Coral Casino [Rating 8/10]

One thing that is great to see is a United Kingdom company with a good history when it comes to gaming entertainment set up an online casino. The reasons we like this is that these companies traditionally have years and years of trust built up as far as payouts and keeping track of customer's winnings, a record that is generally passed on to their online operations.

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The Coral company is a British bookmaking company that has enjoyed a presence on the high streets for over eighty years; one of the Big Three domestic bookmakers, Coral operates over a thousand licensed betting shops in addition to a magnificent telephone betting empire. The addition of Coral to the Internet occurred at the end of 1999, when the company braved the Y2K rumours and teamed up with younger company Eurobet, an early pioneer as far as online gaming went.

The entire operation was purchased by the Gala company and the site became Gala Coral, a huge operation with numerous patrons from all over the world. The fact that this online casino is both scrupulous and fair is testified to through its history and the companies associated with it, but what about the rest of the gaming experience?

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First things first; we like to see an online casino with a great landing page, one that is full of easy to find information that comes in handy for any first time casino player. We were definitely impressed with all aspects of the Coral landing page. A nice design allows the user to navigate easily around the page, a nicely indexed pop up help window allows users to quickly find the answers to their online gaming questions. The sparse use of graphics means that the site uploads quickly on almost any type of connection.

We love the no-nonsense approach and the speedy way in which the Coral Casino sets up its experience, and this approach continues when it comes to the gaming experience that Coral delivers. You won't find a download version of the Coral casino; unlike its big competitors, Coral focuses solely on the quick Instant Play casino. All you need to play is the Macromedia Flash modern Web browser and you are in at Coral. No worries about long download times or bespoke software being integrated into your machine; Coral is the perfect online casino to catch a game of Craps on the fly (maybe in the office???).

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Best of all from our point of view, the casino works from all operating platforms, something that is rarer than it should be amongst its rivals and their Instant Play versions.

When it comes to game play, you can't quite expect the clear layout and crisp audio that a downloadable version of online casinos offers when you have an Instant Play option. We feel, though, that the Chartwell software which powers the Coral casino has enough details added to the online casino experience to make a good blend of authentic play and speedy loading.

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The array of games covers all the casino classics, and it is nice to see user options included in the game play, allowing users to select their own choice when it comes to audio and visual elements. Great for making sure that your computer can keep up! Just make sure that you switch the audio controls to "on" if you like to hear a voice making the casino calls (an American, we'd prefer to hear the sweet tones of Derry but it is a minor niggle).

Signing up for play at Coral's online casino means that you will have to provide quite a few details. Still, we did not find the sign up process to be particularly prolonged, and you are rewarded for providing a bit more than the standard amount of information to the site. The whole range of services provided by Gala gaming are open to the Coral user, and that means a chance to while away some time with Bingo or sports betting as well.

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We do miss the fact that Coral no longer has a 'Play for Fun' option open to users without an account; it was a great way for people to check out the game play without having to commit. Still, you don't have to play with funds until you are ready, and as we said it is not too hard to sign up.

As we said, there are a lot of classic casino game options open for the Coral player, and the site is constantly adding to its stable. Particularly appealing to UK players are the Live Casino and Head2Head attractions. This includes Roulette, Blackjack, and Baccarat games with actual human dealers who you can talk to using the chat option. You can also have a lot of fun with the Head2Head game play, pitting yourself against other Coral players in Backgammon, Blackjack, Gin Rummy, and Poker Dice.

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High end online casinos have to offer the best customer support available, and Coral did not disappoint us in this regard. There is an incredible range of support options, including dinosaurs like Fax and Call Back, with round the clock free phone now available as well. When we tested out the Coral support, the staff were quick, friendly, and efficient.

When it comes to online casino gaming that is quick and fun, with no fuss at all, Coral is a great choice. The competition offers bigger bonuses and more of the icing on the casino cake, but Coral hits all the fundamentals of a good online casino square on the nose. In addition, you get access to all the fun the Gala universe offers to the gaming enthusiast with just one account. This makes Coral one online casino you would be mad to pass by.

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