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Scratching the gambling itch Downtown 3/6 to 3/10/15

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by Electroguy563, Mar 15, 2015.

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  1. Electroguy563

    Electroguy563 Vegas Joker

    Joined:
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    My Trip Report

    Hi everyone! I’m back from a 4 nite trip to Vegas. I stayed Downtown at the Cal. This trip was solo, as I was in a dire need to satisfy my gambling craves.
    I enjoy going solo, with the usual do “what I want when I want” excuse as to why one goes alone. I really do prefer going with my Wife but she doesn’t share the enthusiasm for Vegas as much as I do. We have a Nov. trip planned for this year which is good enough for her but not for me. So she’s fine with me going to scratch and satisfy the gambling itch.

    Vacations Hawaii offers gambling junkets to Mecca in the form of 5 night or 4 night packages. It’s owned by Boyd Gaming so you can plan stays at the Cal, Fremont, or MSS Downtown or the Orleans off-strip. I also get 200 dollar vouchers from Boyd that can be used to pay down the vacation packages. So when I booked my vacation package I used my free 4 night stay offer from the Cal along with the 200 dollar voucher plus a 500 dollar gift certificate my wife and I got from our priority awards credit card to secure a round trip first class ticket with transportation to and from airport and 4 night stay at the Cal for 500 dollars, all in. Not too bad imho.

    Arrived in Vegas around 10:45 pm and it’s straight to the Bus awaiting us passengers to whisk us off to our respective Hotels. One neat thing about this Vacation Hawaii pkg. is that you don’t have to wait for the checked-in luggage at baggage claim. Vacations Hawaii will pick up your luggage and deliver it to your room for you. All you have to do after getting off the bus is to go to the lobby where they have a special line for the Vacation Hawaii passengers. They have your room numbers, keys, and food voucher booklet all ready to go. Just show your I.D. and you are off to your room in a matter of minutes. Your luggage will be delivered in your room roughly an hr. later. I booked the “casino air” option since I get free rooms anyway. So I had to check in the regular way but it’s still a fast and easy process. Choosing the casino air option saves you about a hundred dollars.

    I was given room 2318. This is the top floor of the west tower of the Cal. When I got to the floor lobby I noticed that it is different from all the lower floors. I tad bit nicer and the ceilings were higher. Didn’t think nothing of it until I opened the room door. They had put me in their suite! By myself! Now what is a solo traveler who hardly spends any time in the room except to sh#t, shower , and shave (and maybe sleep) gonna do in a suite? It was a pretty nice room for a downtown property but it was a waste on me. I wondered why they did this and my theory is because of Nascar weekend. They were sold out on rooms so they figure a solo traveler in a suite wouldn’t take housekeeping too long to clean. I dunno. Just a theory, really don’t know why I ended up in there but I got no complaints. My wife was jealous when I called her later and told her about the room. NOW she wished she had come along, lol!

    Because it was Nascar weekend Downtown was pretty busy. On sat. I walked all over downtown and checked out all of the casinos. All of them were doing pretty good business during the day and night. The Plaza still has that weird odor when you enter. Sort of like wet laundry. The LVC was surprisingly busy, mostly where the table games and craps tables are. The casino was a little warm and uncomfortable imho, but it’s nice to see it lively with people having fun. I also caught the Sam’s Town shuttle and played a little at Sam’s Town. I’m a craps player but I just played some DDB VP when I was there. I would’ve played craps but they never opened another table even though the only one open was packed to the gills.

    Taking the Sam’s Town shuttle back to Downtown I got off at the Fremont and played a session of craps there. Lots of PSO’s so it was a losing session to say the least. But it was a fun time. There’s a tall lanky dealer whose name is Buddy. Really cool and fun guy and really knows how to work the table by joking and playing around. Made the craps experience very entertaining. After that I walked Fremont East for a while and checked out the El Cortez. Didn’t feel like playing there so I walked back to the Cal. And spent the rest of the evening losing at craps, lol!:faint:

    On my solo trips I just eat simply. I’ll either take out food from the Lanai Express at the Fremont or take out food from the Cal Club or Aloha specialties located on the 2nd floor mezzanine between the Cal and MSS. I’ll eat in my room or I’ll eat at the counter of the Market St. Café. I did go to the MSS breakfast buffet once and I also had breakfast at Sam’s Town Firelight buffet. So nothing really special to report on the dining front but if any of you out there would like a little twist on the usual breakfast fare try the “Filipino breakfast” at the Market St. Café. It has 3 eggs (over easy recommended) with tocino; a type of sweet red sausage. It comes with either rice or hash browns and a side of toast. It’s really good. I order it every time I eat breakfast there.

