The Excalibur was a lot of fun and easygoing. They had a bad beat promo and a wheel for getting aces cracked. Although money came out of the pot for these promotions, it was reasonable because the rake was still a lot less than other poker rooms.

Play at the Paris was generally weak (as it was everywhere), but I still found it difficult to beat the games - you just gotta be patient. The dealers were very nice and personable. At the end of one session, I went to cash-out and realized that I had lost a big bill. The shift manager, Inti, had found the bill and figured it was me. After spending some time verifying with security, I got my money back (after tipping Inti ten bucks). Thanks Inti! As for the room itself, the atmosphere is ok when the casino isn't too noisy, but it wasn't very good when live music was playing at the bar nearby.

I spent a late night at the Luxor. The game was quite juicy and I ended up winning a few bucks. The dealers were pretty good as well. I would definitely like to play more here.

Bally's shares dealers with the Paris, and they were again great. The game itself was a bit tougher than other places though.

My one mistake was that I probably overtipped. While I realize dealers make most of their salary from tokes, tipping more than a buck or two an hour can really hurt your bankroll - but the thrill of winning, along with not treating your chips as actual dollars, really does make a difference in this department.

Another complaint is that the comps program at Paris/Bally's is not favourable to those making short-term visits. At the end of my trip, I learned that I had earned $6 in comps (for 6 hours of play) but that this money could not be cashed-out until it reached $10. This seemed unfair, especially since players were not really informed of this policy. The poker room staff also knew very little about the comps program and were clueless about how poker room rates worked.