10 Best Poker Rooms in Vegas (And Why to Visit Each)

Las Vegas remains at the epicenter of the live poker economy, with more places to play than any other city in the U.S. With around 20 live poker venues to choose from, tourists and locals alike always enjoy plenty of options when it comes to competing on the live felt.

Some poker rooms, like Wynn, Aria, and Bellagio, are widely considered by poker pros as the best in the city. While those venues thrive as the heart of poker activity on the Las Vegas Strip, other hidden gems await for those willing to venture away from the busiest part of the city.

This “10 Best Poker Rooms in Vegas” list includes insights from members of the Hand History Lounge, a study group founded by Las Vegas poker pros Benton Blakeman and Andrew Neeme. While the order of these rankings can certainly spark a debate, you generally can’t go wrong putting in playing hours at the following ten live poker venues in Las Vegas.

10. Golden Nugget

As far as poker rooms go, nothing quite captures the old-school Las Vegas experience like the Golden Nugget. The cozy setup at the venerable venue features 13 tables and is currently the only place to play live poker in downtown Las Vegas.

The Golden Nugget’s Freemont Street location gives the poker room quite a different feel when compared to its counterparts on the Strip. The main attraction at the Golden Nugget poker room is the $1/$2 No-Limit Hold’em cash game, which has an uncapped max buy-in.

While the stakes are low the uncapped buy-in creates an atmosphere unlike anything else in town. It’s not uncommon to see players plunk down four-figure buy-ins at the $1/$2 Golden Nugget tables, or even larger.

Golden Nugget is the only Las Vegas poker room where $100 bills play, and you’ll often see players sitting behind a stack of chips and bills. An occasional $2/$5 game runs at the Golden Nugget, along with seasonal special tournament series.

Why visit Golden Nugget: While you’ll find higher and potentially more profitable No-Limit Texas Hold’em cash game stakes elsewhere, the Golden Nugget $1/$2 games can play as some of the best low-stakes live games in the city.

“I love Golden Nugget and think it’s consistently underrated,” says Las Vegas regular Preston Currie. In addition to its one-of-a-kind $1/$2 scene, Golden Nugget also offers walking-distance access to the vibrant downtown Las Vegas arts and nightlife scene.

9. Caesars Palace

It’s tough to match the experience of visiting the legendary Caesars Palace on the Strip. Poker is a long-running tradition at Caesars, which offers a 15-table poker room.

The poker room’s location is right in the heart of the resort’s Las Vegas nightclub activity, which can bode well for astute cash game players looking to set up shop against tourists looking for a late-night gambling spree.

Caesars Palace runs five daily tournaments, with buy-ins of $100 and $150. Cash games at Caesars include an always-running $1/$3 NLHE game ($300 max buy-in) and an occasional $2/$5 game ($500 max buy-in).

Why visit Caesars Palace: You might not find a better tourist-to-regular ratio anywhere else on the Strip.

“(Caesars is a) hidden gem outside of the sportsbook with above-average games for the low-limit NL crowd,” says Blakeman. “Everything is decent but nothing great, but they do get a very steady influx of tourists, and fewer regs than the other big strip casinos.”

8. Venetian

Sheldon Adelson’s crusade against online poker legalization prompted many Las Vegas poker pros to boycott the Venetian poker room while it was under Adelson’s ownership. Now under new ownership, the Venetian poker room has plenty to offer for cash game and tournament players alike.

On most weekday nights, the Venetian has as many or more $1/$3 NLHE cash games ($300 max buy-in) running than any other Strip poker room. The other No-Limit Hold’em cash games stakes are unusual by Las Vegas standards ($2/$4, $600 max buy-in and $3/$5, $1,200 max buy-in).

The 32-table setup at Venetian makes it one of the bigger poker rooms on the Strip. That number of tables frequently expands to include regularly-occurring special tournament series like the Venetian Deepstack and the occasional MSPT series.

Why visit Venetian: While the Venetian is no longer under the ownership of Adelson, the effects of his legacy still lingers for many poker players.

“It’s overlooked by pros for various reasons – which means lots of recs,” says Mark Adams, who regularly visits Las Vegas to play poker.

For players trying to build a bankroll or just find a juicy game on a Las Vegas visit, the Venetian’s $1/$3 lineup presents some great opportunities. Tournament players will find special series running at Venetian more often than not, and those events generally draw some of the biggest fields in the city.

7. Orleans

Much like South Point and Red Rock, the Orleans stands as a haven for poker-playing locals in Las Vegas. The 34-table room puts the Orleans near the top of the list of highest-capacity live poker venues in Las Vegas.

