Encore is the sister casino of Wynn Las Vegas. It opened on December 22, 2008 to compliment Wynn. There are 2,034 rooms at Encore. This adds to the 2,716 rooms offered by Wynn Las Vegas.
The two casinos are connected by a shopping corridor that includes the XS Nightclub. All amenities between the two casinos are shared. While the two resorts have different names, they are essentially the same casino. Both are considered five-star resorts. Encore has slightly cheaper hotel rates and lower minimum bets in the casino.
Encore Tables and Games
The casino floor at Encore is about two-thirds the size of the one at Wynn. The table game selection is much smaller at Encore. Guests that enter from the corridor between Wynn and Encore will want to keep walking. That pit is all 6-5 blackjack. One is a single deck, the only one in Encore. The other three are eight-deck 6-5 games with double down after splitting. The only positive about this pit is that it often has $10 minimums in the shoe games and $15 on the single deck.
The next pit on the other side of the bar is split about 50/50 between 6-5 and 3-2 games. The games under $25 are all 6-5 with the same rules as the other pit, a house edge of 2.01%. We’ve even found a $50 game in this pit before that paid 6-5 on a natural.
Walk to the far end of that pit and you will find eight 3-2 blackjack games that start at $25. Players can double down on any two cards and after splitting. The house edge is 0.65% at these tables. It is important to play a bit higher to sit at these $25 tables where the edge is one-third of the 6-5 games. The max in these games is $5,000.
If you walk past the craps tables, you will find another pit with blackjack games. This pit specializes in Asian games. There are two six-deck 3-2 blackjack games with $50 to $10,000 bet limits. Players may double down on any two cards and after splitting. Surrender and re-split aces are also permitted. The dealer hits soft 17. The house edge in this game is 0.47% at these tables.
There are two double deck blackjack games in this pit. The bet range is $200 to $10,000 at these tables. Players may double down on any two cards and after splitting. The dealer hits soft 17. Blackjack pays 3-2. The house edge in this game is 0.4%.
There are two high limit salons. Players will find the double deck blackjack game described above with a $500 minimum bet. There is also a $200 six-deck shoe game where players can double on any two cards and after splitting. Surrender and re-split aces are available. The dealer stands on all 17’s. Blackjack pays 3-2. This game has a house edge of 0.27%. The max bet in high limit is often posted at $20,000. The house may raise this limit upon request.
What’s Different?
Encore and Wynn are as elegant as it gets in Las Vegas. Steve Wynn put together an environment like no other. The red throughout the casino adds to the class. The dealers and servers are at the top level of excellence. Drink service is exceptional and you will never find a watered down drink at either Wynn or Encore. On the other hand, it is obvious that low limit players are not welcome.
Wynn Red Card for Frequent Blackjack Players
Lower limit blackjack players, especially those under $25, might as well not play rated with the Red Card. Players will get little or nothing out of it. Comps start at $50 players that give four hours a day of action. High rollers that give at least black chip action can expect a host and some great mailers for the action.
The Inside View
Wynn and Encore used to be one of my favorite places to play. The blackjack games were great at any limit. There was something special about playing in such a classy casino. The rules deteriorated at lower limit games and the minimum bet on the good games keeps going up. Encore is more of a splurge these days than a place I have in my regular rotation.