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First Timers In Vegas

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by shemesh, Sep 6, 2015.

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  1. shemesh

    shemesh Low-Roller

    Joined:
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    Location:
    San Diego
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    0

    My Trip Report

    Well, we did arrive from San Diego into Las Vegas, came out Thursday and stayed until Sunday, one night at the cosmo, and the other two at the mandarin. My bankroll was 2,000$ for gambling and as a first timer I had only a rough understanding of the basic bets to make. On the agenda was attending two shows, mainly Absinthe, and Circe de sole Le Reve at the Wynn. We had also planned to visit a few restaurants such as Holsteins, Earl of Sandwich, the secret pizzeria at the cosmo, mon ami gabi, and also a fine dining experience at an elegant steakhouse, ultimately we decided on delmonico.

    The flight was on southwest, flight departed ontime, had the early bird checkin so we were fine there, did get some nice seats on the wings. The ride into Vegas was in the early afternoon and as we made the final approach we did encounter some gusty winds and a bit of turbulence, other than that all was fine. Touched down and immediately noticed the slots in the airport and knew right we were in the right city. We did check some bags and didnt have to wait long to have them, proceeded to get a taxi right away. I told the cabbie not to take the tunnel and take the shortest and direct route, the fare was roughly 25$ to the cosmo. We checked in, originally had the one bedroom terrace suite, had the 20$ in hand and asked for an upgrade, after 10 min or so , offered the wraparround terrace suite for 50$ more on the 58th floor, of course I said yes and tipped the 20$ afterwards as well. What a great choice it was to get the upgrade, the room was absolutely amazing, honestly, I could not imagine a better view of vegas, please checkout my pictures and videos of this view. It was a room suitable for 6 people over 1200 square feet, had 2 bathrooms etc, but the view outdid everything.

    We proceeded to walk the strip, we were hungry so we stopped at mon ami gabi, wow, let me tell you from all the meals we had this was our favorite, i had the hanger steak and the fritas fries, and my gf had some bordelaise steak with carmalized onion, both were simply amazing, they also served a hot bagette, very tasty, adn the view of the bellagio right in front of you. The tab was roughly 70ish, but well worth it, such tasty food.

    We then went to bellagio, and gambled a bit, I think we bought in with 100 at first, played some roulette and craps for the first time, didnt have much idea of the rules, there was a nice lady at the craps table she gave us tips and helped us bet on some of the numbers and we pulled out ahead, gf loved the roulette, we got lucky on black, overall won about $150, this was the first gambling experience we both had, felt like two little kids winning those tiny chips. We took a breather and continued our walk down the strip, we walked down to caesers palace, and sat outside near the absinthe tent, we decided to have a drink, could not believe the tab was 38$ for two tiny drinks, but o well. Next we crossed over decided to enter pallazo and also venetian, such elegance in the architecture of these buildings. We decided to play some more, bought in for a hundred, hit the roulette and few craps, again such luck we had gained another 150$.

    After this we were getting tired, so we walked back up the strip to our home casino and called it a night, we figure we might spend some time in our fancy suite. Got in an argument over some silly things, wound up sleeping outside on the balcony, they do have some comfortable lounge furniture and I wokeup around 5:00, couldn't believe how windy it was , was really getting the shivers, but managed to see the vegas sunrise from the 58th floor, absolutely stunning. Being in this suite with this view made me feel like the king of the city.

    The next day we checked our bags in and decided to go to the casino, gf then played roulette, we had a string of bad luck, she lost 100$ in small bets, it was a 15$min, , but the dealer was a good guy , very funny, engaging, having a grand time,, mostly I had a 500$ budget for the day, after sitting back letter her play, decided to go bold and pulled out 3black chips and placed it on black, all at the table said they like my style and the dealer was surprised, he said he really hopes I can win, the roulette spin was off, let me tell you it was a nervous feeling, the damn ball looked like it stopped on the red, but barely, I mean barley jumped the border to land on the black, got the victory and got out ahead. Dealer said dont do that again, tipped the dealer and got out.

