US Casino Advantage spent three nights in Colorado casino towns in August 2024. We spent the first two nights at Ameristar in Black Hawk. While in Black Hawk, we also visited Central City. On the last night, we stayed at Chamonix in Cripple Creek. That is the new hotel attached to Bronco Billy’s.
Four Cripple Creek casinos deal live table games. Pits are available at Bronco Billy’s, Brass Ass, Century, and Golden Nugget. If you enjoy coin video poker, Johnny Nolon’s and Colorado Grande have some of these types of games. Johnny Nolon’s has coin reel slots up to the $5 denomination. Midnight Rose hosts Cripple Creek’s only live poker room.
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Bronco Billy’s and Chamonix
Most of Bronco Billy’s remains the same as it has been for years. The table games moved from the north end of the casino. The pit is now closer to the middle of the casino. We visited on a Sunday and Monday and never saw the tables open on the Bronco Billy’s side.
However, there were electronic table game options on the Bronco Billy’s side. Heads-up blackjack pays 6/5 for a $1 minimum bet. It also offers two side bets. Craps has a $1 minimum if playing the multiplayer version. This game also pays triple on field 12. The heads-up version only pays double on a field 12. It has a $3 minimum. There are also two multiplayer 00 roulette machines with $3 minimums.
The Chamonix side of the casino is completely new. It replaced the bar room closest to the hotel and added casino floor space that is almost the same size as Bronco Billy’s. The two brands are seamlessly connected with the Chamonix side more luxurious. Chamonix also includes a lounge and a fine-dining restaurant.
The table games we saw open on the Chamonix side all had a $10 minimum bet. The options are 10x craps, double zero roulette, 3/2 six-deck blackjack, 3/2 Double Up Blackjack, Three Card Poker, and Ultimate Texas Hold’em. Bronco Billy’s video poker is the worst in Cripple Creek.
Golden Nugget Cripple Creek
We stopped at Golden Nugget as we arrived at Cripple Creek. It was called Wildwood the last time we were in town. A parking deck is now available for casino guests. At 9593 feet, Golden Nugget in Cripple Creek is the highest casino in terms of elevation in the world.
Like Bronco Billy’s, the table games were all $10, except 3/2 six-deck blackjack was $15. Other table games include 3/2 Double Up Blackjack, 3/2 six-deck blackjack, baccarat, double zero roulette, Mississippi Stud, Three Card Poker, and Ultimate Texas Hold’em. The only electronic table game option is multiplayer 00 roulette. It has a $3 minimum. The best video poker game US Casino Advantage found was 15/9 Deuces Wild, which returns just under 99%.
Walking the rest of Cripple Creek
While valet is available at the front of the Chamonix extension, the self-parking for Bronco Billy’s is behind the casino. After we checked into the hotel, we walked the rest of Cripple Creek.
Johnny Nolon’s
Our first stop was Johnny Nolon’s. It only has slots and video poker. Some of the reels and video poker machines operate on coins. The reels go from the quarter denomination up to $5. The coin video poker is quarter and dollar.
Johnny Nolon’s has the best video poker game in Cripple Creek. It is quarter 16/10 Deuces Wild. This game is sometimes called Not So Ugly Ducks. It is on four Triple Play machines on the left side of the casino. These machines also have 9/6 Jacks or Better, 9/6 Double Double Bonus, 8/6 Bonus Poker Deluxe, and 9/6/5 Double Bonus Poker. The Bonus Poker Deluxe game shows as Bonus Poker on the main menu.
Double Eagle
Double Eagle is all slots and video poker with a couple of ETGs. This includes a few terrible video poker banks on the lower level and a handful of variants. Four bar machines downstairs deal 9/6 Bonus Poker Deluxe. That is the second-best video poker game in Cripple Creek behind Johnny Nolon’s Not-So-Ugly-Ducks.
Electronic table game options include heads-up 6/5 blackjack and multiplayer 00 roulette. Roulette has a $1 minimum while video blackjack is $2.
Triple Crown Casinos
Triple Crown consists of three casinos. Brass Ass has table games. Midnight Rose has Cripple Creek’s only poker room. Poker players can view multiple TVs within the poker room and from the adjacent sports viewing area. McGill’s is the other brand under the Triple Crown brand. All have slots, video poker, and one restaurant. Hotels are at McGill’s and Midrose Rose.
Brass Ass deals three types of blackjack. All pay 3/2. The options are Double Up, six-deck, and double-deck. The six-deck game starts at $10. Double Up was $15. Double-deck blackjack was $25. Craps offers 10 times odds and starts at $5. Ultimate Texas Hold’em was also $5. Baccarat and double zero roulette had $10 minimum bets.
There are also two multiplayer electronic table game machines near the live tables. One is 3/2 blackjack with a $2 minimum. The other is 00 roulette for $1.
The video poker selection is smaller than what we found during previous visits. The best games are in the loft in the middle of Midnight Rose. The highest paytable is 8/5 Bonus Poker. Other good options are 9/7 Double Bonus, 9/6 Double Double Bonus, and 15/9 Deuces Wild. The available denominations are quarter, half-dollar, and dollar.
Colorado Grande
Colorado Grande expanded since our 2021 visit. It now has about double the number of machines as before. The coin video poker game options are $1 9/6 Triple Double Bonus and 9/6/5 Double Bonus. These have multiple progressive meters.
The bar video poker was downgraded since our last visit. The 9/6 Jacks or Better only pays 500 on a royal flush, as opposed to the proper 800 per coin. Bonus Poker Deluxe went from 9/6 to 8/6. The best games are 15/9 Deuces Wild and 8/5 Bonus Poker.
Century Casino Cripple Creek
Century Casino has live table games. It also has several great electronic table games that pay slot points. The live table games are $5 Three Card Prime, Wild Six Poker, and $10 3/2 six-deck blackjack. The best video poker is Bonus Deuces Wild with a progressive. It is found at bars and in banks of machines on the floor.
Players can find multiplayer 3/2 video blackjack and auto-play 00 roulette for a $2 minimum. To play video blackjack heads-up the minimum goes up to $3. Both options offer side bets. Heads-up craps has a $1 minimum.
