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RTC TVMS Weren't Paying Out - Aria - Dec 8th - 12th

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by BarelyHangingOn, Dec 18, 2016.

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  1. BarelyHangingOn

    BarelyHangingOn VIP Whale

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    My Trip Report

    This trip started in total disaster and ended up being a good time. Wife and I spent the Thursday - Monday at the Aria. Childhood friend and his wife were at the Rio same time.

    The Night Before Vegas
    Spent the night before at the Fairfield Inn & Suites Toronto Airport. The rooms were nice and clean, the breakfast was actually decent (not all powdered and frozen) and the shuttle service to and from the airport ran like clockwork. Had a free room with my points and they charged me $15 a night for parking. It all worked out. Went to Hooters with our friends. The airport area is way more seedy than I would have ever guessed.

    Lets Get to Vegas and the Aria
    This is where things go south.
    Flight delayed an hour.
    The guy in handcuffs sitting beside us in the airport didn't seem to mind. He wasn't in a hurry.

    Land in Vegas, grab the luggage. Head to Showtime Shuttle pick up. We have used them 2x before.
    This time they didn't show up. Waited 35+ minutes. The useless chick on her flip phone had no idea where the driver was or when or if he was going to show up. They did refund my money but never again.

    Ended up taking a $25 cab to the Aria. Accident on Tropicana backed everything up. Great.

    Check into Tower Suites for our Corner Suite upgrade. That went smooth and fast. No problems.

    Head over to the Concierge to grab our Terry Fator Tickets. Three Barbie Dolls in Daisy Duke shorts nattering with one employee, another taken up with an elderly Asian lady in slippers carrying a note pad (that's not a good thing) and third employee helping the rest of us. 20 Minutes later we got our tickets. Great.

    The Corner Suite Upgrade
    The Corner Suite Upgrade was pretty much what I expected. 24th floor looking at Red Rock, The Palms, The Vrada and the Cosmo. We actually didn't mind it. The Mountain View was pretty nice actually and Aria doesn't have great Strip Views to begin with.

    My Take on the Corner Suite and Lounge
    The room is obviously gorgeous and luxurious. The extra living area was nice. There was also a small dining table, extra bathroom and fridge with ice maker that came in handy. Three tv's were nice. I had them all on the same music channel. The heated toilet with the bidet and bow dryer was top notch. My underside has never been so spoiled. The water pressure was terrible in the shower though. You would think they would have had an adjustable shower head. It was just a cheap shower head with no pressure. The jetted tub - it had one setting. Jet Plane. It was loud and the water would splash everywhere. We didn't use it as much as I wanted to.

    The Lounge I had mixed feelings about. It was nice to dip in and out and grab free water, juice and pop as well as coffee and tea. The breakfast treats were really good and they had chocolates from their shop as well. The private bathroom was nice.

    Four four nights in a row they had cold fried ravioli and some creme dip thing that was not good at all. I thought they would mix it up. It's not really private. There are four or five staff members either checking people in or gossiping about other guests and a security guard replacing the food standing there like an idiot staring at people.

    You only have to use your card to get in the door from the Casino side. You can just walk in from the lobby. I never saw anybody ask anyone for a card. I think you could just walk in and feast on cold ravioli if you wanted to.

    Terrible Pano view of bedroom but gives you an idea.

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    RTC TVMS Weren't Paying Out - Terry Fator

    We use the bus in Vegas. So after the delayed flight, Showtime Shuttle disaster and the concierge line up we had to hustle a little bit to get to the Mirage to see Terry Fator and grab a quick bite.

    It's dark, My wife puts $40 n the TVMS to get two tickets but only one comes out. The bus is coming. She panics. The bus pulls up as she is throwing another $20 in the machine. I motion him to wait, he points at my beer in my hand and takes off. I know the rules and was going to throw the beer out before getting on.

    The other ticket was there all along but stuck to the side of the wall of the machine so we were stuck with $60 worth of bus passes. Great. We were both ready to call it quits at this point. Another couple showed up and we offered the ticket for half price but they were leaving the next day.

    I said to them even the bus ticket dispenser isn't paying out.

    I made up for it a bit by getting some money back by playing Bubble Craps at the Mirage. This machine counted towards your coin in and out. The Bubble machine at the Aria would not accept your Mlife Card.

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    On to Terry Fator. Here is shot of our $50 drinks for the show. They were really boozy and my wife didn't drink much of hers which led to me being pretty boiled by the end of the night.

