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Vacation Poker

Comments (5)
by , Nov 22, 2006 | 9:03 am

Austin Pete is headed out of town for work, and writes in:

I have a deposition in Reno. What is the best casino to stay at there?

Peter, I do not know. I have never played in Reno — have just driven through on the way to Lake Tahoe. I guess you can always go with the Harrah’s property out there. I hate to say that, really, but kinda like McDonald’s isn’t the best burger in the world, at least you know what you’re gonna get. You know … slightly above-mediocre room, overpriced food, terrible comps, shoddy treatment by casino personnel, and generally decent low-stakes action.

Actually, for anyone about ready to hit the road, the best way to find a game outside of Vegas is probably The Poker Atlas (click for Reno). The RV-travelers behind this site are still building up the database of player-generated reviews, but they’ve got pretty much every legal poker room in the U.S. mapped out, so it’s a good place to start your search. It’s how I found out I’ll be spending my Thanksgiving weekend at the Horseshoe in Council Bluffs, IA.

UPDATE: Austin Pete writes in with more:

Thanks for the post. I can’t get on there b/c of work blockage. In response to some of the posts, thought I would let you know that the Reno Hilton is no longer the Reno Hilton. It is now the Grand Sierra something or other.


  • Enrique

    I was in Reno last October (2005) for a chess tournament. The poker action there was terrible, and the city itself is pretty disgusting. Pretty much the entire city plays like 1/2 and 2/4 LIMIT. I played a 1/2 NL game at the Atlantis, 2/5NL at Silverton I believe, and I found a 2/5NL game once at a new casino, but I can’t remember the name of it. Also, I think at the Silverton maybe I found 1/5 spread limit 7 card stud. It was my first time ever playing 7 card stud and I was the only person under age 50 at the table. The Silverton is part of a 4 casino complex and I think 2-3 of those casinos have poker rooms, so that is probably your best bet.

  • Enrique

    I just looked at that website link..the casino I couldn’t remember with 2/5 was Peppermill. The Silverton isn’t listed but ElDorado and Club Cal Neva are part of that complex I described. Lastly, I never made it out to the Reno Hilton, but apparently a WPT even may have been played there.

  • http://windbreak247.blogspot.com Windbreaker

    Dan, can I ask why you’ll be spending your Thanksgiving weekend in my humble home state?

    I’ve heard the new Horseshoe in Council Bluffs is top notch (well, for the midwest anyway), so I’ll be looking forward to hearing what you have to say about it. If I can break free of the choking grasp that variance has on my game right now and get my bankroll headed in the right direction, I’m hoping to make the trip to The Horseshoe in January to pop my WSOP cherry at the Circuit Event.

  • coonie

    Ive stayed and played several times at the Reno Hilton…Its always a great choice.

  • http://www.thepokeratlas.com Brian

    Hey Enrique,
    Where is the Silverton in Reno? I know of the Silverton in LV… do you mean the Silver Legacy in Reno? they don’t have poker as far as I know. Please let me know so I can update The Poker Atlas. Would also love to have you guys post player reviews on the Atlas of the places you have played. Thanks.

    Brian