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Going Solo to Vegas

Discussion in 'Misc. Vegas Chat' started by HowardK, Nov 18, 2012.

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  1. HowardK

    HowardK Tourist

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    Last time I went I was solo the first day and a half and last day- but this time have 4 1/2 days completely solo. Did a solo cruise last year on the Norwegian Epic and it worked because there were 100+ other solo's and you would see the same people every day.

    I don't mind since this time I get my own room. Some of the things I am planning are hoover dam/lake meade, titantic exhibit, Mob Museum, blue man group, jersey boys and beatle show.
    I also plan on hitting a few of the dueling piano shows as I play and often get up on stage on vaca.

    Doing probably $50 a day on slots
     
  2. atom

    atom High-Roller

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    Vegas is a great place for solo travelers. Go do all the stuff that you want to do that your usual travel companion (if you have one) isn't interested in. Enjoy!
     
  3. MikeOPensacola

    MikeOPensacola El Jefe

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    Have a great time, doing Vegas solo is the only way to go, IMHO.:peace:
     
    Annual CCA (Casino Collectibles Association) Show at South Point
    Long Overdue Stay At The Golden Nugget
  4. vegasqc

    vegasqc VIP Whale

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    next trip will be my 4th solo trip

    Always a great time you will love it im sure
     
  5. vegasdrea

    vegasdrea Buckle Bunny

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    I'm doing my first solo trip next month and I can not wait. I'm super excited.
     
  6. xman30

    xman30 High-Roller

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    I always do Vegas solo. Only have myself to worry about. Get to do what I want to do. Every once in a while I'll wish someone was with me, but that feeling goes away fairly quickly.

    xman30
     
  7. lucky13

    lucky13 Low-Roller

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    solo is fun .......have a great time
     
  8. ClarkGrswld4

    ClarkGrswld4 Tourist

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    +1 to loving the solo trips
     
  9. gerry53

    gerry53 VIP Whale

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    wow, I have been noticing lately how many people enjoy going to vegas solo.

    If someone loses a partner I can see trying it alone but I can`t imagine not having someone there to talk to and help decide what drink to get from the next cocktail waitress etc etc.

    I do suppose if the person is outgoing and can talk to new people easily that may make it more doable.
     
  10. slimmy28

    slimmy28 Low-Roller

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    My next trip is Friday, Nov. 30. First 3 days are with friends, last 3 days are solo. Best of both worlds. I'm really looking forward to "a well balanced" trip.
     
  11. Mayoman

    Mayoman High-Roller

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    I've done solo several times, it's great. Have a good time.
     
  12. 44inarow

    44inarow VIP Whale

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    That's exactly what makes it fun for me. I like sitting at a blackjack table or a bar and BS-ing with the other people there, the dealers, the bartenders, etc. Whereas when I'm there with another person I always feel like I have to "entertain" them, in a sense, and also have to worry about a schedule besides my own. Solo is a lot more relaxing.
     
  13. Blonde_4_ever

    Blonde_4_ever LasVegas4ever.com

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    Solo trips are awesome!
     
  14. Kimsa70

    Kimsa70 High-Roller

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    Agree! I'm departing in less than 4 hours for another solo trip.
     
  15. jrinct1

    jrinct1 VIP Whale

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    I LOVE going solo to fantasyland. Done it about 15 times. Have done with "groups" of 2 to 16 about 5 times while fun doesnt allow the freedom of being solo.
     
  16. Emerald

    Emerald Low-Roller

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    this will be my second trip going solo and I love it. I get to do what I want whenever I want and not piss off someone.
     
  17. slimmy28

    slimmy28 Low-Roller

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    I think for my upcoming trip, the solo portion of my trip, I'm most looking forward to the dining solo. I know that sounds a little "anti social", but if there is one thing that is always debated no matter who you go with...it's where to eat. I'm very much looking forward to trying new places for me that have been "shot down" in trips past.
     
