1. Welcome to VegasMessageBoard
    It appears you are visiting our community as a guest.
    In order to view full-size images, participate in discussions, vote in polls, etc, you will need to Log in or Register.

A 30 day trip to Vegas and points beyond... a semi (no promises) report Jan 21-Feb 21

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by WHITEJACKET73, Jan 24, 2019.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. WHITEJACKET73

    WHITEJACKET73 VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Dec 17, 2009
    Messages:
    1,336
    Location:
    Rochester,Mn
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    92
    Today was a rather uneventful day. I slept in and then lounged in the room drinking coffee made from my five cup Mr Coffee machine. I finally polished off the last of my cookies from KC. I stopped by the TR desk to inquire about getting a discount for the water taxi. Diamond card holders receive two discount tickets which gives you a $2 break on the $5 each way fare; so a round trip will cost you $6 instead of the normal $10. They do not give you a discount on an all day fare, the boothling told me, " We want you to stay here." I bought an all day fare at the taxi which was a mistake, since I only made one round trip. I was going to go back to the Golden Nugget tonight , but after waiting at the dock a good 20 minutes I could see the running lights of the taxi approach, slow down and then turn around and head back upriver....WTF?

    I started my casino run at the Riverside Casino; the place was packed with players, most of whom were smokers. I obtained by players card, played til I had 10 points on my account and then swiped my card at the kiosk for my random free play award....a whole five bucks. I found a penny machine and made 50 cent bets, hit two bonuses and cashed out with $14. I had a coupon for a free beer with a purchase of a hot dog at their sidewalk café, but I had to go upstairs to the grill in the bowling alley if I wanted a beer instead of a soft drink. The hot dog looked like it had been on one of those heated rollers since the Nixon administration and my beer came in a small cup... any smaller and it would have qualified as a shot glass. After finishing my repast I left the Riverside with my $14 in winnings and all of the second hand smoke that I could choke on.

    I stayed and played at the Aquarius casino for a long time; this is really a nice place. I found a full pay (8/5) BP machine in the back of the casino near the pool entrance. They have a row of machines that face the river and you have a great view while playing. I plugged away and put over 200 points on my card and cashed out $50 down. I'll have to give them some more play when I am back in Laughlin in two weeks. I would like to start getting some offers from this place.

    I then hit the Edgewater and the Colorado Belle, losing $20 in each place; their VP paytables are terrible...6/5 bonus poker...ick. I did like the looks of the inside of the Bell. I spent a whole 5 minutes making a tour of the Pioneer...nothing to see here folks, move along. I played some 7/5 BP at the bar at the Golden Nugget and quenched my thirst with a couple of Heineken and dropped another $20. That pretty much shot my afternoon so I hitched a ride on the water taxi and headed for home and the diamond lounge at Harrah's. The had make your own chili dogs which were not too bad. I happened to look across the room and spied two people whom I know from the Harrah's diamond lounge in Vegas; Linda and Rich. They arrived this morning and are staying a few days in Laughlin. We had a nice chat and I will probably run into them in Vegas later in the trip.

    I played some more triple play bonus poker tonight and it did not go well, dropping $200 quickly, so I threw in the towel and headed back to the room. I played at multiple casinos all day and did not hit one quad. Looking back, I have only been dealt four to the Royal just once for the entire trip. I've poured myself a glass of Four Roses bourbon with ice and a splash of water and will do some reading. I picked up a rather comprehensive book on World War One and I am learning a lot about this senseless conflict; such carnage and lost of life. Tomorrow I pack up and head for Las Vegas and a two night (comped) stay at the Golden Gate. Hopefully my buddy MadMan Mike will be there. I just received a text from him saying that they may delay/cancel his flight tomorrow morning from MSP. They are predicting up to a foot of snow and single digit temperatures. Sorry, no photos today.
     
    Last edited: Jan 27, 2019
    • Like Like x 9
  2. marcianofan

    marcianofan High-Roller

    Joined:
    Mar 24, 2009
    Messages:
    841
    Location:
    portland, or
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    50
    Enjoying the trip report, it’s kinda nice to hear about some other places people visit on their way to Vegas...
     
    • Agree Agree x 1
  3. Flowers

    Flowers VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Mar 29, 2014
    Messages:
    14,642
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    30
    Subscribed from now and until the end of your trip! I love road trips and am excited about your 30 day stay. In 2008 I stayed in Vegas for a month and virtually every night was comped. I had to move around a lot but it was a blast.
     