    We took a breather, went to Holsteins in cosmo, and enjoyed a perfect burger and fries, best burger I have had in at least 10 years, the temperature (medium rare) was cooked to perfection, never had this experience before.

    We then transferred to the mandarin oriental hotel had a city scape view standard room, guys, i did not enjoy this experience, and i do not recommend staying at the mandarin, we did not enjoy it. Cosmo was much better.

    After that we walked the strip again, entering many casinos, gaming a few, by the first day we were up nearly 500$ just random luck. We than walked to Caesers to see Absinthe, what an amazing show, I highly recommend it, its similar to americas got talent, they have all sorts of skits that are simply amazingly breath taking. Very unique experience.

    After the show we walked back, surprised at how alive the city was at 1:00am, we gambled more played craps and roulette and won a bit more, the city is totally alive at 3am, unbelievable, they pump in so much oxygen and fragrance, that you dont even realize how late it is. The next day we slept in a bit and enjoyed some pool time, they did not serve any snacks and mandarin oriental, only some bottled water, a bit disappointing.

    We then walked to Aria, and wanted to gamble a bit since we have had such good luck and still plenty of money to spend, I was quite impressed by the building and fountains, and I wouldn't mind to stay at this resort myself. This is where we had our first string of loses and the tides changed gf started by playing roulette 200$ made some spread bets but nothing hit, in less than 5min we were down, then I came to save the day with my famous 300 black bet, and lost this. We now wiped our +500 gain, and lost 500$ from our earlier win. We were even at 2000$ at this time, in a matter of minutes.

    So far since we were at Vegas, we never stayed at a table longer than 5 minutes, even to receive a complimentary drink, our strategy always was to play and once we had any significant win we would quit right away and take a breather and move around. What a bad feeling I had to lose the 500$ like that. We went to cosmo had some secret pizza, this pizza was great but there is no place to sit to eat it! we than walked the strip a little went back to the hotel and enjoyed some more pool time, later we wanted to redeem ourselves, we took 500$ more to gamble, lost 200 of it on roulette again the same sob story, I asked the gf what she thinks she said play some craps , i took 300 to the buyin on a craps table min 25$ , she was surprised, we had some luck here, the shooter did really well, i was betting on the pass lines, and backing up my odds bets, few bets on point numbers 6 and 8, few hit, in a matter of minutes the green chips came in more and more, next thing you know i upped the bet, i was now betting 100 on the pass and 100 on the odds bet, and had significant bet on the table, we had over 40green 25$ chips plus around 100in 5s within 10minutes, i looked at the dealer, he looked at me and we both understood each other, i threw the chips out and he pulled out a yellow, i gave tip and left ecstatic, hindsight 50/50 i forgot to tip the shooter, my gf later told me i should have, i told her she should have told me then and i would have loved to tip the shooter!

    What a feeling it is to have the yellow chip, we redeemed ourself, and I told myself that was it. What an awesome night, we cashed it in over 1000$, had an excellent evening.

    The next day we took it easy, had some pool time, went to walk the strip some, entering many casinos to see everything, seeing the sights and history, and we eat the earl of sandwich in Planet Hollywood, this place was cheap and pretty darn good. Its funny to say that all of these casinos have such a unique scent to them, apart from the cigar and cigarette smoke, they are pumping in a unique fragrance in each one, for example, the Cromwell , for some reason, had such a nice smell, while the treasure island, smelled so bad. Anyways we took it easy most of the day, and then saw a circe de sole, le reve, this was breathtaking, the best show i have ever seen in my life. We ended the evening eating at delmonico in the venetian, honestly, i have had better, the tab was 250$, i did not feel it was worth it, the bone in ribeye steak was slightly overcooked and not as tasty as i was hoping. I would not recommend this place as there are so many other options. We walked back and man was the strip busy, it was the most crowded street I have ever seen in my life. We arrived to the hotel late after 1:30am, tired and feel asleep. The next day had a early afternoon flight, all was well and arrived in San Diego, went directly to the beach.

