The 7 best casinos in London
Want to try your luck in the UK capital? Here’s our guide to the 7 best casinos in London.
When it comes to casino gaming in Europe, London comes high on many players’ lists of favourite destinations. The British capital’s mix of historic prestige and trendsetting cools means it continues to shine as a gambling destination.
There were 27 casinos in London at last count, from popular venues open to all to exclusive private clubs. There’s no shortage of choice no matter how much you’re willing to stake.
Where to start then? Read on for our guide to the 7 best casinos in London.
1. Maxims Casino Club
Originally built in 1862 for the celebrated biographer and literary critic John Forster, Maxims in South Kensington is one of the UK’s most exclusive and glamorous land-based casinos.
Known as a gentleman’s casino, the venue positively drips with class. It has intimate gaming areas spread across two floors, with the main gaming floor located in what was Forster’s drawing room, complete with marble fireplaces and pearwood panelling. Private gaming rooms include the glass-roofed library.
The casino offers 26 games including roulette, blackjack, casino stud poker and punto banco baccarat. The nine Blackjack tables offer bets ranging from £10 to £10,000 per round, and the punto banco tables cater to high rollers with bet limits reaching £25,000
The venue opens 24 hours a day all year round except Christmas Day, and has a late food and beverage licence. The restaurant offers Arabic, Chinese and European cuisine, while the lounge bar boasts a wide range of wines and rare whisky from around the world. Smart dress is encouraged.
1a Palace Gates Rd, South Kensington
2. Crown London Aspinall’s
Many consider Aspinall’s to be the most prestigious and elegant casino in Mayfair. From the outside, the discreet exterior means it could easily be passed by on this exclusive residential street, but inside it’s a sumptuous example of a classic luxury casino, full of chandeliers and silks and velvet decor.
Originally The White Elephant Club, a popular haunt for London’s elite, the venue was acquired by the gambling entrepreneur and conservationist John Aspinall in the 1990s. It’s now owned by Crown Resorts and has recently been refurbished.
International chefs offer cuisine from Europe, Asia, India, Japan and the Middle East. There’s the main gaming floor and then six uniquely decorated private gaming salons. Again, dress smart.
27-28 Curzon Street, Mayfair
3. Crockford’s
Also in affluent Mayfair – right next door in fact – this luxury casino is based on the gaming club established in 1828 by William Crockford a few streets away in St James’s.
The son of a fishmonger, Crockford was one of the first entrepreneurs to turn gambling into an elite activity in Mayfair. His club even counted the Duke of Wellington as a member.
The current venue is an elegant white Georgian mansion on Curzon Street with high ceilings and chandeliers. Private suites come stocked with Krug champagne, caviar and lobster. Another of the best casinos in London to dress up for.
30 Curzon Street, Mayfair
4. Les Ambassadeurs
Another glamorous venue with a lot of history, Les Ambassadeurs, popularly known as “Les A”, formerly housed Le Cercle, the casino was namechecked in the first James Bond film Dr No. That gives some indication of the slick and refined atmosphere at his private gaming club which offers outstanding views across Hyde Park. Membership costs £1,000 and the venue still attracts plenty of famous names.
It’s worth a visit ust to glimpse the fine workmanship on the extravagant workmanship interior, which features an oak staircase with scrolled balustrade. The main gaming floor has sixteen tables offering American roulette, baccarat, blackjack and three-card poker can be played.
More discreet games of cards can be played in the club’s Marble Room. There’s also a garden area, which allows smoking. The Red Room has a separate entrance at 6 Hamilton Place.
5 Hamilton Place, Mayfair
5. The London Hippodrome
The London Hippodrome has been a centre of London entertainment since 1900. It was originally a music hall, which put a young Charlie Chaplin on stage for its debut show. It then became a nightclub named The Talk of the Town, which saw a roll call of big names grace its stage, from Frank Sinatra to Ella Fitzgerald.
It opened as a casino, or technically three casinos, in 2012. Covering five floors, it’s the biggest gaming venue in the UK and has the widest range of games, slots and poker facilities.
The Grand Casino on the ground floor is the main draw, offering a giant goldfish bowl-like space with 360-degree views from the theatre’s original Minstrel’s Gallery. Below on the lower-ground floor, Lola’s offers a buzzing speakeasy-like vibe with the only back-to-back craps tables pit in the country, while The Craybourn Club on the third floor offers a more chilled environment.
Cranbourn St, Leicester Square
6. Grosvenor Casino Golden Horseshoe
Just a few minutes away from Bayswater Underground station and Hyde Park, this casino owned by the Grosvenor chain offers an impressive games floor, a late bar, trendy air lounge, and grill restaurants.
It offers a wide selection of games with a huge variety of slots and many traditional table games, including craps, baccarat, chemin de fer, roulette, blackjack and punto banco, with limits of up to £5,000 per game.
With a contemporary design, this London casino also offers sports screenign and betting, making it a good venue to watch a game.
79-81 Queensway, Bayswater
7. The Empire Casino
At the opposite end of the spectrum from the first London casinos on our list, The Empire Casino in bustling Leicester Square is open to everyone from high rollers to students. It spans 55,000 square feet and hosts 127 slots machines and 50 table games.
Whether you want to bet £20 or a few grand, you’ll be welcome at this former ballroom and theatre, which was turned into a casino by Caesars Entertainment in 2007.
It has four bars, including the Carlsberg Sports Bar and Icon Balcony Bar, and there’s a Pan Asian restaurant FuLuShou. Despite the populist appeal, there’s also the VIP Dragon Lounge, for higher stakes gaming, firmly placing the venue among the 7 best casinos in London.
5-6 Leicester Square