  18. Drc517

    Drc517 Low-Roller

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    Solo

    Newbie here. Nice to know many going solo like me. I used to have Vegas buddy but he moved back east that makes it more difficult for him to come with me. Its better to have company but vacation should mean no itineraries to follow and just have fun. Since my family is in asia, and I've already visited relatives in Chicago for the year, I decided to spend Xmas and NYE in Vegas. Will be in vegas 22-25 then 28-jan 2. Hate the airport security screening but im flying back and forth to work two days in between.
     
  19. Dewey089

    Dewey089 VIP Whale

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    Survivor wrote

    What you play may make a big difference.
    I go solo for 23-25 days at a time (stretch out the value of the air fare)
    Sometimes I overlap with some buddies, sometimes family meets me, but most of my time I am by myself.
    Two activities make for a fluid community:

    Low limit poker. In this game the players talk and sometimes banter. It is an instant community and then I walk away without obligation, although I have at times made friends at the tables who I see around town almost every trip. At the El Cortez I can usually ask a fishing question to one fellow or another, or to Karen the dealer and that will get a million stories. Up until my last two trips the El Cortez was the most talkative table with the most characters, but that has changed and it is more taciturn. The outgoing and crazy characters like Action Jackson don't stir up the action anymore. I used to take Action Jackson (who lived close to the financial edge) for prime rib almost every trip. Now he doesn't play there.
    Many of them have been 86'd. But it is generally a friendly crowd at night. Twice I have seen a very talkative German fellow there who for some reason loves that game. He is fun. Often a few young people show up and they are fun if drawn out.
    Since the casino redid Careless Kitty's Cafe and eliminated the counter, I get less interaction when eating the $5 poker comp at the El Cortez. It used to be that I'd just sit at the counter with some fellow I'd just played with and the conversation would start. Now, it is more isolating. However, I'd recommend eating at counters too. Even when you don't get into a conversation with other counter eaters, you have the entertainment of the wait persons and perhaps even the cooks and it does not feel as isolated.

    Last trip an old board friend and I met by coincidence at an Imperial Palace freeroll tournament and we ended up going out another day to use up some free food I had at the Lucky Club, some matchplays at Jerry's Nugget, in his car, and he toured me around the site of the old Moulin Rouge and that neighborhood which I would never do by myself. he also took me to watch him play the horses at the Rio and to the club there afterward for snacks. We click, this fellow and I, and it is a pleasure to bump into him, but I never set up much in advance. I like serendipity and most of the time I like being solo.

    You don't always have to be talkative either. Often you can just sit and enjoy the talk and banter. No limit poker is more about the game and poker faces and not talking because there is so much to do, but in limit, folks are looser and you can meet people from all over the world playing in a Vegas strip game like Flamingo, people who are there to have fun and may have never played poker before in their lives. There the dealers remember me too and joke with me and get the banter going. last trip a hot woman from Atlanta was passing around photos of her new convertible and asking us all to visit her and get a ride in it. So that won't happen, but the Fantasy is fun just the same.
    I'd recommend this game, even to people who have not played much live poker as long as youknow the hand rankings, can figure out the possibilities from the visible cards, and have the patience to toss away 80% of your hands and just play the premium cards when you are playing in later position at the table. It is not that hard, really, and the money goes slow when you are losing. There is very little bluffing so you can feel pretty comfortable throwing away your hand when there are other hands that would beat you. Play in the evening, the later the better. Regulars play tight in the mornings.

    Also, I ride the buses and often I get into conversations with interesting locals there. Vegas is a pretty friendly place and some of the most interesting characters are on the buses.

    The key to having conversation is not to have so much to say about yourself. Pretty much the opposite of posting on this board where most of us post when we know something, post our opinions, and don't really know who is listening.
    On the bus, you are a visible listener, so you have to say something once in a while.
    I ask questions and followup the shorter answers. People love to talk about themselves, their interests and what they think about the world. I often talk for almost an hour with someone and when I get off the bus, I know they do not know one single thing about me. They never asked, and I just listened. The trick is not to jump in with your own story on a topic or position on an issue, but to follow up with a question, like a reporter does. This happens more on residential bus routes than the strip buses. Going out Flamingo for example, or taking a bus out to Texas Station, or riding the Boulder highway buses.