    • Agree Agree x 1
  4. bshowell

    bshowell VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Oct 3, 2004
    Messages:
    4,308
    Location:
    DMV
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    16
    Enjoying this - I love seeing other places people go.
     
  5. BlueBellThunder

    BlueBellThunder VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Jun 2, 2013
    Messages:
    2,074
    Location:
    New Jersey
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    17
    I’d love to one day map out a trip from Jersey to Vegas all comped hotels along the way. I did a trip to MN without paying for a hotel. On the drive out, I stoped at Harrah’s in Chicago, went on to MN to visit family for a few days, then on the way back stopped at Windsor Caesars for a couple of nights.

    Love the long trip reports.
     
  6. WHITEJACKET73

    WHITEJACKET73 VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Dec 17, 2009
    Messages:
    1,336
    Location:
    Rochester,Mn
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    92
    2D3FAA24-E80F-4ED8-884A-4490DCE9AFEB.jpeg 585E75B6-11EC-49C9-ACB1-D0B7D8409D4B.jpeg B51F0F8B-4DDD-4C87-9091-E4024C8E64CB.jpeg FCAFA1E4-D993-4371-8CFF-CF06F0CA12E1.jpeg FBB8E863-617D-4C0D-B352-93C9BFF9B3BC.jpeg Yesterday I requested a late check out and didn't leave Laughln until 12:30. There was light traffic, but I made sure to slow down in SearchLight to 25 MPH. The police had some poor soul pulled over as I was coming into town. MadMan texted me and said after a slight flight delay he as able to escape Minnesota and was at the Gate. The desk clerk assigned me to room 305 which faces Main street and is towards the back of the hotel...perfect.

    Mike was already at the tables when I went down to the casino and was up four hundy before even checking into his room. I checked out the 8/5 BP machine bank and the Royal progressive was over $1900. Mike remained at the BJ table and I made a shot for the progressive. Things went up and down and cashed out only $25 down. I joined Mike at another BJ table and quickly lost $200; the dealer had 21 every time he had an ace for an up card. My favorite bartender, Valeria, started her shift so I walked over and sat on one of the seats at the very end of the bar. I call them the "Muppet" seats because you can sit there and still see the action in the casino and ogle the dancers.....Think of the old Muppet TV show with the two old wisecracking guys in the balcony. I chatted with V, showed her the latest photos of my grandson and lost another $200.

    Mike and I chose to try our luck at 3 card poker and I did really well; hitting several bonus bets including a full house. After only 30 minutes I was up $175 and cashed out...starting to dig my way out of a hole. Mike sat down at a free bet BJ table and I went back over to check out the progressive and it was nearing 2 grand...time to chase that Royal. I played for a while before my first hundy was gone. Things picked up after that. I started to hit some quads including aces and deuces twice and several other quads. Then I hit a straight flush progressive for 85 bucks. I was dealt four to the royal a couple of times...my heart rate went up a little, as now the progressive was $2050. But it was not to be; I finally gave up shortly before midnight, put a ton of points on my card and ended the day down just $25....I'll call that a 'win'. Wow, there's two guys across the street by the Plaza standing toe to toe yelling at each other and each of them have their cell phones out recording the other person. Sounds like it's two cabbies arguing about a parking space....Vegas.

    Back to last night.... I collected MadMan Mike he was up big cashing out with a purple and several black chips. We headed over to the Cal Market St cafe for a late dinner of oxtail soup. It comes in a big bowl with a side of white rice and some fresh ground ginger and cilantro. It's delicious and my go to hangover preventative. It is on their Graveyard special for only 10 bucks...can't beat it. I was pretty beat; I have not been sleeping well the past several days so I pulled the plug and headed for the sheets. Mike decided to see if he could extend this winning streak so we parted ways til the morning. The FSE was really dead; not a whole lot of people milling around. The traffic noise from Main St was not a problem and it was lights out as soon as my head hit the pillow only to be awakened by security pounding on some door just down the hall . The conversation with the occupant was brief and I quickly dozed off again.
     
    Last edited: Jan 29, 2019
    • Like Like x 8
  7. WHITEJACKET73

    WHITEJACKET73 VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Dec 17, 2009
    Messages:
    1,336
    Location:
    Rochester,Mn
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    92
    Yikes!! I just read the weather report for back home..... 26 degrees below zero, blowing and drifting snow and wind chills 50-60 degrees below.
     