    By the way, the new Cal Noodle House that replaced Pasta Pirate looks nice and all, but I hardly saw many people in there eating when I pass by. Lots of times it looks empty. The menu looks like it will appeal to a younger hip crowd. I can’t help but think it doesn’t fit in to the more subdued, older clientele that is the Cal’s visitor base. My sister-in-law and her husband will be visiting the Cal later on this month. I asked them to try it out and see how they like it. I didn’t feel like eating in there solo. The restaurant is too bright and the front is almost all windows. I feel that if I ate there I would look like I’m on display or something, lol!

    As far as gambling, well, let’s say at least I had fun. Most of the times, anyway. And I also managed to satisfy the gambling itch for a while. But there was one incident where I bought in for 300 dollars and the boxman was so busy talking to a dealer that he ordered my dealer to give me a stack of reds (100 dollars) and 4 greens. I just stood there and refused to pick it up. I waited until I got the boxman’s attention then declared I bought in for 300. The other players at the table backed me up. Now I understand we all make mistakes but this boxman’s apology was so un-genuine it just put a damper on the session. I didn’t stay long because I just wasn’t in the mood anymore. All the other times were fun though, even if the trend was point, then seven-out. There were so many PSO’s I took a break and played DDB VP. Initially my VP play was disappointing. Only lose, lose, lose. Later on in my trip I managed to get 4oak’s on several occasions, but all of them on the lower tier quads (4 5’s thru kings) for 250 credits. I did get one 3 4oak that pays 800 credits. All of the wins were at the quarter level. Of course all of these wins were promptly pissed away at the craps tables, lol! I did dabble in dollar DDB but it got scary after I just kept losing. I also played some STP DDB and multi-play DDB by the craps tables that were fun and quite addictive. Many close royals, but we all know “almost” doesn’t count. I might post some pics if I can get my daughter to help me. I just took 2 pics of my 4oaks and just didn’t bother to take pics of the rest ( which I now regret). I also have some pics of the suite if anyone cares to see it. (Doesn’t compare to Strip standards imho.)

    I’d like to share an interesting observation on one session of craps at the Cal. I was playing alongside this young girl (who had to be carded before she could buy-in). All she did was play the field. Exclusively. She bought in for a hundred and started to accumulate quite a stash of chips. Before you knew it she was playing green chips and betting 100 to 200 at a time. And winning! I’ve been tracking the numbers and noticed that there was an unusual number of 2’s and 12’s being rolled. And boy did she clean up on her field bets! Granted she did get her share of huge losses when the non-field numbers hit but she bravely (or naively?) continued to stack her greens on the field. She never wanted to roll the dice and only bet the field until she finally colored out at 900 dollars and some change. This was when she experienced a run of non-field numbers and was getting killed. If she had quit before that she would’ve easily cashed out close to 1500 or 1600 dollars. The dealer did ask her nicely if she wanted to bet on anything else on the table and that’s when she admitted that she didn’t know how to play craps. All she knew was that the field was a one shot bet, either win or lose. Oh well, good for her! She did unusually well considering she was playing the field!

    On Monday I wanted to take a break from gambling so I embarked on a quest. I wanted to go to the Orleans. And I will get there by using the free shuttles. So I caught the 8:30 am Sam’s Town shuttle and arrived at Sam’s Town around 8:50 or so. I noticed that the Sam’s shuttle to Harrahs on the Strip doesn’t leave till 10:10. So I ate breakfast at the Firelight buffet (4.00 with Boyd card). It was a simple buffet, nothing outstanding, just good standard breakfast items. I then played quarter DDB until time to catch the shuttle. I arrived at Harrahs then proceeded to Ballys to catch the shuttle to the Orleans. I took my time and went in and out of the Linq, Flamingo, Cromwell, and Ballys. Now the shuttles for the Orleans are the smaller types, similar to the airport shuttles. The shuttles run every twenty minutes or so and the crowd waiting for them can get pretty big. I just barely managed to get a seat. Driver didn’t even ask for players cards as the sign out there says Bconnected card holders get priority over regular riders. I finally reached my destination: the Orleans. It was just a little past 11:20

    There were 2 reasons I decided to embark on this adventure. I wanted to play craps. The other was I wanted to go to the movies. I wanted to see American Sniper. I checked the schedule and found out that the movie starts at 12:45. I had an hour so I bought in at their craps tables for 200. It was a pretty good roller coaster ride as I went up as high as 500 then down to a low of 75 bucks. I played the standard passline/ odds with 27 across or 22 inside, depending how good or bad I was doing. I also played 2-way hardways for a dollar for myself and the dealers. Got to parlay some of the hardway bets but would always lose it on the 2nd parlay. Lots of fun, though. I cashed out down 40 dollars or so.

