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Trip Report: TI (Treasure Island) -- Dec. 7-11

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by deweydecimal, Dec 12, 2004.

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  1. As a newbie to Las Vegas, I relied heavily on this board and another, as well as the Frommer's book I borrowed from the Library.

    To recap: 2 librarans, 40+ ladies - first trip, not gambling, going on the semi-cheap, some shows, etc.

    Left Utica, NY in a blinding snow/slush blizzard of about 7 inches. The bus to Albany, NY - Utica has no airport (naturally) took about three hours after work. Stayed overnight at my friends and we left at 7 am Tuesday on Southwest, nonstop for Vegas. Flight was long and I am SOO tired of peanuts!!

    Anyway. TI let us have our room as soon as we arrived. We got a nice room (11024 facing the pool, strip and mountains) at no extra cost - thanks for the tips in asking nicely. I can't say enough about how nice the staff was at TI. Except for the check in girl who was very deadpan and didn't crack even a smile (and she was from Albany, NY - I hate to admit) - everyone from the concierge to the cleaning lady was friendly, helpful, smiling and very polite.
    The room itself was very nice, clean, bathroom was nice. We loved the toiletries and shampoo.

    We also ate the Denny's accross from TI (very good and very reasonable - 24 hours) and Outback Steakhouse - Casino Royale) - reasonable). We also ate at Panda Express (near the McDonalds) - avoid at all costs - YUCK. I got accosted by a crazy there.


    The rodeo was in town the week we were there. It was sort of fun seeing all the cowboys and their ladies (or the ladies out to get them). I've never seen "real" cowboys so that was interesting but the most interesting thing was the way their dates dressed! LOL I even heard some of the guys say they might as well as been naked!!! :D The cowboys were so polite.

    We ate at several buffets: Dishes at the TI. We at dinner there. The place is nice with several stations. Food is good but I would not say spectacular for the price. I thought some of the food was cold. I did see the chili cart go around but did not try it. The breakfast buffet at TI was good - we went about 10:30 and by 11:00 a.m. they were putting out lunch items. So we ate lunch. We also ate dinner at the Golden Nugget Buffet - one word. Delicious! I thought the service, food and price very good. Even better than the TI. You didn't have the choice of TI or Bellagio but it was like eating in a good diner and the service was superb. We also ate the Dinner Buffet at Belligio which was excellent and gourmet. We went late - about 7 p.m. and they had run out of certain desserts like the flan and creme brulee (people were hoarding like 6-7 of them - I had never seen anything like it) and they didn't put more out.

    We went to the Monet art exhibit at the Bellagio - very worth while - $15.

    Also saw the dolphin and sigfried & roy lion/tiger gardens at the Mirage. $12 - Loved the dolphins because you could get really close up and see them.

    Saw Mystere - It was very good. Would recommend it. Get reservations in advance. It was pretty much sold out. We made reservations on the day we got there and were lucky to get tickets for the last day of our trip. "O" was not playing the week we were there. There are also two other Cirque shows I wish we had the time and money to see. I hear one is for the over 18 crowd only and semi-nude.

    Went down to the Fremont Street area to see the light show and walk around. It was packed. The shows are about every 15 minutes or so and the casinos down there were a lot fun. Taxi down there is a bit pricey ($20)

    We discovered the shuttle (all day for $5) but the shuttle doesn't go everywhere and stops at the back or out of the way places of the casinos making you walk miles out of your way to get there. Its almost easier to walk than use the shuttle. Supposedly the shuttle runs every 15 minutes but sometimes it doesn't (as we found out).

    I loved the different casinos. The conservatory at the Bellagio was being prepared for Christmas. It was gorgeous. The fountains probably were my favorite thing to see and I could have stayed there all night listening to the music and looking at the fountains. Too bad there were no benches to sit down on. I also loved the Venetian - St. Marks Square was probably the most "peaceful" if you can say that of the casino - store areas. They played quiet music and you could just sit and rest.
    Did play a little slots and did not break even (since I didn't expect too and didn't plan to play more than $25-50). I am not crushed. LOL
    I had much more fun watching the high rollers lose their money! Too many fabulous places to window shop.... thank goodness I was on a budget... LOL I did pop into a Sephora Store which we don't have around here and did some damage but other than that... Oh, I did price a $195,000 amethyst necklace and earring set that was on sale (I know - it was sale).

