So, you’ve been thinking about visiting the capital of Japan? That’s awesome! Tokyo is one of the coolest cities around, filled with highly technological marvels and sporting an amazing infrastructure. No matter what you want to do, I can assure you that Tokyo has what you’re looking for! If you want to indulge in a bit of history, then there’s plenty of temples, shrines and castles to contrast the otherwise highly technological city. There’s also lots of markets and other tourist attractions, so it’s a pretty safe bet to say that Tokyo is just one of those cities which has everything for everyone.

In case you’re interested in visiting a casino or something along those lines, I’m afraid I’ve got some pretty bad news for you – gambling is entirely illegal in Japan, and that obviously includes Tokyo. So make sure you play all the roulette and slots that you need before your plane departs! When it comes to gambling, there’s actually a bit of a trick that the Japanese use to get around the limitations. I’m talking, of course, about Pachinko machines. For those of you who don’t know, a Pachinko machine is more or less the Japanese version of a slot machine. A ball falls from the top of the machine, and it’s your job to manipulate it subtly and hope that it falls into one of the winning pockets. Since it’s technically classified as a videogame, it allows you to win prizes which you can later sell for money at a store close by.

Speaking of videogames, though, if you love these you’re going to have one hell of a time in Tokyo! As you may know, Japan is pretty much the mecca of videogames, and you can certainly see that when you visit its capital, which is chock-full of arcades and videogame stores! Remember – Japanese arcades are nothing like Western ones! Forget about the sticks and buttons, here you’re going to see all kinds of weird things, such as a game where you need to angrily flip a table (complete with a table controller) or a game where you punch a dinosaur straight in the face!

A lot of the videogame stores are located in the district known as Akihabara. Remember how I said that Japan was the mecca of videogames? Well, think of Akihabara as the mecca of all geeky things. Anime, manga, cosplay cafes, you name it, and it’s all here! You can buy figures of your favorite characters or replicas of weapons from your favorite anime series (though I wouldn’t do that if I were you – the plane ride back home would be a nightmare!) Or you can be like me and buy a dakimakura, or a body-sized pillow adorned with an anime character. I have my needs, okay?! And if all of that fails, well… There’s always Disneyland?

Macau is Asia’s gambling capital, there are no two ways about it, which is why it has earned itself the name “the Monte Carlo of the Orient”. There are 33 land-based casinos, of which The Venetian Macau is the biggest by far. It goes without saying that Macau’s tourism revolves solely around gambling, which makes for nearly 50% of the economy’s source of revenue. There are over 3400 slot machines and 800 tables on the premises of the casino, a truly impressive offering by any standards.
Owned by the Las Vegas Sands, The Venetian casino space spreads across 546,000 square feet and it’s divided into 4 gaming areas: Golden Fish, Imperial House, Red Dragon and Phoenix. A 39-story high masterpiece, with over 3000 guest rooms and the impressive Cotai Arena with 15,000 seats used for sports events and entertainment, The Venetian is the biggest casino in the world and Asia’s largest hotel resort. Having said that, you can imagine why the total cost of the building was over $2.4 billion and I have to admit that the joint venture between Aedas and HKS has truly designed and created one of the greatest buildings in the world.
The Venetian has won its first award the very same year of the opening date, in 2007 – Best Hotel in Macau, by Finance Asia Business Travel Poll and that was but the beginning of a long line of international recognitions and nominations. Speaking of which, 2014 has been a truly glorious year for the Venetian, having gathered 33 awards, among which ‘Macau’s Leading Casino Resort’, by the World Travel Awards, ‘The Best Luxury Resort in the World Reader’s Choice Awards’, by Travel + Leisure India, The Winner of 2014th Entertainment Sector by Sina.com / Weibo and many others. But last year’s awards seem to speak louder than all the others: ‘Best Hotel in Macau’ by DestinAsian Magazine and ‘Best Luxury Resort’ by Travel + Leisure India & South Asia.
But what I was personally really impressed with are the private gaming rooms in the Paiza Club – an exclusive club which caters to VIPs alone. These rooms bear the name of some of the greatest Asian cities and regions, such as Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. The amazing architecture and the luxurious furniture will make you feel like you have been teleported to a different era. You can imagine that the croupiers at the tables are just as classy as the surroundings and their manners and professionalism beats that of Las Vegas dealers by far if there is even room for such a comparison. So, if you get a chance to see this magnificent place, don’t pass on it, because this is indeed a once in a lifetime experience.