    The American Sniper movie was sad. I already knew the story of this hero but wanted to see it on film. I was worried I might be the only person in the theatre, being it was a weekday and a matinee. I’m sort of a scairdy cat when it comes to empty theatres, I can’t help but envision being alone with diaper man from the Fremont Canopy and he’s chasing me around that dark theatre with all the doors locked. Just kidding. Trying to infuse some humor into this boring report, lol.:snore: But still. It is a scary thought……

    Turned out that there was one lonely patron when I arrived with my soda and popcorn in tow. Whew! At least there’s someone else besides me in the theatre. Just before the show started another couple came in. Good. Diaper man can’t bother us now.

    I contemplated playing more craps after the movie but decided against it. I played quarter VP instead while waiting for the shuttle to bring me on my backwards trek towards home base. A fairly large crowd was forming to catch the shuttle and I recall deciding that if I couldn’t get on I would just say screw it and catch a taxi back Downtown. Turns out I got lucky again and started my backwards trek.

    When I got to Harrahs Big Elvis was singing at their bar (what’s the name of it?). It was crowded in there so I took a seat at a penny slot outside to hear him sing. I put a twenty in the machine. It was a wild dragons or something like that with a 50 cent minimum spin. While enjoying Big Elvis I managed to get two bonus spins; one with a whopping BIG WIN!! (or so the stupid machine says) of $16.50. The other bonus spins netted me a humongous $13.75. Of course by the time Big Elvis was done with his show I was down to 29 cents. I tried to play it off but the machine was 50 cent minimum. So I cashed it out and put it on the machine for someone else to use if they wanted it. I watched people playing craps while occasionally watching people check out the 29 cent voucher I left on the machine. After seeing how much it was for they just left it and moved on. Pretty funny. Especially when they would look left and right before checking out the voucher, lol!

    I eventually caught the Sam’s shuttle back to Sam’s Town and then onward to Downtown. Total transportation cost of this adventure? $16.00. All in tips. Of course it can be free if you don’t tip the driver but I wanted to. $3.00 from Downtown to Sams. $3.00 from Sam’s to Harrahs. $2.00 from Ballys to Orleans. Then repeat on the way back. Taxi from Downtown to Orleans would have been around $30.00 not including tip so it still is a frugal way to go IF and a big IF you don’t mind the walking and the time between shuttles. It was a fun way to get away from gambling and do something different. My only worry is that the shuttles from Ballys to Gold Coast/Orleans would not be able to take all the people waiting, which would mean long waits to get there. My adventure started at 8:30 am. By the time I got back Downtown it was 5:45 pm.

    I got off the Sam’s Town shuttle at the Fremont and had a craps session there. It was a losing session as usual so I quit and played some VP. I then checked out some Canopy shows and listened to several bands before heading back to the Cal. Several craps sessions at the Cal and MSS were met with dismal results but it was my last gambling night so I kept playing, as long as it was fun. There was one session where my 400 dollar buy-in dwindled down to 60 dollars or so. I fought back by grinding a win one red chip at a time and several hrs. later was awarded with a color up of, you guessed it, 400 dollars. As crazy as it seems I felt great satisfaction of at least getting a comeback of sorts. It was 4 am. I went to the Market St. café and ordered some oxtail soup. Satisfied, I went up to bed. Tomorrow is my last day as my flight leaves at 6:40 pm. I planned to put in some major craps play before leaving.

    I got up at 7am and played some VP machines close to the crap tables. Around 8:30 or so I went to have breakfast at the MSS buffet. It was o.k. I remember posting and stating that there were no pancakes at the MSS buffet but I must’ve overlooked it or it was missing that day. Today they had pancakes alright but they were on the small side. And they sucked. Everything else was o.k.

    I checked the MSS craps tables and one was full while the other one had a crew standing around with no one playing. I didn’t want to play by myself so I played some VP close to the tables and hit a 4oak at a quarter DDB machine. Still no one was at the empty craps table so I redeemed my 4oak TITO (and again forgot to get a scratch card) and went up to the empty table to play. I bought in for 400 and put a 5 dollar passline with double odds and 27 or 26 across. And promptly sevened out. So I repeated. And sevened out. Again. And again. So I tried 22 inside. And sevened out. I tried 17 or 16 inside. Yes. Seven out. In frustration I set the point with passline/double odds and started come bets instead of place bets. And sevened out. Again. I looked at the dealers. They looked at me with their heads slowly shaking “NO. DON’T DO IT”. I tried one more time. Seven out. I couldn’t believe it. It was quite embarrassing, to be honest. I looked over the other table and saw a space on the stickmans left 4th position right at the hook. I told the boxman I’m gonna play at the other table. He looked at me and said “I don’t blame you sir, Good Luck.” I moved over to the other table and asked to be rated in. The boxman from the previous table called out to me and assured me they got me covered at the new table.

