So..what does it take?

We are new to the whole "comp" thing..and unfortunately didn't get our TR cards when we stayed at the Flamingo in March. And we did gamble..maybe 500 dollars between the 2 of us in one night. Hubby is returning on Tuesday for a quick stay, what kind of gambling level are we looking at to get a comped room? He'll be signing up on check in. 100 bucks slot play? 500 bucks? Table play? What's the lowest level of play you have gotten free rooms at? We are returning as a couple in August and were looking forward to maybe a free night.

 

Its not really a dollar amount... its more about how much you play, rather than how much you play

Like somebody could say "I played $100 a day on my last trip and I get free rooms at Flamingo" but that doesn't really mean anything because did they play that $100 all in one spin on a $100 slot machine? Was it an hours worth of play on nickle video slots? Or were they playing penny slots and with a few decent wins here and there turn their $100 in to 6 or 7 hours of slot play throughout the day.

If you are at a Total Rewards property what you should do is:
- both of you sign up for the Total Rewards card
- each of you ask for an extra card at signup
- designate one of you as the "main player" and one as the "companion"
- each trip to Vegas what you will want to do is run about $20 through a penny video slot on the companion card, just do that once per trip
- then for the rest of the trip you both play on the main player's card only

Important to note here: the "main player" and the "companion" should be set. You do not want to change them from trip to trip, IE: this trip you are the main player and the next trip hubby is main player... don't do that. If you are designated main player then you are always the main player.

For comps and offers what you will want to do then is when you are planning your next trip go to the Total Rewards website and log in with the main player's card number.

When you are actually searching for rates you want to always enter the companion's card number in the companion box. Even if the companion barely ever has points, the fact that the companion does have points is worth a heck of a lot more than trying to book without any companion.

Otherwise just play normally and if your play is enough you will get offers.

Remember: Total Rewards/Caesars Entertainment does have nice resorts in Las Vegas like Caesars, Planet Hollywood and Paris... but they also have older and more run down properties that need rooms filled too, like Harrah's, Flamingo, IP, Bally's. Meaning that even if you are a low roller you probably won't get room offers from Caesars Palace, but with even a little bit of play (still talking a hundred bucks or so a day) you should be able to get comped or discounted rooms

 

could i possible do your strategy after the fact ?

meaning ... my girl got her card i didnt ... could we still do the main and companion this trip

 

Last year I had a goal to lose 100 dollars in the slot machines at Imperial Palace in the quest for free rooms.

I picked a .25 Double Diamond machine where the maximum bet was .50 in IP that faces the entrance to Hash House a Go Go.

Slid my hundy in,and proceded to play .50 cents a spin for about 2 hours. I racked up about a hundred and 30 points or so before I was so buzzed from all the jack and cokes the cocktail waitress had brought me and was so hungry that I got up and went to eat at HHaGG. When I hit the cashout button I hadn't lost anything at all. In fact I gained about 50 bucks.

About a week later I checked the TR website and I was comped at Ballys and IP and had casino rates at all other resorts. I took them up on the offer and stayed 3 nights at IP, hoping to stay 3 nights at ballys next time but since then my offers have dried up because I haven't put that much play on the card.

 

Comps

Get a Players Card and just work it! It took me a few trips before the comps started flowing in. It's all about the points you've accumulated.
Say you run a $100 through a machine with small but steady wins along the way. They look at the total points and over-all amount wagered.
Not just that $100.00 you started with. If you are an (MGM) Mlife card holder you can link your card together with your partners. It helps!

 

It's all about your theoretical loss and has nothing to do w/ how much you initially put in the machine. You could lose $1,000 or $100 and rack up the same points. Every game in the casino has a theo house advantage (or loss/disadvantage to you) and based on how much you run through a machine or a table, they determine your comp level.

IMO, it's harder to rack up points for comps as a table player unless you're betting big but I'm not the expert on that. I just play table games when I want a break from VP and feel like being more social and don't expect anything from my measley $10-25/hand bet at PGP or Roulette. Some of the others on the board that play almost strictly table games could shed more light.

It's easier to track yourself if you're a slot or VP player because you can see your point total everytime you put your card in. Once you get to know approx how many points a hotel requires to comp a room or bring you in RFL or RFB, you can pretty much figure it out yourself.

