Enjoying Your Vacation

1 May 2021

By Jerry Stickman

Vacations have been a part of people’s lives for a very long time. Millions of people enjoy their vacations at a casino or casino resort. The beauty of a casino vacation is it can be as short as a day or two while still getting the desired break from the everyday grind.

There are also dangerous pitfalls when taking a casino vacation. Primary among these is having the gambling bankroll devastated – sometimes almost before the vacation has begun. An even more devastating situation can occur when the casino vacationer doesn’t have a separate bankroll for gambling and hits the ATM whenever the money supply runs out.

There are several reasons that bankrolls quickly evaporate. They include bringing a bankroll that is too small and/or betting too large for the player’s bankroll.

They can also include playing too fast or too long.

Perhaps the greatest threat to having a fun casino vacation is the loss of discipline while playing casino games. Discipline is what keeps play on an even keel. It protects your bankroll – and your sanity.

Lack of discipline can lead to chasing losses by increasing your bets. This puts more money at risk over a shorter timeframe.

None of the situations mentioned above are at all conducive to enjoying a casino vacation. They are instead, a recipe for disaster.

Itemized below, for your consideration, are some steps to take in order to have a truly enjoyable time while on a casino vacation.

• Make sure to bring no more than you can afford to lose while on your casino vacation. While it is depressing to lose everything you brought along, it won’t be devastating.

• Make sure this bankroll is truly affordable and is not needed for food, the mortgage payment, heart surgery, or anything else that is important.

• Do not hit the casino as soon as you arrive. Allow yourself time to relax and become acclimated to the environment. Stay in control of your actions and your schedule.

• Break your bankroll into gambling session-sized amounts before beginning play. Group these session bankrolls into daily bankrolls. Use only one session bankroll per session and one daily collection of session bankrolls per day.

• Bring only one session bankroll with you into the casino for each session.

• If and when you lose your session bankroll, quit gambling for that session. Take a break. Clear your mind. Do anything that you desire except for getting more money from a future session bankroll.

• Never, ever, go to an ATM machine for more money. When you exhaust your bankroll (session, daily, or trip) quit playing for that session, day or trip!

• If, while playing a session, you are no longer in control or you are making playing mistakes, quit. Take a break. Refresh yourself and collect your thoughts. Return to complete the session if, and only if, you are once again relaxed, alert, and in control.

• Never chase losses by increasing bets to try to recover previous losses. This very seldom works and almost always quickly leads to disastrous results.

• Do not play when you are tired, angry, or anxious. You are only asking for trouble.

• Pace your casino play. Limit yourself to “bite-sized” casino sessions. Depending on the game being played, two to four hours is usually plenty of time for a session. Playing longer than that can lead to mistakes or emotional play which seldom leads to having fun.

• Maintain a schedule similar to that kept at home. Begin and end the day at reasonable hours. Take your meals at about the same times. If you normally take a nap in the afternoon (as do I), take a nap in the afternoon. The better you maintain a schedule, the better the results and the more fun you will have.

While this is not by any means an all-inclusive list, it goes a long way to assuring a pleasant and fun vacation at your favorite casino. By following these suggestions, you will eliminate the major causes of a disastrous stay.

May all your wins be swift and large, and your losses be slow and small.

Jerry “Stickman”

Jerry “Stickman” is an expert in craps, blackjack and video poker and advantage slot machine play. He is a regular contributor to top gaming magazines. You can contact Jerry “Stickman” at stickmanjerry@aol.com