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Describe your first experience as a Vegas virgin

Discussion in 'Misc. Vegas Chat' started by GamblingBadger, Jan 21, 2013.

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  1. GamblingBadger

    GamblingBadger Tourist

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    This may have been done before, but since I'm new to the board and always enjoy Vegas stories, I'd like to hear what people's first experiences in Vegas were like.

    My first time to the "mecca" was in 1992. A group of friends had already been to Vegas and kept telling me I had to go on their next trip. Since I didn't shy away from gambling and drinking, it didn't take much to convince me. Seven of us flew out on a Friday, landing in Vegas about 9:30 in the morning. Within an hour of getting off the plane, we had our luggage, got a rental car, had hit a liquor store, and were walking into Crazy Horse II. We were the only people in the strip club and watched as they woke up a dancer that was sleeping in a booth with a blanket. Needless to say, the blanket went up on stage with her and I'm not sure how I even drank my beer with my mouth hanging wide open the whole time. After a short time there, we headed downtown to the Golden Nugget. As a newbie, I can't even describe how it felt to walk into the casino and see the sights and sounds of vacation heaven. I sat down with one of my friends, drank a beer, played some keno, and just took it all in...before embarking on a weekend of beer, gambling, sportsbooks, and no sleep. That first hour plus hooked me completely, and I've been going back almost annually ever since.
     
  2. weluvvegas

    weluvvegas Casino Countess

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    My very first time was in 1994 and when was 16. Went with my mom and her friend who was hosting a teen exchange student from Germany. We saw "Starlight Express", "Guys and Dolls" and "Legends in Concert". We stayed at the Flamingo and back then there was still the Wizard of Oz theme running through MGM and the amusement park was there. The Luxor also still had the river ride and I think we had dinner at Batista's. Little did I know that 8 years later I would be there with my husband for the first time.

    My husband's first experience was our trip in 2001 after twisting of his arm to go there for our anniversary. I booked on vegas.com ....a room/airfare package for 4 days at the Stardust. I think the total was around $850 for everything. no players cards and no comps. The Westward Ho was still around and that's where we learned to play blackjack. I still remember the look on my husband's face when he ordered the footlong hot dog from slots-o-fun. From the minute we stepped off of the plane it was hook, line and sinker. Been visiting every year since.

    Gotta love it!
     
  3. Sonya

    Sonya Queen of VMB

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    My first trip (other than a stop to get gas and marvel at the "Nudes on Ice" billboard) was in 1995. Dan was spending my birthday in Canyonlands on a mt bike trip with some friends. We had the idea to meet in Vegas for the weekend to celebrate.

    We did EVERYTHING wrong. I paid rack rate for Circus Circus Manor Rooms (over $100/night) and thought we had lucked out by getting free buffets there. :yuck: We tried to walk down to Caesars because it looked so close. I think I passed out somewhere around Bally's.

    We stopped to have a bathroom break at The Frontier during the strike and someone called me the c-word for going in the door. I wasn't surprised, but when you gotta go... :wink2:

    But I was hooked! I found alt.vacation.las-vegas on usenet when we got back and realized how much I didn't know. That is one of the reasons I keep this board going, even when it's not a whole lot of fun. I want people to know all the things I didn't on my first trip. :)
     
  4. Joe

    Joe VIP Whale

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    Buddy and I drove out when we turned 21 in 1973. Drove straight through from Milwaukee area to Vegas. As I remember ~32 hours in my brand new 1973 Dodge Challenger. The thing that made the biggest impression on me was I would bet for 100 miles, driving at night, we could see the glow of the city lights. Being young, stupid and from WI, I always thought it was a farmer’s yard light in the yard after we went over every hill. No, it was the lights of Vegas as we drove in from the East.

    Stayed at the Tam O Shanter motel on the Strip across from what is now the TI. Not positive but I think the Plazazo is now in that area.

    First night I pissed away 75% of my gambling budget for the entire trip. I was in heaven! Thank goodness for TYME machines, even back then.

