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My TR March 29-April 2

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by tominiowa, Apr 6, 2008.

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  1. tominiowa

    tominiowa High-Roller

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    My Trip Report

    I will make an attempt to give a TR for my trip Wednesday March 29 till Wednesday April 2. It started by waking at 2:30 AM to get cleaned up and head towards Omaha for our early flight out at 7:30 AM. :fly: It is a short 3 hour drive there. We made it in the correct time and waited for the cattle call on SWA. I had 2 free tickets that Rhona and I were using for the trip. We arrived in Vegas a little early and caught the shuttle to the car rental building and my thrifty car was waiting. I was using my blue chip membership so I pretty much went directly to the car waiting. So far so good.

    It was still before 9 in Vegas so I knew it would be a waste to try to get our room yet on a Saturday morning. We drove to the Rio as I had a 2 fer 1 coupon for their buffet which I have never eaten at. I have heard good things. We got there for breakfast and to be honest at full price it would have been too expensive but at half price it was decent. Nothing too special to write about. The roast beef was probably the best thing I ate on the buffet. The service was a little slow at times but eventual we had enough coffee and time to relax. They did have dinner set out before we left and I looked through it. It looked more worth the price they were charging. I was too full and did not try anything on it though. We walked around some to show Rhona the place and went out to see their pool area. It is nice and was already full.

    We left there and drove down the side street for a while and picked up some groceries. Water, Diet Dew, Diet Coke, of course some whiskey, and a few munchies. It was time to head to our place of stay the first 2 nights, Fitzgeralds. The nights were comped from my host with no problems. We checked in and found they were sold out and my room was not ready yet. It was before noon yet. So we checked our bags at the bell desk and went out to the pool area and enjoyed the warmth for an hour. When we came back I went to a different girl and she was able to find a nicer room higher up for us. We were on the 12th floor with a decent view. It was an updated room and all was fine with it. Rhona and I did some unpacking and checked out the firmness of the bed. ;) It was fine and would be adequate we decided. :mrgreen:

    We headed down to the casino and I tried some DD BJ. I played for a couple hours and it was a yo-yo session. Never could get a good string of wins going so my progressive betting would pay. I finally quit and was only down $50. It was time to get dressed for our evening meal. Rhona was a sight for my eyes and I proudly escorted her to Binions where we went to the steak house on the top floor. Our table was ready after we enjoyed a drink at the bar there. We were seated by the window and enjoyed the views of Vegas and each other. Rhona enjoyed a glass of wine and had their special of the night. A small filet with some large shrimp scampi that came with garlic mashed taters. I enjoyed the Binions cut of prime rib with a very large baked potatoes. The food was excellent. We ended the meal by sharing a piece of cheese cake topped with a little chocolate sauce. It was the best cheesecake Rhona enjoyed the whole trip. It was the third best prime rib out of 4 times this trip. But a long way ahead of fourth place and close to the top two. It was a very romantic night as the sun set and Vegas lights begin to come to life. I paid our bill which was very cheap I thought. $100 tip included. :clap:

    Down we went across the Fremont street and saw a light show. We headed back towards the Fitz. We kindof stuck out some with me dressed up and Rhona in a dress you don’t always see downtown. J But I was proud when men would stare. I am not the jealous type. I tried some more BJ at the same table. Played for an hour and half or so and finally the long day and big meal and drinks :drunk: were getting the best of us. I cashed out ahead $50. So the first day in town and my gambling had not accomplished anything.

    Up to the room ;) and I enjoyed a cup of coffee. It is nice at the Fitz that it comes with a coffee pot. It had been a long day as we had been up almost 24 hours now. But it has been a nice one.

    Day two to follow.
     
  2. Thor

    Thor Beer Drinker

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    sounds like a rather successful trip! free flight...free hotel! you win!!!!! i've always wanted to stay downtown, but i've yet to do it....i may have to in the future!
     