    By the way, from the wynn casino, the chromium popeye was worth $60million in case you are looking to buy some classy artwork.

    If you have a chance please see my videos from le reve and other various pictures they might help with this story.

    https://vid.me/uF3Z

    https://vid.me/YrCh

    https://vid.me/4jPU
     

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  2. shemesh

    shemesh Low-Roller

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    del.jpg IMG_0901.jpg IMG_0901.jpg IMG_0910.jpg IMG_0930.jpg IMG_0945.jpg IMG_0933.jpg IMG_0964.jpg IMG_0987.jpg IMG_0994.jpg IMG_1017.jpg IMG_1001.jpg IMG_1037.jpg IMG_1067.jpg IMG_1085.JPG IMG_1086.JPG IMG_1149.jpg IMG_1167.jpg IMG_1199.jpg IMG_1208.jpg IMG_1204.jpg rtt.jpg rr.jpg ww.jpg IMG_1279.jpg IMG_1290.jpg IMG_1291.jpg IMG_1292.jpg IMG_1293.jpg IMG_1295.jpg IMG_1304.jpg IMG_1309.jpg IMG_1310.jpg IMG_1311.jpg IMG_1312.jpg
     
    Last edited: Sep 6, 2015
  3. shemesh

    shemesh Low-Roller

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    All in all my original envelope with $2000, had 500$ extra in it. We are counting down for our next trip to paradise.
     
  4. firstkill

    firstkill High-Roller

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    congrasts on coming home a winner on the first trip. I hope you have many more winners.
    cosmo wrap around will be hard to live up to
     
  5. 6Mermaids

    6Mermaids Low-Roller

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    Congrats on your first trip! The Aria is such a buzzkill for me as well. I have never won there.

    I am curious to know what you didn't like about Mandarin Oriental? I have heard so many wonderful things about it. I have always wanted to stay there but can't really justify it when I get comps at other places.
     
  6. shemesh

    shemesh Low-Roller

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    Honestly, for myself, it is a weird setup , you have to check in the lobby on the 23rd floor, then you have to switch to a separate elevator to the guest rooms, which are on lower floors, the whole design of the building is a bit strange to me, also there is no casino, no really tasty restaurants or numerous dining choices, to get to this building is also a little bit of a hassle. It has a kind of dead and quite atmosphere and vibe to it and there is no balcony, and the views are not all that great, you sort of feel trapped. The pool itself is just ok. The standard city view rooms for the price are quite expensive , but i would say that the spa is world class. I did not see any phenomenal service at this place for the 2 days I stayed. I mean dont get me wrong it was ok, but honestly the cosmo was much better for me personally. The mandarin did not go above and beyond by any means. I thought staying at a suite in the Aria or better yet even a standard room at the wynn, bellagio, palazzo, or venetian would have been a much better choice.

    my gf said that the lotions , bath salts, and shampoos are great though!
     
  7. 6Mermaids

    6Mermaids Low-Roller

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    hahaha! thank you for the info! one day i am going to finally make it to their spa. :)
     
  8. Valgal

    Valgal VIP Whale

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    Thanks for the report and pics.
     
  9. Aces and Eights

    Aces and Eights VIP Whale

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    More important than the win is you had a great time (aside from the reason you slept on the balcony).

    If the craps shooter made you a lot of money because of long rolls, then the shooter should have made a lot of money also. Don't worry about tipping the shooter.

    The casinos do pump in scents, but not oxygen.

    How steakhouses prepare their steaks can vary day to day. It's just that the better places are more consistent. There are plenty of steakhouses in Vegas, and I'm sure the next place you try will be great.

