Casino Reviews

We have just been made aware that along with Hotel Fees Increasing at the Aquarius Casino in Laughlin, they are adding a resort fee and they are not as free with giving out river view rooms. First as of May 1st, the Aquarius hotel is charging a $10 resort fee on all rooms per night. While this is far less than the $35, hotels in Las Vegas, this will come as a big surprise for many patrons. It will not be long before they also charge for parking. But so far as at the time of writing, there is no word of a parking fee yet. If you are a slot card member, you may have these fees waived.

Hotel Fees Increasing at the Aquarius Casino in Laughlin

We received complimentary rooms the last time we stayed at the hotel and the resort fee was also complimentary. If we had to pay for the room, $10 would have been added to the cost of the room along with associated taxes as well.

Many patrons will be upset over this increase especially since there will be no decrease in the cost of the rooms per night. If you are comp’d for the room, there will be no resort fee charged. At least that was our experience the last time we stayed at the hotel at the beginning of May. Parking was still free, however we are not sure how long this will last.

Some patrons will clearly move to other hotels to avoid paying these fees. However we suspect that all of the hotels have banded together and will be charging this fee. In the case of the Aquarius, the hotel was purchased last year by a new owner. They have to generate added income to help pay for the debt they incurred as part of the purchase.

We will provide further updates as more information comes available.

There are Changes at the Aquarius Casino in Laughlin and it is going to cost you more money! The Aquarius Casino and hotel was sold to a new owner last year and while it took them a few months, changes are now beginning to happen that will cost patrons more money. After all the new buyer must pay for the debt they took out to make the purchase.  For starters, anyone staying at the hotel will begin paying a resort fee of $10 per stay beginning May 1st, 2018. This is following the trend in Las Vegas and other locations. Many high end hotels in Las Vegas are charging as much as $35 resort fees per night stay.

Changes at the Aquarius Casino in Laughlin

What other changes are coming. Although there was no mention of parking fees yet, but it is just a matter of time before they begin charging parking fees as well. Laughlin has an entertainment venue where thousands of people come to listen to entertainers. Many use the parking garages, but do not go into the casino at all. The parking garages were built for the casino patrons. Many  casinos will start charging for parking in our estimation.

Those casino patrons who have a slot card and perhaps have a higher value slot card will likely be comp’d for rooms and meals. Patrons receiving free rooms will not be charged the resort fee as of the date this post was prepared. The same likely will apply to parking fees.

Casino hotels who charge resort fees may initially find that customers will complain and some will stay away from hotels in protest. Casino management find that this is temporary and customers just want to have a good time and they believe that their clients will just absorb it as part of their vacation costs or business costs.

If Las Vegas is any indication, occupancy rates are higher than ever and patrons have just ignored the extra charges. It is just part of the cost of doing business or going on vacation.

Whether you have noticed or not, the answer to the question, are slot machine payouts declining, is yes. Reports suggest that payouts in the industry have declined. Known as slot hold, the percentage has increased to 6.4% on average. Average amounts wagered by gamblers declined. Yet revenue from slot players has increased as a result because the slot hold increased at the same time.  Many gamblers are staying away because of the perceived tightening of the slot payout.

Are Slot Machine Payouts Declining

Applied Analysis examined the casino markets of 16 states, including Nevada. The report they prepared found that the amount gamblers wagered and the revenue casinos earned from slots declined by double-digit percentages between 2007 and 2014. Slot hold is the amount that casinos keep from every dollar wagered. At the same time, slot hold percentage increased 6.2 percent.

Some states diverged from the overall trend. Most notably, Florida’s hold percentage declined from 9.5 percent in 2006 — when slot machines began operating in the state — to 6.41 percent in 2014, according to the report.

Nevada has much more competition and the results suggest better payouts overall. Nevada’s 6.4 percent slot hold last year was higher than it was when slot revenue peaked in 2007, but it was still the lowest of any state examined in the report.

Generally speaking, casinos that are in highly competitive locations such as Vegas have better payouts. Reports suggest that old Las Vegas or downtown, typically will pay out better returns, sometimes as much as 3% more than the strip. Averages suggest the strip pays out around 90% to 91%, while downtown is more competitive with approximately a 94% payout rate.

For more thoughts and ideas about slot machine payout ratios, click here.

We have certainly noticed a decline in payouts from slot machines in terms of large jackpots. There have been lots of small payouts. They keep you going and playing on the casino’s money, but really not enough to stop playing and go home with. We usually go with $100 and if we win $100, we usually keep playing. We are chasing the big win over $200 or much larger. They are very difficult to get. Frankly, most people just play and lose all of the money they came with. Our question to readers, Have you noticed a decline in slot machine payout?, if so let us know.

We did a little research and found that on review boards there is a mix of comments and thoughts about this subject. Some people have won and are quite excited, while others have noticed the same trend we have. Almost everyone I talk to at the slots says they are not winning as often as they used to. We are going to see if we can find any industry stats on this subject, however, based on state requirements in Nevada for example, the casinos must may a minimum on average. This payout varies by the casino and by state.

Have you noticed a decline in slot machine payout in Your State?

Our theory is that there are a lot more small payouts than there used to be and less large payouts. The casinos can manipulate the payout tables to pay a lot more small jackpots and less large ones and still meet the payout guidelines of the state they are in.

So what you might say. Well, human nature is to continue playing when you win a small jackpot of twenty or thirty dollars. You are at the casino for the evening and you are not ready to go home yet. These small wins allow you to keep playing without using your money and you may even have the feeling that you are on a hot machine. Before you know it your wins are gone and so is the stake you started with.

The casinos are playing this psychological game and reaping the rewards by increasing their overall take from slot machines. They have been successful at changing the gaming environment from one of trying to beat the casino to being entertained by interactive games that give us thrills and excitement. More and more people feel that they had a good night if they were able to paly for a long time and were entertained even if they lost their stake.

Comments?  For more thoughts and ideas about slot machine play, click here.

Casino slot payback percentages vary by casino, location and even within the casino across various machines. However, they all must adhere to local state or provincial regulations that govern payout rates. The minimum appears to be 85%, although some locations set it to 88%. Typically, most casinos do not go that low, preferring to remain competitive with other forms og gambling and other casinos in the area. There is a lot of pressure on casino operators to remain attractive to their customers, while at the same time paying out taxes to local governments and making a profit. The payout based on our research typically ranges from around 92% to 95%, with a few machines advertised at 99%. Overall the casino must maintain an average payout of greater than 85%, which means that some machines will be set at this level, while others will be higher.

Casino Slot Payback Percentages

In Nevada for example, the minimum required payback is set at 86%. Some machines will be set to 99%, while the majority will be much lower. Penny slots are set at the lowest which is around 90%, while dollar slots and some video poker machines such as deuces wild have the highest payback at nearly 99%.

These payback amounts are an average and if you play long enough the average will be achieved. Of course you might experience long runs of losses in the process. That is what gambling is all about. The casino and the government agencies that benefit from gambling really do not care. Over the long run they know that they will collect their share of the amounts bet in line with the payback they have set the slot machines to.

Let’s assume you are playing a twenty-five cent video poker machine that is set to 99%. You are betting a total of $1.25 per hand. If you play 20 hands per hour, your betting $25 an hour. If you play for four hours that’s $100. In theory you should have lost only $1.00 on average. Some days you will lose the entire $100, while other days you win a jackpot and go home happy. That’s how gambling works, but on average the casino will always win.

For more details about slot machines, payouts, hold backs etc. Click here.

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