  3. tominiowa

    tominiowa High-Roller

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    Day Two,

    Nothing like waking up to the sunshine in Vegas. To wake up without an alarm clock telling you to get up. To wake up all snuggled in bed after a relaxing day and night before. I woke first and started the coffee. It is so nice to just relax in the room and enjoy several cups of coffee and then do some more relaxing. ;)
    We finally got dressed and headed outside and walked down to the El Cortez. I had something where they gave me $10 in free slot play and went and got that and found some type of machine and played the $10 through and cashed out about $4 profit. Whippy!!!!!! :roll:

    We went into the coffee shop. The Chinese buffet was doing a lot of business I noticed but was not something I wanted today and Rhona is not a huge buffet fan. We shared an order of onion rings which we never finished. But I enjoy them here, just too many of them. I ordered the prime rib special and Rhona had roast beef over mashed taters. She enjoyed hers and my prime rib was the second best of the trip. I could tell it had been warmed back up some but it was very tender and tasteful. I have always thought this coffee shop is underrated by many. Always had great service and value can’t be beat. I used up my comp dollars that I had so it only cost me $6 for the tab. :cheer: It was interesting as Jackie Gaughn sat at the booth behind us. I noticed his food took very little time to show up and his wife did just walk over to the buffet to get him a few items he wanted. He is such a plain and normal man. But I would say he has really slipped physically wise since I last saw him. He held on to his wife’s arm a lot while walking back to his room upstairs. Most would never know a multi millionaire was standing there.

    I tried some $5 min craps there. I love the game but it just hasn’t been the kindest to me. I am a pass line player and then follow up with come bets. Always taking 2 to 5 times odds as the mood strikes me. I will go to 10 times on the 6 and 8 though or if a good roll is coming. Well this wasn’t a good roll at all. After several rollers including myself I had lost $150 without ever being paid at all except when a person 7 out while I was on the come line. Not the place you want to get paid on. :frstr:

    Back towards the Fitz we went. I tried some DD BJ there again. It was a little over an hour and things were not so good. I gave up there and was down $250 here. Not turning out to be such a great day. We headed back to the room for some relaxing ;) and dressed to go to the Wynn for the rest of the day. It was an easy drive up the strip and up to Valet. I had Rhona sign up as a newbie so we could get 50 points and enjoy 2 free buffets that night later. We did some walking around and I started out with a $100 bill in a slot and just cashed out the same ticket as we tried several slots. The drink service was good here and the drinks were good also. Rhona had especially good pina colonda drinks. :drunk: We never made much at any slots and slowly made head way towards that 50 points mark. We finally hit it around $70 gambled away. But at least we had plenty of entertainment. Eventually the Wynn slots got all of my $100 bill. So the free buffet was not free but we might have struck it rich. :roll:

    We got in the buffet line shortly before 8. We had about a half hour wait till we were seated. I know many rave about this buffet. It is OK to me but not near as good as many say. The crab legs are cold and other seafood choices are limited. The lamb chops were the best thing I ate on the buffet. I prefer more salad choices like pasta salads and such. I enjoyed a prime rib slice here and have to report it was the worst on the trip. To be honest it wasn’t even in the same class as what I had earlier at the El Cortez. It was tough and chewy and the guy cut it way too thin to enjoy it. Now their desserts are good but Rhona said Binions cheesecake was better. The best thing on the buffet was grilled asparagus. I had 2 helping of those.

    I have tried this buffet twice and probably will not be back unless someone wants me to go with them. But, it was nice to show Rhona the casino and some rich people gambling. But like other casinos we had been in she was still the nicest and classiest woman in the joint. J

    We got our car from Valet and decided to drive down the strip to show Rhona more while it was dark and traffic was slow. It was slow driving but that was alright as when we stopped I could explain more to her. Eventually I cut over to the interstate and headed back home. Enjoyed another cup of coffee to help unwind and enjoy the evening lights from our room. Watched a little TV and ;) and off to sleep we went. It was not a good gambling day at all. Forgot to mention I also lost $100 on the 2 basketball games that afternoon. So I was an equal opportunity gambling looser. :faint: I lost on slots, BJ, craps, and sports bets all today.

    Day Three to follow later as we move to the strip
     
  4. Echo27

    Echo27 VIP Whale

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    Great TR so far. I hope the mattress was firm enough for you! :)
     
  5. tominiowa

    tominiowa High-Roller

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    Day Three , moving day.