    My friend loved NYNY. Probably because she spends a lot of time visiting NY City. I didn't care for it. I also like MGM Grand and the art deco look but it looked like they were doing a lot of building right in the middle of the casino.

    Weather was cold (29-40) on Tues. but got warmer as the week went on. By Thurs. it was in the high 60's (which is unbelievable for us upstate NY'ers). LOL First time I had seen sun in weeks.

    Tuesday, when we arrived the town was sort of quiet but by the time we left, with the rodeo in town, it was insanely packed with cowboys. Yeh-Haw!

    I now have a bad cold. But I had a good time. I would love to go back in about a year or so.


    Sorry for this being so long,

    Deweydecimal
     
  2. doctor_al

    doctor_al VIP Whale

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    Well done, good first trip. Cowboys, wierdos, hookers - only thing you missed was an Elvis, but you made it downtown, good job. FWIW, the city bus is also $5/whole day and it runs up and down the strip, none of that 'circling around to the back entrance' nonsense of the trolley.
     
  3. kimmy_kat

    kimmy_kat Guest

    Great Report!!

    I'm going to be staying at TI the last week of January...and your report has really gotten me excited. How much was the buffet at Dishes? I have 2 for 1 coupons for breakfast and have heard mixed reviews about it. I'm also glad to hear that the staff was friendly and the rooms were nice:)

    Kim :D
     
  4. bshowell

    bshowell VIP Whale

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    Nice TR. I'll be staying at TI for the first time the second week of January. I'm also fairly new to Vegas, with this being my second trip. Well goodness, how good is the creme brulee at Bellagio if people were hoarding them? That's my current favorite dessert, so I might have to go check that out. Sounds like you had fun, and this makes me even more excited for my trip.
     
  5. deweydecimal

    deweydecimal Guest

    I guess if you see a dessert at a buffet - grab it. It might not be there later. I saw people with plate loads of crab legs and shrimp. TI had a pretty good desserts. Creme brulee there was good. Also good chocolate covered strawberries and bananas and the little fresh donuts. TI dinner buffet I think ran around $15-17 if I remember right. Breakfast was about $12.
     
  6. HoyaHeel

    HoyaHeel Grammar Police & Admin

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    Bhos--there was another thread on buffets I think--I mentioned that the creme brulee at Bellagio was one of the best I'd ever had, and MANY people jumped on the thread to agree with me. I'm proud to say I did not actually hoard any, though--I let others enjoy it too ;)
     
  7. bshowell

    bshowell VIP Whale

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    I need to stop reading these food comments in the morning [​IMG]
     
  8. -KorkedBatz-

    -KorkedBatz- Tourist

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    Great report!!
     
  9. GNH2000

    GNH2000 Low-Roller

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    Thanks for the trip report....nice job!
     
  10. yellfore99

    yellfore99 Tourist

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    Sounds like you covered a lot of ground for your first trip out Dewey D! Are you sure you can wait a whole year before returning? Nice TR too!
    [​IMG]

    [ December 13, 2004, 05:10 PM: Message edited by: yellfore99 ]
     
  11. Vegas Tonya

    Vegas Tonya Margarita Connoisseur

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    Wow, I don't think I have seen all of that and I have been there too many times to count. Glad you got to see lots of things on your first trip.

    I agree with yellfore99...Are you sure you can wait a whole year before returning?

    Thanks for sharing.
     
  12. IllMarty

    IllMarty Orangutan

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    Nice report. Staying at TI Jan 22-26. so the info you posted was very timely. Marty
     
  13. boxcars

    boxcars High-Roller

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    Nice report! I was in Vegas December 1-6 and saw enough cowboys to last me a while... given the fact I live in the middle of cowboy country.

    Glad you had a good (and affordable) time!
     
  14. boudicca

    boudicca Guest

    Thanks for the trip report. I didn't know about the Monet exhibit, so I appreciate the info!
     
  15. I Require Vegas

    I Require Vegas Tourist

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    IM FROM UTICA AS WELL GREAT REPORT!!!
    TOO BAD TRANSMERIDIAN IS STOPPING ITS DIRECT FLIGHTS FROM SYRACUSE EFFECTIVE IN JANUARY
    THAT WAS NICE WHILE IT LASTED
     
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