    Mandarin Oriental is basically a condominium complex with property management that rents out rooms/suites daily as part of their HOA services. Like Vdara and MGM Signature, they are not directly attached to casinos, and food services may be limited. Cosmopolitan was supposed to be a condominium complex (I think that's why they have balconies), but during the economic downturn, they changed it to a hotel.

    La Reve is not a Cirque du Soleil show, but the Franco Dragone production is Cirque du Soleil-like.

    Now that you are hooked on Vegas, I hope your next trip will be soon and as successful. Thanx for providing pics. Great photos! I'll look at the vids next.
     
  10. FullBoat

    FullBoat VIP Whale

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    Thanks for the report. Sounds like y'all had a lot of luck out there. That's how they get you hooked. It's like a dealer..first time's free.

    And, where's your pic of the $1k chip. :) I know I'd take a pic of that quick.
     
  11. tringlomane

    tringlomane STP Addicted Beer Snob

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    Nice report!
     
  12. IM ALL IN

    IM ALL IN High-Roller

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    Scoring the wraparound is a bonus. My favorite suite. One of the two best views for me in LV, the other being from The Foundation Room at MB.
     
  13. rscpa

    rscpa Low-Roller

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    Congratulations on the win and fun trip. Now you will be hooked and want to come all of the time! Better if your significant other also likes it.
     
  14. PayTriple

    PayTriple VIP Whale

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    The pic of the $1K chip is there, right after the turtle pic.

    Shemesh, great trip report, thanks for sharing! And congratulations on leaving Las Vegas a winner!
    May I ask how much do you think information from the VMB board helped you in planning for the trip?
     
  15. Elf70

    Elf70 High-Roller

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    Great trip report! Congrats on the win. I'm going to LeReve in October. Thanks for posting the video.
     
  16. Dr Nostron

    Dr Nostron VIP Whale

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    Great report thanks for taking the time.

    Sorry you had bad experience at Delmonicos I love that place - maybe just off night

    Also - always tip the dealers but don't feel bad about not tipping shooter - they made plenty of money if they knew what they were doing. Only time I have ever done that was a young girl who had no idea what she was doing but rolled forever - she made so little money off a 30 minute roll that everybody at the table kicked in at least a black chip - she left crying she was so happy - lol!!!!!
     
  17. Geogran

    Geogran VIP Whale

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    Very nice trip report Shemesh. Appreciate the fun tidbits, like the cost of the Popeye at Wynn, I love that Popeye and the Wynn. Glad you had first timers good luck. Looking forward to future reports.
     
  18. Geogran

    Geogran VIP Whale

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    Forgot to ask,( I don't know a lot about roulette), but why did the dealer say not to do that again? Was it the size of the bet, or something else? Thanks.

    [/The next day we checked our bags in and decided to go to the casino, gf then played roulette, we had a string of bad luck, she lost 100$ in small bets, it was a 15$min, , but the dealer was a good guy , very funny, engaging, having a grand time,, mostly I had a 500$ budget for the day, after sitting back letter her play, decided to go bold and pulled out 3black chips and placed it on black, all at the table said they like my style and the dealer was surprised, he said he really hopes I can win, the roulette spin was off, let me tell you it was a nervous feeling, the damn ball looked like it stopped on the red, but barely, I mean barley jumped the border to land on the black, got the victory and got out ahead. Dealer said dont do that again, tipped the dealer and got out.
    COLOR]
     
  19. Joe

    Joe VIP Whale

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    Great report! So glad first-timers had a winning trip. I've never held a yellow chip, so nice going! :thumbsup:
     
  20. breanna61

    breanna61 Super Moderator

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    I fell asleep after enjoying adult bevvies on the terrace at Cosmo one night, but didn't spend the night out there. Oh well, you saw the sun come up lol. Congrats on a winning trip! Too bad Delmonico was off; I've had some very good meals there so hopefully just an off night.
     
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