    • Wow! Wow! x 3
  8. fasbman

    fasbman VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Dec 9, 2007
    Messages:
    1,495
    Location:
    Near Houston
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    50
    I'm enjoying your story! I spent some years in Rochester when I was a teenager (I went to Mayo HS). I will always remember the winter of 1978-79. There was about 3 months in a row, it never got above freezing, and many, many days it never got above zero. I still have a brother up there that works at the Clinic. I will have to text him tomorrow to let him know that we will only be in the upper 50's tomorrow here in the Texas coast. He will hate me for that, but hey, what is the use of having a brother if you can't give him a hard time?
     
    • Agree Agree x 3
    • Like Like x 1
  9. sabrina

    sabrina Low roller

    Joined:
    Jun 6, 2009
    Messages:
    622
    Location:
    TN
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    45
    Following along, looking forward to your travels.
     
    Seinfield
  10. gailtherese

    gailtherese Upper Middle Class ?!

    Joined:
    Jul 25, 2011
    Messages:
    267
    Location:
    Minnesota
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    26
    It’s brutal here in MN. Even MSU, Mankato has officially closed for two days (today and Wednesday); and the US Postal Service has cancelled delivery services for the State of Minnesota for Wednesday - unprecedented! Soak up that sunshine!!
     
    Last edited: Jan 29, 2019
    • Wow! Wow! x 2
  11. WHITEJACKET73

    WHITEJACKET73 VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Dec 17, 2009
    Messages:
    1,336
    Location:
    Rochester,Mn
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    92
    Walked past the craps table at the
    Gate. There are seven guys at the table. Two of them have $5 pass line bets with single odds and another one is betting $5 on the field every other roll the rest are watching ...the dealers look thrilled at the action
     
    • Funny Funny x 2
  12. WHITEJACKET73

    WHITEJACKET73 VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Dec 17, 2009
    Messages:
    1,336
    Location:
    Rochester,Mn
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    92
    The past couple of days here at the Gate have been a blur of gambling activity trying to keep pace with my friend MadMan Mike and another Vegas friend, Dave. There has been some extended video poker sessions; when I got up Tuesday morning someone had hit the progressive royal. Dave and I ran into another Vegas regular, BigFus, who is an avid VP player and a wealth of knowledge when it comes in getting the most from your gambling comps. Mike and I played blackjack the past couple of afternoons and video poker in the evenings. All of our gambling has been at the Gate. The only time I stepped out onto FSE was to get something to eat at the America Coney Island and the cafe at the D casino, using our comps. The past couple of days I have managed small wins which is better than the constant losing earlier in the trip.

    Yesterday I checked out of the Gate and had breakfast at the Black Bear diner located on the corner of Tropicana and Jones west of the Strip a ways. It's a nice family diner; clean, quiet, with good food and service. It's a great place for a delicious inexpensive breakfast. Their homemade biscuits are as big as your fist and almost a meal in it's self. I parked in the Cromwell's parking ramp because I find it more convenient when I stay at Bally's. It never has been crowded and I have always had no difficulty in finding a parking spot. Crossing Flamingo in order to get to Bally's can be an adventure. The stoplight takes a long time before it stops traffic and you don't have an awful lot of time before the light changes again. The cars whiz by at a speedy pace and I have had a couple of instances when I have started to cross the street and a car fails to stop and cruises through the light without even slowing down. It happened to me this morning. There was no line at the diamond checkin and I was quickly unpacking in my 24th floor room in the north (Resort) tower. As requested my room faces east and is away from Flamingo and the street noise. The rooms have recently been remodeled and are very nice.

