Mandalay Bay stands on all 17's?

[TonyDee]

I was watching FEAR FACTOR last night and for those who don't watch on the reg, they are currently in LV and and the winner plays a hand of bj with half his/her winnings.

Back to the point.....

as I watching I noticed that the table read that the dealer stays on all 17's!! I was in Vegas less than 2 weeks ago and I didn't care to check since casinos on the strip pretty much hit soft 17's.

In the event this is true I will more than likely be playing there when I return to Vegas in Dec. Downtown casino's (namely the Plaza) offers better % for the player but I don't care much for the atmosphere and I prefer the glitz and glamour of the strip casinos. Even though the % won't be as good as a the Plaza's DD (stands on all 17's also), I'll take my chances at Mandalay Bay and factor in the better surroundings to compansate going from 2 decks to 8 decks.

 

[Mikeaber]

Good luck to you Tony! The last time I was out there, I got my butt wiped at the Plaza but came out ahead playing the little single-deck game at El Cortez. Talk about "atmosphere" at El Cortez <LOL> But, it is much better than it used to be though it has a little bit to go to get up to the glitz at Mandalay Bay!

 

[cheaney97]

Mandalay Bay

Tony--I play at Mandalay pretty often, and yes, they do have a fair amount of tables that stand on soft 17. They allow doubling after splits, you can double on any 2 cards and also surrender. They have 6 deck shoes at most of these tables, but some have CSMs. Mostly, the lowest limit you'll find at these tables is $25. Sometimes you may get lucky and find $10 or $15 tables with these rules--you have to go during the day time though when it's not very crowded. I'm headed there this weekend! Good luck to you.

 

[BAMA21]

That is the same game I get at Mohegan Sun. I've never played at Mandalay Bay, so maybe I'll check it out when they have the lower limits in place.

Soak up much of that El Cortez "atmosphere" and you'll wind up with something the doctor can't cure and Ajax won't take off.

 

[Mikeaber]

That is the same game I get at Mohegan Sun. I've never played at Mandalay Bay, so maybe I'll check it out when they have the lower limits in place.

Soak up much of that El Cortez "atmosphere" and you'll wind up with something the doctor can't cure and Ajax won't take off.

Actually, the physical state of El Cortez is not bad...not bad at all. They have been working on it diligently. My wife enjoyed it except for the walk down to it. Wouldn't recommend walking it at night without a bodyguard though.

No, the "atmosphere" is composed of the patrons there. Definitely not hi-rollers.

 

[lagavulin62]

have not been to vegas in a little over two years. I was not into blackjack seriously back then and only played craps at the sahara where I usually stay. but all this talk about good blackjack games downtown has me planning for a trip real soon. everyone talks about the patrons at the el cortez, if I can send my gf shopping for a few hours maybe I can play a good game of bj and check out the sleezy women? so please tell me a little of what I am missing in that dept.

 

[lagavulin62]

no offense to the ladies, but I do enjoy "eye candy" now and then.

 

[Mikeaber]

no offense to the ladies, but I do enjoy "eye candy" now and then.

Well, I sat at a table where a woman who looked homless was sitting. She had to be at least 70 years young.

I'm NOT knocking the El Cortez. I went down there twice during my last visit and really enjoyed it. They tell me though, that if you want "seediness" you simply must go to the Gold Coast (between El Cortez and Lady Luck). We didn't stop in there.

 

[KenSmith]

I think Mike means the Gold Spike, not the Gold Coast.

 

[BAMA21]

I joke about the atmosphere at the El Cortez; but it really wasn't that bad on the one visit I made. It was a little too smokey for me; but my real problem was the "sweat shop" attitude of the pit. They backed me down after a whopping $50 win on a whopping 1-5 spread at a nickle table; and I was not counting, as I don't know how. Not only that, but they were unnecessarially rude about it too. I just laugh at the customers there, because the guy who replaced me looked like a homeless Vietnam vet; and was carrying an oxygen tank with him. He was about the most "seedy" looking guy I saw there.

 

[Mikeaber]

I think Mike means the Gold Spike, not the Gold Coast.

You're correct Ken <grin>. My wife was not thrilled about stopping in. So, we've never been there. But, a lot of folks I've talked to really did enjoy it simply because of the patrons!

We were at the Gold Coast last time out. Convenient with the free shuttle from Barbary Coast. I tend to get Gold Coast, Golden Gate and Gold Spike mixed up.

 

[TonyDee]

all these posts just confirm that I'm not the only one who feels downtown casinos are kind of ghetto in comparrison to the strip. When I first joined this site I was all excited about playing downtown LV because most people said they had the best rules, but the downside was that their casinos were not as nice as the strips.