    Another great restfull night. Woke to bright sunshine which has been missing in Iowa for most of the winter. I was up first and got that coffee brewing. Lazed around the room and relaxed some. ;) Did our packing as we were moving later today to the Luxor. We checked out early and took all the bags to the car in the lot and then headed back to the casino.

    I decided to play some more BJ at the Fitz and had the pit boss give me another $500 from my line there. It was a good table with good players there. The limits were down to $10 but in the morning it was high enough that good players were there. I played with one guy who had played with me before this trip. We had some decent luck and hit a couple nice double deck shoes. He cashed out first and soon I followed when it turned on me some. I cashed out with a nice $500 profit. Now that was more like it. :clap:

    We headed over to the Golden Nugget to enjoy an early lunch at the Carson Street Café. I ordered a simple hamburger with a bowl of mushroom soup. Rhona ordered a type of club sandwich which is in a French toast type bread. The service was very slow and erratic and people all around us were also displeased with the time needed. My soup was great and the sandwiches were sandwiches. Nothing special. :roll:

    I played some goofy slot on the way out and netted a quick $10 profit. We roamed around Fremont some and I showed Rhona some of the casinos as we were probably not going to be downtown again. When I showed her the LVC she understood why I had moved to the Fitz lately for my stays. I explained how sad it was that it had went so far downhill since Tom Kaminsky had left. :bag:

    It was now time for us to head down the strip to our new home for the next 2 nights. I am not much of a strip guy but since I had an almost newbie in tow I thought it would be best to roam around there some. We arrived at the valet at the Luxor. Walked in and found a fast moving line at check-in. We got a nice lady and I requested a high floor room. I had booked a Jacuzzi suite in the pyramid. We got floor 31 which was the second from the top. It is a nice 2 room suite with a Jacuzzi next to the window. The suites are found in every corner on every floor. One room is on one side of the corner and the other room is the other side so you get 2 views. We had views towards the west and north. We quickly checked out the Jacuzzi with drinks in hand and checked the firmness of this bed also. ;) The room is showing its age as the carpet is a little worn and little things need help. But the price was good and I found the room unique and romantic. It also came with a fridge which was nice. I knew it didn’t have coffee so I had packed a hot pot and instant coffee for the mornings.

    I was getting a decent hit on the whiskey bottle :drunk: and finally we got dressed for the night and headed down to the casino. I tried a $10 min craps table and found it an up and down battle but the guys throwing were not lucky. After about an hour I had lost another $300 to the dice. Why do I play this game? :frstr: We decided to go to the Bellagio and was hoping to sit by the water show in the lakeside bar. We arrived at the valet and first explored the conservatory. It is impressive as always. I found the bar and it was closed for some poker tournament. Darn!!!!! I parked it at the bar by the sports book and bought a few $6 beers. I wasn’t downtown anymore. Played some video BJ and made a quick $20. The bartender said we could go downstairs and sit outside at the Prime steakhouse and drink. We found it and was escorted to a table up front. Now this is level with the lake and was a nice romantic place to sit. We sat there for quite sometime and enjoyed some more beer and just took in the shows. It was nice time and I recommend it if you are with someone special. We strolled around the casino some and saw how the rich gamble and just wondered how these 20’s year old can play $1000 min craps. Where do they get all this money at such a young age?

    We headed back to the Luxor and I parked it at a $25 min craps game with 2 other guys. It was a shoe game. The other guys were playing $100-$200 hand. Soon the fun and booze had me betting $50- $200 a hand. It was a fun table next to their disco bar. It was entertaining seeing some of the clients going in there. Some very nice looking ladies going there, but none more beautiful than Rhona. After about close to 2 hours I cashed out with a nice $1100 profit. It had been a good gambling day today. :woo:

    We hit the café there since we had not eaten since the morning and it was after 2 AM now. We started with nachos that Rhona had to have. I had a chicken fajita and Rhona had a pot pie. We ate about half the food brought but it hit the spot. :eat: The bill was $45 with tip but was credited $10 from the package we booked there.