    Besides living there for 2 years, I’ve probably been back 5-6 times per year for the last 40 years. There is no other place that has the attraction to me as Vegas. We went to Seattle last year, heading to Tampa on Friday and going to Phoenix in Feb, but I am so looking forward to going to Vegas in March.
     
  5. Nevyn

    Nevyn VIP Whale

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    I have a friend that lives in Denver and is a fairly frequent visitor.

    My first trip was in 2005, meeting up with him there. He already had a reservation at the Monte Carlo, and me and another friend of his from Denver split the room (we got a rollaway bed send up)

    It was in June and I remember being blown away by the heat. We low-rolled and I really didn't have much budget (something like 500 for 4 days, and I used some of that for food too). We saw X burlesque (when it was still in desert passage) and Bite, and mainly stuck to cheap blackjack for gambling.

    Lost a big chunk of my bankroll at some MC tables one night where I couldn't get into the table, and ended up killing time on my last day with nothing left over to gamble. This is where I learned about setting daily budgets and having gambling budget separate.

    I had a great time, but my overriding impression from the first trip was of how much I HADN'T found time to see/do. And that led to more research for the next trip in 2007, and that led me here.
     
  6. DBear

    DBear VIP Bear

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    Coming up on 7 years ago for me now. Was supposed to go 5 years earlier for a college graduation trip. That never worked out but has always been on my mind. Me and a college buddy were trying to plan a trip. He wanted Europe. I wanted Vegas. Because we were booking relatively last minute, we went with Vegas. About 2.5 weeks out IIRC.

    He caused so much stress since I didn't even know if he would make his flight. We departed from different cities and he, never having flown before, thought he could just drive to the airport and walk on board in less than 15 minutes. I finally convinced him to leave his place 2 hours before his flight and even then he said he almost missed his flight. His original plan involved taking the subway, then the bus to the airport, leaving his house 45 minutes before his scheduled departure!

    Anyways, I landed at 1pm and and he wasnt scheduled to arrive until 10pm so I worried all day about his flight. From the airport, I remember the taxi ride to Luxor. Seeing the strip for the first time was unforgettable, even from a taxi. I remember thinking, "I'm finally here!"

    I encountered my first check in line at Luxor. Took an hour to get my room keys. I soo wanted to go explore the strip but also wanted to wait until my buddy arrives (if he would arrive at all). I decided to go outlet shopping and had my first meal at the Premium Outlets food court. Such a waste of a meal in Vegas. But I shopped and killed a few hours. Later, back on the strip, I had my first, oh it looks soo close moment. I wanted to buy water for the room and walked to the strip plaza just north of MGM. Not too far but it definitely was far walking back with 2 gallons of water. Anyways, I was now tired and just laid in bed watching the Vegas channel in the room. I was getting worried about my buddy and even thought he really did miss his flight cause he was supposed to text me when he landed and I would meet him in the lobby. That text never came, even well after his scheduled landing time. I was almost asleep when someone pounded on the room door. Turns out he made it and had gotten the room number from the front desk. Didn't think they would give your room number out like that, although his name may have been on the reservation.

    That first night, we walked to Excalibur (didnt know about the tram yet). We sat at some slots to catch up and we observed the cocktail waitresses. After a while, we noticed no one was paying for their drinks so we gave it a try. Learned the ropes that night and more importantly, learned to order just bottled drinks from places like Excalibur. They served lower quality well drinks and both of us were sick the next day. But we had a blast observing the cocktail waitresses in every casino.