I know where we like to stay (Wynn) they require about 3000-3500 slot points/day for room only so Flamingo is likely less.

 

Actually, the HA on roulette is usually one of the highest in the casino - 2.6% on single-zero & 5.2% on double-zero [inside bets] so even $25/spin at the roulette wheel should generate a decent theo for you.

I don't believe MGM, Wynn or V/P will rate you at less than $25/hand/spin/throw on any table games - CET & others might though.

Another reason table games generate less theo is because with the exception of roulette, the big 3 popular table games - Blackjack, Craps & Baccarat - all have very low HA's [I believe 1% or less on any of the three, maybe more on BJ with bad rules or craps with bad rules or on certain bets] - compared to slots, which as far as I know generally have a much higher HA - except for Video Poker, which has a very low HA also. I'm not familiar with the HA on Pai Gow or any of the other table games I never play, but I believe it's higher than that of Craps/BJ/Baccarat. It's also generally believed that the higher the denomination slot machine, the lower the HA.

 

On my 1st trip - about 12 years ago....knew nothing about cards or what to do so they couldn't track our play. Stayed at Bally's and just by staying at the hotel, I started get offers for very reduced rates. Next trip, knew about, got & used TR card - our comps covered the room charges.....haven't paid for a room since.... Now our comp $ covers all our meals, the rooms (at Paris for many years now) are comped and all we need to bring is gambling & tip $. Where else in the world can you do this and have this much fun? No Where... LOL
Hope you now get on their radar and start reaping the benefits....

 

3000 points? Good heavens! In two trips to the Cleveland Horseshoe casino I accumulated a whopping 28 points!

 

Use the card, but don't TRY to get comps

We foolishly didn't use cards our first few trips...now we use one at EVERY casino we play.

Our budget is $250/person/day (tips/quick meals come from that, also). We play all over, but majority at CET properties. I play mostly TX HOld Em tournaments, with a bit of VP. DH dabbles in a bit of everything. We hit Vegas 2-4x/yr for 3-6nts. We hit our local casino maybe 4x/yr for a night.

We get rotten deals from our local casino; my mom goes a lot more than we do & her deals are not any better. But none of us have paid for a room in Vegas for years. (OK, occasionally a weekend room, like during March Madness).

We just gamble w/in our budget and enjoy ourselves...we don't worry about the comps, but we do enjoy the ones we get.

When I make reservations, I always enter both our cards.

 

Yes and no. Not sure what you are asking as to AFTER the fact. You can not do anything about the last visit. You can either start new on the next one, or build on that one.

If her card got lots of play last time, then keep using it. Also matters what you play. If you (guy) plays tables and she plays slots, then YOUR card should be the main one. After all, you have to hand your card to the pit boss. She can put your card in any slot machine she wants.

Make sense?

 

Back to the OP question. Unless he plays at least that amount, he may not get a free room for the trip on Tuesday. But, even a little play may generate a room for your next trip.

 

Good Info!

Thanks for all the information. We weren't thinking he'd get free anything for this trip..he got a package deal and the room is like 40 bucks a night. But if he gets the TR card on this trip maybe we can get an offer or two for our trip together next month. I was just curious what they expect out of you gambling-wise to start getting offers. Sounds like it varies. I'm just jealous he is going next week and I'm not! :evillaugh

 

About cards - I was in LV in 2003 and signed up for cards. I don't know if there was an MLife card at that time. If I go back in 2012, nine years later will they have my information, or will I need a new card? Does Mlife give free play to new sign ups? We are going to be at Mandalay Bay.

 

One last year's trip to Vegas, I was specifically trying to get on the comps list. I asked for a lot of help here and on other boards, and it worked for me. Here is what I did.

1) Choose a company to be loyal to. If you prefer Harrah's/CET properties, choose them. If you prefer MGM properties, choose them.

2) GET A REWARDS CARD! This is how they track you. Get one and use it everywhere. Even if you are just buying lunch, give them your card. Let the system show that you are spending money at their place.

3) Spend every dollar at the properties you chose. I know everyone likes to bounce around and play a little at each casino. When you do that, you are killing your comps. Play only at the casinos that are owned by the company you chose in step 1. Eat only at the place you chose.