    The freedom to not be hampered by companions who make decisions for me or who I have to negotiate with for times or food or games or sleep is what makes solo such a treat for me. Companions who you meet at the poker table in Vegas, stay in Vegas. If you bring one from home, then you have to meet them again at home.

    And as frugal as I am, I gave up sharing a room long ago. I want my own room and my own space to do with as I wish at any time of day. I used to try to share comps with buddies going solo. It sure made the trip cheap. I don't do that anymore.

    Slots and VP is a more private activity and it does isolate us from others rather than connect us. I'd rather have someone I know around when I play VP, so I can show my four to the royal draws just before I hit the button. But I'm content too to be by myself and playing 10/7 DB for a while after so many encounters with strangers at the poker tables.

    If you want to talk to people on elevators, or sitting waiting for a show to start, a good opener is:
    "So, are you winning?" followed with "What do you play?" "What is your strategy?"
    Ask about where they get comped and how.
    Ask about what shows they would recommend.

    And once you establish where they live, ask about things to do there and places to eat as well as their local casino experience.
    Vegas locals love to talk about why they moved to Vegas and how it is satisfying their dreams, or not.
    Locals at a limit poker game are usually pretty frugal as well and will give you tips on bus routes or good deals on food.
    Politics and religion is harder, but not impossible if you stick to not caring whether you get your view across or not.
    Are they Republican? Ask how you think the party is going to reach out to women, Latinos, and the young before the next election. Or who might run.
    Are they Democrats? Ask how they will meet the challenge of climate change and when they think that might happen or what Hilary is going to do next.
    Are they Evangelical Christians? (not too many at poker but some at the bus stop) Ask them what they do to feed the poor or heal the sick or visit the imprisoned or to tell you about the last time they forgave an enemy.
    Are they Roman Catholics? Just pick a saint. I ask about Saint Joseph and that celebration or about Saint Teresa of Avila who was a mystic. Or ask what cathedrals they have visited and if those are open for tourists and cameras.
    Are they followers of the Dali Lama? Ask about how they find inner peace.
    Are they atheists? Ask about Charles Darwin, Steven Hawkins, how randomness works in the universe.
    Preparing a few such openers ahead of time will get them talking and the right follow up questions will get some great stories.

    If you want not to eat alone, and have social guts, approach the buffet line with your 2 for 1 coupon and ask if anyone is single and wants to eat with you and pay half the buffet price. I've sat in groups that did not need my coupon deal, but just invited me to join them anyway. The coupon gives an opener with not obligation, unlike asking the folks in line with you although I have done that on occasion when I was sure it would not be imposition. One of the most facinating was a fellow who advised Japanese baseball players, playing the states, on how to handle the tax laws of both countries.

    Actually, I don't do that much. I bring a small journal and use food time to write up the details of the day. In a sense I bring all of you to the table with me because I am anticipating the way to write up my trip report.

    Finally, don't forget that folks here on the board will meetup with you if you post when you will be in Vegas and where.
    And were I to lose my life partner, I imagine that Vegas would be one of the easiest places to recover. I am used to being alone there. I am not used to being alone in my house. And there I could have conversations that did not go into every death every person talking to me had ever experienced. That is the hardest part after a death, that having to comfort all the people who are reliving their own grief because our loss reminds them of their own grief and gives them an opening to process it once again.
    Were I to go to Vegas after losing my partner, I'd not mention it to the strangers I met. Well...maybe I'd mention it to the Atlanta chick with the convertible.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 3, 2012
  20. JosieCat

    JosieCat VIP Whale

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    I LOVE my solo trips. Planning a spring solo trip as my BF has no interest in going. I gamble when I want, sleep when I want, eat when I want. OK, I don't like dining solo - but there are plenty of places to do take out to bring back to the room. Plus on my last solo trip, I did do the buffet solo for the first time. I survived.

    Have a great trip!
     
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