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    I couldn't get a good shot from our seats because of the lighting. We were in the 10th row aisle seat. BOGO from MyVegas. It's $166 a seat down there which to me is crazy. The show itself was funny. I didn't know what to expect. The man is talented that is for sure. Lots of laughs. I loved the David Bowie and Bing Crosby act the best.

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    Afterwords we checked out one of the country band playing at the Mirage. It was really busy. We stayed for a couple of songs and walked our way to Caesars Palace and took some photos outside.

    We made our to the Taco Bell which was awful. The music was so loud from the DJ that you had to yell at the kid behind the counter to get your food order in. It was two people yelling at each other for 3 minutes trying to get a beer and a burrito. I should have taken a video. Classic.

    After that we called it a night and went to bed. We had been up for probably 14 hours or more.
     
    Last edited: Dec 18, 2016
  2. BarelyHangingOn

    BarelyHangingOn VIP Whale

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    Day 2 Wandering Around and Big Elvis Sighting

    The next day started with a MyVegas Aria breakfast buffet. We are big fans of the breakfast buffet. Great variety and great quality. It wasn't busy so it was perfect. Always wanted to try Chicken and Walffes Not bad. Breakfast Pizza was great.

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    Out to the strip we go. Ended up at the Bellagio Christmas display.

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    True story. Both escalators at Bally's were working. Actually most of them were working on our trip. It was a Christmas Miracle.

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    We went to the Budweiser Beer Park to have a few drinks. Bought the Groupon to save a little. We had a few beers and appetizers. Wife had a Dragon Fruit mixed drink that was really good. It was a little cold out. I think it would be fun place for a group to hang out. Fairly sure one the guys with the serial killer haircut at the table behind us was video taping the waitress ass as she walked about.

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    From there we just toured into Bally's and back through the Paris and into PH for a photo opp.

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    We bought some Bailey's shots and headed to the Starbucks in Crystals and relaxed by the tree.

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    We ended up meeting our friends at Harrah's later in the afternoon. We played VP at the bar for a bit. My wife wandered around and played slots.

    Big Elvis was playing when we were leaving. We caught a couple of songs from the casino floor but the place was too packed to get a seat. We went back Monday to see him but the place was closed for renovations for a month. If we would have known we would have tried to get a seat.

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    We ended up at the Rio with our friends and had the buffet which wasn't anything to write home about.

    We saw Rock of Ages. No photos allowed. We had general admission seats. The place is circle and we could only see 1/2 of the stage which sucked. The singing was good and the story was about a cheesy as it gets. Not bad though.

    We ended up at the Orleans. What a blast. Wish I would have taken photos. Played alot of Craps and ended up ahead. My wife and friends wife played Roulette. Some guy got into a verbal fight with the Roulette table guy. Entertaining. The Craps guy had trouble with Base 10 math and had to stop the game while three of them figured out how much money they owed a very old asian gentlemen. That's when I left the table. The Rodeo music/concert dance was in full swing. I think I found a new place to frequent.

    Bed time around 2:30. Took a Lyft home.
     
    Last edited: Dec 18, 2016
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  3. BarelyHangingOn

    BarelyHangingOn VIP Whale

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    Day 3 It's your Birthday you should be drunker in Vegas...

    Started the day slow and headed down to The Park. Wanted to grab some eats at Beer Haus. Forgot it was the day of the Duke LV game. The park was packed but it was fun to see all of the fans out for the game. We couldn't get a seat anywhere in The Park or in NY NY for eats and drinks. The place was a zoo before the game.

    We ended up at Fat Burger across the road. I have a birthday burger coupon that they didn't accept but they guy gave me a free burger anyways. Nice guy. We had beers and food and watched all of the scammers and thieves try to con young people into club tickets etc. on the sidewalk in front of us.

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    Went back to Aria and played slots and the newer bubble craps machine for a bit. I keep forgetting to take pictures of the gambling. Small win but I did play Elvira quite a bit and got a few little wins out of her.

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    We ended up taking a Lyft over to Bally's and met our friends. From there we went to Ellis Island for the first time. What a dive. I loved it. The four of ate a huge meal for $35. We drank, played craps and slots so cheap compared to the strip it was crazy. I didn't take any photos in there. We were having too much fun. Their beer is pretty decent. I had been drinking all day so who knows.

    The four of us headed back to the suite for a few drinks and to give everyone a chance to use the heated toilet before we called a Lyft to Fremont. What can you say about Fremont. The girls did the lower zip-line. We drank and gambled alot. We watched a fist fight inside the D spill out into the street. We ended up at Nacho Daddy's doing Scorpion Shots before we called it a night somewhere near 3:00.

