list, well that is because it was a challenge to find a table that was less than a $25 minimum and if there were any $15 tables they were completely full. However, I was able to find one in the late morning one day after waiting in line for some Eggslut breakfast, which is definitely worth the wait. The dealers were friendly and it ended up being a “break even” session for me so no love lost between me and the Cosmopolitan. 8. Aria Resort & Casino Originally in 2020, my plan was to stay at the Aria for my second trip, but because of COVID-19, that trip had to be rescheduled to 2021 so I ended up staying at the Bellagio. That wasn’t going to stop me from spending some time in the five-star resort and casino during my vacation this time around. It is also one of the “newer” resorts being only 12 years old and it showed. Part of the massive CityCenter on the center of the Strip, the casino is quite large and I was able to find a couple of $15 tables but, similar to The Cosmo, it was mostly $25 and up. There was some craps tables that were absolutely buzzing while I was in there. A good group of people at the craps table with me is what makes or breaks the game, well that and if I win or lose big money. The group I had at my craps table was a blast and made the experience at the Aria all the more fun and I will definitely be stopping by there on my next trip. 7. O’Sheas If you are looking for a different gambling environment then make your way over to O’Sheas Irish Pub located at The LINQ Hotel + Experience. Yes, it is a typical pub where you can grab a Guinness or whatever drink you are looking for, but it also is a casino with a few table games in the middle of the bar. They had both blackjack and roulette going when I was in there and I had to sit down to get the full effect of the experience O’Sheas offers. 6. The Mirage The Mirage is where I stayed on my first trip to Las Vegas back in 2019. This is where I had my most success gambling on my first trip so of course I had to go see if the cards were still running in my favor. They were, but not as great as they were in 2019. That being said, there was no issue at all to find any $15 tables and I was even able to find some $10 tables during off-peak hours. 5. Foxwoods Resort Casino Switching back over to my Connecticut trip last month, Foxwoods was my favorite out of the two casinos on that trip. The size of the resort is one thing but having four different casinos throughout the resort made it quite simple to find what I was looking for – a $15 blackjack table with “match the dealer” as a side-bet. Probably my favorite side bet in blackjack, it pays out when either of your first two cards has the same number as the dealer’s face up card. You get paid more when both match or the suit matches, as well. I spent a lot of time at this table and it ended up paying off. It was also interesting to see and try some of the new experiences that Foxwoods has introduced over the last year. For example, the new digital craps experience was fun to play and see how they combined the traditional dice game with modern technology. 4. Caesars Palace It’s kind of difficult to go on a Las Vegas trip and not make your way into the famous Caesars Palace at some point. Located in the heart of the Strip, Caesars was a fun place to play some games. It was actually the place I tried craps in a land-based casino for the first time back in 2019. With nearly 200 table games, I was able to find what I wanted to play but also try something I usually don’t find myself sitting at. I ended up pulling up a chair at a roulette table to play some of the inside bets to get a much slower pace of play in than blackjack. Unfortunately, even with the slow pace of play, the inside numbers weren’t very kind to me so I found myself back at a blackjack table not long after. This casino and resort is a sight to see from the moment you walk in. In fact, it will even be improved upon as Caesars Entertainment announced that it will be renovating the main entrance. 3. MGM Grand Hotel & Casino Las Vegas After my Aria trip in May 2020 was cancelled, my friends and I had originally planned on moving our trip to August 2020 with rooms at the MGM Grand, sadly that also had to be cancelled, but I had to make my way over there in 2021 to check out what I was missing. It may or may not be true that I was able to get myself lost inside the MGM Grand and the casino because of how massive the property is. But in my defense, the casino has over 170,000 square-feet of gaming space alone. I only played a few hands of blackjack in this casino because my first three hands the dealer flipped 20 twice and a blackjack on the third so it wasn’t going to be my night there. That being said, I will be making an appearance there during my next trip because of how large it is and for how many options of table games were available for players. 2. The Venetian Las Vegas The Venetian and The Palazzo Resorts Hotel Casino had some of the nicest casinos I had ever stepped into. Sure, the limits were mainly $25 and up but because of how glamorous it was inside, this casino made its way higher on my list. One other factor that plays into this is how quick the drinks service was when I was at a table. Usually you see casinos take their time to get you your drinks so you end up spending more time gambling at the tables, but the drink service was pretty fast, at least faster than some of the other properties. 1. Bellagio My favorite casino that I’ve been to in the last year was Bellagio. Two big reasons why I loved it so much was for my success in the casino and for convenience. The first reason is self-explanatory, I did well at the tables during my time at the Bellagio so naturally I am going to enjoy it. The second reason is that I was staying at the Bellagio during my trip, so if I was waiting for someone in my group to get ready for a dinner, I could just pop downstairs for a little while and play. It also helped that we were placed in one of the newly renovated Bellagio rooms. This casino still was very clean and great to play in. There were $15 tables during the day and at night, it was mainly $25 and higher. Related Links
Related News
Recent Articles
Best of Dan Ippolito
Dan Ippolito |
Dan Ippolito |