While the Orleans always has a $1/$3 No-Limit Hold’em ($500 max buy-in) cash game operating, the non-NLHE offerings at the off-Strip property put the room in a unique category. You’ll find $3/$6 and $4/$8 Limit Hold’em running at most times of the day, along with $8/$16 Omaha Eight or Better.

The tournament slate at Orleans includes a pair of daily events, as well as regularly-occurring special tournament series. A recent special series featured an $800 buy-in, $500,000 guaranteed No-Limit Hold’em Main Event.

Why visit Orleans: While the Orleans crowd is a locals-heavy field, the cash games can still offer plenty of profitable opportunities. Its off-Strip location makes Orleans a convenient stop

“Everything in the place costs 40 percent less than it does on the Strip,” says longtime poker player and writer Lee Jones. “It has a down-home feel. Everybody knows everybody. It’s like playing poker at Cheers.”

Jones adds that while Strip poker rooms include more tourists, the Orleans’ locals-filled cash games are still very beatable.

6. Red Rock

Red Rock is the only poker room on our list that’s situated significantly far away from the Strip. You’ll need to drive about 20 minutes west of the Strip to experience the Red Rock poker room.

The experience could make that drive well worth the effort, however. The 20-table venue offers a distinctly different vibe from its Strip counterparts, with most of the action coming from Las Vegas locals.

The locals-heavy action means you won’t run into the usual assortment of tourists that you’ll find in poker rooms on or near the Strip. If you visit Red Rock frequently, you’ll be playing against familiar foes on a regular basis.

Cash games feature $1/$2 NLHE ($300 max buy-in) and usually at least one $2/$5 ($1,000 max buy-in) game running. Limit Hold’em runs at $4/$8 stakes at most times as well.

Tournaments are suspended at Red Rock at the time of this writing.

Why visit Red Rock: If you’re a Las Vegas resident in the Summerlin area, Red Rock makes sense as a go-to local poker room. You’ll rack up plenty of Station Casinos Rewards as a regular, and you’ll become well familiar with the players you’re up against during most sessions.

The venue itself is one of the nicer rooms in the Las Vegas area. While you’ll miss out on profitable situations playing against the never-ending stream of Las Vegas tourists, Red Rock poker room is definitely worth a visit.

5. South Point

Perhaps the ultimate Las Vegas locals poker venue, the South Point’s 30-table setup makes it one of the biggest poker rooms in the city. On any given night all 30 of those tables will likely be full.

South Point’s tournament offerings include 3-4 daily tournaments, including $60 and $150 NLHE events. A once-weekly, $60 buy-in Omaha Eight or Better tournament runs every Thursday night.

The poker room’s seasonal freerolls offer six-figure guarantees for players that rack up 100 hours of play in a set three-month span. Many of the seats at South Point are occupied by Las Vegas locals looking to earn their entry into what can sometimes end up as a $300,000 guaranteed freeroll tournament.

NLHE cash games run around the clock at $1/$2 ($300 max buy-in) and $2/$3 ($600 max buy-in). The $600 cap is the largest for a regularly-running $2/$3 game in the city.

Why visit South Point: If you’re a Las Vegas local, or have enough time to grind out 100 hours of play in three months, the seasonal freerolls offer tremendous value.

Cash game promotions include a slew of high-hand bonuses, bad beat jackpots, and splash pots during NFL games. While you’ll be competing against the locals more often than not at South Point, the south Strip venue hosts one of the bigger and nicer poker rooms in the city.

4. Resorts World

Las Vegas’ newest poker room includes all the necessary amenities required of a top-tier poker venue on the Strip. The 30-table room runs a pair of $160 buy-in tournaments every day and usually has at least a couple of $1/$3 No-Limit Hold’em cash games ($400 max buy-in) games running.

Opened in June 2021, Resorts World stands as the newest Strip megaresort. At a cost of $4.3 billion, the property is the most expensive ever built in Las Vegas.

The poker room presents an upscale look and feel, and according to Blakeman, only a lack of consistent cash games keeps Resorts World from taking a higher spot on this list.

“This should be No. 2 as far as comfort, staff, etc., but they just don’t have the steady games,” Blakeman said. ” If it gets there I would shoot this one to No. 1 or No. 2, interchangeable with Wynn.”

NLHE cash games that occasionally run at Resorts World include $2/$5 with a $1,200 max buy-in. An $80/$160 mixed game is also occasionally available.

