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My first 5000 TC day at CET!

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by fasbman, Oct 30, 2019.

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  1. fasbman

    fasbman VIP Whale

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    My Trip Report

    Background

    Since I retired, I had been going to Vegas about every other month or so. However, right after my trip in March, my dad was diagnosed with terminal cancer, so I put all my Vegas and other trips on hold until the end, so I could help out my brother when he needed it (My dad lived with my brother and sister-in-law). Fortunately, in April we were able to all go on one last family cruise together that we had already planned, since my dad was still feeling relatively well at that point.

    My dad passed in late August (just after his 92nd birthday). After dealing with the funeral and estate, and getting my head back together again, I was so ready for a trip to Vegas!

    Flights

    As usual, I flew Southwest both ways from Houston Hobby. Both flights were actually a few minutes early, and on both flights the middle seat was open (I almost always sit on the aisle). Score!

    Hotel

    I stayed at PH for five nights in a resort room. The room was fine. It was clean, everything worked and was quiet. That's all I really ask from a hotel room. The mini fridge is a nice touch.

    Food

    I am not a foodie, as I have mentioned on other trip reports. It was usually Earl of Sandwich and Laurel Lounge cuisine. However, there are two other venues I would like to mention.

    For breakfast one morning, I went to Pampas Brazilian Steakhouse buffet located in the mall attached to PH. Along with the usual breakfast buffet items, they bring 3 or 4 carved meats around for you culinary pleasure. It was quite tasty, and at $ 9.99 (plus tax and tip), it's an absolute steal!

    The other place of note that I went to was Gordon Ramsey's Steakhouse at Paris. I treated a couple I know that lives in Vegas that I met on a cruise. It is pricey, but between my Diamond celebration dinner, and RC's I had saved, I had enough Comps to cover everything (except for the tip of course). The couple sprung for the wine, so I'm not sure what that cost.

    We had an appetizer, and we all had the Beef Wellington and Sticky Toffee pudding. It was quite good, but I'm not sure that I would pay full price for it, if I didn't have comps. Afterwards, I treated them to the Laurel Lounge for a nightcap which they always enjoy.

    Gambling

    Now for the meat and potatoes of the report. Since I had quite a bit of pent-up demand for gambling (or gaming as the casinos like to call it), I went a little above and beyond my usual amount that I risk. I ended up with four days of 1000 TC+ and one day of 5000 TC+. The 1000 TC days are not unusual for me, but the 5000 TC day certainly was a challenge. I started right after 6 AM and finished up about 11 PM (with numerous breaks of course). It was about 90% VP and 10% slots so it was just under 50K in total coin in. I certainly lost that day, but it was well under what was expected under theo. I did get a royal on quarters VP the next day which also helped. So overall, while it was not a winning trip, the math says it should have been much, much worse. So, that's close enough to winning in my book! I'm getting fairly close to Diamond Elite status for next year, so with a trip planned for New Orleans next month, I may just make it. Of course, it the machines are too cold, I won't chase it.

    I hope that you have enjoyed reading this report. Thanks!


     
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  2. Vegas28m

    Vegas28m Medium Roller, Chicago

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    great report! I hope you opted in for the 2x’s tier promotion that is going on through oct and also the promotion for every 500 tier credit you make from oct 1 thru dec 31 you get 100 tier credit for next year. Also, sorry about your dad
     
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  3. DaiLun

    DaiLun R.C., L.C., and A.A.N.G.

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    OK, you are "allowed" to throw around "getting a 5000 TC day", because now you understand how difficult it is.

    Congratulations on a fun trip!!
     
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  4. mikel123

    mikel123 High-Roller

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    Congrats to you! I usually fizzle out around 2,500 max.
     
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  5. fasbman

    fasbman VIP Whale

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    Thanks for your condolences. It is difficult, no matter what age you lose them. I have signed up for the 2X tier credit promotion (and the earn now for 2020 promotion) multiple times just to make sure they took.
     
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  6. fasbman

    fasbman VIP Whale

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    Thank you for "allowing me". LOL

    It is difficult, and probably a feat I won't repeat too often, if ever. I actually ended up at almost 5400 TC for the day. I had played at Paris and CP also that day, but I wasn't sure how many points I had earned. The Total rewards desk closed at 10 PM and their terminal that tells you total TC for the day was broken, so I figured I would get at least 5000 TC at PH alone just to make sure, and the gaming was going relatively well which didn't hurt.
     