    For the rest of the trip, we ate at buffets, saw some shows, walked the strip and oh yeah, almost got stranded at the Grand Canyon during a snow storm. It was snowing so hard there that we parked the car and walked into the hotel, then we looked out the window and the snowfall had already covered our footprints and tire tracks in less than 10 minutes. We left the GC early and got back to Vegas but without a hotel reservation for that night. We thought it would be easy to get a room but that just happened to be the Saturday before the NASCAR race in March. Every room was booked with the exception of Circus Circus at a rate of $129. I knew enough from this board that that wasn't a good rate so we decided to pull an all nighter on Fremont. Around 5am, we camped out in the Mirage's sports book (I actually tried asking if our room was ready at 5am, where we were staying the next night, lol). A security guard came by the sports book and said we could sit there as long as we didn't close our eyes. There were 2 other groups camping out in the book that got the same warning, lol.

    By 7am, we couldn't take it anymore and we left to go tour Red Rock. Amazing place but on the drive back to the strip, I got rear ended at a traffic stop. Not a lot of damage but I worried about that for the rest of the trip. Forms and reports to fill out that afternoon and phone calls to the insurance people. But that worked out and my credit cardinsurance covered it all with nothing else to fill out beyond the initial report.

    I've taken a few more trips since then but I can remember the first trip almost minute to minute with great detail. Just a sensory overload that first trip. I don't get amazed anymore with the strip, but it's more of a "I'm home" feeling when I return.

    My buddy had a good time too but he was still itching for Europe. He ended up going a few months later and stayed there for 5 years. I wonder what people would think if I went to Vegas and stayed there for 5 years!
     
    Last edited: Jan 21, 2013
  7. zamboni

    zamboni VIP Whale

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    I have mentioned it on here before, but will again. I made a huge mistake (to me, anyways) my first trip- but it is something everyone should do once in their life. My arrival and departure times were all skewered. The thing I did and that everyone should do once- I landed at night. The lights are awesome, but really landing after 8 or 9 pm really screws you out of a day there, I know some say the city is just beginning to hop at that time, but you just spent all day in airports and planes and partying is not on your mind.

    My first trip I made a second mistake- I left early in the morning. Screwed me out of two days. My 4 day/night vacation just became 2. I have since begun flying into Vegas early in the morning and leaving late afternoon or at night and get my vacations worth
     
  8. buckeyetodd

    buckeyetodd High-Roller

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    my first trip was a christmas gift from my wife. she kicks herself now for the gift! anyways, was in 1996 and was a vacation she booked through a travel agency. we flew america west non stop out of columbus and stayed at the riviera. i thought the riv was about the greatest thing i ever saw. i still have a soft spot for them to this day. had next to no bankroll and played almost exclusively $5 blackjack. i was so nervous placing my first bet, i'll never forget the thrill.

    we never took a cab during the three day stay. we looked at a map and thought we would walk to the hard rock. what a huge mistake that was. took us hours and hours and just about sweated my ass off.

    we got massages at the riviera. she went first and i went down to the tables. i bought in for 100 at a $5 table and lost ten hands in a row. i was sick. i left the table and was passing a $25 table that was empty. i thought if i can just hit two hands, i'm back to even. sat down, almost couldn't breath from betting 25 and won the first hand. second hand i got a blackjack. back to even. thought i'd play one more hand and had to split 8s. split them against a 6 and ended up having to double down on both hands. won them both. if that doesn't keep you coming back i don't know what will.

    we won money every day we were there. about two hours before we had to leave for the airport my wife hit a royal on a quarter machine for 1000.

    i've been back over 30 times.

    she says she is vegased out. she goes about every fourth trip or so with me.

    i can't get enough. the smells, the sounds, the breezy nights, the people watching, the great meals, and mostly the enormity of the place. i just love it.
     
  9. nikki1978

    nikki1978 Tourist

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    sore feet nothing is as close as it appears. Lesson learned
     
  10. Kimsa70

    Kimsa70 High-Roller

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    I went to MGM Grand for 5 nights for my 40th birthday in 2010. What a nightmare!

    What I did right: booked my trip through MGM NJ marketing office. Got them to validate my play at Mohegan and Foxwoods and I got the limo pickup at the airport, comp suite for 5 nights, comp shows (Ka, the topless show at MGM, Studio 54, Bon Jovi), and all food and beverage comped.

