LAS VEGAS — Every January or February there is a surge in action on the baccarat tables and the Las Vegas Strip turns a festive red, decorated with dragons and Chinese characters.

Looking for a lucky start to the year, Chinese tourists make the pilgrimage to the desert for Chinese New Year to put their fates to the test.

Even this year, with the NBA All-Star game in town and a Presidents' Day holiday falling on the same weekend, casino executives are keeping their eye on the big prize — the hundreds of millions of dollars wagered by Asian players.

"This is our 32nd year of doing Chinese New Year's. I'd say the Chinese New Year was more important," said John Unwin, general manager of Caesars Palace.

The fortunes of large casino operators are increasingly tied to the Chinese consumer and the gambling companies' developments in China's special administrative region of Macau, which became the most lucrative gambling destination in the world last year.

Las Vegas still gets its share of the action. Last year, the amount Strip casinos won from baccarat — played mostly by Asians — grew 25 percent to $832 million, second only to blackjack at $986 million, according to Nevada regulators.

A year ago, when Chinese New Year was celebrated in January, players wagered $827 million on Strip baccarat tables during the month, losing $90.9 million, more than was lost at blackjack, craps or roulette.

In contrast, the All-Star game is expected to attract 25,000 visitors and generate $26.7 million in non-gambling economic activity, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

"The first quarter is traditionally the strongest quarter in Las Vegas," said Brad Stone, executive vice president at Las Vegas Sands Corp., which owns the Venetian casino resort and is building seven projects in Macau. "Certainly one of the things that fuels that is the Chinese New Year celebration."

The Year of the Pig celebration starting tomorrow brings to Las Vegas famous Asian performers, and dragon dances are scheduled at properties along the Strip.

The two-week celebration also draws the year's highest rollers, said Caesars Palace vice president of table games, Jimmy Wike. These are players who can bet the maximum of $150,000 per hand, and by casino rules must have deposits or credit lines worth at least $3 million, he said.

"This event caters to the very biggest players in the world," Wike said.

Two years ago, Las Vegas Sands retrofitted the Venetian with the $50 million luxury Paiza Club, an invitation-only, Chinese-themed gambling salon similar to its club at the Sands Macao.

For some of the biggest gamblers, chartered jumbo jets, personal limousine service and a 24-hour butler all come with a complimentary suite. Las Vegas Sands caters to its important patrons by flying in its top chefs from China to prepare meals such as shark's fin or bird's nest soup.

At Strip properties owned by MGM Mirage Inc., such as the Bellagio or Mirage, service staff and executives stuff their jacket pockets with red envelopes with money inside, sometimes as little as $1 or as much as $100, to give to Chinese guests along with the new year's greeting.

"It's important for you to share, at this time, your wealth with others," said MGM Mirage chief executive Terry Lanni. "Everyone carries this. Because if you walk up and someone gives you one and you don't give them one back, it's an insult."

Mickey Peng, a 32-year-old fashion company owner from the booming Chinese port of Shenzhen, fits the profile. During the two-week holiday, she'll hit both coasts — her trip has taken her from Hawai'i to Los Angeles to Las Vegas and she's headed to New York.

Peng is a regular gambler in Macau. Here, Peng emerged from The Mansion baccarat room at the MGM Grand, where the minimum bet is $100 a hand.

"In Macau, only the casinos are good. I don't see any other things," she said. "Here there are so many shops, many high-end shops. ... We went to the Grand Canyon yesterday. It was very exciting."

Ninety percent of all Chinese visitors to the United States spend some part of their trip in Nevada, said Bruce Bommarito of the Travel Industry Association of America.