    I really sucked this trip as far as rolling dice. I had a couple of 10 minute rolls and maybe a 20 minute one during the trip somewhere but basically I sucked. Big time. And at this table it was no different. I think I had a 10 minute micro heater but the rest was just shit. But some of the other players had some decent rolls. So at this table on my last day in dear Vegas the roller coaster ride was especially erratic. I had roughly 175 dollars from that disastrous table I left so I bought in for an extra 200 dollars. I would fight my way up to the point where I would be betting greens and then come crashing down when the PSO’s would appear with a vengeance. I never left that table until I had to leave to catch the Vacations Hawaii bus back to the airport. I would go up and down several times until I reached the ultimate low point: I was down to a measly 38 dollars. I looked at the time. 12:20 pm. I don’t have to check-in for the bus departure until 2:45 pm. So I ground it out once again, one red chip at a time as the minutes agonizingly ticked away until by some miracle I was close to about a 150 dollars or so. Then this elderly Japanese man stepped up to the plate. He had some pretty good rolls previously which I must admit enabled me to come back. The time: 2:15 or so. I decided to go for it. I placed a 5 dollar passline with 25 dollar odds. Then placed 110 dollars inside. He went on to make 4 points. I pressed my bets and got them up to 90 dollar place bets on the inside with 50 dollar buy bets on the 4 and 10. The time was 2:31. I told myself if I have to I’ll take a taxi to the airport. Because I’m not leaving, as long as he continues to roll. I collected one more time on the 5 and 8 before he finally sevened out. I promptly colored out to the tune of $1137 dollars. I tossed $37.00 to the dealers.

    Well, I did make it to the check-in for departure, the Vacations Hawaii people actually told us we could play another hour or so because of the daylight savings adjustment. So I just slow played on some DDB machines to kill time. Next thing you know I was on the plane and on my way home. I went to Vegas with a 5000 dollar bankroll and came home with 3800 intact. That last session on the last day of my trip helped ease the pain of my loss.

    If you actually reached this stage of my report I want to thank you for reading it. I contemplated not writing a report but it would be hypocrisy if I didn’t since I’m always encouraging others to write one. My solo trips especially are almost always the same. I wish I could make it more interesting but unfortunately it always ends up same old same old. So I figured, what the hell, maybe some of you can save this for those cold windy nights when there’s absolutely nothing else to do. Then maybe this report can be of some use then, lol!

    Next trip is in Nov. with my dear Wife! But don’t be surprised if I squeeze in another solo trip between now and then!:evillaugh

    Good Luck everyone on your next trip to Vegas!!:wave:
     
  2. WestTexas

    WestTexas Low-Roller

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    Great comeback on the last day or should I say minutes of your trip. Thanks for sharing.

    I alsp go solo several time a year as my wife only likes to go once a year.
     
  3. Royal Flusher

    Royal Flusher Savvy Gambler

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    Nice trip, really nice comeback at the 11th hour.

    So you got a Signature suite? They are really hard to come by. There's only four of 'em in the place. It's a goal of mine to get one sometime.
     
  4. fadetheseven

    fadetheseven High-Roller

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    Craps is evil. Lose lose lose monster and still not enough to get back to even! I think there are many of us that have turned to VP when the dice tables are empty. Burned too many times when the dice move too fast.

    Reading your TR was like re-living my usual trips. Break even or lose then something big to bring you back but not quite a winner.
     
  5. Joe

    Joe VIP Whale

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    Great report. I have for the most part given up on craps and just stick with bar VP. A very nice comeback on the last day! :thumbsup:

    A few years ago I won a Vacations Hawaii from Boyd. It was funny because flying to Hawaii, we were all excited for our first trip there and everyone else on the plane was going home from Vegas and they all must have lost because nobody seemed happy. Coming back, just the opposite. A plane full of very excited people waiting to get to Vegas and my wife and I just kind of worn out from a week in Hawaii.

    Thanks for posting.
     
