I loved Binion's until they got bought out by Harrah's Entertainment in 2004. It was the classic downtown casino for me.
It was a great place to learn how to play craps, especially when they had $0.50 craps - with the ugly brown chips and crusty old local dudes that were always so grumpy and serious, as they were pissing away their social security checks down here. Ahh, the old days...
Much of the old charm of Binion's has been replaced by the "corporate" culture of Harrah's. If I had to spend time downtown, I'd either play at Golden Nugget (see: http://www.yelp.com/biz/BIBWGO_r_1znnlmLbp4Nxg ), which feels more like the upscale action on the Strip, or Main Street Station (see: http://www.yelp.com/biz/if59L5DHM4pPMrCx9HuD8A ), which I believe has the BEST ambiance because of old cowboy western theme. Unfortunately, Binion's has lost it's charm and appeal in it's later days.
Pros:
+ convenient parking
+ free parking validation by the cage
+ low ceilings
Cons:
- can be extremely smokey
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