Girls, Girls, Girls

Casino dancers at Planet Hollywood.

You’ll see this stunt at various casinos up and down the Strip. Dancers, scantily-clad dealers, music, free drinks—what could be better? It’s admittedly pretty cool, but there’s a catch.

Gentlemen beware: the girls are there to get you to gamble at the tables surrounding the stage, but those tables don’t have the best odds. Never, ever play 6-to-5 blackjack. I don’t care how pretty she is: if her game isn’t paying 3-to-2, you say “no, thank you.”

Note from a decade later: There are no longer any casinos on the Las Vegas Strip where anyone should ever play blackjack at less than a $50 minimum. Dancers or no, the games are all 6-to-5. Do not sit down. If you want to play blackjack, go off the Strip.