The Jaragua Casino in SD...things to beware

Larry

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Mar 22, 2002
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What prompted me to create this thread is the growing number of people I see complaing about the exchange rate they get when changing money in the Jaragua Casino. DO NOT change money in this casino. They will shortchange you about 10% on whatever the going rate is. They can do this because they deal with a lot of tourists who either are unaware of the actual rate or simply do not care as they are on vacation and want the convienence of changing money there.

Another thing to beware is that this casino is crawling with theives. Many of the girls hanging around the tables are prostitutes and are looking to either pickpocket you or steal your chips. They are bold and will steal your chips directly off the table if you are not looking. The security cameras turn a blind eye to this activity as do the dealers. I am not completely sure why although I suspect that security and staff are in cahoots with the theives and recieve kickbacks from money stolen off patrons. I can't come up with any other logical explaination.

Lastly and least important is the general lack of professionalism and general incompetence of those working at the casino. I am mainly speaking of the table dealers and wait staff. The table dealers do a poor job and frequently make mistakes and the waitresses are unfriendly and service is poor.

I live 2 blocks from the Jaragua and I occasionally wander in there as it is so close to home and convienent for me but I always leave annoyed. For a much better, cleaner, more professional casino in the area I recommend the casino at the Hilton on the Malecon just past Maximo Gomez.

Larry
 
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Mirador

On Permanent Vacation!
Apr 15, 2004
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You're a gambling man...

You got to know when to hold ?em, know when to fold ?em,
Know when to walk away and know when to run.
You never count your money when you?re sittin? at the table.
There?ll be time enough for countin? when the dealin?s done.

(Lyrics by Kenny Rogers)

-
 

RHM

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Sep 23, 2002
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I have to agree with Larry. I used to play a great deal of Black Jack at the Jaragua (a few years ago) but got extremely turned off. They let anybody in...non-players sit at the tables...people are loud, obnoxious and disrespectful. The staff is poorly trained.

Avoid at all costs...go to the Hilton in the new Malecon Center. It is cleaner, nicer and the staff is excellent.

Scandall
 
Sep 19, 2005
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hmmm. thnaks for the tip Larry. since me and my gf like to go to the casino for fun, we try to stop in if there is one in the town we are staying in.

the Gran Almirante is one I go to the most and I see that the waitstaff seldom if ever has a smile. they are not rude, they are professional and polite. But they just dont smile! Same goes for a lot of the dealers. we have to prod them to smile once in a while!...they know how to do it..maybe they never get people that want to talk nice to them, and only complain when they open theri mouth. It is just amazing how if you payed attention to all the people that work there how LITTLE any of them smile.

I will say that the dealers( at least on the roulette tables) are really on the ball. They move people off the table just sitting there watching if someone looks like they want to play. At the jack Tar casino in playa dorado they are very strict there it seemed on the few time sI went there....they would let a guy wear a hat in there, and they told a guy to button up his shirt as well.

there are a few really nice looking girls who wait at the Al mirante in santiago.

and while i see a few women who may be ladies of the night.. they all seem to be there to GAMBLE, not work the patrons...

How many casinos in Santo Domingo?.. and is it that most of you will only recomend the one already mentioned?

Bob
 

Larry

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Mar 22, 2002
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laurapasinifan said:
How many casinos in Santo Domingo?.. and is it that most of you will only recomend the one already mentioned?

Bob

Bob,

I have only been inside 3 casinos here in SD. The above 2 I mentioned and the one ine Hotel Naco. The only one I recommend is the one in the Hilton. I used to go to Hotel Naco casino to play poker but the players were all Dominican and had absolutely no concept of table etiquette. They would all smack the table, yell, throw cards disrespectfully towards the dealer.....things that would surely get you thrown out of a casino in USA and strong words of reprimand from other players at the table leading up to your eviction. These are obviously Dominicans with money too as they were all well dressed and there was a decent amount of money on the table. I refuse to play with people who act like that at a poker table and I was embarrased to be sitting there with them. The only poker table I have found in this country where I will sit at is Breezes in cabetere. It also dosen't hurt that that table at Breexes has been very good to my wallet :).

Larry
 
Amen Larry how come you waited so long to let us know about this place??? You could have told me before they threw me out of there in Febuary for arguing with a dealer who 4 times couldn't count and tried to take my money when i beat her all 4 times!!!! I dont think they do it intentionally, they just cant count

Badpiece
 

Musicqueen

Miami Nice!
Jan 31, 2002
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If you guys want to gamble...why don't you just GO TO LAS VEGAS???

I think only fools would go into a casino in DR of all places!!! Of course the dealers will **** you off...they DON'T know how to count...or don't you know that the majority of Dominicans have very little education? DO you THINK the people that work in those casinos are any better??? Come on...you should know better!!!

