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Thoughts on my 9 hour visit

Discussion in 'Getting There & Getting Around' started by Labeeb, Oct 20, 2014.

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  1. Labeeb

    Labeeb Low-Roller

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    Yes, 9 hours. It's not a layover, but an intended trip. I'm flying into town to bet on matchups for the Breeders' Cup. I've wanted to do it before, but living in Dallas, the logistics were a bit difficult to get in and out of town quickly. Now living in LA, I can fly from Burbank to LAS in just an hour. So I will be hitting up the following for unique matchups and props since there isn't a standard rotation for them and different book operators will have different offerings:

    Wynn
    SLS (William Hill)
    LVH
    Palace Station (Station)
    Venetian/Palazzo (Cantor)
    Mirage (MGM)

    I think this would cover it. So the plan is to rent a car and try to be as efficient as I can in gathering all of the lines and getting down to business to decide what will be put into action. With that I'm thinking of going the following route, using valet at every property and a few dollars to keep the cars close:

    McCarron Car Rental
    Mirage
    Palace Station
    SLS
    LVH
    Venetian/Palazzo
    Wynn

    I thought that making a big loop and crossing LVB as little as possible would be the way to go. I get into town at 8 AM on a Thursday and leave at 5:30. So between dropping the car and getting back to the airport, I have about 8 hours to get everything done and hopefully grab a bite to eat. Thoughts?
     
  2. SH0CK

    SH0CK Stylin' and Profilin' Quasi Tech Admin

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    First, I'd go with one of the rental companies that allows you to bypass the ceck-in counter and go directly to your car and out the door to save some time. If the line up for the counter is pretty long, that could take at least an hour in itself.

    I think my route would be this though:
    McCarran Car Rental
    Mirage
    Venetian/Palazzo
    Wynn
    Palace Station
    SLS
    Westgate

    Mirage is practically across the street from Venetian, then the same with Wynn. Cut back onto the Strip and in 10-15 minutes you're at Wynn from Venetian. Going Wynn to Venetian will be like going upstream since you would probably have to get back onto the Strip and turn left to get into the Venetian, which may be 15-20 minutes.

    I'd definitely finish up at Westgate though, then it's a straight shot down Paradise back to the airport.
     
  3. Labeeb

    Labeeb Low-Roller

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    Scott,

    Thanks for the reminder on the pre check-in deal with the car. It's been a year or two since renting, I had forgotten. I always used to use Thrifty back in the day and their Blue Chip service was very quick.

    I guess I should have explained that once I get all of the lines from each location, I will sit down and then go back out to whichever books it makes sense. I planned to make the last stop of the first part of the trip at Wynn since they will have the most offerings and the highest limits and I imagine most of my plays will be there. So the highest priority for me at this time is the efficiency of getting to the Wynn after retrieving lines. Ones I have all of the sheets, knowing what I will play will take about an hour or so I'm guessing since I'll be fully prepared. With that being said, I anticipate having a few hours free on the back end to eat and maybe play a little bit before heading back to McCarron.
     
  4. matguy

    matguy High-Roller

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    If time is your biggest concern, I wouldn't rent a car at all. You'll be wasting time getting to the garage itself (which isn't at the airport, so you'll be on a shuttle) which could be better used getting you well on your way to the first casino on your list in a cab. Then, once you get to each casino, while you're waiting for valet check in, you could already be out of the cab and well on your way in to the casino. On your way out it'll be quicker to get a cab than the valet can get your car to you, especially on a Thursday when there should be little to no line for a cab. Plus you don't have to figure out the casino entrances, which can be confusing. If you rent, at the end you would also need to get to the rental garage even earlier than the airport due to needing the shuttle back to the airport. Just the shuttle schedule and rental garage could eat up an hour and the garage is on the opposite side of the airport from the casinos, making your drive even further than the cab would have to go.

    Sure, you'll likely be spending more on cabs than the rental car would likely cost, but the rental car shouldn't be the faster option.

    I did a 17 hour trip once, and while I wish I would have gotten a car, getting in a certain number of goals within a short time wasn't my issue. I was just there for fun and at least having a home base to put stuff would have been nice (like a place to put stuff we bought rather than carrying everything on us.)
     
  5. Labeeb

    Labeeb Low-Roller

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    All great points matguy. I've only used valet at Red Rock, but never on the Strip. Do the valet lines tend to get lengthy? If so, that might make my decision a lot easier As I have many stops on both "legs" of the run, those small amounts of minutes will slowly add up. Time is certainly the most valued commodity, although that's not to say that I'd just throw money out the window trying to get around either. I think the question will be whether the time tradeoff will ultimately be worth about an extra $125 or so. If nothing else, I already have a cheap car lined up. Thanks again for another perspective!
     
  6. matguy

    matguy High-Roller

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    The lines on a Thursday (barring any other event that might raise crowds) should be low, but at the same time the casinos won't have as many valet runners on those days, either, so it's hard to tell how long it'll actually take just by looking at how many people are waiting. Depending on the place I generally experience between 5 and 10 minutes to get my car. I would not expect it to take longer than 5 minutes to get a cab on a weekday, generally more like a minute or walk right up to the next waiting cab.
     
  7. Royal Flusher

    Royal Flusher Savvy Gambler

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    Interesting problems...

    If you went the cab route you could do Mirage / Venetian / Wynn on foot.
     
  8. Labeeb

    Labeeb Low-Roller

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    Now I'm almost convinced that cabbing/walking will be the way to go.

    I'm thinking I'm going to end the first leg at Mirage and grab a burger at Mesa while gameplanning. So maybe cab to PS, cab to SLS. Either cab or monorail to LVH. Cab to Wynn. Walk to Palazzo. Walk to Mirage. Enjoy a burger and do a reverse of the path as needed to get down. Then hopefully there's an hour or two to get to Aria and play baccarat.

    Not sure about the location of the monorail relative to SLS and their sportsbook. I'm assuming it stops pretty close to the front doors at LVH.

    Thanks to everyone for their input!
     
  9. Labeeb

    Labeeb Low-Roller

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    Damn, I always forget that Mesa is at Caesars. No clue why I think it's at Mirage. That'll give me an excuse to get a set of lines for the Caesars properties, although I'm expecting them to just copy Wynn or grab from Don Best.
     
  10. IxAccDnf

    IxAccDnf VIP Whale

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    I would get the car and go

    Westgate
    SLS
    Palace Station
    Mirage and walk from the Mirage to the other books on the list

    I'm just someone who always likes to have a car.
     
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