Coveted Guinness World Record for Casinos Is Impossible to Beat

Update 10/12/2025: A Casino Dot Org representative publicly challenged Vegas Advantage’s data related to the number of Las Vegas casinos with live and electronic table games, while refusing to release their list of 115 casinos visited. Vegas Advantage offered to visit five casinos not found on our list where they claim they played qualifying games. There was no reply to our email or social media post.

During that time, Casino Dot Org published a YouTube video showing some of the casinos they visited. Six are slots-only, according to our data: Bighorn, Dotty’s, Longhorn, Molly’s, Railroad Pass, and Wildfire Sunset. A new Casino Dot Org video shows the contestants inserting money into a bartop slot machine at the 1:58 mark. Slots are disallowed under the Guinness World Records rules for this challenge.

Update 10/4/2025: Guinness World Records allowed last week’s attempt to use e-bikes. Gary Meyer, one of the 2017 record holders, told Vegas Advantage that they were not permitted to use traditional bikes, roller blades, scooters, or anything similar. Their only transportation options were walking and using scheduled public transportation, including buses, trams, and the Las Vegas Monorail.

Meyer and his partner, Kimo Ah Yun, walked 27 miles to break the record, while last week’s record attempt rode e-bikes on public roads. The ninth rule in the guidelines for breaking this record states, “Guinness World Records cannot endorse a ‘race against the clock’ on public roads, and for this reason, only scheduled transport may be used (i.e. scheduled flights, buses, trains, scheduled ship/ferry journeys).”

Original Article

Casino Dot Org recently sponsored Joel Strasser and Garrett Smith to beat the Guinness World Record for “Most Casinos Visited in 24 Hours.” The record has been held by Kimo Ah Yun and Gary Meyer since 2017.

According to the Guinness World Record rules, only live table games are allowed. Vegas Advantage’s data proves that the 2017 record of 74 is impossible to break. These same rules were confirmed with us in 2023 when we reached out before our own attempt, and again in 2025, while we covered this story. That is why we unofficially went against the record using different rules for our 21st wedding anniversary.

Guinness told another couple that later broke our record the same rules. We met with the couple who beat us the next day to congratulate them.

Why the Guinness World Record for “Most Casinos Visited in 24 Hours” is Impossible to Beat

Per Nevada Gaming, as of June 30, 2025, there are 140 nonrestricted casino licenses active in Las Vegas, Henderson, and North Las Vegas. However, this includes five casinos currently closed: Eastside Cannery, Gold Spike, Hard Rock, Silver Nugget, and Tropicana, leaving 135.

In addition to nonrestricted licenses, there are 1455 restricted licenses across Las Vegas, Henderson, and North Las Vegas. These are taverns, grocery stores, gas stations, and laundromats. Restricted licenses may have up to 15 slot machines. Live and electronic table games are not permitted at restricted establishments.

About 45% of the nonrestricted licensees only offer slot machines. No live or electronic tables are available at these casinos. As of September 25, 2025, when the event took place, there were only 64 Las Vegas area casino licenses with live table games.

Sponsor Said Electronic Table Games Were Added to Qualifying Games, Change Not Reflected in the Guinness Rules

According to Casino Dot Org, but not updated on Guinness’ website, electronic table games were permitted in this record attempt. While this seems like a large increase, this only brought the count up to 74 casinos in the Las Vegas area with live and/or electronic table games on the day of their attempt in Las Vegas, North Las Vegas, and Henderson.

If they visited Hoover Dam Lodge in Boulder City instead of starting at Railroad Pass, then maybe they had a shot at reaching 75. However, this would have required visiting the airport. A triple-zero roulette ETG is available behind security. If including the airport, the only way to avoid unnecessary time lost going through security would be to start there.

74 Las Vegas, Henderson, and North Las Vegas Casinos have live and/or electronic table games:

Blackjack is a table game, so video blackjack is an electronic table game, right? Wrong!

At first glance, one might think that video blackjack is an electronic table game. However, using widely accepted definitions in the gaming industry, that is not the case. Electronic table games are usually multi-player devices.

Some heads-up machines with real dice or wheels qualify as electronic table games. However, single-player machines that use a random number generator to determine an outcome qualify as slots under Nevada law and any other jurisdiction Vegas Advantage follows.

Guinness does not permit slots for this record. Casino Dot Org repeatedly noted this in its content.

A September 29, 2025, article on a Casino Dot Org blog implies taverns were included in the count:

There seems to be confusion around the official rules because they currently say only casinos with table games or electronic table games qualify for this record, not slots. We prefer the broader definition that appears to include taverns and bars with bartop games (most notably chains like Dotty’s and PT’s).

Source

Guinness defines a casino as “a public room or building where gambling games are played,” and taverns would fall under that category. However, electronic table games are not allowed at restricted licenses, so anything found in one of these establishments is a slot machine, no matter where it is played. Therefore, Game King video blackjack is a slot, not an electronic table game. If we’re looking to expand for new technology, there’s nothing new about bartop video blackjack.

Video poker is an electronic table game under this massively expanded definition

If slots with card games like video blackjack are permitted, video poker is also allowed. Real Gaming, a Nevada online poker site, has video poker paytables that are required to be bet with the poker action. Nevada gaming regulators consider that to be the online equivalent of poker. It could not have been otherwise approved. Other online casino games are not permitted in Nevada.