As for the wait staff...anywhere...(oh, maybe except in some AI's) they are not trained at all on customer service...they could care less if you leave them a tip or not...they don't know that the tip goes according to the way they treat you!!!

Guys...come on...there are MUCH BETTER things to do in DR than going to a place where you KNOW they WILL STEAL your money!!! :(

They have your permission, basically...you are just handing it over to them...right there on the tables...

MQ
 
Sep 19, 2005
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MQ, I doubt anyone goes to the DR to gamble it just a side attraction thats RIGHT there for the taking. And i bet for the most part its just certain casinos where there are issues. In the Gran Almirante, I have never heard a commotion over at the black jack tables, and they are always full! I have walked around while my gf plays roulette and have watched the Black jack tables at times. I never have seen a problem so far. I think the dealers are pretty sharp there. Only once have I seen where the dealer might have messed up. that was in Puerto Plata and the girl said she had some chips on a spot in roulette. i told her just demand to see the video. the guy thought she was lying. They brought the floor boss over and in about 20 mminutes they came back and admited she had won. they cleared the table, put her chips on the number put the ball in the number on the wheel spun the wheel, and paid her!!!!!!!! I had heard some casinos where bad down in the DR, with corruption you knw it has to happen. But the big houses know they dont have to do that to make maoney. they just need to make people keep coming back. and you do that by not pizzing the customers off

bob
 

Larry

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Mar 22, 2002
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Musicqueen said:
Guys...come on...there are MUCH BETTER things to do in DR than going to a place where you KNOW they WILL STEAL your money!!! :(

They have your permission, basically..

MQ


I dont know what you are talking about. I started the thread to warn people. Tourists do not "know they will steal your money" here as you stated. On the contrary, any tourist would expect that a place as nice as the Jaragua would be run properly, be safe and completely legitimate. I have been in casinos on cruise ships where the dealers and wait staff were completely professional and competent AND the vast majority of them were from 3rd world countries. So, arguing that I should expect casino staff to be incompetent because that casino is located in a third world country is rediculous.

And no they do not "have my permission" to steal my money as you say. That statement is rediculous. The casino in the Hilton is a 10 minute walk from the Jaragua and the staff is excellent there and the casino security does not let the riff raff you find in the Jaragua into the Hilton. So don't tell me to go to Vegas MQ...go back to your sankie threads where you have some insight to add.

Larry
 
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RHM

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The only correction I would make is that the Jaragua is NOT a nice place, but it used to be. They have lost a lot of their business because it has sunk pretty low. They let anyone wander in from the street. Prostitutes and scumbags outnumber customers.

Go to the new Hilton. It is far superior to the Jaragua in every category.

Scandall
 

sweetdbt

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Sep 17, 2004
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Here's the one and only difference between a "good" casino and a "bad" casino. A "good" casino presents a facade of friendliness, competence, security and fairness while they are cleverly and professionally seperating you from your money! Therefore, you stick around longer and let them take you for more.
 

RHM

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sweetdbt said:
Here's the one and only difference between a "good" casino and a "bad" casino. A "good" casino presents a facade of friendliness, competence, security and fairness while they are cleverly and professionally seperating you from your money! Therefore, you stick around longer and let them take you for more.


Any experienced gambler knows this, Sweetdbt. But they go because they like the overall experience. Personally, I like the atmosphere in a well-run casino. But the Jaragua is now a pit of vipers and their days are numbered.

The Hilton is much, much cleaner. It is more modern and the service comes with a smile. People look for a positive experience, regardless of winning or losing.

Scandall
 
Sep 19, 2005
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Scandall said:
Any experienced gambler knows this, Sweetdbt. But they go because they like the overall experience. Personally, I like the atmosphere in a well-run casino. But the Jaragua is now a pit of vipers and their days are numbered.

The Hilton is much, much cleaner. It is more modern and the service comes with a smile. People look for a positive experience, regardless of winning or losing.

Scandall
excellent!
the jist of the point scandal!!!!!!!

people know winning is not a constant and most go for the fun, with the hopes of a lucky day.

bob
 

Musicqueen

Miami Nice!
Jan 31, 2002
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Larry said:
I dont know what you are talking about. I started the thread to warn people. Tourists do not "know they will steal your money" here as you stated. On the contrary, any tourist would expect that a place as nice as the Jaragua would be run properly, be safe and completely legitimate. I have been in casinos on cruise ships where the dealers and wait staff were completely professional and competent AND the vast majority of them were from 3rd world countries. So, arguing that I should expect casino staff to be incompetent because that casino is located in a third world country is rediculous.