    What I did wrong; I brought my friend, Michele, who's 40th birthday was the same week. She basically piggy-backed off my comp. I told her before we went that we'd be eating $400 dinner each night and that I'd need her to pay for 1/2 the tips (5 nights, $80 a night tips, her portion for 5 nights would be $200). I should have gotten her agreement in writing or taken cash up front.

    Well, the first night, at CraftSteak, she could only come up with $35. I was f'in pissed!

    The next night, she claimed poverty. She knew I'd brought $12k cash, and somehow assumed I was paying for everything even though I was very clear up front.

    I canceled every other dinner reservation for the rest of the trip. I barely gambled. I was sick with a sinus infection when I arrived and only got sicker through the 5-days in Vegas.

    We got into a huge argument the last day in the limo back to the airport.

    First time I've thrown the "C"-word at a friend. It was brutal!

    When we got back home to CT, and took the airport shuttle to the car lot where I'd parked my car, I left here there at 1am! She had no clue how to get back to my house in CT where she'd parked her car. She had to drive all the way back to Westchester, NY. And she claimed she had no $$, but I knew she'd stashed money and had seen receipts from the ATM for over $1400. So, she definitely had money to gamble with while we were there in Vegas.

    I haven't spoken to her again since that day.

    That's why my last 13 trips to Vegas have been solo.

    Never again!
     
  11. MoneyToBurn

    MoneyToBurn Low-Roller

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    My parents took me for my 21st birthday, using dad's airmiles. This would have been in 1988. We stayed at the [STRIKE]fabulous world famous[/STRIKE] Travelodge.

    Now, being from Canada, I had been of legal age to gamble and drink for a few years already, just not to the magnitude I am currently capable of. I do remember sitting down to play hold 'em, or something similar, and just cleaning up, thanks entirely to the cards I was pulling. I must have been up $300! That table broke up, and I moved to seven card stud. After a bit, I sort of got sour on it; I was used to card night with the boys where everyone is in every hand, and here it seemed like only people with a huge pair or three of a kind would stay in against me and bleed me as fast as possible on the way. Finally, my nemesis sits down and beats me every hand. I have two pair, he's got a straight, etc. The straw that broke the camel's back was me with three queens on the first three cards watching him draw four suited cards for the four up cards. No full boat for me, and I had to pay to see his flush. Left after that hand, and I don't think I've played poker with strangers since.

    The next day or two go by. I pretty much spend my time apart from the folks, but we were woodsy back then, and wouldn't have tried anything interesting to eat. The last night, though, I'm up a few hundred for the trip, and head down to the strip bar.

    Now, for those of you who aren't familiar with the Royal Canadian Ballet as performed in Winnipeg, Canada, I'll give you the precis, at least for what it was like at the time. See, there were strip bars, but they were few and far between. The more common offering was in the local bar every half hour for three hours or so after work, or Saturday afternoons. You went out for a few beers, and women happened to be there who removed their clothes, but that was about it, sort of background entertainment. Three songs, no contact, she packed up and left.

    Anyways, I pay whatever the cover is, and head in. Choke down some crap beer, ad somehow end up with a wine list. I see a magnum of champagne (and it was Mumm's) for not much money, I don't think it was $200, and for that price you can sit and chat with one of the girls. Sounded like a plan, and I spent some time with a lovely six-footer from Tennessee. Quite the novelty, and all very innocent, although it was me drinking the lion's share of the bubbly. Oh yeah, one other difference, in Manitoba the bars close, and send you home. Didn't happen in this strip bar. I'm getting drunker and drunker, until someone walks in, and I see the sun has risen. Yikes, plane leaves at 9 or something! Out the door I run, don't see any cabs, and stumble down the road until I finally see one. Thank God he picks me up, and takes me to the Travelodge. My parents have already had the manager open my room and pack me up, and keep the cab to the airport.

