Number of Players	Number of Cards	Game Play	Skill Level
4	162	Easy - Complex	Luck - Skill

As with the original Canasta game, Samba became a fad for a number of years. Its big novelty is that three packs of cards are used; when the game's popularity was at its height, a number of card manufacturers sold triple decks of cards in one package expressly for playing Samba.

Number of Players. Four people play in two partnerships as in Canasta.

The Pack. Three standard 52-card packs plus six jokers for a total of
162 cards.

The Deal. The dealer distributes 15 cards to each player. When drawing from the stock, a player takes two cards and discards one. The discard pile may be taken only with a natural matching pair or, when it is not frozen,the top card can be added to a meld that is less than a canasta (including a "sequence meld" — see next section). The top card may not be taken to start a sequence meld or combine with a card from the hand in adding to a sequence meld.

Sequence Meld. Three or more cards of the same suit in sequence (ace high, four low) may be melded. Cards may be added until there are seven cards, at which point the meld becomes a "samba," or sequence canasta, ranking as a canasta but receiving a bonus of 1,500.

Wild Cards. Wild cards may not be melded separately, and no regular meld may contain more than two wild cards, and no sequence meld may contain any wild card.

Canastas. A side needs two canastas (mixed, natural, or samba) to go out. A side may have two canastas in the same rank and may combine its melds in the same rank at any time.

Scoring. Initial meld requirements are as follows: 15 with a minus score; 50 with a score of 0 to 1,495; 90 with 1,500 to 2,995; 120 with 3,000 to 6,995; 160 over 7,000. Game is 10,000, and there is a 200-point bonus for going out. No bonus is awarded for a concealed hand. Red threes are 100 each unless one side holds all six, in which case they count 1,000 for all, plus or minus. (Red threes count 100 minus against a side that has not completed two canastas.)

 

This is the same game as Samba with the following changes.

Wild Cards. Three or more wild cards may be melded. There is no distinction between deuces and jokers. A canasta of seven wild cards, called a "bolivia," counts 2,500. When the discard pile is topped by a wild card, it may not be taken.

Game. Game is 15,000. The initial meld requirement stays at 150 from 7,000 points up.

Going Out. At least one of the two canastas must be a sequence canasta, which in this game is called an "escalera" rather than a samba.

Black Threes. A black three left in the hand when any other player (including a partner) goes out counts minus 100 points. Black threes melded in going out count 5 points each.

Brazilian Canasta

This is the same as Bolivia but with some changes in the initial-meld requirements and scoring as follows:

Initial Meld. Game is 10,000. From 7,000 to 7,995 the initial meld must be a canasta (mixed or better); from 8,000 to 8,995 the canasta must be worth at least 200 points; from 9,000 to game it must be a natural canasta or better.

Discard Pile. The discard pile may not be taken for the initial meld.

Canastas. A wild-card canasta counts 2,000. A melded sequence of less than five cards costs a side 1,000 points when the hand ends. In going out, one may add to the ends of an escalera (sequence canasta).

Red Threes. One to four red threes count 100 points each, five count 1,000 in all, six count 1,200 in all. They count plus if a side has melded at least one canasta, minus if it has not.

Going Out. Before going out, a player must always ask permission of his partner. Going out is permitted if his side has melded any two canastas.

Chile

This is a three-pack version of Canasta (162 cards, including six jokers). Either sequences or wild-card melds are permitted, but not both. Thus, players must agree which kind of meld is valid for that game. The draw from the stock is one card only, and only one canasta is required to go out. All other rules are the same as in standard Canasta.

Cuban Canasta

In this version, the standard 108-card pack for Canasta is used, but 13 cards are dealt to each player, rather than 11. Players draw one card at each turn. The discard pile may be taken only by matching its top card with a natural pair from the hand. Canastas may not contain more than seven cards, and only one canasta is required to go out. The scoring differences are as follows:

Game is 7,500. From 5,000 up, the initial meld must be 150.

Red threes count 100 points for one, 300 for two, 500 for three, 1,000 for all four. They count minus points unless a side has at least one canasta.

Black threes may not be discarded on the first round. Any black threes in the pack when the pack is taken are discarded and are put out of play, counting 5 points each for the side that took them. All four black threes together, whether discarded or melded, count 100.

Wild cards may be melded, and a canasta of wild cards counts as follows: 4,000 for seven deuces; 3,000 for four jokers and three deuces; 2,000 for any other combination of seven wild cards. Sequences may not be melded. A discard pile topped by a wild card may not be taken.

Going out earns a 100-point bonus.

Uruguay

Uruguay follows the rules of Canasta except for the following:

Three or more wild cards, up to seven, form a valid meld. A canasta of wild cards counts 2,000.

The discard pile may be taken only by matching its top card with a natural pair from the hand.

Mexicana

The basic rules of Canasta are followed (sequences and wild cards may not be melded; only one card per turn is drawn from the stock), plus the following special rules:

A triple pack is used with six jokers (a total of 162 cards). Each player is dealt 13 cards. When a player makes the initial meld for his side, this player draws the top 13 cards of the stock and adds them to his hand.

A canasta of sevens (natural or mixed) counts 1,000. The discard pile may not be taken when it is topped by a seven.

To go out, a side must have two canastas, plus at least as many red threes as it has canastas.