Poker is a table game. Based on the logic of allowing video blackjack in taverns, video poker falls under the same category. It is likely all 1455 restricted licenses have video poker slots.

Participants claimed they followed rules “to the T,” but didn’t

“People have tried with this and failed at this because they did not follow all of the Guinness rules. We are following every one of them to the T.” – Source

On September 26, 2025, the day their attempt was completed, Vegas Advantage downloaded the rules for this record from Guinness World Records. It is clear that the participants failed to follow the no slots part. Downloaded again on October 1, the rules have not been updated to include electronic table games. On page 3, rules 3 and 4 still state the following:

3. At each casino, chips must be bought and at least one game played. The croupier (dealer) of the game played must sign a logbook confirming that the individual has played, what the game was and the time of the game.

4. Slot machines do not count as a game, only games played with chips bought in that particular venue are acceptable.

How exactly did they buy chips at casinos with no active chip sets? And how did they manage to play video blackjack with these chips? And how does the dealer sign the logbook when it’s a computer processor?

Casino Dot Org tracking was inconsistent with reality

The only tracking during the record-breaking attempt was on Casino Dot Org’s website. It was scheduled to start at 3pm. That is when the timer on the tracker started. While a video from the group says the attempt started at 3:10pm (at the one-minute mark in this video), the tracker showed five casinos already played and 14.2 miles covered at 3:02pm, eight minutes earlier than their coverage says they started. 

When the attempt ended, the tracker showed 80 casinos and 129.45 miles covered. At 5pm, the group had a press event, where they said they played at 115 casinos. The tracker still said 80. That number remained on the tracker until it was mentioned several times on Twitter that it did not match the 115 claimed.

More than eight hours after the end of the record-breaking attempt, Casino Dot Org updated the count to 115. However, the number of miles covered stayed the same. Obviously, they did not visit 35 casinos while traveling zero miles.

The list of the 115 casinos was not disclosed

Casino Dot Org and its participants have yet to release the list of 115 casinos. However, one participant posted a picture of the group starting at Railroad Pass. That casino only has slots. Live tables were removed in 2024. No electronic table games were installed to replace them.

Another issue with not releasing the list is counting shared licenses twice. The shared licenses are Circus Circus and Slots A Fun, Linq and O’Sheas, Venetian and Palazzo, and Wynn and Encore. Each of these pairs is only one casino license. Vegas Advantage separates them in data to give players precise information about where to find games. However, the shared licenses use the same chips and slot voucher systems and operate as one. 

Only doing 115 when tavern slots are permitted is pitiful

Let’s assume that Guinness drastically changed the definition of a slot machine to permit video blackjack on a bartop or retail store slot. There are 1455 of these establishments in the Las Vegas valley. Some blocks have double-digit numbers of these businesses because they are at gas stations, grocery stores, laundromats, and taverns. Add in the 135 casino licenses available at the time of their record, and they had 1590 places to play. Last week’s group visited 7.23% of them. 

The group with the 2017 record played live tables at 74 of the 78 licenses with those games at the time. That is 94.87% of the total. 

A dedicated record attempt made by someone with intermediate Las Vegas knowledge would smash this record. The 115 would be surpassed before the halfway mark due to all the clustered restricted licenses. The new record would be in the hundreds.

Kimo Ah Yun and Gary Meyer must keep their Guinness World Record 

The only way Guinness allows this record to stand is to break its own rules. If that happens, do any Guinness World Records have any meaning? Why would anyone want to pay for a record, only for others to break it by playing with exceptionally easier rules?

Kimo Ah Yun and Gary Meyer should hold this record forever, because it is unbeatable under the rules agreed upon when they did it. Adding electronic table games was a stretch, but reasonable enough. However, allowing this group to count slots, which are specifically disallowed, is not, especially since Game King video blackjack games are not new and would have been available in 2017. Why should contenders in 2025 be allowed to use games that were available, but not permitted, when the original record was set?

Since Guinness acknowledged that they will not allow a new category using slots, upholding this record would only indicate that records are simply available for purchase. Guinness World Records must reject this attempt to break relevant published rules.

John started the appeal process with Guinness to protect the 2017 record holders’ interests. Vegas Advantage will report that outcome.

Or just make a new record and let them break it 

Guinness World Records told John on Monday, September 28, 2025, that they would not be adding a new record for slots. After this debacle, the decision not to permit a new category for slots should be reconsidered. There was clearly a massive misunderstanding of the rules by all involved. 

Give Strasser and Smith the first crack at it with clear rules about what is allowed and disallowed. Take away any ambiguity. Make it clear whether playing slots at a grocery store, gas station, or tavern is permitted. 

Casino Dot Org did not respond to requests for comment. The participants did not answer our social media questions. John Mehaffey contributed to this report. The article was updated to clarify the difference in rules related to live and electronic table games, and to add comments from a 2017 record holder.

Last Updated on October 12, 2025 by John Mehaffey

Kristina Mehaffey

Kristina is a founding member of Advantage Media LLC. She was a mathematics teacher for the Clark County School District before joining John with the websites in 2020. She enjoys Deuces Wild, Fortune Pai Gow Poker, and Ultimate Texas Hold’em. Her preference for the aesthetics of casinos is shown in the details of the pictures on our sites. When not managing data or writing about casinos, she can be found at her local library, enjoying on one of her many crafting hobbies, or catching a laugh with her husband at a local comedy club.

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