Santa Fe Station is a locals casino in the far northwestern edge of Las Vegas. It is located along US 95 where Rancho Drive merges into the highway, just south of the 215 Beltway. Santa Fe Station is owned by Station Casinos. That company is the largest locals casino company in Las Vegas. In addition to Station brands, it also owns Red Rock Resort, Green Valley Ranch, Fiesta and Wildfire.
Santa Fe Station opened in 1991. The property was originally called Santa Fe Casino.
It is a popular casino for military members to stay. There are 201 hotel rooms at Santa Fe Station. That is the minimum number of required hotel rooms for a full service casino. There is also 185,000 square feet of casino space.
There are many amenities offered at Santa Fe Station that makes it a locals entertainment destination. There is a 14-table poker room. There is also a sportsbook and bingo hall. There is also a bowling alley, movie theater and country-western nightclub known as Revolver.
Santa Fe Station Tables and Games
There are 16 blackjack tables at Santa Fe Station. All blackjack games are on the main casino floor as the high limit room only spreads slots and video poker. The dealer hits soft 17 in all blackjack games at Santa Fe Station.
There are 12 double deck blackjack tables at Santa Fe Station. These tables allow double down before and after splitting. Blackjack pays 3-2. The house edge is 0.4%. Limits are $5 to $1,000, except for one $25 to $2,000. Santa Fe Station will raise limits for double deck blackjack players upon request.
There are two six-deck shoe blackjack tables. Players may double down on any two cards and after splitting. Surrender is also allowed. Blackjack pays 3-2. The bet limits are $5 to $1,000. The house edge is 0.55%.
The double deck game has the Pair Square side bet. This pays 25-1 on a suited pair. Any pair pays 10-1. The six-deck table has the Lucky Lucky side bet that pays when a player makes a hand of 19 and higher. The hands of 777 and 678 are the big winning hands. The jackpot hand is a suited 777.
There are two single deck blackjack tables at Santa Fe Station. These games allow double down on any two cards but not after splitting. Blackjack only pays 6-5. Bet limits are $5 to $500. This is by far the worst blackjack game out of the three spread at Santa Fe Station. The house edge is 1.6%.
Boarding Pass for Frequent Blackjack Players
Santa Fe Station uses the Boarding Pass players card. All Station Casinos properties use Boarding Pass to track play and issue comps. Blackjack players will have a hard time getting much more than a weekly free bet. Players receive a free bet voucher from the Boarding Pass kiosk once per week. This is equivalent to one average bet. Comps are earned very slowly. Ask the pit boss to see how much you have earned. They are happy to tell you. Green chip players should expect free hotel rooms and a host.
Blackjack players may want to mix it up with some slot play. That pays 0.3% of handle for both slots and video poker, except for 100% and higher games, which pay 0.075%. Video poker play generates separate offers that include free hotels, free slot play and buffet coupons.
What’s Different?
There is not anything unique about blackjack at Santa Fe Station. The double deck and shoe games offer respectable rules but are average when compared to other locals casinos. The 6-5 single deck game is one of the worst games you will find at locals casinos.
The Inside View
Santa Fe Station serves its purpose as a monopoly casino on the northwest side. It is the closest casino for those in the Providence area, Mt. Charleston, Indian Springs and other parts of the rural northwest portion of the Las Vegas Valley. It also serves as the closest full service casino and hotel to the Nevada Test Site, which is a massive military installation.
While it has a virtual monopoly, Santa Fe Station still spreads decent blackjack games. The double deck is exactly what you would expect in a locals casino with its double down before and after splitting. The shoe adds surrender to the mix. Both have a $5 minimum bet. These are the best table games at Santa Fe Station beyond the 10 times craps table when taking full odds.
Table games at Santa Fe Station generate free bets based on the average wager of the player. Free bet vouchers are printed on the Boarding Pass kiosks.
If you get bored with blackjack, Santa Fe Station spreads some of the best video poker in Las Vegas. There are multiple games that return over 100%. The games that don’t return 100% have 0.3% cash back and still return at least 99%. These games will generate good mailers and weekly free slot play.