    I think we actually made it with a bit of time, I wandered off to play slots while waiting. I won a big bucket of nickles, and I think the folks punished me by making me fill my pockets with them and carry them on to LA, which was our next destination. They poured me on that plane, I'd never be let on today in that condition. In LA we were staying at a Westin (dad's airmiles again), and took a shuttle with some business types. I was sitting beside a smartly dressed lady, who seemed rather put off with some holdover I had from the day before, but whether it was the day before's clothes, scent, or strip bar leer, I never found out.

    That was my virgin trip. And my second, and those with the rugby team, and with all those exes, and heck, with my daughter, who's 23 now. The backdrop changed over time, but whether it was half a dozen forwards from the men's and women's team stampeding the wrong way along a moving walkway at Caesar's after champagne brunch, or my daughter herding her mother and I back from Mermaids three weeks ago, the song remains the same.

    Thanks for letting me rant about those three queens again (still gets me after 20+ years), and thanks to the board for tips like the one that got me into Mermaids. Vegas, see you again soon!
     
  12. captainron62

    captainron62 VIP Whale

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    My first trip was 2009 w my now ex-wife. Our marriage was in shambles and we had been seperated for a few months but were trying a 60 reconciliation. During our then 8 year marriage we had always had fun on vacations, so we thought this would help.

    We were both Vegas first-timers, I picked PH which turned out to be a great choice for us. We took the shuttle because tix came with our package, got lucky as PH was like the third or fourth stop. Checked in okay and we called to a desk with two people asking if we wanted to see a show or get in a club. I assumed this was a concierge and asked him to put us on the list for Moon and tipped him $20. After that figured out they were timeshare hawkers. Bad move 1. We didnt do the timeshare deal and I just chalked the $20 up to experience.

    We saw a concert which was great at Pearl at the Palms. We also saw Mystere. We took a trip to the Hoover Dam and got some great pics. It turned out to be a decent trip except we just couldnt pull things together. We both tried, but the magic was gone. We both won money playing slots, not much we ended the trip up a few hundos. We would return home and seperate a month later for good and divorce the next year.

    She has always had a bad taste for Vegas and said she would never return. I was hooked however and returned about 8 months later w friends and had another good trip. I have been going 3x a year since that trip. I

    Life ebs and flows and I am taking my new GF next month for her first trip!!
     
  13. sybgal

    sybgal VIP Whale

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    I had always wanted to go to Vegas just "once" for the experience... :) Well my hubby had been many times in the 80's & 90's and said he had no interest in going again. My military wife daughter was living in Texas then and we agreen to meet in LV for a girls trip. We were totally GREEN.... didn't know anything...I mean that literally - didn't know to even get players cards... lol. I guess this was 2001 or 2002. Her plane got in about 1 hr before mine and we took the shuttle to Bally's. I had gone to AAA for info and suggestions and the good ladies said to stay mid-strip. Glad we did...since we have a CET riverboat very near home....we have stayed either at Paris or Bally's for most of our 16-17 trips now.
    We both love Chinese food so what did we decide to do for lunch....don't laugh...went to the IP buffet thinking it would be a Chinese buffy.... OMG - it was so awful! We somehow got those free tickets to the car collection at IP & really enjoyed it - the AC was welcomed as was getting away from the machines for an hour or so. We were unsure of how to bet on the slots too....no pennies then - they had nickels tho and we thought the I Dream of Jeannie were so much fun that we searched them out everywhere - along with The Munsters. Boy - those are oldies but goodies.
    We got lost and turned around so many times that we laughed that we were "gambling" just getting from one place to another...lol. But we learned a lot and somehow our stores and pictures convinced my hubby that he wanted to go back...we we have gone back every year...once a year for several years and increased it to twice a year for the last 4 or 5.
    When we went to the airport to go home...I overheard that my Delta flight was over-sold and I put my name on the list to possibly get bumped....and I did. Had to wait in the airport from 2pm till 10:30pm but smoking was allowed then and they had the slots to keep me occupied. I received a $300 travel voucher and $15 to eat. The voucher covered my trip the next spring to Texas to see my grandkids so it was all worth it.
    I really can't see how folks can just go once....we are hooked until we are too old and feeble to make it to a scooter rental... LOL
     
  14. JWBlue

    JWBlue VIP Whale

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    Unforgettable.

