Bingo Magic 2000, the inaugural World Championship of Bingo at Paris Las Vegas, enjoyed overwhelming success. When the event was over Mrs. Carole Viola of New Jersey was declared America's newest millionaire and the World Champion of Bingo. Players from across North America arrived at Paris Las Vegas November 28 to participate in the inaugural Bingo Magic event and compete for a total prize pool of $1,250,000 (USD).

According to Stuart Richey, a gaming executive at Paris Las Vegas, "when the final game was held for $1,000,000 the atmosphere was electric." Mr. Richey added that "The appeal for this event has extended far beyond traditional bingo players and has brought in many high stakes players who recognize the extraordinary odds and entertainment value of the game."

Dear Mark, Casino Windsor has high table minimums and low table maximums. Is this a player advantage? Danny B.

Quite the contrary, Danny. It's a huge advantage for the casino, and here's why. Casinos win for two reasons. First, a statistical edge (percentage advantage) on each and every game, and second, they have a whole lot more cash and staying power than you do. For the latter, it's a simple concept called "gambler's ruin." In essence, it's how long will it take you with your limited bankroll to lose everything to a casino, which has a relatively infinite wad of cash. So even if you do have a short-term winning streak, Danny, when the house has this infinite stake, they can, and will, always outlast you.

Now to your situation playing the high minimums/low maximums limits. When you have a casino with a competition-free monopoly, you tend to find table limits that, in my humble opinion, border on larceny. This scenario eliminates low-stakes betting (high minimums); plus, the ability to parlay your winnings by increasing your bets (low maximums) is removed. Unfortunately, when you play under these conditions, depletion of a low roller's bankroll in a matter of minutes is not uncommon.

So the long and short of it is this, Danny. Avoid playing high minimums/low maximums table limits like the plague!

The Mandalay Resort Group in Las Vegas will start a customer loyalty program for visitors to its various properties in early 2024. The Mandalay Resort Group will introduce a frequent gaming program for slot machine players next spring, said President Glenn Schaeffer. The Mandalay frequent gaming system will be one of the first allowing slot players to collect points at various company casinos, such as Circus Circus and Luxor, without re-registering their accounts separately at each property.

"This card is real time," Schaeffer said. "When you walk from one property to the next, you're instantly recognized at the next slot machine. We have slot programs now, but not that are on a real-time, intra-property basis."

The world's tallest, freestanding ferris wheel, Voyager, is coming to Las Vegas if a group of developers and designers have their way. Outland Development LLC is overseeing design and construction of the ferris wheel and is currently in negotiations for their preferred, as yet undisclosed site.

The gigantic wheel, which at 518 feet tall will stand taller than the Stratosphere Tower and the current world record holder the London Eye, won't be your ordinary fun fair ride. The wheel will spin at about 1-1/2 mph, and one trip around will take about a half hour. It will feature 35 cars seating 16 patrons with amenities such as a bar, restroom, Internet access and two way video cameras so riders can communicate with friends in other cars. Each car will have its own attendant. Construction of the Voyager would begin next year, with a completion date in early 2002.

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Our Lucaya on Grand Bahama Island celebrates its December 1 opening with rates as low as $99 per night through December 25. Major air carriers such as American Airlines/American Eagle, TWA and AirTran Airways have doubled the number of flights to the island to accommodate the resort's opening.

Our Lucaya spans a seven-and-a-half acre ribbon of sun-drenched white sand beaches with 1,350 Caribbean-influenced rooms, two acclaimed 18-hole golf courses, relaxing spa, 14 cuisine collections and watering holes, imaginative children's center and eclectic marketplace. But gamblers will have to hang on a bit longer until the casino debuts in late spring 2024. For more information, you can visit the resort's website www.ourlucaya.com

When you arrive at an online casino you'll see that you've got a choice to make: download or no-download. Here's how to make an informed decision.

No-download - This breed of gaming is usually pretty straightforward because you connect to the site, select your game, wait a minute while it loads and you're in business. Unless you've got an ancient computer, are running an old or non-standard browser, or are connecting to the web through a proxy or firewall you'll likely have no problems. Personally I've always preferred using no-download games on a fast link. For whatever reason speed seems to count more here than with download packages, over and above the initial download of course.

My parents and I recently returned from our trip to Las Vegas. We go there twice a year. We have been going to Vegas for about 6 years, and have been staying at a little talked about place on the strip, The Westward Ho. The casino is not big or fancy, but has a lot to offer. The rooms are simple but clean and the room rates are the best on the Strip, especially for preferred customers.

The staff is very friendly and helpful. The casino has many new machines and the promotions are great. This time they had drawings every hour. For people playing table games the prizes were 50 to 175 dollars. They are always doing different and varied promotions like this. They also have just opened a coffee shop where you can get a doughnut and coffee for a quarter and the coffee there is the world's best. They also have 2 places to eat that have a variety of food at good prices. I look forward to my next trip to Las Vegas and my next stay at the Westward Ho. - S. Kubasek

Send your trip reports to . If we publish your report you'll receive a certificate for 2 nights free accommodation redeemable at a number of U.S. destinations. Some blackout periods and other restrictions apply, but it's free!

What else can you do besides gamble and eat in Las Vegas? Check out the listings at LasVegasEventGuide.com where you'll find comprehensive day by day listings of not only shows but festivals, museums, children's events and more. The site is very easy to navigate. You can search by using the calendar or by specific venue, hotel or show name. The site gives links to all the hotels and show places and you can even book your tickets through their site. Visit them at www.las.vegas.eventguide.com

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Just before Christmas is a great time to travel to Las Vegas if you like to save a few bucks on your hotel room. In fact, December is the cheapest time of the year. As the temperature dips, so do room rates. At www.lvrs.com I noticed specials like $69 at the MGM Grand and $55 at Rio. I'll bet even better deals will be available if you shop around. Your editor, Steve Johnson,

See you next week!

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