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    Back at the Aria the Mrs went to bed and I gambled poorly for awhile. I think this is the Quick Hits machine. I got a few little $30 and $50 payout on it but nothing big. I never saw more than 4 quick hits even though I wasn't playing max bet.

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  4. BarelyHangingOn

    BarelyHangingOn VIP Whale

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    Day 4 Red Rock and Caesars

    We picked our friends up at the Rio in a rented car and went to Red Rock. We grabbed breakfast sandwiches at the Burger Lounge at the back of Aria. Top notch!!

    We did the Scenic Loop Rd and stopped at most places. The rock formations were amazing to see. Lots of rock climbers, zero wildlife and one biker gang.

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    We stopped in at Red Rock Casino on the way back. Pretty nice place, out of the way. My friend sad Vince Neil from Motley Crue was in the bathroom and took off into the Sportsbook. I didn't see anybody beating up any women so I cant verify his story.

    After that we did the High Roller. We had a Travel Zoo for $29 all you can drink for the both of us. Less than $15 each is a deal. There were about 10 of us in there and were were the old people so the others didn't say much to us, at first. We had done it two years ago. As soon as the guy said who wants a drink the kids looked like a deer in the headlights. So i jumped on Vodka, Sprite and Cranberry and they followed suit. I knifed about 5 into me and had a shot of Peach Schnapps.

    There were two 20 year old girls on the ride. I pointed out Ellis Island and said it was fun. To my horror they told me they were staying there because they saved $200 over The Flamingo. They said it wasn't bad but the 7-11 was scary. My wife and I told them to spend the $200 next time and told them to be careful on their trip. I felt like a dad. They were fellow Canadians to boot.

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    After that we headed to Caesars. Placed some bets on the Stanley Cup that I will never cash and headed for the Buffet. I promised my wife. Wow. That is top notch dining. I was really impressed with the food. The desert section was the best I have ever seen. I added the all you can drink mimosas. None of my food photos turned out We were in a dark corner.

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    Back to the Aria for a quick rest and then we headed down for some gambling. We were starting to do all right for once. My friend called and wanted to meet up since it was our last night so we headed over to the new Nacho Daddy at PH.

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    I didnt realize i bet the min. this was my first hand. Oh well. I was happy to see 4 of kind. I hadn't much luck all week.
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    While waiting outside the Walgreens at PH we had the pleasure of watching a 60 year old guy puke everywhere. So much that a clean up crew game out and hosed the place down. That's excitement. No pictures.

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    This is a car that crashed into the bus stop area by PH. We headed there after Nacho Daddy for a few drinks at Extra Lounge before saying good night. Hit another 4 of a kind playing Joker Poker and cashed out $50 with a few free drinks in hand.

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    I ended up staying up late again by myself and lost very well at the ridiculous black jack video machine off the elevators at Aria. It was almost criminal how bad the dealer was winning. People were just shaking their heads. A guy beside was betting $200 a hand and losing every one of them. Night Night.
     
    Last edited: Dec 18, 2016
  5. Richard Alpert

    Richard Alpert LOST

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    A miracle indeed!
    Loving your pics so far! Good to hear that you had some good times by the end of this trip!

    RICHARD
     
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  6. BarelyHangingOn

    BarelyHangingOn VIP Whale

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    Last Day - You took the Red Eye You Idiot.

    Took the Red Eye. Last time ever. Promise this time. We had to leave the suite by noon. Aria was busy. There was a convention in town. Looked like an Asian tech company from what I could tell.

    Mentioned on check out that one of the bathroom switches stopped working, an outlet breaker was out and the curtains wouldn't move with the switch. She knocked our breakfast at the Burger Lounge. I wasn't complaining just letting her know that maintenance would have to check it out. Nice touch.

    We headed to Hexx for lunch. Best seat on the strip for people watching and the most miserable staff on the strip. Perfect combination.

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    We headed to Paris to the gift shop. There was a middle eastern guy with his family going up the tower. I offered him my 2-1 Pass from the ACG. He asked how much, I said free. He handed to the guy and then they all looked at me and they guy took the coupon. It was kind of funny. He thanked me. Nobody gives anything away in Vegas for free I laughed.

    We ended up that Mirage and played Bubble Craps and the new Wily Wonka. I cashed out $65 on Willy but one bonus round took like 10 minutes and paid out $2.30. Kind of a waste.

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    Went back to the Aria later in the day for the Dinner Buffet MyVegas. Truthful. I was not impressed. It wasn't as good as the breakfast by comparison. From there we gambled a bit Sat in the lounge before heading the airport for the flight that was delayed 1 1/2 hours. Left Aria on this note.