I decided to do my usual stuff this New Year again and visited the capital of Cambodia for a spin on the roulette tables. I stayed a week at the NagaWorld and the word I can use to describe it is “awesome”. I rented a Club Suite as I’m used to and really enjoyed it. The wing where my room was situated faced the river, and I could see it from my balcony. Despite my rich experience in casino resorts in Asia, this was my first time in the Mekong territory.

They say the name of the place is derived from Naga, the seven-headed dragon, that lived in the river and guarded the entrance to the town of Phnom Penh. It could only be seen when there was a rainbow. People thought it was a token of good luck to see the mythological creature. The modern-day casino and spa resort of NagaWorld is said to be like the pot of gold you expect to see at one end of the rainbow.

NagaWorld was opened in May 1995 and has made it to the top of Asian and world-class casino complexes. It has public and private gaming halls, various styles of interior and decoration to fit each taste and the integrated hospitality facilities are top level. Over 700 rooms and suites, nearly 20 places where you can have a meal or a drink in different environments and an amazing SPA centre – these are just some of the things with which the place can boast. Of course, I wasn’t able to visit all. I didn’t make it even to half of them. I stayed 4 hours a day in my room and spent all the rest of my time in one of the bars and the casino. The gaming areas also offer snacks and drinks, or I’d have starved. I never see dinners as a priority, so it’s lucky that casinos cater for people like me, too.

What do I recommend? The Garden Casino definitely. It’s one of the Public Halls of NagaWorld and you’ll find plenty to entertain you there. Tables for baccarat, roulette, Sic Bo and blackjack stand next to the Wheel of Fortune and the poker tables, plus, you can play the Asian typicals of Ngau Ham and Bai Buu. I loved it because of the “garden-like” feel to it. Plus, the games go at a normal speed there. You can try the Rapid gaming areas, where the tables offer a combination of live dealers and electronic terminals for faster enjoyment. But that’s not my thing. I love casino routine and the overall luxury of the place was impressive. My favourite roulette tables welcomed me with their usual clink and clank, with the typical smile of the dealer and held me for a total of 5 out of the 7 days I spent at the resort.

Honestly speaking, I prefer to gamble online, just like many others who love to stake large amounts and win big. And yet, it won’t be fair to not admit the quality of live experience I got at NagaWorld. The other 2 days’ aggregate time, when I wasn’t at the tables, I spent in very good company at the Darlin’ Darlin’ Club where the live band was one of kind. Anyway, that part of my holiday will remain totally private right now. I’ll just say that this wasn’t my last visit to this destination.

Hi, guys, and welcome to my first blog. Ever since I was allowed to visit them, I’ve been a big fan of land-based casinos and recently I became also a fan of online casinos as well. Gambling has long tradition in my family, so I was always fascinated by it and loved to take my chances playing different casino games. Considering my vast knowledge and experience, I decided that I’m finally advanced enough when it comes to games of chance so that I can give advice to other players and write reviews of different casinos and casino games. Here, I plan on sharing all the things that I’ve learned throughout the years I’ve been playing, this way hopefully helping at least a part of the new players.

While I do plan on covering some general topics about online and offline gambling as well, the thing that I will certainly focus most on will be gambling in Asia. This is due to the fact that, as I mentioned on the About Me page, ever since I was little, I’ve been travelling around the continent with my family and, ever since I was of legal age to gamble there, I’ve been playing at every casino that I had access to. Therefore, this is the topic that I’m most competent about and it makes sense that I write about. As I already mentioned, only recently did I start playing online, so I’m still figuring out the particularities of this side of gambling, but maybe having my perspective as a new online player will be valuable to some people, so I will definitely write about that too. But I think that it makes most sense that the first article I write is more general, covering the topic of what to look for in a casino, be it online or offline. You can expect that article in the coming weeks.