Why visit Resorts World: Resorts World is one of just three Las Vegas rooms to use PokerAtlas, with most of the city’s rooms using Bravo. PokerAtlas allows players to get on waitlists directly through the mobile app, so you can skip the usual process of calling into the poker room.

The poker room also features a self-service kiosk in which you can order food from any restaurant in the casino. After placing your order, you can either pick it up when it’s ready or have a chip runner bring your meal tableside.

3. Bellagio

The longtime center of the high-stakes poker scene in Las Vegas, the Bellagio poker room is a must-visit venue for poker players traveling to play the Strip. The 37 tables are the most of any poker room’s standard setup in the city.

All 37 of those tables are currently dedicated to cash game play at all times. That fact might deter players looking for multi-table tournament action.

The Bellagio setup is a cash game player’s dream, however. The highest-stakes cash games in the city consistently run at Bellagio, and you’ll often spot some of the world’s most famous poker players stepping in and out of the high-roller enclave known as the “Legends Room” (formerly called “Bobby’s Room”).

The Legends Room often hosts mixed games at some of the highest limits in the world. Bellagio also offers Limit Hold’em, Stud, and Omaha Eight or Better at a variety of stakes.

NLHE players can find games ranging from $1/$3 ($300 max buy-in), $2/$5 ($500 max buy-in), $5/$10 ($1,500 max buy-in), and uncapped $10/$20 and $10/$20/$40.

Much like the poker room at sister property Aria, the Bellagio poker room is overflowing with cash game action at virtually all times.

Why visit Bellagio: The Bellagio sits at the heart of the Las Vegas live poker scene, as it has since the days before the mid-2000s “poker boom.” A trip to the iconic venue is a must if you’ve never been there.

Expect to wait a while to get into a game, as the waitlists at Bellagio are some of the longest in the city. Tournament players should look elsewhere for action, but the Bellagio presents a top-notch variety of games for cash game players.

2. Aria

A favorite among Las Vegas cash game pros, Aria’s poker room always draws some of the most consistent player traffic on the Strip. The seats all almost always full in the 24-table poker room, with a cash game action available at a variety of stakes.

Multiple tables run around the clock for the $1/$3 ($300 max buy-in) and $2/$5 ($1,000 max buy-in) NLHE cash games. Higher-stakes games can often be found running at $5/$10 ($3,000 max buy-in) and $10/$20 (uncapped max buy-in).

For Pot-Limit Omaha players, Aria is hands-down the best place to find cash game action in Las Vegas. The number of PLO games running at Aria at any given time is significantly ahead of any other poker room in the city.

As an added bonus, the nearby PokerGO Studio hosts some of the most prominent high-roller tournaments in the world, and you can often catch a glimpse of some of the game’s top high-stakes tournament players in and around the Aria in general.

Why visit Aria: Many Las Vegas cash game regulars rank Aria as one of the top places to play live poker in the city. Cash games players at most stakes can find 24/7 action at Aria, which includes the most vibrant PLO scene in the city.

“Aria is the clear No. 1 for me, primarily due to the staff,” says Las Vegas cash game regular Dan Spargur. “I get why people like Wynn, but there are more good regs at Wynn. There may also be more big fish (at Wynn) on weekends, but the good regs know that, too.”

1. Wynn

The Wynn/Encore property hosts a poker room that stands along with the top poker venues in the world. The 28-table room is situated on the Encore side of the resort, with a table capacity that can expand significantly during Wynn’s major tournament series.

Wynn regularly runs tournament series that can include some of the biggest prize pools in the city. The inaugural Wynn Millions operated as a $10,000 buy-in event in July 2021, with Andrew Moreno topping a 1,328-entry field to come away with a $1.46 million payday.

NLHE cash game players can also find just about anything they’re looking for at Wynn. Regular games include $1/$3 ($500 max buy-in) and $2/$5 ($1,500 max buy-in). The max buy-ins for both of those games are among the biggest in Las Vegas.

Other cash game options at Wynn include uncapped $5/$10 and $10/$25 NLHE. Pot-Limit Omaha players can find $1/$2 ($1,000 max buy-in) and $5/$5 ($2,500 max buy-in) PLO cash games at Wynn.

Why visit Wynn: The Wynn poker room presents one of the best overall places to play live poker anywhere in the world. For both tournament and cash game players, the Wynn poker room experience is hard to top.

Blakeman puts Wynn’s poker room at the top of his Las Vegas rankings.

“No comparison in my opinion,” Blakeman said. “Best looking room, comfortable chairs, great tourneys, staff, food, everything.”