6 Eye-Opening Facts About Casino Junkets Every Gambler Needs to Know

Resort casinos are part of the hospitality industry and employ people to interact personally with every gambler on a certain level. That’s right. Resort casinos use a concierge, a slot host—and then there’s the casino rep, who is charged with bringing in VIP gamblers regularly and in great quantities. And above that are the actual freelancers of the casino world: the gambling junkets. These are organizations that bring high rollers into casinos all over the world. I’ll discuss what a casino junket is and what you should know about them below. The usual parties to a casino junket are the resort casino, the casino junket operator, and the gambler. All three bring something to the table and get something in return. Let’s break down the transaction so we can learn the details. The casino doesn’t make money renting rooms for the night, and even if it did, nobody vacations in the middle of the desert just to enjoy the air conditioning and the shifting dunes outside. So, the casino not only buys a bunch of slot machines and blackjack tables—and then builds fancy hotels, fine restaurants, enormous swimming pools, etc.— to attract people to stay and gamble. This is the one area in which the resort casino has an advantage over even the best online casinos. Still, the resort casino usually has dozens of competing resorts within walking distance, so it’s not that much of an advantage. In any case, while resort casinos have employees to bring in the whales, i.e., the high rollers which keep the lights on, they are not, ironically, all that good at the job. And this makes the gambling junket—as far as the resort casino is concerned—a winning proposition. If you’ve ever blown five grand in an hour or less at a casino, you’re already nodding your head. You know well why the resort casino sees a casino junket as something devoutly to be wished for. In truth, the resort casino fancies the casino junket so much that it is willing to pay a commission to anyone who delivers that high roller. Casino junket operators are independent contractors—third parties who act as a go-between and organizers for various casino junkets. They spend their day building and confirming a casino junket schedule for many gambling destinations for individuals, couples, and even groups. Now, a good junket operator will have contracted with as many as several hundred resort casinos, not to mention working deals with various airlines and other transportation companies. But that’s just the preparation stage. The casino junket operator must entice people to go on all these lavish junkets he’s put together. This brings us to the third and most important party in this transaction in the next section. You must meet certain criteria to be an attractive product to the junket operator and the casino itself. Since nobody operates a business at a loss (and before you say it—no, the government is not a business), you need to offer the resort casino enough potential to recoup their investment and maybe make a profit—and the only real way you can do that is to gamble at that casino. That’s right. You’ll be expected to gamble a set number of hours each day of your visit and at least a minimum wager level. For instance, if your game is blackjack, the casino junket’s terms may require you to play the $25 minimum tables—for four hours each day. I don’t know about you, but I’ve had better jobs. As far as you, the gambler, is concerned, the casino junket operator is selling the “all-expenses-paid” three-day trip to Vegas/Reno/Bahamas to you, and all you have to do is deposit $3000 toward gambling there when you arrive. If that’s what they’re selling, then it’s no wonder they find many high-rolling buyers. Except that’s not what they’re selling. And the high rollers are the buyers. All that largesse is just a lure to get you, the gambler, to the resort casino, where the casino junket operator’s real paycheck is: The commission the resort casino will pay him for getting you there with your impressive bankroll and a commitment to gamble heavily for several days. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with such an arrangement. I’m just pointing out what many of us ignore or forget: There ain’t no such thing as a free lunch. That’s probably the case with the best casino cruises, too. However, they are still rather alluring to die hard gamblers – just like casino junkets. Find out more about some of the best ones out there before learning more about gambling junkets and how they work. In case you missed this earlier, casino junket operators are usually paid a commission by the casinos they bring gamblers to. Depending on the jurisdiction, they may also make some “vig” on loans they make to gamblers who’ve used up their initial deposit and need more to continue gambling. Usually, losing your entire deposit amount—even on the first day of a 3-day junket—satisfies your gambling requirement for the entire trip—but not always. Check any contract you sign and read all the rules, regulations, and codicils. This is no place to “learn as you earn.” Let’s be honest; nobody’s going to front your airline tickets and hotel accommodations and pick up your food and beverage tab just for the opportunity to watch you play nickel keno for three days. Even your mom wouldn’t do that, and she loves you—which I can virtually guarantee the resort casino does not. And is that $3000 entirely earmarked for gambling, with your hotel bill and all your meals coming off your credit card? You are now officially the bare-chested heartthrob on the cover of every casino junket’s romance novel. If that isn’t obvious enough, the casino junket operator wants to date you. That reality doesn’t play favorites as far as what kind of high roller gambler you are. It can include the best of the best sharks in poker, as well. If you want to get your game to that level, consider the following tips. Some jurisdictions are more stringent about who they let operate gambling junkets. In some jurisdictions, getting licensed as a gambling junket operator is cheap, fairly open, and quite liberal in what it allows. In Macao, for example, casino junket operators bring in high-rollers from mainland China and lend them money as needed—and aggressively pursue their debtors to retrieve payment on these loans. As needed. There’s been quite a bit of saber-rattling in the Chinese government of late about restricting gambling junket operators’ ability to lend money, but so far, it’s all been nothing but sound and fury. While they’re not nearly as popular as in other areas of the world, gambling junket operators in the US feature trips to all the big resort casinos. Some even offer casino cruises, trips to the Bahamas, and various ports with gambling operations. By the way, casinos in some jurisdictions are prohibited from lending money to gamblers, but this isn’t usually the case in the US. Depending on your gambling history with a particular US resort casino, it may be amenable to extending you a line of credit. If you’re curious about the gambling laws that apply to the US, be sure to check out the US gambling laws and online regulations below. If you gamble enough to attract the attention of a casino junket operator or even a casino itself, then you probably already have enough juice to get comped rooms, F&B (food and beverage, dontcha know), and even entertainment. You can even eschew the resort casino and gamble for real money online. Then, if after a couple of hours your urge persists in gambling where the neon is bright and the weather is hot, consider spending 15 minutes on the phone with your slot club host, the host manager, or even one of the marketing VPs at your favorite casino resort. Odds are they can get you the deal you want without the middleman and you can be your own gambling junket. Footnotes:

• “How to Become a Casino Junket Rep” Euro Asia Consulting
• “Casino Stocks 101” Yahoo!Finance
• “Casino Junkets FAQ” Casinota
• “TANSTAAFL” Technovelgy.com