  6. Electroguy563

    Electroguy563 Vegas Joker

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    Well, I'm not sure what kind of suite it was. I might post some pics I took with my cheap flip type cell phone (the cheapest one that Verizon sells....). My stinky feet might be in those pics, it was meant to make my wife laugh.....
     
  7. Electroguy563

    Electroguy563 Vegas Joker

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    Yep. Everyone seems to drag their feet on the trip back home, lol! What I've always noticed (which I think is wonderful, by the way) is how the older folks on the flight seem to have a spring in their step as we arrive in Vegas. All of a sudden their aches and pains are forgotten, at least for a little while. Vegas is a very good therapy for all of us, I think! :thumbsup:
     
  8. Electroguy563

    Electroguy563 Vegas Joker

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    Roger that! Seems to be the story of my gambling life, lol!!
     
  9. Electroguy563

    Electroguy563 Vegas Joker

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    These are the pics of my suite at the Cal. Notice my stinky feet and my fat stomach meant to make my wife laugh! :beer:

    IMG_9883.JPG IMG_9884.JPG IMG_9885.JPG IMG_9886.JPG IMG_9887.JPG
     
  10. Blonde_4_ever

    Blonde_4_ever LasVegas4ever.com

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    Thanks for the report!
    That trek back and forth to Orleans sounds exhausting.:eek:
    I have contemplated doing it...but I am sure I would cave at some point and grab a cab.
     
  11. breanna61

    breanna61 Super Moderator

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    Congrats on the suite upgrade. I laughed at your theatre diaper man story and I don't blame you.....that dude creeps the hell outta me. Awesome craps comeback!
     
  12. Hawaiianmark

    Hawaiianmark Low-Roller

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    Great read!

    Craps is love / hate yeah? Was the crew at TheCal any better? Last trip they kinda rubbed me wrong a bit.

    Great comeback and score on the suite; Cal Noodle house is well worth it. If you like the OxTail at Market St; you'll like the OxTail stew there.

    Wife loves the "Ladies Bet" on the field; she cleans up some on it

    Mahalos for the read; on to Vegas for me tomorrow!
     
  13. fadetheseven

    fadetheseven High-Roller

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    I've only played at the cal few times and the dealers always look tired and run down. It doesn't help that the ceilings are so low. It makes it feel like a dungeon. Compare that to MSS where the ceilings are high and most of the dealers seem to enjoy their job.
     
  14. Drambler

    Drambler High-Roller

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    What a great comeback. Thanks for the report..love a good dice story
     
  15. Viva Las Vegas

    Viva Las Vegas Elvis has left the building

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    Excellent trip report. I mostly play poker (Video 90% Live 10%) and a little Blackjack, but not at The Cal. I love staying at the California, and would really love to snag a suite. I don't play enough to get a suite, but I love the west tower. Love the Redwood - do you ever get comps there? You should ask the Craps pit the next time you play for a decent amount of time or on a good roll and they can write you a comp.

    The California is a great place to stay and play. You and your fellow Hawaiians are so nice, and I love the laid back view on gambling and life, and always have a great time at The California. Nice staff as well.

    Hope you keep posting in the future and best of luck on your future trips!
     
  16. Electroguy563

    Electroguy563 Vegas Joker

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    I had a bit more fun at the Cal than the last trip which was last August. Man, that August trip I thought the craps crew was the worst I've ever played with. This time it was better and the great dealers missing from that last trip were working this time. Only bummer was that boxman that was gonna short change me 100 dollars on my buy-in. Still get angry when I think about it.

    Hey, I love ox-tail stew! Next time I'll check out the Cal Noodle shop with my wife.

    Thanks for reading! Have a great and profitable trip!!
     
  17. Electroguy563

    Electroguy563 Vegas Joker

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    I had a bit more fun at the Cal than the last trip which was last August. Man, that August trip I thought the craps crew was the worst I've ever played with. This time it was better and the great dealers missing from that last trip were working this time. Only bummer was that boxman that was gonna short change me 100 dollars on my buy-in. Still get angry when I think about it.

    Hey, I love ox-tail stew! Next time I'll check out the Cal Noodle shop with my wife.

    Thanks for reading! Have a great and profitable trip!!
     
  18. Electroguy563

    Electroguy563 Vegas Joker

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    I love the Redwood also. Never thought of asking for a comp there but maybe in the future I will!

    And a great Mahalo! (Thank You) for your kind words, sir, I also wish you the same!
     
  19. tringlomane

    tringlomane STP Addicted Beer Snob

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    Good report! And nice comeback! I really winning right before leaving, definitely puts me in a better mood.

    Sucks you couldn't get anything going on DDB, game is really rough when you can't get those quads.
     
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