Luxor/Orleans - June 13-17

June 13-17 – Luxor and Orleans

(With Sonya's permission, for those members who have migrated recently from VW, my handle there was 'BCGuy').

Not having been to Vegas as much lately (used to be 4 times/year), we lost our ‘free’ rooms at Orleans as of March 1st. So, two nights at Luxor (MyVegas) and two at Orleans (best rate we could get).

We flew WJ out of YVR. For our Canadian friends, we discovered that Air Miles now partner with WJ and Budget Rental Car. Using about 4k Air Miles, we saved more than $500 usd. Outbound is a great time at 10:15/arrive before 1:00. Inbound, there are two choices ... 1:45 and 10:00 pm. We chose the latter to give us almost another full day in Sin City, although you don’t arrive at YVR until 1:00 am.

First, we stayed two nights at Luxor (free via MyVegas, although we were tagged with the $29 Resort Fee. Considering how poorly the Wifi worked, and other things, not worth it) and two nights at Orleans ($18 RF, everything worked well). That’s the last time for Luxor – we weren’t impressed at all. Now that they’ve added a ‘parking fee’, we’ll be strictly Coast properties. Although we were comped parking, it was such a zoo exiting the structure that we were held up numerous times.

The Luxor pool is fine. Large area with lots of sun and (some) shade choices. Drink costs are outrageous so we didn’t buy anything. We had a $20 if spend $40 in The Public House from MyVegas. Their ‘special’ was a burger and a Bud Lite for $20 (some ‘special’!), but it save some. The second night we at in the Italian place in Excalibur .... ‘family style’ meals so we had lots of leftovers for lunch the next day! We also each had an Excalibur breakfast buffet courtesy MyVegas.

We moved to Orleans (our usual haunt, along with the Gold Coast) on Wednesday. Room was ready, we were given #951. About 20’ from the elevator. For those who don’t know Orleans, there’s a separate bank of elevators which only serve floors 1-9, so they’re never busy. Nothing special about the room, but very convenient.

The Orleans pool is also quite spacious with lots of space choices. As well, their Bar prices are more reasonable. The 25 oz Fosters can is reasonable at about $7.

We ate there all three nights. One thing about the Coast properties is their “Young at Heart” (50+) program on Wednesdays which allowed us to grab a free buffet dinner, have 2 x $10 FB credit, acquire $30 to be used for a dinner, and get a free breakfast on Friday. We both spun 6x pts on pennies and 4x pts on VP, which accumulated very quickly. Besides the buffet, we had a late night snack/drink at TGIF (‘Happy Hour’ menu after 9 pm), a nice dinner at The Prime Rib Loft (now temporarily located across form the buffet while the remodel the ‘loft’ area), and Seafood Chowder at Big Al’s before heading to LAS on Friday night.

As this was a golfing trip, we had pre-booked three rounds. Chimera in east Henderson was a pleasant surprise ... a good pre-game breakfast and a decent course (part of a gated community, so kept in good shape). I probably should have played one tee deck back, but took the Starter’s recommendation. I finished with a very satisfactory 74. It was mostly driver/short iron, without too much trouble (and the wind was mostly down).

We also played TPC Las Vegas in Summerlin. As the PGA Tour has now acquired “EZ Links” (a discount site), they give access to the TPC courses. We managed to get on for $45 pp, a very good deal. It’s a wonderful facility (hosts the Justin Timberlake PGA tnmt), with a very interesting design around and in a small canyon/large ravine. I played fairly well and managed an 83 from the hybrid Blue/White tees. Our last round was at Revere Concord, which we had played last year. A very vertical design, it can be quite tough. With the strong winds and incredibly slow group in front of us, it was more of a struggle. I managed 86.

Anyway, the Gambling as I can remember it .. I didn’t take notes and it’s been almost a full week. We didn’t play much at all in Luxor ... nothing seemed to be cooperating (pennies) and the VP is so atrocious that it’s really throwing money away. We did catch a $108 win on a 75 cent bet on Walking Dead at Mandalay Bay. Basically my last spin which triggered a random flood of wilds. The win enabled me to play on it for the next couple of days.

I think we threw a couple of bucks at Excalibur (we ate there one night), but I don’t remember anything worthwhile.

We moved to Orleans on Wednesday, where we had much more (limited success). As well, after golf each day, we would head to the nearest Coast casino (Sam’s Town, Suncoast, Gold Coast) for some VP and a beer at the bar.