    It was time for bed and as soon as we hit the bed it was night night time for us. It was after 3 AM and out last full day in Vegas had already begun. Day four to follow as soon as I can. Hope you are enjoying some.
     
  6. dscs007

    dscs007 Tourist

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    Sounds like a fun and somewhat profitable trip so far. Can't wait for the finish.

    David
     
  7. DonD

    DonD VIP Whale

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    Very nice read.
    Last I heard was he went to one of the riverboats but was back in town working on the strip. I too miss him. He had the best memory of anyone that I have ever met.
     
  8. 7beasley

    7beasley Guest

    Great read so far...looking forward to more!

    -Nicole
     
  9. OnTheHorizon

    OnTheHorizon Low-Roller

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    Great Read - looking forward to Day 4!
     
  10. co21ss

    co21ss Tourist

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    Great read. Looking forward to more!
     
  11. Courtney

    Courtney Resident polygamist

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    I think you :licklips: more on this trip alone than I have :licklips: in the last six months.
     
  12. IllMarty

    IllMarty Orangutan

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    Tom,

    I have been reading your TRs for quite some time going back to when I was on that other board. Always a fun read.

    Marty
     
  13. gmoney590

    gmoney590 VIP Whale

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    It sounds like you and your lady had a real nice trip; and, the $1100.00 BJ win was excellent.:nworthy:
     
  14. tominiowa

    tominiowa High-Roller

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    Day Four has begun,

    We woke a little later than norm, but it was a late night for us. First order of business is the get the hot pot boiling for some much needed coffee. It tasted especially good and we enjoyed it while relaxing in the hot tub and looking out the windows at the awesome sight of the mountains. After a few cups and plenty of hot water it was time to cool down and relax some more. ;) It took a while to finally get out of the room but eventually we got down to the casino and walked the shops over to the Mandalay Bay. Rhona is a shopper btw. :roll: She did make one purchase at Fredericks of Hollywood. She said it was a bargain. I am sure I will agree when I see it. :mrgreen: We explored the casino and went over to see the pool there. I had never seen the wave pool before and it looked neat.

    Back to the Luxor and I found my deal and no deal slot there. I couldn’t resist and played it some and won $20 while being entertained. :cheer: It was time to get the car and head over to the Palazio. Which I had never seen. Found the Valet there and strolled in. It is a nice place with very tall ceilings which I like. Rhona strolled through the shops while I hung out in the casino. I parked it at a VP machine at the bar. I had a few drinks while I lost $38. Enough of this so hit a $10 min craps game there. The odds were 3,4,5 also. It was a decent game but the dealers never won any of my bets. In fact the whole trip a craps dealer never won any of probably 25-30 bets I made for them. I usually bet the yo or a hardway for them. Rhona showed up and I cashed out a small $105 profit. Hey, a win is a win and I needed one at craps badly. :bang:

    We had not eaten yet for the day and had plans to try the Bellagio buffet today. We headed over there and got in about ½ hour before the dinner meal started. :eat: We had no line to wait in which was a nice bonus. Another bonus is Rhona treated me to dinner. It was refreshing to be in the company of a woman who from time to time will treat her date to a dinner. Can’t say it has happened to me much in life and especially in Vegas. This was actually the second meal Rhona had bought. She also bought when we ate at the Nugget.

    Now to me this is the best buffet in town. The prime rib was the best in all I tried this trip. They offer mussels which were tasty. They had several selections of fish and I tried a small piece of all of them. The lamb chops were excellent. The downside was the crab legs were brought out too frozen and were icy. But I would easily give up some crab legs for all the other options they had. The dessert were just as good as Wynn has. They even had several selections of nice vegetables that changed over the time we were there.

    After a very relaxing time eating we headed over to the Tropicana for the comedy show later. While we waited I played some goofy slots and won $20 on one and another $4 on the other. Slots actually were not bad to me once I left the Wynn. I admit I don’t risk much but those little $10 and $20 wins can add up. We went to the show and had 3 comedians and all 3 were extremely funny and we enjoyed it. :rofl: It is cheap entertainment.