  7. FABismonte

    FABismonte Tell my wife I am "about even."

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    @fasbman I can usually only get a 5000 TC day when my wife and I play on the same card. Doing it by myself is like work. To get to 5000 I can't do much anything else for the day other than gamble and eat.
     
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  8. DaiLun

    DaiLun R.C., L.C., and A.A.N.G.

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    "allowing" was based on a comment that I made that people were throwing around the "making a 5000TC day" comment like it was easy and cheap to do. Many of them probably have never done it before and were probably just talking out their a**.

    No offense intended. :nworthy:
     
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  9. emmas

    emmas VIP Whale

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    My condolences to you. Glad you were able to get a bit of gaming on. Congrats on what sounds like a fun trip.
     
    I need all the luck I can get!
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  10. fasbman

    fasbman VIP Whale

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    No offense was taken. My comment was very much tongue in cheek. Unfortunately, humor sometimes doesn't translate well on the keyboard as it does face to face.

    PS. I have always enjoyed your postings and find them very informative!
     
    Last edited: Oct 30, 2019
  11. Flowers

    Flowers VIP Whale

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    My condolences on your dad's passing. It is wonderful that you as a family were able to cruise together.

    Congrats on a great trip and thank you for sharing!
     
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  12. fasbman

    fasbman VIP Whale

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    It was work. Most of my points were playing 16 handed quarter VP at PH which amounts to $20 hand or 2 TC's. Even then, it took quite a while, since if I hit a rough patch, I would walk away and play low limit slots for a bit (I have seen far too many people keep feeding Benjamins into a machine and chase their losses, and I didn't want to be that guy).

    There was one thing that amused me though (hey, I'm easily amused). It is standard that when you are diamond, that a host on duty will introduce themselves early in your trip and ask if you need anything. However, previous to this trip it was always one once per CET casino. On this trip, the day after my 5000 TC, the same host stopped by again to ask, if I was sure I didn't need anything. So I think that it got someone's attention,
     
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  13. fabriano

    fabriano Low-Roller

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    My condolences for your dad. Yes, earning 5,000 tier points is very difficult(for me, anyway). Congrats to you!
     
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  14. FABismonte

    FABismonte Tell my wife I am "about even."

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    I have been approached many times by such a host while playing. But although I have often been asked "do you need anything" if I actually requested something like a comp for dinner, the response is something like "just charge to your room and it can be taken off based on your play" or the equivalent. In short, I really don't think such a "host" is empowered to do anything for you other than give you directions to the restroom or check a box on their ipad that they "greeted" you as required by the unseen CET protocol.

    Has anyone on the board ever gotten something substantive out of a "drive by host?"

    PS a lot of "FABs" on this thread!
     
    Last edited: Oct 30, 2019
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  15. fasbman

    fasbman VIP Whale

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    I have never asked for anything either. I'm sure that they are hoping you don't! More than once, they have mentioned that when you receive your survey, make sure you indicate that you were greeted by a host, so I think you are exactly right.
     
  16. FABismonte

    FABismonte Tell my wife I am "about even."

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    The next time I run into a "drive by host" (assuming I am not too distracted by the machine I am playing) I will respond as follows: "Thanks for asking. What are you empowered to give me?"
     
    Last edited: Oct 31, 2019
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  17. casinokid68

    casinokid68 Caesars Diamond Member

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    Great trip report!! Just out of curiosity, I see drinks like coffee or juice are not included in the price. If per usual Vegas prices, a cost for a cup of coffee is like $5.00, after tax and tip, you are now looking at a $20.00 buffet, which is quite normal for breakfast buffet prices at any Caesars hotel, besides Bacchanal Buffet.
     
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  18. FABismonte

    FABismonte Tell my wife I am "about even."

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    After thinking about it overnight, I think I will ask such a "drive by host" to send a nice basket of treats to my room including perhaps some chocolate covered strawberries. Such complimentary baskets are SOP for hosts who wish to make a higher value guest welcome and usually come with a business card of the host.
     
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  19. fasbman

    fasbman VIP Whale

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    I just had the water, so I probably wasn't a huge profit center for them!
     
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  20. Ty

    Ty ?

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    I did enjoy it, thanks for sharing.
     
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