The Venetian

Description:

• "Tasteful" is the watchword in these days of classy Vegas gaming, and consequently, with the exception of more hand-painted Venetian art re-creations on parts of the ceiling, The Venetian's casino is interchangeable with those found at Mandalay Bay, the Monte Carlo, and, to a certain extent, Bellagio. All that gleaming marble, columns, and such are very nice, but after a while, they're also a bit ho-hum. Besides, this is Vegas, and we want our tacky theme elements, by gosh. The lack thereof, combined with poor signage, may be why this casino is so hard to get around -- every part looks exactly the same as every other part. It's not exactly claustrophobic, but it can be confusing. On the other hand, we made a killing at blackjack, and one of our editors struck it rich at the slots, so we have to love the place for those reasons. Another (less personal) plus is that you can access the casino directly from the St. Mark's Square re-creation out front. The smoke-sensitive report that the ventilation system here is tops.

• © Frommer's 2013