    Talk about beginners luck. I left up with winnings of over $1,000. In terms of return per dollar wagered, my best trip ever by far.
    Was white hot at the tables and the slots with slot wins of $1,200 and numerous for over $100.

    Of course blown away by the lights and hotels.
     
  15. mdlee3_46041

    mdlee3_46041 MIA

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    First, I want to say I love all the stories. I love Vegas stories to begin with, but my favorite would definitely be those of Vegas virgins reliving their first time.

    My first trip was in November of 2008. A buddy and I had made the decision to go in March of that year. After basically a 7.5 month wait, the day had finally arrived. My buddy had never flown before so he almost backed out when I picked him up for the airport because he was scared of flying since he'd never done it before. His girlfriend at the time helped me convince him to still go.

    The flight went fine and my buddy survived his first flight. He actually slept through most of it. I think I dozed off for a short time and remember waking up and looking out the window and seeing snow covered mountains. Anyway, awhile late, finally saw Vegas out my window and was kind of disappointed because the strip looked so small.

    We had a room at the El Cortez and we used a shuttle to get there. Check-in went smoothly and they were actually telling us how early we were since it was about 10am. We were sharing the room and got some room on the 2nd floor. I told him I wanted to take a quick shower first before going exploring. After the shower, we leave the El Cortez with the intention walking to the strip. It's still only about 10:30am or so at the time. Somehow about it, we took the wrong turn and ended up going through residential neighborhoods. We eventually ended up on Charleston walking back towards the strip, but we didn't know it yet. The funny part was we kept telling each other that we were almost there because we could see the top half of the Stratosphere . We finally made it to the Stratosphere and explored in there a bit and then headed farther down the strip. That first day, we only made it to Treasure Island and then walked back downtown. It seemed a lot later than it really was because it was dark even though it was only like 5:30 or 6pm. We didn't even do much downtown that night, just went to the hotel and slept. I know I fell asleep probably before 9pm. My buddy told me the next day that he went down to the casino sometime after I went to sleep and won $50 on a slot and then got locked out of the room because his key got deactivated.

    The next day, I was awake and ready to head out by 7, but first we had breakfast at Cafe Cortez. We then started our walk to the strip again, this time heading the right direction. We walked from the El Cortez all the way to the Luxor. I don't know why we didn't get to Mandalay Bay, but for some reason we stopped at the Luxor and headed back. We also walked to the Hard Rock and Ellis Island. At Ellis Island, we asked a security guard for the fastest route back to the El Cortez and he laughed and told us a taxi. We laughed also, but told him we meant the fastest walking route so he told us what seemed to be a good way and we took it. The one problem with this plan turned out to be the weather. So far, on this particular trip, the weather had been high 60's to mid 70's, which was great. On our walk back though, it got super windy and the temperature dropped probably 20 degrees by the time we got back to the strip. Somewhere around the Riviera, it started raining, just a little at first, but then it started pouring, which along with the wind didn't feel good so we stepped into the Riviera for it to stop. We played a bit in there and then continued our walk back downtown. By the time we made it back to the El Cortez, my feet were killing me so we decided we'd start using the bus.

    After that day, it was a pretty normal trip except for the fact that my feet would hurt like crazy if I was on them for any more than a half hour or so at a time.

    I've been back every year since then. My buddy has not been back, but it's a financial issue with him. I know if he had the money, he'd be there with me.
     
  16. LV_Bound

    LV_Bound VIP Whale

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    Stayed at Luxor for 5 nights.
    Did a shit load of walking and drink a lot. Now, not much walking but we still drink a lot.

