Hi,

I've searched for old threads on the subject and found 4, but all rather old and as limits, rake, action etc changes a lot I wanted to ask if anyone has some new updated info on the Live poker scene in Barcelona?

As we are thinking about going to Barcelona for a week to have some paella and sangria and play some poker I would like to ask a few questions.

As far as I can see there is only the Gran Casino for poker?
Hows the action now a days and at what hours of the day?
Are there many tables open every day and which limits?
And is the rake still crazy at €15-20 a pot?

Cant seem to find anything on their homepage except about tournaments, so hope someone here can help with an update from Barcelona .

Cheers,
GBP

It's the only place, and only value during the Estrella/EPT events, where you have to wait for well insanely long times for a seat.

So no action on a normal Friday/Saturday night?

I was there on Thursday/Friday/Saturday nights last October, played every night (although had a long wait for a seat on the Friday). Don't think there were any special events or anything going on. Games were pretty soft, although rake was high. Was playing 1/2, but there was 2/5 going on as well (looked like the 2/5 was very juicy, a very drunk couple sat down with €1000 or so each).

IIRC tables opened mid afternoon sometime, and closed at around 2 or 3 am.

Great stuff - Thanks...
How many cash tables did they have btw?

There are games every night, soe big Spanish fish, play will blow your mind at times, but really only value during the big poker events. But as it's the only game in town worth a visit if you must have a poker fix. Barca has so much more to offer, I wouldn't see why you'd bother wasting a visit to this amazing City and with the high rake and even higher variance it's just -ev, unless of course it's during the festivals..

Warning though, get a cab outside the entrance if you leave with winnings, do not, under any circumstance head to the beach, or for a stroll along the coast after leaving, it's heavily targetted by the street thiefs..

Thanks mate...
I've been to Barcelona a few times before and must admit I love the city...
My favorite city in Europe!

This time around I will try out the poker a bit though, which I haven't last few times...
But of course there will be time for tapas and sangria in the Gothic Quarter etc
And great paella at Barcelonetta beach, last time I found a tent looking place a bit out the beach with the most amazing paella ever, so will look for that place again

I go back there all the time, mainly in the summer season as I run (or maybe ran if the tax situation doesn't change) events there. Have a ball mate, my fav European city too, nad the poker ain't that bad if it's a bit of fun, and clearly it's not the only reason you're going. ENjoy

About 8 IIRC. I think there were three or four 1/2, a couple of 2/5, and then the others were something else.

There was also a 0.5/1 e-table - didn't play on this, but it looked supersoft.

Oh, btw, you have to pay to get into the table games/poker part of the casino, but if you claim to be staying at the Hotel Arts then you get in for free. I was actually staying there, but they didn't check anything any night as far as I could tell.

Thanks,
I'll try the hotel Arts trick
Guess its not a lot to get in though?

Thanks.

I can't remember, given that I didn't pay it.

I want to stay 2 month in Barcelona(july-august) to play plo,how its the plo action in Barca when isn"t big events?
Last year went the estr/ept was very good tables...

bump

bump

hi,is there still cash game or interesting tourment during following days?

I will stay at Hotel arts during June 20th till June 23rd

Is there any possible to play there?

bump, anyone knows whats the rake at €2/€4 and if its uncaped?

I am going to be in Barcelona in June.

Should I bring American dollars to the casino, or should I bring Euros? In London, for example, it was beneficial to bring dollars, because they would sell you back your money at the same exchange rate that they sold chips to you, negating half the exchange vig.

What time should I show up on Thursday, Friday, Saturday to best optimize my chances of getting a seat?

What are the transportation options to/from the casino and downtown Barcelona?

Thanks in advance!

Going to Barcelona this aug. love it

I'm in Barcelona this week and will hopefully get a chance to visit the casino.

Anyone know if there's a dress code?


Cheers.

Trip report from Casino Barcelona:

Just got back and had a great time there! The staff were really nice. Busy, but still very helpful and they all understood english well. Just ask anyone of them whenever you're wondering about something.

The dealers were excellent too. They dealt really fast and spoke spanish so it was a bit difficult to keep up with everything that happened, especially since it was my first time ever at a casino! It was pretty rare for any of the players to use more than 5 or 10 seconds on any decision.

As for seating arrangements I would recommend not sitting directly beside the dealer, when I did I couldn't see half the table and what they were doing. It was really simple to just jump over to another seat at the table once it opened up.

As for my own playing, wow it was terrible! Played really weak/tight. But let's not go into more detail regarding that. For some reason I managed to end the night one buy-in up at 2/4, so was pleased with that.

The competition was pretty mixed in my experience. I sat down at 6 pm (friday) at a table with mostly middle aged spanish men. Tons of family pots and weak plays throughout. I would really suggest trying out the tables between 4-8 pm.

2-3 hours into the session and half the table consisted of younger, decentish internet players. I do believe I got a bit unlucky with the table selection as the other nearby tables looked to have a lot more tourists and less guys with hoodies playing poker simultaneously on their ipads. The other half was half nit half fish.

The 1/2 tables were pretty full most of the time I believe. Just join the waiting list. The 2/4 tables had an open spot somewhat often, which got filled quite fast. There looked to be a juicy 3/6 table going throughout the night, but other than that I'm not sure about higher stakes.

The dress code was a bit loose. Saw some guys with sandals and shorts there, even tho their homepage said it wasn't allowed. Guess it would be silly not to fill up with costumers if you have the chance. Not a big fan of dress codes anyway.

That about sums it up. Have a nice time there

Played there a few weeks ago.

Floor and management were horrible. They had two 1/2 and two 2/4 games running, with over 20 names on each list. Several of the players politely asked to open up new games, but were told "no."

When we asked to see the shift manager, we were told "we don't need to explain ourselves to you. Four tables is simply our policy and we will not open more." As a customer, I was a bit taken aback by the "f*** you" attitude we were shown.

Very disappointing. Had to wait almost two hours to get into a game.

Hi everyone,
Heading over to Barcelona in March/April 2015 time and was wondering if anyone could update me on the scene there? I was there last August for the EPT and it was amazing. Looking to play NLH cash, anyone know stakes/limits/blinds and how many tables they usually have going every night?*

Thank

Not opening more tables sounds like a staffing issue.

You need to get there at 4pm to have a seat for later, and they blind you off in cash games when you leave your seat. These might be annoying rules for some, but they lead to really good games.

Also, don't play 1-2 or 2-4. Play 5-10 minimum. The rake is absurd at these levels in this casino. Don't support games that you cannot win in. Better to wait for a tournament or to play higher. It's not such appetizing advice if you are not bankrolled for higher, but better to have a chance at winning, than to submit to failure.

The staff at casino barcelona are in general ok. They have a system and their way of doing it. You can at least rely on the system staying the same and them following some sort of procedure. It might not always seem the most customer friendly, but the managers there have always been above average when sorting wires and other issues. I can't say anything bad about them.

hello,
I am looking updates on Casino Barcelona? Tables? limits? poker in the afternoon?

Thanks,

Bump. I'm here for another month and would love an update on the games.