We are planning a trip in June with our 21 yr. old son. Both hubby and son are avid poker players. It will be son's first time in Las Vegas since turning 21. They will want to play poker, not high stakes. We want to stay on the strip. What location(s) offer the best in terms of poker play? With the heat......we would rather not be travelling back and forth from where we are staying. Thank you.

This might give you a start: http://www.lasvegasinsider.com/html/pokerbycasino.htm

They may be avid - but how good are they. It's easy to drop a whole lot even in a low stakes game in a short amount of time.

(My brother has a friend who makes a very nice living - in excess of $150,000 per year playing poker online - his take is that very few amateur players have a clue about the real odds of winning with the various hands.)

Sorry -

The rule should always be - set yourself a realistic loss limit - then get up and walk away. And once you win a certain amount - do exactly the same.

My son plays online poker constantly and has since he was 18. He does pretty well (he uses his winnings to cover expenses like he would with a part time job) and does not overextend himself. He does some playing at our local dog track as well.

Then who is losing on-line?

I have been playing poker regularly for 25 years. And never believe what a player wins or loses unless you see it.

They should be aware that there are some slobs who will try and throw newbies off their game. They should know not to be distracted, try and see if they have tells and correct them, and learn the rules and etiquette of casino poker.

They should also should read a poker book or two just to see how others play. And when they watch poker on TV, try and guess what they players have.

Your stake will decline as you move further from the strip. Finding low stakes, and staying on the strip are contradictory conditions. Downtown and the large off strip casinos, like Orleans are the next lower level of table limits. Las Vegas has many neighborhood casinos frequented by locals that I can't comment on quality. Hopefully a local will pick up and propose the better small venues.

About the lowest stake game I have seen in Vegas is 2/4 limit games downtown. Its hard to make much because of the rake(house take) and customary tip to the dealer(figure $5/hand leaves the table), so that would be just a game for entertainment and free drinks. The Rio has daily tournys with $50 buyins, that is probably more like what they might want.

Excalibur used to offer a 1-3 limit game, not sure if they still do. Luxor usually has 1 or 2 tables dealing 2-4. Planet Hollywood, the same. MGM has a really nice poker room and they can have several 2-4 games going if you time it right. Mandalay is 4-8 1/2 kill last time I played there. Venetian & Wynn = 4-8 at best. TI has 2-4 games but it wasn't getting much action mid-week. Mirage is 3-6 and it's local grinders mid-week.

Part if the issue is when you want to play. Mid-week mornings and afternoons are tough to find action in that range, nights and weekends is not a problem. Then late-night it becomes locals again.

If you are looking for tournaments, google it and there are some good websites with all the details. The problem is if you are going to win money you are commited for 5+ hours.

Most, if not all, the major casinos offer low stake games. I'm a novice player and found the play in Vegas (especially low limit games) to be pretty weak.

I'm a novice player and found the play in Vegas (especially low limit games) to be pretty weak

I once played at one of the tribal casinos in CT. A very old guy says he has a flush. At least all the cards were red.

Thank you for the replies. We plan to go Sun-Wed. Most play will be late afternoon into wee hours.

Also are getting advice on the Las Vegas threads on the Two Plus Two Poker forum site.

All other suggestions are welcome. We are basically debating staying near the MGMish section of the strip or the Flamingo/Caesars area of the strip. City Centre is what my husband is looking toward, but I'm just afraid that might be limiting in terms of going to other casinos.