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Hippodrome London, UK (New MyVegas Reward Partner)

Discussion in 'Non-Vegas Trip Reports' started by UncleBen, Aug 9, 2015.

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  1. UncleBen

    UncleBen Low-Roller

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Ipswich, UK
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    7

    My Trip Report

    So I snagged 2 chip reward packages from MyVegas knowing I would be in London soon. I picked up both the £50 and £100 chip reward.

    Upon entering a 'host' welcomed me and I asked where I needed to go. He directed me to the equivalent of the Mlife desk.

    The supervisor seemed really pleased I was there to redeem MyVegas rewards as she could show a less senior colleague how to do it. First they had to link my 'Hippodrome Friends' account with MyVegas. If you're not already a member I would imagine it would take an extra 5 minutes or so.

    They gave me 2 cardboard 'MyVegas' tokens to take to the cage. There were several tokens in the box so looks like they'll be refreshing these rewards. The cage looked a little baffled that I had 2 tokens and whilst it only took 5 minutes at the desk it was almost this long again to receive the promo chips.

    I like to play roulette: single chips on the inside. But with £150 they gave me £5 chips which was fine. I found a table which had gone from a £2 to £5 minimum. In this casino the minimum refers to the value of the chip not the minimum bet- and you could bet one chip as far as I could see.

    The promo chips probably lasted me all of 10 minutes. I walked away with about £20 in cash chips.

    The casino was busy at around 6pm on a Saturday. The location is just on the edge of Chinatown so the clientele was probably around 50/50 Chinese/Western.

    I asked if there was a craps table and was directed down to 'Lola's'. Now this is a cool little downstairs casino within a casino. In contrast to the snazzy upmarket vibe upstairs this was more of a throwback to the early 20th century. Brick walls, hologram videos of old time characters in mirrors and on walls. It was so much quieter too, almost as though nobody knew it was there.

    There was a craps table, 2 roulette wheels and I think it was one blackjack table. Also a cage, bar and lots of seating.

    As the craps table was only just getting started I joined the £1 roulette table and after about an hour I turned my £80 buy in into about £155.

    I took that over to the craps table. It was a £5 min pass line bet. £2 minimum on the firebets and £3 minimum on hardways. This was written anywhere and resulted in the guys having to tell people a few times.
    Long story short it was a tough table. I walked away with £50 and man was that a grind.

    It wasn't a fun table. I enjoyed myself but it wasn't 'Vegas fun'. No fist bumping or cheering. Even placing a hardway bet for the boys was greeted with a muted 'thanks'. No cheering for you both to win as I've experienced state side.

    The drink service was pretty good. Although you had to ask a waitress rather than them asking you. Soft drinks were free, as they should be but I have seen them charged for in the UK before.

    Tipping of the dealers was minimal from what I witnessed. But this is typical in UK casinos. Maybe more tips would mean more fun dealers...... Maybe not!

    In short I would say this probably is the best UK casino I have been in and I rate it higher than the empire, Gala and even Alea. But it's still not Vegas.....

    It's great to have a UK MyVegas rewards partner and this really will get me to visit when I otherwise wouldn't, I guess just what they are looking for from the programme.

    I've got the tour and dinner with the owner reward which I'm hoping to use at the end of next month. If you've got any questions before (or after) then just let me know.
     
  2. simonay

    simonay Low-Roller

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    Thanks for the detailed report, did you see what the minimums for blackjack and three card poker were?
     
  3. Corinne

    Corinne Low-Roller

    Joined:
    Apr 25, 2012
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    Bucks, UK
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    Thanks for that TR UncleBen. I'm all ready to go now, just need to sort out when. A couple of questions please. Did you park there? They told me on the phone about QPark but it's expensive even with 20% off. I've found another couple of places but need to Google how far they are to walk. Did you by any chance ask how often we can use those chip rewards or is it just once per play lifetime? It would be really great if it was once per month, wishful thinking here! I should sort out this afternoon what evening we will be going. I was determined that I was just going to play the freebies but my friend said she's taking a couple of hundred of her own to play after. Suppose I shall have to do the same, lol. Just hope it doesn't negate the reason for going. Really looking forward to it. It will keep me going until my November trip. Thanks again for posting how it went. Appreciated.

    Simonay: I was told on the phone that BJ was £5 but may be £10 when they are busy.
     
  4. UncleBen

    UncleBen Low-Roller

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Ipswich, UK
    Trips to Las Vegas:
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    I took the train. Got the tube to Picadilly Circus and it was a 5 minute walk. Directly opposite Leicester Square. No idea about parking I'm afraid.

    I didn't ask too many questions about frequency of use and re-stock etc. I think those questions are better posed to the lady you have to call when you redeem the rewards, Nuragh. She seems to know everything inside out. But I'll try for another £100 soon and let you know.

    Take my advice and try Lola's bar downstairs. I really liked the vibe down there.
     
  5. UncleBen

    UncleBen Low-Roller

    Joined:
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    I didn't see 3 card minimum but I'm sure there was a £5 BJ table, at least certainly when I got there. It seemed that it was kind of a transition from afternoon to evening when I got there and minimums were rising.
     
  6. zippy1973

    zippy1973 Tourist

    Joined:
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    Great feedback! Hopefully the £100 chips will be available when I hit my 90 day window! Can I ask, were there any T&C's on using the chips? Could you play straight up on single numbers? I have had promo chips in the past but only play on even money bets with them
     
  7. UncleBen

    UncleBen Low-Roller

    Joined:
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    There weren't any restrictions. Could have put $75 on red and $75 on black on the first spin if I wanted.

    I was pretty much playing single numbers the whole time, hoping I'd hit big....... that didn't go so well!
     
  8. zippy1973

    zippy1973 Tourist

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    Excellent, what I was hoping to hear! Got to wait til 1st October for 90 day window though :thumbsdown:
     
  9. Film-Noir

    Film-Noir High-Roller

    Joined:
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    Nice

    Thanks for the TR UncleBen

    Last time I was in London (Westminster) saw some advertising for the Hippo,
    Next trip will give them a try, now that I have semi-learned the Tube.

    On the tipping, it seems very common to not tip in London area,
    we do & when they ask where we're from, we say Texas.
    :beer:
     
  10. UncleBen

    UncleBen Low-Roller

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    My biggest shock was in Manila, Philippines where I tossed a chip over after a win and was looked at with a confused face. The dealer asked what it was for and I said 'tip, for you'. I was told that I was not allowed to tip!
     
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