Editorial Policy: Rigor, Independence, and Scoring Standards
Hotel Guide operates under strict operational guidelines to guarantee that every hotel and casino evaluation remains impartial, accurate, and completely free from commercial interference. We accept zero financial compensation from reviewed hotels, gambling corporations, or booking agencies. This charter defines our numerical scoring rubrics, audit practices, and factual correction procedures.
The 95/5 Hotel Evaluation Rubric
Hotel stays are judged as complete luxury accommodations. We allocate scoring weights as follows:
- Core Hospitality (95% of Total): Suites and acoustic isolation, bathroom craftsmanship, housekeeping reliability, dining bench depth, breakfast execution, pool courtyards, spa thermal suites, architectural character, and concierge attentiveness.
- Production Entertainment (5% of Total): Permanent theater residencies, arena concerts, and public evening attractions (such as lake fountain displays or art exhibits). Entertainment plays a minor supplemental role, ensuring that a sensational show cannot disguise deficient guest room standards.
The Four-Pillar Casino Floor Rubric
Every resort casino is audited independently from its parent hotel. The casino score represents the arithmetic mean of four equal 25% components:
- Games & Limits (25%): Spread of classic table games, live poker room capacity, baccarat salon depth, and accessibility of sensible minimum wagers for modest budgets.
- Table Standards & Rules (25%): Table placard transparency, 3:2 vs 6:5 blackjack payouts, baccarat commission mechanics, and single-zero roulette availability.
- Floor Comfort & Circulation (25%): Air filtration renewal rates, smoke dispersal, daylight access, acoustic control, and how easily non-gambling hotel guests can traverse property corridors without crossing gaming areas.
- Player Welfare & Governance (25%): Photo ID age enforcement, visible responsible gaming literature, transparent loyalty program tier rules, and confidential access to voluntary self-exclusion programs.
Scoring Methodology Proportions
Illustrates the structural distribution of hospitality and gaming audits at Hotel Guide.
Commercial Separation and Disclosures
To maintain credibility with our readership, Hotel Guide enforces strict operational firewalls:
- No Purchased Rankings: Editorial placement, awards, and numeric ratings are never for sale. Properties cannot pay to appear on our site.
- No Affiliate Links: We do not provide affiliate links to online booking portals or casino betting apps. Our revenue is completely disconnected from reader reservation choices.
- Self-Funded Audits: Reviewers pay standard guest room rates anonymously. If a hosted night or media preview rate is accepted during an industry conference, it is clearly disclosed and does not influence numerical scores.
Factual Verification and Corrections
Hotels and casinos are dynamic operating environments where table rules, chef appointments, and suite layouts can shift between seasons.
Our publication re-evaluates all five featured resorts biannually. Furthermore, we invite readers, gaming professionals, and hotel managers to alert our desk to verifiable factual changes via our contact portal. Confirmed updates to table minimums, payout rules, or regulatory conditions are revised promptly with updated timestamps.
Frequently Asked Inquiries
Understanding our scoring rubrics and revision frequency.
Hotel Guide is privately funded by an independent publishing collective. We intentionally reject booking commissions, affiliate links, and gaming operator sponsorship to maintain complete objectivity.
Rankings and property entries are comprehensively reviewed biannually. If a property completes a major room renovation, opens a flagship restaurant, or modifies table rules, entries are updated following verification.