    After the show I sat at a $10 BJ table with some dumb players and after loosing a $100 in short time I had enough of watching men wanting to loose more than win. Hitting 16 against a dealer 4 and staying on soft 16’s. It drove me nuts. Down to the craps table I headed. It was as not as bad but the hot streak just couldn’t last more than one roller and I finally conceded with another $215 loss. :frstr:

    It had been a long day and we had not had much relaxing time in the room, ;) so off to the Luxor we headed and up for the night.
     
  15. tominiowa

    tominiowa High-Roller

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    Day Five, time to head home,

    I called for a wake up call the night before, but actually woke before the alarm and got the coffee brewing. It always taste so good when on vacation and when a person is not in a hurry. And it just amazes me what it does to me after 2 cups. ;) It was the same for us this morning also. We took our time to pack and get cleaned up. Eventually we did the TV checkout which is great and headed to get our car.

    We drove down to South Point casino after a quick stop to fill the rental up with gas. The South Point is a nice casino and we headed towards the buffet for breakfast since it was going to be a long day till we got home. :eat: The buffet only cost $5.95 and is a great bargain. It is similar to many station casinos. The choices were plentiful and all I had were very good. How can you go wrong at that price and drinks included. Service was also good while we were there. We took our time as we had a little to waste.

    Rhona strolled around the casino some as I tried those damn craps one more time. They only have double odds which is poor I thought for this casino. But even at that I lost another $60 at this game. :bricks: I dinked around on several slots when Rhona rejoined me and won $20 on one and another $4 on another. My final gambling attempt was at the Texas Tea slot and lost $5. I hate to end a trip on a loss but it was time to call it a trip. :(

    We headed back to the car rental and dropped it off with no hitches. The quick shuttle to the airport and into the long line at SWA. Of course after getting our luggage checked the puter wouldn’t give us boarding passes. So we finally got them at the gate and I was the last one on the sold out plane. Rhona got to sit in the seat behind me, but it didn’t matter as I slept the whole trip home. :surr:

    We then had to begin out nearly 3 hour drive home. But it was a nice drive after a very nice trip.

    Final Thoughts

    I came home with about $150 more $$$$$ than I left home with. After paying for the car rental and 2 nights at the Luxor the trip will cost me around $200 or so. That is a nice trip to me. Like I said it helped Rhona did buy 2 meals. :cheer: Again that is so refreshing compared to others I have vacationed with in Vegas. Including some of the guys on my all guys Dec trip. 1 guy still owes me from last Decembers car rental.

    It was nice to have a classy woman on my arm and a pleasant woman to converse with. It doesn’t hurt to have someone to snuggle with also. ;) But I admit I still plan on taking Vegas vacation alone or with all guys in the trips to come. I enjoy my freedom there and like to do what I want when I want and not worry about someone else being happy. I am planning a July or August trip with my friend Butch and for sure I will be there the first weekend of December on an all guy trip.

    I ate at some nice places and rate them this way. Best: Bellagio Buffet by a landslide. Best for value: Tie South Point breakfast buffet or El Cortez Café Biggest disappointment: Wynn Buffet and a close worse Nugget Carson Street Café (mainly by bad service).

    I sucked at craps and BJ saved me again. Slots probably came out close to even and it was just for fun, I never expect to win on slots the way I play them.

    I sucked at basketball picks. But at least Kansas won it all tonight.

    Maybe another trip I will meet some of you who have read these reports. To all of us : may we all have happy Vegas Vacations.

    Any questions feel free to write me or PM me. :) :)
     
  16. Sue24

    Sue24 High-Roller

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    NIce report, Tom. I always enjoy TR's about downtown.... Wondered about the Steakhouse at Binion's... can we go there in jeans? You mentioned you were dressed up, so would we be out of place? We'd like to try the steak & lobster ACG coupon, but not if we can't go casual.

    Thanks for the info.... sounds like the FITZ. is your place. We like the nickels there.

    Good writing!

    Sue
     
  17. tominiowa

    tominiowa High-Roller

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    I see people there in jeans also. I think the man should have a collared shirt though. Is the steak and lobster special at the steak house or at the coffee shop? I highly recommend the steak house for a romantic evening. I would also recommend getting a reservation especially on the weekend.

    enjoy yourself
     
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