Panama City

[GauntMan]

First my fellow board members you are correct about BlackJack here in PTY. It is almost all csm. Hotel Panama is pretty good with two hand shuffle games. That being said I agree now that 10 k was aggressive. I am down a little but I chalk it up to learning experience. Now onto the chicas.

Got to the 2nd floor casino bar at Venetto at 6 after fucking around with rooms and room keys for an hour. Only 3 or 4 ladies. None that I was interested in but a couple sat down and chatted up their offerings. One was a big girl but I didn't have my beer goggles on so it was a nice talk. She was here from Cuba. Don't recall her name. I had a couple Atlas beers for 2. 30. Nice! Switched to grey goose and red bull and the price was pretty high by any standard at 13. Walked to manolos but had a rude waiter so I didn't stay. It was now around 7:30 and I walked to Habanos which only had a few ladies but much higher quality.

Martha joined me for a drink. We got a cab back to V and she was my first. We went back downstairs after our in room activities and had a drink. I was on the red bull and vodka for the remainder of the night. Martha left to go back to Habanos and I had a steady stream of ladies. Next was a cute girl that I cannot remember her name and we went up for round 2. I came back down and that's when I lost my learning money at Veneto BJ. By now it was around 11.

A couple notes. Marta asked for 200 but gladly took 100 for one hour. Girl 2 from Veneto took 100. The cab from Habanos back to V was 6. Some cabbies wanted 10. Girls at V were plentiful and I thought very good looking as my expectations were lowered from RTF. I digress.

Onto the rest of the night. I pull another one for tln for 200 but I had her leave around 3 am. I had a great night. Paid / lost more than I wanted but who cares. Drinks were almost as much as the ladies. It's the beginning of day two. Stay tuned.

H1.

6 bucks for a cab!! To V from H? That should have been no more than 3!! If they want to charge you like 10, and if you can speak some spanish, tell them, Tengo cara de gringo o que? goes for Do I look like a gringo or what? that should get a laugh from them and can either get you the right fee or [CodeWord140] them off

[Hobbiest1]

First my fellow board members you are correct about BlackJack here in PTY. It is almost all csm. Hotel Panama is pretty good with two hand shuffle games. That being said I agree now that 10 k was aggressive. I am down a little but I chalk it up to learning experience. Now onto the chicas.

Got to the 2nd floor casino bar at Venetto at 6 after fucking around with rooms and room keys for an hour. Only 3 or 4 ladies. None that I was interested in but a couple sat down and chatted up their offerings. One was a big girl but I didn't have my beer goggles on so it was a nice talk. She was here from Cuba. Don't recall her name. I had a couple Atlas beers for 2. 30. Nice! Switched to grey goose and red bull and the price was pretty high by any standard at 13. Walked to manolos but had a rude waiter so I didn't stay. It was now around 7:30 and I walked to Habanos which only had a few ladies but much higher quality.

Martha joined me for a drink. We got a cab back to V and she was my first. We went back downstairs after our in room activities and had a drink. I was on the red bull and vodka for the remainder of the night. Martha left to go back to Habanos and I had a steady stream of ladies. Next was a cute girl that I cannot remember her name and we went up for round 2. I came back down and that's when I lost my learning money at Veneto BJ. By now it was around 11.

A couple notes. Marta asked for 200 but gladly took 100 for one hour. Girl 2 from Veneto took 100. The cab from Habanos back to V was 6. Some cabbies wanted 10. Girls at V were plentiful and I thought very good looking as my expectations were lowered from RTF. I digress.

Onto the rest of the night. I pull another one for tln for 200 but I had her leave around 3 am. I had a great night. Paid / lost more than I wanted but who cares. Drinks were almost as much as the ladies. It's the beginning of day two. Stay tuned.

H1.

[MarianoRiv]

Hotel Panama is the best place to play black jack in any country or casino I have ever been in. Has the best odds of any casino which favor the customer. Can double down on any 11. Even if its a 3 or 4 card 11. Not just first 2 cards.

Automatic win for a 5 card non bust without the Ace. I guess when we were kids we called it 5 card charley.

Can split Aces as many times as you like. Can surrender and other quirks I am forgetting.

They have a lucky Player card and other promotions like Joker in deck pays $50 etc. They hand shuffle.

Do not play in the front go to the back area that is where the hand shuffled games are.

Let me preface this by saying the last time I was there about 10 months ago, they were starting to change tables around and move slot machines around. So they may have switched things up. I'm not sure.

Also, No offense Hobbiest but, I am always skeptical at anyone who says they do well for themselves or consistently make money playing BJ. If you or I or anyone else were that good and we could make $10,000 in a weeklong trip I know speaking for myself I would be doing it as a job. There are very few (probably less than 100) people in the world who can actually make money consistently and a living playing BJ. Hope you get lucky and make money in panama but, that is really what it will boil down to no matter where you play. Luck.

Now this is a great post! I'm sorry that I can't confirm these rules, because I don't think these rules were in effect last November when I was there, but if this game is available with these rules, they are excellent. I mean, shit, if you find some promotion where there is a joker in the deck worth $50, you have an advantage starting off at the top of the deck! Not to mention all those other good rules, too!

I must agree with Mfins' assessment that it was eyebrow-raising and surprising to read such an optimistic expectation of such a big win (10 k). I think there is one scenario where this could be possible (legally). And that it that if someone were a very "high roller" then they can play extremely high limits in the Trump VIP casino (on the 66th floor). Table max was $5,000! But that is machine shuffled, and would entail playing at a disadvantage. No skill involved, just trying to get a lucky win.

[MarianoRiv]

You are correct. The games with a shoe and not a machine reshuffling are not Blackjack but in fact variants of it which are rarely worth playing. The odds tend to be bad in those variants.

Thanks YippieKayay, I think you are right about that, definitely at the Continental hotel, and almost all the other places, too. I was surprised that the Veneto had one pit (the one close to the bar / elevator area) where there were no shuffling machines at any of the tables, including blackjack. It seemed like that pit was only open on busy weekend nights, but there were a few blackjack games there, along with the blackjack variant game. In addition, I saw at least one or two weak shuffles there. The El Panama hotel (Crown Casino) had one good game, but in general I don't think there is too much out there. For example, I didn't see anything good in the Trump casino, although that is a rather nice place! (Also, I was surprised to read here that some chicas are working there now! Good for them!

[Mfins]

I guess I would rather just play reds and not get undue attention and just have fun. As you know not every single hand will be reds so I could probably get away with some $50/$100 bets and doubles on those. FYI am a hole carder / counter so I tend to do pretty good for myself. I will def. Check out the Continental hotel area. Thanks Mariano!

Hotel Panama is the best place to play black jack in any country or casino I have ever been in. Has the best odds of any casino which favor the customer. Can double down on any 11. Even if its a 3 or 4 card 11. Not just first 2 cards.

Automatic win for a 5 card non bust without the Ace. I guess when we were kids we called it 5 card charley.

Can split Aces as many times as you like. Can surrender and other quirks I am forgetting.

They have a lucky Player card and other promotions like Joker in deck pays $50 etc. They hand shuffle.

Do not play in the front go to the back area that is where the hand shuffled games are.

Let me preface this by saying the last time I was there about 10 months ago, they were starting to change tables around and move slot machines around. So they may have switched things up. I'm not sure.

Also, No offense Hobbiest but, I am always skeptical at anyone who says they do well for themselves or consistently make money playing BJ. If you or I or anyone else were that good and we could make $10,000 in a weeklong trip I know speaking for myself I would be doing it as a job. There are very few (probably less than 100) people in the world who can actually make money consistently and a living playing BJ. Hope you get lucky and make money in panama but, that is really what it will boil down to no matter where you play. Luck.

[YippieKayay]

Now that I think about it, the hand-shuffled games at the casino in the Continental hotel might be only on the blackack variant, "Canal 21. "

You are correct. The games with a shoe and not a machine reshuffling are not Blackjack but in fact variants of it which are rarely worth playing. The odds tend to be bad in those variants.

[MarianoRiv]

I guess I would rather just play reds and not get undue attention and just have fun. As you know not every single hand will be reds so I could probably get away with some $50/$100 bets and doubles on those. FYI am a hole carder / counter so I tend to do pretty good for myself. I will def. Check out the Continental hotel area. Thanks Mariano!

Now that I think about it, the hand-shuffled games at the casino in the Continental hotel might be only on the blackack variant, "Canal 21. " But yeah, check out that casino. Also check the casino in the El Panama hotel, behind the Veneto. I don't remember seeing anything interesting at the Sortis casino or in the Royal Casino (across from Habano's), but you might as well check out the Royal casino, since you may be visiting Habano's nearby! Try to check out some of the other casinos further away, if you're interested, but I didn't see too much out there. The Veneto has good potential if they open that secondary pit near the bar. No hole-carding opportunities on blackjack, as the dealer does not take a hole card in Panama.

Table max is $200. The reason I said that even red chip action will get attention is because you might have $1,000 or more in chips on the table, and that is a lot, by Panama standards. Same with bets of $100-200. They won't necessarily sweat the action, but will definitely take notice. You might even get "lucky" enough to have an experience with a chip-hustler next to you! Woohoo!

[Hobbiest1]

I guess I would rather just play reds and not get undue attention and just have fun. As you know not every single hand will be reds so I could probably get away with some $50/$100 bets and doubles on those. FYI am a hole carder / counter so I tend to do pretty good for myself. I will def. Check out the Continental hotel area. Thanks Mariano!

Hey Hobbiest1,

It is not completely clear to me if you are a skilled player or not? Are you? Can you provide some information about your background? I will assume you are a skilled player and say a few related things.

First, be aware that CSMs are the norm. Not many hand-shuffled games, but there are some around. When I was at the Veneto, the pit that is closest to the bar used hand-shuffled games, but the other pits did not -- those had machine shufflers only. And that one pit closest to the bar was only open a few days out of the week. Their main pit was the one that was further away from the bar.

Green chip action will make you stand out. You WILL be noticed, and will receive attention, not only from the pit personnel, but from chip-hustlers, too. Do not be surprised if you are approached by women who might sit next to you and try to get some of your chips, one way or the other. Even if you are spreading from $5-200 you will get attention. The heat would be about the same as playing $25 min. The definitive write-up on Veneto chip hustling in on the Wizard of Odds website. (Google it to read the article.).

I was there last year, and there were good games around, but not much. But definitely do as much scouting as you can. Things might have changed since then. Check the casino at the Continental hotel, and those casinos around there, but try to check out some others, too, like the one in the mall, on the 4th floor, next to the Hard Rock hotel. Keep your eyes open for promotions.

I did not see any beatable games in terms of shuffle-tracking or hole-carding, but did see a few games with regard to counting.

Can I ask how you arrived at your 10 k win in a week? What did you determine your E. V. Was? If it's $100/ HR, then you will have to get in 100 hours to have an E. V. Of 10 k, and you won't be able to get in 100 hours of playing time in a week.

If you can elaborate more on your game and your background, I can break it down more.

[RacShack]

Wow, I remember back in the day (5 years ago) I used to call the escalator going up to casino (Venito) "stair way to heaven", can't believe now it's like going up to hell, this place has 0 customer service,(not that it was ever that good) but now seems like staff goes out of their way to make sure you leave their not happy! I don't get it it could be such a gold mine, tonight no AC in casino, big water leak in men's restroom from ceiling, floors and walls disgusting, can't get a drink at table period, Pitt boss was a rude -that's being nice ' fucking girls ask for a drink before even asking your name, what a shame, can't make this shit up, really almost not a good place at all, you will see a couple of chumps that never been their and even them have fake smiles on, boy if anybody know how it used to be to now, Mon night pulled a girl out of their with a good smile all around nice 22 yr old Cuban ,100, get her back to apt half ass massage, tried to put condom on for BJ after making it clear before leaving, she kept trying to get out of going into shower, bingo finally I see why. A scar from hip to hip not just a reg scar, but huge, from bad lipo suction from Cuba, I think her name was Nancy, stay clear! So far all my girls have been pulled from trump casino and parking lot, it's very discreet but their around!

[MarianoRiv]

I have played around the world and I am a high Roller in Vegas at the Hard Rock. I am not looking to make the big kill here but I am staying at Veneto and the things I need to know:

1. Table Limits. I do NOT want to stand out in the crowd. Is $25 a safe table minimum or is it $5?

2. Continuous shuffle or hand shuffle. I want hand shuffle. Where and how do I find it?

3. I have studied the odds for PTY and expect to win big but that's all relative so I want to stay under the radar but bring home about 10 k in 1 week. Thoughts?

4. Additional. You tell me.

I have been around the tables for a long time and understand the game. Any insights are appreciated!

H1.

Hey Hobbiest1,

It is not completely clear to me if you are a skilled player or not? Are you? Can you provide some information about your background? I will assume you are a skilled player and say a few related things.

First, be aware that CSMs are the norm. Not many hand-shuffled games, but there are some around. When I was at the Veneto, the pit that is closest to the bar used hand-shuffled games, but the other pits did not -- those had machine shufflers only. And that one pit closest to the bar was only open a few days out of the week. Their main pit was the one that was further away from the bar.

Green chip action will make you stand out. You WILL be noticed, and will receive attention, not only from the pit personnel, but from chip-hustlers, too. Do not be surprised if you are approached by women who might sit next to you and try to get some of your chips, one way or the other. Even if you are spreading from $5-200 you will get attention. The heat would be about the same as playing $25 min. The definitive write-up on Veneto chip hustling in on the Wizard of Odds website. (Google it to read the article.).

I was there last year, and there were good games around, but not much. But definitely do as much scouting as you can. Things might have changed since then. Check the casino at the Continental hotel, and those casinos around there, but try to check out some others, too, like the one in the mall, on the 4th floor, next to the Hard Rock hotel. Keep your eyes open for promotions.

I did not see any beatable games in terms of shuffle-tracking or hole-carding, but did see a few games with regard to counting.

Can I ask how you arrived at your 10 k win in a week? What did you determine your E. V. Was? If it's $100/ HR, then you will have to get in 100 hours to have an E. V. Of 10 k, and you won't be able to get in 100 hours of playing time in a week.

If you can elaborate more on your game and your background, I can break it down more.

[TellAll]

I am in Panama city now if anyone wants to get together for a few, give me a shout. Definately not Asia.

[RacShack]

Right, I meant go upstairs to departures, not arrivals which obviously you just arrived. My bad. Anyway, you schmucks are paying WAY too much for cabs and you need to stop doing that. The cab fares are regulated and if you are too chickenshit to call these cab drivers on how they constantly rip you off, I just don't understand it. Again, let's look at what gas prices have done recently Ummmm, they have gone down. That means cab drivers are doing well compared to the last few years. So get your shit together.

Landed last night, worked like a dream, first guy said 30 ,I laughed, cab right behind him said 25 ,I said 15 he said ok off to the trump! I got in late at 2 am spirit flight, got one right in front of trump, she wanted 200 , worked her down to 100 right up to the apt, Cuban girl 19 hot, excellent service BBBJ, awesome fuck, called it the night, funny shit I'm staying on 36th floor, get up early to go by pool, open door hot hot girl from Cali walking out apt one door down from mine (super hot) said Hi on her way by, started talking she wanted 200, offered 100 bam nailed it, though her in hot shower together, another awesome BBBJ, even better fuck several dif positions 'stayed like 2 hrs, hit it off well going to pool with her tomorrow! Haven't been here in almost 3 years didn't think I was got to be crazy about, but must say so far a awesome start to a trip!

[GauntMan]

So just a point of clarification as I have not been thru Tocumen before. Upstairs is DEPARTURES and not arrivals. That makes more sense to me but please confirm or assist.

Thanks!!

See you all on Thursday!

H1.

Yep! Upstairs is departures o viajeros de salida, when you get out of panama, youll be in departures and when arriving to panama, downstairs in arrivals.

[Hobbiest1]

I have played around the world and I am a high Roller in Vegas at the Hard Rock. I am not looking to make the big kill here but I am staying at Veneto and the things I need to know:

1. Table Limits. I do NOT want to stand out in the crowd. Is $25 a safe table minimum or is it $5?

2. Continuous shuffle or hand shuffle. I want hand shuffle. Where and how do I find it?

3. I have studied the odds for PTY and expect to win big but that's all relative so I want to stay under the radar but bring home about 10 k in 1 week. Thoughts?

4. Additional. You tell me.

I have been around the tables for a long time and understand the game. Any insights are appreciated!

H1.

[Hobbiest1]

This is true, you can walk upstairs to the departure area and catch a cab for as low as $12, which is the fee for regular yellow cabs from anywhere in the city towards the airport and viceversa.

So just a point of clarification as I have not been thru Tocumen before. Upstairs is DEPARTURES and not arrivals. That makes more sense to me but please confirm or assist.

Thanks!!

See you all on Thursday!

H1.