    Stopped in just about every casino on the strip and signed up for the rewards program.
    Since there were still mostly individual casinos there were more rewards programs. Overall we came away with probably more than $800 worth of free stuff. Oh, we even did a Time Share. Never ever again.

    Played a lot of machines, mostly video poker. The most ever spent on a spill was probably 35 cents and had a daily budget of $300. Now, not sure I could have fun with only $300/day.

    Wanted to play Craps, but looked way too complicated. Wasn't until the 2nd trip that I actually played.

    Since it was our first time and we were there for 5 nights I created a long list of things to do. Vegas was such a surprise only 2-3 items were crossed off as we got caught up on everything else.

    After that first trip we knew Vegas was our place and have been returning each year ever since.
     
  17. dfalk

    dfalk VIP Whale

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    First time ever there was in 1997, my family was driving to Disneyland and we stopped in Vegas. All I remember is driving down the strip and watching a Fremont light show. We were only in Vegas for maybe 2 hours.

    Second time was in college in '03 me and some college friends ended up in Vegas (long, long story). Got there at 12PM, I was under 21 and had about $50 to my name. It sucked ass, I slept in the CP parking garage and we left at like 10AM. Horrible, horrible Trip.

    Third time was in '09, my first real trip/vacation there. Flew down and stayed 4 nights at CC. That was a great trip and always think of it as my first real Vegas experience.
     
  18. LucyR.

    LucyR. VIP Whale

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    Location:
    Los Angeles,CA.
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    20
    My first time in Vegas

    I was in my 30's and we drove for the week-end from L.A. to Vegas.
    We stayed at the Vagabond Hotel on the strip near the Hacienda Motel.
    My two young sons had a pet mouse and we took it to Vegas with us.lol.
    It was hot so we swam in the pool at night time. It was a lot of fun.
    The next day we went to Circus Circus for the kids to have fun at the Arcade.
    They had some real acrobats and we saw the show for free.
    The hi-lite of our trip was eating at the Star Dust hotel's buffet.
    I will always remember that trip.

    Five years later my parents discovered Las Vegas and it became a family
    habit for all of us to go to VEGAS every chance we got on week-ends.
    We all had lots of fun.
    Presently in the last few years I have been flying to VEGAS almost every other
    month because it is so affordable. It cost less than going on a cruise ship.
    I do enjoy cruise ships and Vegas. But Vegas is cheaper. Lucy
     
  19. dmr

    dmr Registered Abuser

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2011
    Messages:
    19,794
    Location:
    Somewhere in Middle America
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    70
    My first trip was with our extended family back in the 1970s. I was in my mid 20s. I remember it like it was yesterday!

    We stayed at the El Cortez downtown, visited about everything downtown and drove out to the Strip a few times. What is now Bally's was then the MGM Grand with Jai Alai and my first "big" slot win. Plaza was oh-so elegante' back then. We saw a dinner-show of Neil Simon's Last Of The Red Hot Lovers there. I was most impressed with the Stardust on the Strip!
     
  20. Joe Strummer

    Joe Strummer VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Apr 4, 2006
    Messages:
    5,109
    Stayed at Stardust....circa 1990 ?
    .
    Went w/ 3 other buddies who would get
    together to play golf ( somewhat a reunion ) -
    then, one guy ( the degenerate gambler ) said -
    "Let's go to Vegas, together !"
    .
    I admit -- I said , "Why would I go to Vegas ?"
    .
    Played Roulette ( overnite ) at Stardust for 12 hrs straight.
    Two different shifts - The Pit Boss couldn't believe it.
    "On a $100 buy in ?".......I overheard him ask.
    I played black or red -- $5 chip every spin.
    ( I never gambled before -- didn't know any games.)
    .
    My buddy came down to get me in the morning.
    He asked the croupier "How's my boy doing ?"
    Croupier said, "I don't know money wise....but he's taken the casino
    for about 20 beers !":drunk:
    .
    I was hooked.
    Been going 3 to 4 weekly trips per year ever since !:thumbsup:
     
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