In all honestly, the only difference b/w downtown casinos and the strips was that the downtown casinos had more $5 tables. The rules were pretty much the same. Thats it!!

For all you first timers going downtown don't bring your wife/girlfriend if you consider them to be high-maintaince. My girlfriend hated downtown LV refering it to the slums, forgive her, she's only 23. The one thing I hated most about the dt casinos were the types of people that played there. 80% of the people who play there appear to be either piss drunk, poor people who look like they shouldn't even be gambling, or homless. I know its wrong to judge a book by its cover but when you compare the types of people who play there and on the strip its like two different worlds.

On the plus side, downtown casinos are more fun to play late at night, probably cause thats when all the characters come out. Everyone is friendly and pleasant to be around, probably because they are either high or in a relax state from a hard days work. Most of my downtown play was at the Plaza late at night around 2-3am and I would usually play for a few hours, best time to play IMO.

 

[BAMA21]

I went downtown once on each of my last two trips, playing at Binions on the first trip and El Cortez on the second. I really liked the game at Binions, decent rules, low minimums, and a much more relaxed atmosphere than the strip. The El Cortez, I have described above.

The thing that makes a big difference to me is the table minimums. I just feel I have a much better chance to win with my bankroll at a $5 table than at a $15 table.

My wife went with me to Binions; and I think she was fairly bored there. She played slots for a while, walked to a couple of other casinos, and then started pestering me to get moving. So you're rght about that. I don't think that, beyond just seeing some of the landmarks, that downtown is a great place to bring the girls.

I think downtown seems to be more competitive. They were last to adopt the 6:5 payout on single-deck, just as an example. I hear from Mike on this board that the double-deck game at the Plaza is about as good as any game in Vegas too. So the combination of low minimums and the best rules available (even if they aren't any better than the best rules you can find on the strip) makes downtwn a target for some of my play.

I really, however, like the Boulder Strip better than downtown.

 

[Mikeaber]

My wife and I have more of your attitude than your girlfriends <smile>. Everyone ought to at least see the Strip but "band for the buck", you can't beat downtown. It doesn't have all the shows that cost $250 a ticket. It doesn't require a significant part of the time-budget to be able to hit more than one or two casinos per day. It's not nearly as crowded and the cost of the hotel rooms (while not Venetian in glamor and luxory) are far less expensive. It's easier to get comp's downtown too.

You can find good games on the Strip, but you have to look for them. You can pretty much walk into any casino in the Downtown area and find good player friendly rules.

I don't find anything "slummish" at all about most of the people and casinos downtown as long as you stick to what's under the dome on Fremont or the Plaza, Main Street Station and California Club. It only starts getting a bit seedy when you head east from California Club to Lady Luck, Gold Spike and El Cortez.

I heard rumors that they were talking of extending the dome east to include the access to the Fremont entrance of the El Cortez. That would be nice.

And, with the high-rise project over by Gold Spike, maybe things will get better lit up.

 

[TonyDee]

I still think the best game in Las Vegas is still the Plaza downtown. I plan to play more on the strip my next trip, probably from 12-8pm than devote the rest of my nite hitting the clubs. I didn't get a chance to do that my last visit cause apparently you have to be there pretty early if you want to get in.

Have any of you been to the Palms casino, I swear to God it is the loudest Casino I have ever been to in my life, nite time especially. Not only are the players roudy and loud but the music is as loud as a mediocore club. I don't see many counters hitting this casinos, but I still say you should check it out cause its pretty wild.

For those who care Also, if you go to Palms you will see some of the hottest girls you will ever see in all of Las Vegas I still haven't checked out the Hardrock, but the Palms will be hard to beat.

 

[Mikeaber]

I won't argue with you Tony.....I like Plaza's double deck also.

When Verna and I go to Vegas, we virtually always stay Downtown and seldom venture off of Fremont. However, this last time we were out there, we did visit Barbary Coast, Gold Coast, Palms and Orleans. We pretty much went there just to say we'd been. They are really not for us <smile>.......we're Downtowners.

 

[RedRitz]

My husband and I just got back from LV. He has recently taught me BJ and this was my second "live" practice. We stayed on the strip, Ceasar's (it is fit for a queen), gambled there. We found only 2 $10 tables, 4 $15, and the rest $25 and up.
Drove downtown and tried the Golden Nugget, cold luck with high stakes, then over to the 4 Queens. Stayed there for almost 4 hours. $2 and up tables, friendly dealers, nice busy atmosphere and the cocktail waitresses stayed on top of our needs. (I have found that hard to find in most casinos) Felt right at home and would highly recommend it and downtown. Felt right at home! (not a street person nor a snob)

Red

I don't find anything "slummish" at all about most of the people and casinos downtown