I had quite a few long (for me – I get tired/antsy/bored after about 20 minutes) sessions at various bars and floor machines. I played a lot of deuces, BP; some BPDlx and mostly either won a little ($20+) or lost only a little. I had numerous ‘chances’ – dealt three of a kinds; dealt 3 deuces, etc – but didn’t connect on any. DW hit 4 x 4s on JB and was dealt 4 x 8s on BP, but that was the extent for her.

I did catch 5 of a kind on a Deuces variation – it was worth 100 coins. But mainly, I hung in there, sampled some beers and didn’t lose my shirt while playing.

We did play of various penny machines. I hit Bonus rounds on Colossal Wizards, Zeus 3, Flintstones, etc – each for $30 or $40 which kept me going. I also played Blackjack one night for a small ($25) profit. I left when I doubled down with $10 – I had 11 against an ace. When it wasn’t 21, I went for it but, alas, lost.
It was a different trip for us. We arrived about 2 pm on Monday, played golf Tue/Th/Fr and had to be at LAS at 8:00 Friday night. As the golf courses were each about half an hour away, it took up most of the day to get there, play, and get back. As well, we hit the pool each day.

I’m sure I’ve forgotten lots, but that’s the gist of it. Happy to answer questions.
Cheers, GG.

 

Welcome back to Vegas. I'd say you crammed a lot into a short trip
Nice report.

 

Nice report. We had our first stay at Orleans back in March and enjoyed it. The pool area is very nice and there are plenty of dining options for us non-foodies. Thanks for reporting.

 

Hi.


I like a multiplicity of names. GamblingGolfer and BCguy, luridludicloco and Bellagiorat, Cary Grant and Archibald Alexander Leach, Marilyn Monroe and Norma Jeane Mortensen, Tony Curtis and Bernard Schwartz, LOL.


Great you went back to Vegas after roaming around Hungary, Barcelona, the Panama Canal, Palm Springs and what not. The low point of this visit was your disappointment with Luxor, I guess. I used to like it when it had a copy of the Tutankhamun treasures, the guided Nile boat ride around the property, the talking camels, and good VP, but it always had a vile buffet; now when in Vegas I never find a reason to visit. Great you managed to practice lots of golf, you like that a lot. Your gambling was frugal, as usual, you managed to lose very little, if so, at the end, and hit no royals or top slots jackpots, next time. How did you enjoy the weather in those golf courses? Does the free shuttle from the Strip to Gold Coast and Orleans still exist? Thanks for the report.

 

Thanks for the replies. Yes, 'hit and run' strategy does pay off sometimes. Otherwise, one can limit the losses. The weather two weeks ago was perfect ... low to mid 90s, low humidity and some wind (not like earlier this week when the temps hit mid teens). The Orleans/GC shuttle is now partnered with the High Roller and drops people off at that location (via Koval, east of The Strip).

GG

 

You might say that there are no more amenities anywhere as you are forced to pay for A-Z from the moment you walk in whether you want the given convenience or not. I thought the Egyptian themed Luxor was very appealing when it first opened but now I guess the interior looks like any other mid-level MGM resort. I’ll never comprehend MGM’s logic behind “My Vegas” in light of everything else they’ve done over the past decade. Good for you that you have used it well to your advantage and have enjoyed some nice comps for shows, dining and rooms. I’m shocked over the parking fees and have to wonder if that will last. It seems that Off-Strip properties have changed much less than those on the Boulevard and the Coast locations work well for you and better facilitates the things you enjoy the most in Vegas. Your dining selections sounded good. Yes, with three rounds of golf, it really was a golfing trip for you and it seems you enjoyed each a lot except perhaps for Revere. I admire your ability to withstand the heat and we live in Florida. I buy into the dry heat yada as much as I do the dry cold yada in MN. LOL You got some play in every day as well visiting a half dozen casinos. Good for you that you held your losses to a minimum over your stay. Overall, I sounds like you guys had a fun visit to Vegas! Thanks for your report.

 

Did you take photos? I would like to see photos of those golf courses, and more, for example, how does Luxor look inside these days.
Interesting about the new shuttle stop. Is it still free?

 

Hi, llcl - DW took some pics of golf. I'll have to get them off her phone. Yes, the Orleans/GC/HR shuttle is still free, although they might give priority to folks with a Coast room key.

GG