4) Charge all your meals to your room. This will probably only work for meals at the hotel you are staying at, but it can work. I asked for comped meals at the tables before and was refused. So I had those meals charged to my room instead. At checkout, I asked if I had any comps available for use and they comped all my meals that trip. Over $300 worth.

5) Consolidate your budget and put it in play. This is where I was going wrong in the past. I like to play poker mostly, and I like to play at different places. I would budget $400 a day for a 5 day trip. This time, I would still play poker, but I also added in some BJ at night and would put the whole $2000 in play, and would play $25 a hand. If you know the game and know some basic strategy, this can last you a long time. I played 4 hours a night and even managed to squeak out a profit. I did not increase my budget. I simply put it all into play to make it appear that I was a bigger player than I really am.

6) Stay at a hotel in the group you chose in step 1. Remember, every dollar you spend counts. If you want to get comped at the Bellagio, stay there. If you can't afford it, stay at MGM or Excalibur but spend some money there that you would have overwise spent on the room.

7) Only pay for shows at the group you chose in step 1. If you are paying for shows, remember they are watching where you spend your money. Do it with your goal in mind.

8) Don't chase the comps beyond your comfort level. I would never increase the amount I was willing to spend or gamble to get better comps. Instead, I consolidated what I was already willing to spend and did so at one place.

Using these tips, I got what I wanted. Within 3 months of getting home I got a card in the mail offering me free rooms at any CET property pretty much any time I wanted except major holidays. I did not get the lavish offers of suites and free play money....yet, but I expect those will come along after my next trip next month. As time has gone by, the offers have gotten better. At first Ceasar's was excluded from free, but was deeply discounted. Now it is free too. Also at first, the offers were for 3 nights only. Next month I will be staying comped for 5 nights.

Play the system smartly and you can get rewarded, but there are no guarantees.

 

Some good advice.

Though I am sure it helps a little, I am not sure spending for meals, shows or even rooms make a big difference. After all, the computer is mostly interested in your GAMBLING expenditures.

Still, some good advice. People try to make this way too complicated sometimes (not ROTJob). Bottom line, they do comps cause they want you to come back, again and again. You play a little, they give you little. You play alot, they give a little more.

 

Yes you can... the cards don't have to be linked (I don't even think Total Rewards links cards anymore, anyhow).

The key factors here are:
- having a companion card, any companion card even if they have almost no play at all or haven't used their card in a year or two, is better than having no companion card at all.

- you want to establish a history of play so you don't want to be switching back and forth between who is the primary cardholder and who is the companion.

- you don't have to worry about the companion card's ADT, just that it has some play on it from time to time. So if on the final day you have an hour to kill before heading to the airport if you are going to play in the casino that would be a good time to use the companion card and rack up a final few points.

 

Mlife came out in test markets like in Biloxi first before it was out in Las Vegas. They gave me something like $50 in Freeplay at the Beau Rivage
because they were running a promotion at the time so it doesn't hurt to ask.

I've only had my MGM card since 2006. It used to be called; MGM Mirage Players Club. Before that it was called; The One Club and was good
at a few select MGM owned casinos such as; Mandalay Bay, Luxor, Monte Carlo, Circus Circus, Slots A Fun etc. Now it's called Mlife.

As far as I know Harrah's / CET has always been called; Total Rewards. Doesn't hurt to sign up again. If you're in their system they'll let you know!

 

OK...

if your goal is comps, only play at certain casinos...
if your goal is fun, play where you want

We could live at CET resorts S-Th year round...and lots of weekends...and while we play mostly at CET properties, we don't get hung up if we toss $20 or even $100 somewhere else...

 

You are going to have to get new cards at most places.

That doesn't mean they won't have your information on file, but just that most of the programs will deactivate your account after a couple of years of inactivity and some of them have changed their program entirely.

Since it has been so long for you don't even worry about bringing your old cards, just have your ID handy and go to the casino's slot club and just say you need a card.

They will swipe your card and if they can find you in the system they will issue you a new card... if they can't they will open an account for you and issue you a new card.

They might, it varies from time to time. Either way you should still sign up for the card because your play will earn Express Comps that you can apply to your bill or use for dining.