Comparing the casinos in Cannes to the casinos in Nice is like comparing Beverly Hills to the Bronx. The main casinos in Nice remind me of the old "sawdust joints" in which I worked many years ago on the East Coast. Those were what we called "come as you are clubs," with no rugs on the floor and a very casual atmosphere. If you want to visit a beautiful French casino, go to Cannes and forget about the casinos in Nice, unless you're bored to death and have nothing else to do. They really aren't much. The casino owners seem to know this because they promote people to come into the casinos by slipping free passes under hotel room doors or by giving them out at the hotels. So if you ask around a bit, you may be able to get into a Nice club free, but even then there are much prettier things to see than the not-so-nice Nice casinos.
The two main casinos also charge a 7 franc admission, if you can't get a free pass, and they do require a sports coat and tie at night. The clubs are the Casino Club and the Palais de la Mediterranean.
Palais de la Mediterranean: a large white marble building with large pillars in front. Looks like a government building. There are seventy one marble steps up to the casino. Each step is large and wide, and they seem to get bigger and bigger as you near the top. A power lift is available if you have a weak heart or weak knees. The main casino, which looks like a big marble barn, has two American 21 games; two Australian Bank Craps tables, two American wheels, two French wheels, and five chemin de fer games. Much larger in space than most Vegas casinos. The 21 dealers are inexperienced and deal out of old, beat-up wooden shoes. The cards are French cards and look as if they were made when the Roman Empire was still controlling the world. Some of the cards looked like the soles of an old pair of shoes I bought before World War II.
Minimum Casino Bet
Ten franc minimum on 21 and 1.000 franc maximum on craps the minimum bet is 10 francs on the Win line. Don't come line. Come line, Don't Pass, and Field. The maximum bet is 1.000 francs. Maximum for the Big 6 and 8 is 1.000 francs; any seven 250 francs. A "horn bet" has a maximum of 250 francs and it pays 4 to 2, which is outlandish because in most other casinos you get much higher odds. It shouldn't even be on the layout. 100 franc maximum on 3 and 11, 100 franc maximum on any crap, 150 franc maximum on hard ways. Other proposition bets have maximum bets ranging from 100 francs to 150 francs. Place bets have 1.000 franc maximum; placing the 4, 5, 9 and 10 has a 1.000 franc maximum and placing the 6 and 8 has a 1,200 franc maximum. In the Australian tournament the wheels have a 10 franc minimum.
On the lower level, there are three 21 games two 30-40 games with a 10 franc minimum and a 10.000 franc maximum and three French wheels which average from a minimum of 5 francs to a maximum of 5.000 francs. The two American-style wheels have 000" and "00" on them which the French people don't like. This club is strictly what we call a "grind store." A player shouldn't spend too much time or money here because if he gets hooked he'll have a hard time getting out. online casino Club: About a twenty-minute drive by taxi from hotel row.