And no they do not "have my permission" to steal my money as you say. That statement is rediculous. The casino in the Hilton is a 10 minute walk from the Jaragua and the staff is excellent there and the casino security does not let the riff raff you find in the Jaragua into the Hilton. So don't tell me to go to Vegas MQ...go back to your sankie threads where you have some insight to add.

Larry

You love to twist things around to try and make a point, don't you?

I wasn't talking about 'third world countries' or anything like that...I meant casinos as a whole...anywhere in the world...they are just big houses where you go deposit your money on a table or a slot and just look at it dissapear!!!

But your answers just proves my point...only dumb people go to casinos...especially when travelling to another country ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD...instead of going to absorb the culture and sightsee...

And stop the damn offenses with the sankie crap...Or are you another one that has been 'sankiefied' and feels ashamed to admit it?:devious:

MQ
 

RHM

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Musicqueen said:
But your answers just proves my point...only dumb people go to casinos...especially when travelling to another country ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD...instead of going to absorb the culture and sightsee...

Painting with a pretty broad brush, MQ? Did you bother reading any of the other posts about why people play?

Scandall
 

HOWMAR

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Jan 28, 2004
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Musicqueen said:
pear!!!

But your answers just proves my point...only dumb people go to casinos...
MQ
At least the casinos give you a small chance to end up with a few pesos left. Sankies?????
 

rellosk

Silver
Mar 18, 2002
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Larry said:
DO NOT change money in this casino. They will shortchange you about 10% on whatever the going rate is. They can do this because they deal with a lot of tourists who either are unaware of the actual rate or simply do not care as they are on vacation and want the convienence of changing money there.
This is nothing new, most Casinos (and Hotels) have always given bad exchange rates, especially at the gaming tables. Although a 10% differential is quite high.
Larry said:
Another thing to beware is that this casino is crawling with theives. Many of the girls hanging around the tables are prostitutes and are looking to either pickpocket you or steal your chips. They are bold and will steal your chips directly off the table if you are not looking. The security cameras turn a blind eye to this activity as do the dealers. I am not completely sure why although I suspect that security and staff are in cahoots with the theives and recieve kickbacks from money stolen off patrons.
Do you have any first hand experience with this? It sounds like some tourist picked up a prostitute, got drunk, and had his chips stolen by his escort. I find it hard to believe that the Jaragua would be in cahoots with the thieves.
 
Sep 19, 2005
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hey rellosk i dont find that to be totally true. I have exchanges money every month since last summer down there and I have also gone to the casino at the gran almirante and exchanged money. the two times I remember what the rate was( I wasnt about to walk out of the casino to go find another place to exchange the 100 dollar bills i had, since I was only looking to cash in three of them. The rate was exactly what i got elsewhere. I got 34.5 once!.....over semana santa i got 32 even.... that seems to be the going rate. I cant say much bad about that casino.. I enjoy it, and have had no problems there at all.

bob
 

Larry

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Mar 22, 2002
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rellosk said:
Do you have any first hand experience with this? It sounds like some tourist picked up a prostitute, got drunk, and had his chips stolen by his escort. I find it hard to believe that the Jaragua would be in cahoots with the thieves.


I have seen hookers steal chips from other players stacks at the blackjack tables in the Jaragua. Once, the dealer saw that I saw and she did nothing. I said nothing as it was none of my business, and I live here and don't want these people to decide I am their enemy. The security cameras MUST see this activity going on but they obviously do nothing. That's why I am speculating that they are involved...I really do not know.

Now, the last few times I have gone in there, I was very aware of those around me after what I had witnessed during previous visits. Anyway, I was playing blackjack recently and a Dominican girl sat next to me and started playing. I paid very close attention to her hands and at one point when she thought I wasn't looking, right before the dealer dealt the cards and after I had placed my 200 pesos bet.... as quick as a cat, she took a chip of the top of my pile in front of me and added it to MY bet. She did this to see if I noticed...if I hadn't noticed, the next time it would have been added to her pile. I immediately turned to her and said DONT TOUCH MY CHIPS! She looked bewildered and replied "I put it on your bet, I didn't take it"! And so I said it again...DONT TOUCH MY ****ING CHIPS!! So, she got up and found someone else to sit next to at another table. I think they do this all the time.

Larry
 

Malibook

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Jan 23, 2002
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Musicqueen said:
...only dumb people go to casinos...especially when travelling to another country ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD...instead of going to absorb the culture and sightsee...
MQ
If you were referring to people who spend most of their time and lose money they can't afford, I would agree with you.
Since this is not your point, I will simply consider the ludicrous source of the "dumb" comment and not give it a second thought.:tired: :rolleyes: