+1 for Pai Gow

If the wife and I play Blackjack or Craps together we can lose $200 in 10 minutes but at Pai Gow it seems to last all night with the majority of the hands being pushes and we can drink and have a good time without it costing too much.

pai gow... COIN FLIP

I've done the PAI GOW (must be yelled while playing) thing a few times. Are there different rules for it though? Like when they screw with blackjack payouts?

Real Pai Gow, with the tiles?

I had a whole thread about this, link below:

http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/10...drink-1227829/

Not really. You're going to be paying the 5% vig everywhere (except Riviera, last I was there), so that's not variable. The only real difference you might see is in the payoffs on the bonus (sucker) bets, but even those will be pretty consistent from place to place.

FYP.

Now, if you're a relatively normal person capable of balancing a modest budget with a good imagination and sense of adventure you can actually have more fun for less money in LV in you can in any other US resort town.

Just do your homework and stick to your plans and you'll be fine.

Best advice ever!

- lots of pushes (ties)
- it's an extremely slow-playing game
- great for free drinks
- great for table socializing
- chance of hitting jackpot with the sucker bet
- if you want to gamble it up more, be the banker

And it's actually fun!

Today's tip: if you plan on getting ****faced, do it close to your hotel/room.

Hey, no judging here. Vegas is Vegas, getting drunk is fun and part of the experience for many people. But nothing is worse than being ready for bed and stuck in an hour long cab line. On weekend nights between midnight and 4am, getting a cab is hard. And it really, really sucks to be ready to pass out and have no access to food or transportation. So go the club in your hotel, gamble in your hotel, whatever. Just don't be the idiot with no plan who passes out in the Rhino parking lot or pukes in a cab.

This has the potential to be the best thread itf imo

don't let idiots convince you to take the deuce

catch a ****ing cab

if the fraud alert on your bank/credit card has a house phone # or has your wife listed as a contact, change it while in vegas.

2 of my friends had fraud alert phone calls from their banks because $$$ was being spent at the rhino at 4am. one went to parents, the other a wife. pretty funny

This

guide to vegas -

1)gold all in your chain
2)gold all in your rings
3)gold all in your watch

Better yet, don't use your credit card at a strip club.

Even better still, leave all credit and debit cards in your room. Have you ever heard a dude say "man, so glad I had my AMEX on me at the rhino last night?"

Today's tip:

Do something other than gamble. Degens gonna degen, and by no means should you read this as a discouragement form degening your heart out, provided you aren't gambling away the rent money. But so many people go, degen, pass out, degen, pass out, degen, fly home. By the end of the degening it isn't fun anymore, and they haven't had a fun trip. Walk away and have that 2 hour meal at a world-class restaurant. Go get a massage. Go play golf. If you like strippers, go to a strip club. Just do SOMETHING other than degen it up. You'll have a better trip.

WARNING!

DO NOT, under any circumstances, visit any establishment that does not serve grape vodka.

Great thread OP.

This is so true. My one Vegas tourney experience (Aria $125 midday):
Card dead
Call shove from BB with 77 (first pair I'd seen in 2 hours) vs A2 whom I slightly cover, Ace on flop.
Now crippled, shove my last 5 BBs with 54 over button raise, he's priced in to call with ATC and shows 85. FML.
Went to MGM and degened it up with the other drunk tourists at 1/2 - had a blast and realised I should've gone there in the first place.

I fully agree with #7 too, but my trip home is 3 flights and 24 hours of travel, so YMMV.

I agree wholeheartedly with Riverman in this thread.

For example, I never understood the mentality of those who regularly play 2/5 yet had to run to the food court or Mcd or Earl or whatever to save $30 - $40.

You know what else costs $40? treating AKs vs JJ AIPF as a coinflip in 2/5 when you hold AKs since really you are giving up 4%.

So spend some money and treat yourself a bit better since its probably quite a bit cheaper than whatever EV/Odds miscalculations you are inevitably making at the tables anyways.

Another tip :

If you are going as a group from the airport to the same hotel, especially something north strip like the Wynn, it is arguably more economical and enjoyable to get a limo. If you have 6 to 8 people, cabs are going to run you north of $20 +tip each cab anyways. If its 3 couples, you're going to get 3 cabs, you're not going to split 2 cabs. Limo costs about $75 + tip but often comes with a bottle of sparkling wine and are willing to make short stops at liquor stores, etc... most importantly though you get to hype up the Vegas mood and you don't have to think about getting tunneled or whether you are getting ripped off.

Definitely a great thread. I've learned lot of these "truths" the hard way and it's cool to see them cobbled together.

My addition would be: don't avoid poker at the smaller rooms if you're only looking to play 1-2 NL.
--the quality of play at these is appreciably lower (sometimes pre-2003 low)
--the drinks come much faster
--people are actually talking and having a good time

On my last trip I had a blast playing at Mirage, Harrahs, and Golden Nugget whereas Caesar's, Venetian, and Bellagio were in varying degrees serious, nitty, cold, reg-fests.


EDIT: my second addition would be, if you're a drinker, take advantage of free drinks at the tables! It's not going to hurt your thought process at all at this level (your thought process is: "value bet"), but enjoying yourself and having-a-good-time image will get you payed off more. Plus, free drinks. FREE.

Bump, looking for more nuggets of wisdom before my flight tomorrow

This is solid advice. If you don't mind spending the extra few dollars, hire a private car at the airport, even if it's not a large group. No longhaul concerns and your driver will take you wherever you please within the time frame (usually an hour). Protip: Stop at a liquor store as mentioned upthread. Get a tall boy or 40 to drink as you wait to check in. This is especially important when checking in at the Quad/IP where the check-in lines are legendary.

turn you your alarm clock off before you leave for the airport?

Very good advice from everyone. A possible suggestion: If you are going to be there for a while longer, consider renting a car. It allows you to get off of the strip and go to some very good quality restaurants at off-strip prices, and it also allows going to some of the off-strip casinos (e.g. the Orleans, Red Rock, Green Valley).