Binion’s Sportsbook Review

Binion's Las Vegas is one of the four pillars that stands at the corner of Fremont Street and Casino Center Boulevard in Old Vegas. The resort faces the other three iconic properties in the Golden Nugget, Four Queens, and Fremont Hotel and Casino under the Fremont Street Experience canopy. The casino is named for its founder, Benny Binion, whose family ran Binion's Horseshoe from 1951 to 2004.

• Visitors from all directions to Binion's will travel on Interstate 15 to the heart of the city and exit at Casino Center Boulevard.

• Taxis, rideshare vehicles — like Uber and Lyft — and limousines will all likely take Tropicana Avenue west from McCarran International Airport to the highway and north on I-15, which is the quickest route to Binion's. Depending on traffic, the 15-minute ride covers about 10 miles in distance.

• Binion's is one of six resorts located under the barrel vault canopy of the Fremont Street Experience.

• Binion's and the rest of the Old Vegas resorts sponsor the Downtown Rocks concert series where thousands of guests enjoy outstanding musical talent for free from May to October.

Parking at a lot at the back of the Binion's property starts on the third floor. It's $2 per hour for the first three hours, and then $10 as a flat rate for the next 3-24 hours. Valet parking is also available.

• Parking is free upon validation of gambling or purchases on a player's card at the Binion's casino.

• Valet is also free with the use of a player's card.

• Enter and exit the self-parking lot off Casino Center Boulevard.

Visitors from out of town have many transportation options to get to their resort or other Las Vegas attractions after landing at McCarran International Airport. All of them can be found at the airport's main terminal. The cost varies on the service and distance to your resort for the following modes of transportation:

• The RTC Las Vegas bus service is on Level 0 at the airport and right outside the front doors at Binion's.

• The Las Vegas public transit Express bus service runs from 9 a.m. to 12 midnight from the north outlet mall to Binion's in Old Vegas and all the way to the south end of the Strip, including stops at mega-resorts Cosmopolitan and Mandalay Bay.

• A two-hour bus pass for the Express, which includes a southbound stop at the main casino entrance at Binion's, is $6, a 24-hour pass is $8 and a three-day pass is $20.

• The airport taxi queue moves quickly outside the doors of the main terminal. Taxi service is also available at Binion's 24 hours a day.

• A taxi ride will cost around $40 from the airport to Binion's.

• Download the rideshare apps for Uber and Lyft and check out the lower costs for a ride anywhere in the area.

• Rideshare will cost around $25 from the airport to Binion's.

• The rideshare pickup is located on the second level of the parking garage at the airport.

• The going rate for a limousine is anywhere from $85 to $90 an hour.

It will be tough to equal the spectacular views from the Top of Binion's Steakhouse, which is located on the 24th floor of the hotel tower. This gourmet restaurant with its vintage Vegas decor offers steaks, seafood and its signature dish of chicken fried lobster.

There is also a chef's daily special for $19.95, which you won't find at the high-end resorts on the Strip. The steakhouse is highly recommended by reviewers on the restaurant reservation site Open Table.

Here are some of the other dining places at Binion's:

• Benny's Smokin' BBQ & Brews serves American barbecue pub food in a casual atmosphere.

• Binion's Cafe, which offers casual food fare in the center of the casino, is open daily from 7 a.m. to 2 a.m.

• Binion's Deli piles your choice of sandwich meat on fresh bread, with an option of hand-crafted root beer to drink.

• The Fremont Street Experience is the area for nightly parties in Downtown Vegas. Here are a few drinking spots at Binion's that will provide a front-row seat to the outdoor scene:

• Sit on a real saddle while ordering your favorite cocktail at Cowgirl Up Cantina.

• Whiskey Licker Up is a 6,500-square-foot full-service saloon with a rotating bar as its centerpiece.

Guests of Binion's Las Vegas are welcome to join Club Binion's, which is the resort's free rewards program. Members earn points and tier credits towards complimentary food and beverages, gaming tournaments, promotions, drawings, and offers for free slot play or non-negotiable chips.

Members earn these rewards by gambling on Binion's slot and video poker machines, table games, and live poker.

One unique perk of the club card is the chance to have your photo taken with Binion's $1 Million Display, which is located next to Club Binion's. The display, which holds a million dollars in a pyramid design, is available for photos daily from 9 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. It contains 2,700 $100 bills, 34,400 $20 bills and 42,000 $1 bills.

You must be 21 years or older to have your picture taken and receive a complimentary 6x8-inch glossy photo inside a souvenir frame.

It started as the Eldorado Club and Hotel Apache before Benny Binion bought the property in 1951 and renamed it Binion's Horseshoe. The casino, which had a frontier setting, was the first in downtown Las Vegas to replace sawdust-covered floors with carpeting.

Today, the Binion family has nothing to do with the property anymore. Many of the games are the same, but the large casino is old and rundown.

It begs the question of why you would want to gamble here at any one of the 800 slot machines? Other downtown venues have at least renovated their traditional properties, while Binion's seems to rely on its location and classic atmosphere to keep people coming back.

Minimums are $5 at most of the table games on the casino floor. Some of the games available to play include:

• Blackjack, 6-5 odds on a 21 with $5 minimum tables.

• Roulette, all wheels offer standard two sets of zeroes.

• Craps, start at $5 minimum with standard rules.

There are a few other tables games, such as Big Six Wheel, High Card Flush, Let it Ride, Pai Gow Poker, and Three Card Poker.

Binion's, as has always been its tradition, does not offer any high limit areas. Complimentary drinks for players are easy to obtain on the main casino floor. It's always a good idea to tip for that cocktail if you expect a second round.

Binion's 365-room hotel tower had been closed since 2009. The Great Recession and the costly task of removing asbestos were to blame. TLC Casino Enterprises, which owns and operates Binion's and the Four Queens across the street, reopened the tower as Hotel Apache in July 2019.

• The new boutique hotel has 81 rooms and features "vintage-style furnishings reminiscent of the original Hotel Apache that opened in 1932," according to the company.

• Binion's pool is located on the 25th floor of the hotel. It's open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Times may vary due to weather conditions. The pool closes for the winter season.

“We need our current projects to get up and running, see the success of those to give us more confidence moving forward,” said Lager, the hotel's general manager. “We’re here to protect this property and see it grow. It might mean that it grows in small steps, and if that’s the case we’ll go the safer way rather than take a risk.”