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    You can see my airport thread here: https://www.vegasmessageboard.com/forums/index.php?threads/anybody-else-in-mccarren-t3-monday-night.137169/ I was a little worried at first. It looked serious to me. Glad it wasn't.


    Final Thoughts with Jerry Springer

    - Only my third trip and i already notice how much more expensive it is on the strip for basic food and drink.
    - They really did Christmas up this year compared to the last two trips. there were lots of decorations and music compared to our last two trips
    - I have never seen so many kids, babies, strollers and preggos in Vegas and in the smoky casinos before. the kids never bothered me but i can picture DeNiro at the end of Casino lamenting what Vegas has become. Disney Land.
    - Could be my last Aria stay. it's too fancy for me. met lots of nice people there but we had fun at the Mirage. At least there they have decently priced food and drink options.
    - I had more fun at Orleans, Ellis Island and Fremont than anywhere else.
    - Why would the Bubble Craps game at Aria not count your coin in but it would at the Mirage? The new Bubble Craps game did but it wasn't as fun.
    - Lyft kicks ass. I took one of those cards from the scammers at PH and got the $5 off 10 Rides. We cruised everywhere and it cost me a buck or two each time.
    - Wore my Vikings jersey and hat on Sunday. Love the cat calls and fans on a football Sunday. Lots of fun.
    - Never had a problem with any of the VP Bar Machines and getting a drink. The guy at Extra at PH watched us for maybe a minute and then served us. Same at Harrahs.
    - Ended up 1,000 pts light for Pearl Status.

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    Hope I didn't bore you. Wish I had taken more photos.
     
    Last edited: Dec 18, 2016
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  7. Geogran

    Geogran VIP Whale

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    Really enjoyed following along @BarelyHangingOn !

    Appreciate your sharing likes and dislikes and final thoughts, always nice to hear other opinions and views. You guys covered a lot of ground and looks like a really great time! Hope you make Pearl next trip!
    Thanks for sharing.
     
  8. Multifarious5

    Multifarious5 VIP Whale

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    Really enjoyed the trip report Barely! You did a great job, and I really enjoyed it.
     
  9. 93 Octane

    93 Octane Chief Bottle Washer

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    Great report and pics! Thanks for taking me along

    Agree about Ellis Island and downtown, more fun for me to. Prob because everything is close and don't have to walk your legs off to get somewhere
     
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  10. tringlomane

    tringlomane STP Addicted Beer Snob

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    Nice report and pics!
     
  11. RynoBU

    RynoBU Low-Roller

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    Great trip report. Thanks for posting.
     
  12. GamblingGolfer

    GamblingGolfer VIP Whale

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    Thanks for the ride. Great fun. I agree, I think you should focus on Orleans and visting Ellis Island, downtown, etc. The Strip is worth a stroll but not for spending a lot of time.

    Good luck next time.

    GG
     
    • Agree Agree x 1
  13. emmas

    emmas VIP Whale

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    Enjoyed reading the report. You really went all over the place. Sucked the way it started but glad the trip rebounded.
     
    I need all the luck I can get!
  14. carolineno

    carolineno VIP Whale

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    Thanks for the fun report! I too am a fan of Aria buffet breakfast. Haven't done the dinner yet because I don't see how it could compare. Bellagio dinner buffet was pretty good though.
     
    Ladies getaway, somewhere on the strip with a pool :)
  15. john1516inny

    john1516inny High-Roller

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    Really great trip report, thanks. While you were on Freemont did you see a motor cycle ride on a trailer that lets you do a wheelie? Heard its coming soon or should be there.
     
  16. BarelyHangingOn

    BarelyHangingOn VIP Whale

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    Thanks for the replies. I appreciate your comments.

    Forgot to mention it was my first time with the ACG in hand. It only cost me $20 on Amazon and I figured I used about $60 worth over the 4 days. It wasn't a total waste. A bit of a pain but that was mostly signing up for players cards everywhere we went. I handed quite a few of them out as we were walking by places or at Red Rock for example I gave a little old lady playing slots the food coupons looking for some karma.

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    I never saw anything like that but it was Saturday night and quite busy. We did walk the entire main part of the street a few times.
     
  17. lvchic80

    lvchic80 Low-Roller

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    Great TR!
     
  18. Niteshade

    Niteshade VIP Whale

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    Great report - glad you had fun!
     
  19. weluvvegas

    weluvvegas Casino Countess

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    Great report, love the pics!
     
  20. pleasemum

    pleasemum High-Roller

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    Start planning trip#4 - you sure did a lot!! Thanks for all the pictures and information. I like the fact that you did a "final thoughts" post.
     
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