01
The Casino, First Floor
Marenhof Casino: the old assembly hall, up the east stairwell
Marenhof Casino is on the first floor of this hotel, in the hall where the school held its assemblies, its prize-givings and, for one term in 1964, its orchestra. The casino is part of the hotel itself and always has been, so it has no address of its own and nobody has to walk down the road to reach it. From the lobby you walk up one flight of the east stairwell, past the brass handrail, or take the lift to the first floor and turn right. Either way you stay indoors, which anyone who has crossed a Groningen street in January will appreciate.
Before you go in there's a door, a desk and a cloakroom. The casino can't be seen from the lobby, so you won't wander into it by accident on your way to the pool.
02
What the room is like
A few tables, a bar at the back, open in the evenings
The hall is thirteen metres by nine, with a stage at one end and the original window line down the long wall. We left the proportions as they were. Inside are a few tables, a bar at the back under the school clock, and enough space between the tables that nobody leans over anybody's shoulder. On a busy Saturday the room holds about seventy people and still doesn't feel crowded.
This is an evening room: the casino opens at eight and the last table closes at two, Wednesday to Sunday. There is no daytime service, and no machines humming in a corner at eleven in the morning. If you'd like a quiet drink earlier, Conciërge Bar downstairs is open from four.
The casino bar serves the same list as the bar downstairs, and the kitchen sends up small plates until midnight. Music stays low enough for the dealers to be heard without raising their voices, the only acoustic requirement anyone gave us.
The hall
- Thirteen metres by nine, stage at the north end
- A few tables, one bar, no machines
- About seventy people on a full Saturday
- The school clock still keeps time, badly
03
Getting in
Eighteen and over, identification every time, collar preferred
Age and identification
The legal age for gambling in the Netherlands is 18. Photo identification is checked at the door on every visit, even when the person on the desk greeted you by name an hour earlier. A passport, a national identity card or a Dutch driving licence will do. A photograph of a document on a phone will not.
Being a hotel guest makes no difference. You'll be asked for a document at the door of the casino like anyone else.
Dress code
The casino dress code is smart casual, and we mean the lenient version. A collar is appreciated and a jacket is never required. Beachwear, sportswear, work boots, hoods up and anything that covers the face are not allowed. Bags larger than a small rucksack go in the cloakroom, which is free.
Nobody is turned away for being underdressed without a chance to put it right. The desk keeps a few jackets, and reception can usually find something that fits.
04
Limits, breaks and leaving
Arranged on the floor and at the desk, by people, in person
Limits are set on the floor by the staff working it. Table minimums and maximums are posted at each table, and the pit staff will tell you what they are before you sit down, so ask first. If you want a personal ceiling on your evening, tell the host at the door and it will be noted and kept.
Staff can also arrange a break, a quiet hour away from the tables or a time limit for the night. None of it needs a form, and none of it is announced to the room.
Nothing is run through an app or an account. The casino depends on people talking to one another across a table, which is slower and works better.
Self-exclusion is arranged in person at reception. Come to the desk downstairs and say what you want, and a member of the duty management team will take it from there in a back office with the door shut. It can run for a fixed period or be open-ended, it applies to the gaming floor, and the hotel holds it confidentially.
The hotel gives no credit of any kind, and there is no cash machine on the gaming floor or on the landing outside it, which is intentional.
05
This website plays nothing
Land-based, one room, one city, one door
Marenhof Casino is a land-based casino inside the hotel on Zandkuilstraat in Groningen. It exists in one room on one floor of the building. This website describes a hotel and what is inside it.
These pages carry no games, bets, deposits, withdrawals, accounts or payments, and there is no way to wager anything from a screen. The site takes no money and gives none back. If you want to play, come to Groningen, climb one flight of stairs and show someone a document at the door.
Opening hours of the gaming floor
Wednesday to Sunday, 20:00–02:00. Closed Monday and Tuesday. Closed 24 and 25 December.