Well, I’m going to Las Vegas for Christmas and staying at the Luxor.
Any opinions of the hotel? Family had discounts at several hotels and I picked this one based on their website.
Are there any non-smoking casinos on the Strip?
My favorite casino has always been the Mirage, but I haven’t been in years. Is it still worth a visit?
What type of minimums do most blackjack tables have on the weekends? I’m thinking of playing on Saturday afternoon which I imagine will have lower minimums than Saturday night.
I’ve never bet on craps before, but I’m going to this time. Is there a good time or casino for a newbie?
I’m also thinking of playing some of the table games I’ve never played before. I’m thinking of going up to the dealer and admitting I’m new to the game. I’m reading up on Pai Gow poker and I think I’d like to try that as well as mini-baccarat. The dealer doesn’t care if I win or lose and I’ll tip out well. Good idea?
Any opinions of the hotel? Family had discounts at several hotels and I picked this one based on their website.
Luxor is OK. With the addition of the two new(er) towers, it is now one of the largest hotels in the world (room count). It wouldn’t be my first choice, but considering most people only go to their rooms when they are dead tired and just to crash, it is just fine. By the way, check out my webiste and the CASINO section for a brief review of casinos in my humble opinion.
Are there any non-smoking casinos on the Strip?
No. There are non-smoking rooms if you ask, but no non-smoking casinos - at least none of the large ones on The Strip. If it makes you feel better, they have much better air ventilation now and at least most of my non-smoking friends rarely complain unless they happen to be seated directly next to someone who is smoking.
My favorite casino has always been the Mirage, but I haven’t been in years. Is it still worth a visit?
It is still good - and after Siegfried and Roy left, it looked bleak for awhile. However, they brought in LOVE, the Cirque du Soleil show that is a huge hit, plus they have Terry Fator and just updated the volcano attraction outside. Their buffet has changed, but many still like it - so basically, yeah, Mirage is still a good place to go.
What type of minimums do most blackjack tables have on the weekends? I’m thinking of playing on Saturday afternoon which I imagine will have lower minimums than Saturday night.
I don’t play any table games, so not exactly sure. I know some of the off-Strip casinos offer tables with far lower minimum, but you might want to do a Google search to find out which ones do this.
I’ve never bet on craps before, but I’m going to this time. Is there a good time or casino for a newbie?
Again - not a table player, but most casinos offer classes on table games (usually in the morning) where you can learn how to play and then maybe play a few games with other newbies before joining in with the “pros”.
I’m also thinking of playing some of the table games I’ve never played before. I’m thinking of going up to the dealer and admitting I’m new to the game. I’m reading up on Pai Gow poker and I think I’d like to try that as well as mini-baccarat. The dealer doesn’t care if I win or lose and I’ll tip out well. Good idea?
See above post.
Hope you have a great time, and come back and report how things went!
Oops. Forgot to mention that many casinos do have non-smoking “areas” in the casinos - I know that the new “M” resort has a large non-smoking area and they enforce it pretty well. I believe many of the other casinos have these areas as well - just ask one of the employees where they are located.
A non-smoking area with table games would be great. I remember the Mirage was the best ventilated area and their patrons seemed to be non-smoking Californians so that always worked for me.
$10 minimum for blackjack on the Strip, with the exception of Imperial Palace and Casino Royale. And maybe O’Shea’s. If you want cheap blackjack, head downtown.
Craps - go in the morning and take lessons. Never make any bet that is in front of the stickman. Bet the pass line, take the odds, and smile when you lose.
M is a great place, and the non-smoking area is huge. They also have the best buffet in town.
Glad to hear the love for “M” - it is one of our new favorite places. Be sure to get the free players card as you get a cheaper buffet and extra points and some free money to play with. And yes, the buffet is certainly one of the best in Vegas - and cheaper than the other really good buffets on The Strip.
“M” is a bit of a schlep - but if you have a car, it is a straight shot down the strip South (go past Mandalay Bay and keep driving for about 4-5 miles. However, they do offer a free shuttle that goes from the Fashion Mall (across from Wynn Hotel) on a regular basis, so if you want to kill some time and take that free shuttle to “M” for the lunch or dinner buffet, and check it out, I don’t think you will regret it. BTW, “M” cost $1 billion to build, so I think you will be impressed.
Sorry for one more addition to this thread, but considering you are coming here for Christmas, you will be one of the first to see the opening of the gigantic, $11 billion City Center!
(When you click on the site, wait for the initial flash intro to end and click on “explore the city” to get a good look!)
The M Players Club card pays great, too. We haven’t paid for a lunch buffer since we got them. Our usual MO now is to leave home about 9am, so we get to M around noon. Play a little, hit the buffet, play a little more, then head into town. By then, we are able to check into Caesars without much of a wait, and our room will be ready.
You can usually find a few $5 tables downtown. Try Las Vegas Club or El Cortez. But hit O’Shea’s and Casino Royale first. CR also has 100X odds on craps.
Get a room in the pyramid as opposed to the towers. Otherwise you’ll miss the whole point of staying at the Luxor. Plus you’ll get to ride the inclinator (as opposed to elevator) to your room. Even the rooms in the pyramid section aren’t spectacularly awesome, but hey, they’re in the pyramid!
I stayed at the Luxor many years ago. in the pyramid. IIRC, it was a long haul from my room to the “inclinator” or whatever they call it. You don’t want to be real close to it, but you don’t want to be on the otherside of the mezzanine either. Request a room that is fairly close to the inclinator.
I’ve stayed there twice, once in the pyramid and once in a tower. The rooms were nice, we had an adjoining room for my mom and sister and it was spacious. The only thing I can think of is that the hotel is way on one end of the strip so we usually were trying to get to the centre of the strip to do things.
I got married in the Chapel at Luxor! It’s a fine hotel, but like others have noted it’s one of the more budget-friendly ones. There’s plenty to do without ever leaving the hotel, but also connected to Mandalay Bay and Excalibur via shuttle train should you choose to venture out. If you know how to use the shuttles, monorail and buses, you can get to most places from Luxor with minimal walking.
Not quite as fancy as some, but better than places like Tropicana and Excalibur, so it’s got that goin’ for it. The towers are nicer, but the pyramid is awesome.
We were just there in September. If you have the time, go see the Bodies and Titanic exhibitions right there at the Luxor. The Titanic one is really cool; they’ve recreated areas of the ship so that you can get an idea of what it was like on board. At one stage, my wife and I went through an unassuming door and found ourselves “outdoors”, alone, on the deck, as it was just before the iceberg hit. The air was super-cold, it was dark and starry, deck boards creaked underfoot…I dunno, cheesy perhaps, but I thought it was really neat. They also have the biggest piece of the ship ever recovered, a 16-ton section of the outer hull. There’s even some glass still in the portholes.
Terry Fator’s show has gotten expensive, but it’s hilarious, and it’s a small theater, so even the “cheap” seats are maybe 80 feet from the stage, so there’s not a bad seat in the house.
I think the best show we took in was Phantom over at the Venetian. Quality production, amazing theater.
IME, the Sahara has the cheapest gambling on the Strip. According to their website, they still have $1 Blackjack. It is a long way from the Luxor but if you walk to the MGM, you could ride the Monorail to it. It has the same feel as the downtown casinos IMHO.