    I returned to downtown and Mike and I played some blackjack and then decided to play some craps. The table was empty so we took turns shooting the dice. I .had a very good first roll, hitting four points and rolling a lot of inside numbers. Mike hit a couple points with his first chance at the dice so we were off to a good start. We both struggled to hit points after that, but were having a great time chatting up the dealers and the boxman, David. Another person joined the table and had a good roll, hitting three points so we were back in business. I bet a horn high ace deuce the next time Mike got the dice and sure enough he rolled a three. We played for about 45 minutes and I made about $75 after tipping the dealers. Mike kept buying the four and ten and numbers and they hit many times during our session. David arrived at our table and we were ready to head back to the Strip for dinner at BLT Steak at Bally's

    Dave and I each had not used our $100 diamond dining credit from last year plus we had a coupon for 20% off of our food bill. We have dined here several times and the service and food has always been great; the steaks melt in your mouth. We each had salads to begin along with their famous popovers. I had a glass of Villa Marie sauvignon blanc from New Zealand. We all ordered the filet Mignon which was so tender and full of flavor. We shared side dishes of creamed spinach and grilled green beans. I ordered a bottle of Van Duzer pinot noir wine for the table which was a hit with Mike and Dave. Mike and I shared a dessert of mango sorbet. It is not on their menu, but they always serve it when I make the request. When the dust settled the meal cost us a little over $100 for the three of us.

    We then drove back down to the Gate and resumed our gambling, the three of us playing black jack. Initially, Dave and I were quickly down over $100, but with a new shoe we started to claw our way back. I cashed out a little after midnight up $35 because I couldn't keep my eyes open any longer. I left my companions at the table, picked up my car at the valet and made my way back to Bally's and slept badly.

    This morning I could have easily slept in, but I wanted to meet Mike for breakfast. We dined at Binions cafe and had a decent meal although Mike said that the pancakes were nothing like we used to get at Dupars. I used the rest of my comp dollars so the bill came to a grand total of 18 cents. Since they have removed their Mother Lode promotion, I have little incentive to gamble there; I won't play 6:5 blackjack and the "suits" at the craps tables are a sullen lot. Mike had to go up to his room to phone his wife to see how things were going back home so I decided to sit at the Gate's bar to wait for him. I stuck in a 20 without using my players card because I was only going to be playing a little while. I got dealt quad 7's on the very first hand. I cashed in without playing another hand using my profit as seed money at the black jack tables. Mike and I had an up and down session before I quit with a very modest $50 profit. Mike continued to play and I went over and played VP at the bar with Dave and talked to Valeria the bartender.

    When 3 o'clock rolled around I gathered up my companions and strolled over to Hogs and Heifers saloon. I love this place as an afternoon getaway from the casinos. Two of the female bartenders that I know were tending bar today and the back and forth trash talk soon began. As usual there was a session of the bartenders dancing atop the bar and one female patron decided to join them. Unlike some previous visits the female "guest" kept her top on. One of the bartenders liked my fedora, so I let her wear it behind the bar for awhile. After several Bud Light drafts and shots of Irish whiskey we stumbled out of there and back to the Gate. Mike again hit the tables while Dave and I settled into the Muppet seats at the bar to play VP. I called it a day early today as I am very tired...I am only about a third of the way through this trip. Tomorrow I have to check into the Four Queens as part of my Super Bowl party invitation. Dave may use the room or I might use it as a place to "crash" during the weekend and on Sunday after the game....the party includes an open bar. I have to take Mike to the airport late tomorrow night so maybe I will be able to expand my gambling to other casinos besides the Golden Gate.
     
    • Like Like x 4
    • Wow! Wow! x 1
  13. WHITEJACKET73

    WHITEJACKET73 VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Dec 17, 2009
    Messages:
    1,336
    Location:
    Rochester,Mn
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    92
    BF5A1102-64B0-48D1-B2AE-028E9428C245.jpeg DB77CF6A-5850-4456-A53B-9ECD1386D7DC.jpeg 281F6751-EE63-40FC-901C-695D6728A1F4.jpeg
     
    • Like Like x 4
  14. tringlomane

    tringlomane STP Addicted Beer Snob

    Joined:
    Jan 21, 2013
    Messages:
    31,301
    Location:
    Chicagoland
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    28
    Good stuff! Too bad you couldn't snag that juicy royal! 101%+ machines are tough to come by!
     
  15. WHITEJACKET73

    WHITEJACKET73 VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Dec 17, 2009
    Messages:
    1,336
    Location:
    Rochester,Mn
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    92
    BBB96FA0-AD1A-4E09-AFDF-CFB7E18C86DB.jpeg Today was your typical day in Vegas. I lounged in the room drinking a pot of coffee and getting organized for the day. I drove downtown and parked at the Four Queens and played some 9/6 JOB and fairly quickly lost my $100 buy in. I received an offer in the mail in December, after I had booked my hotel stays for the trip, from the Four Queens about an offer for a comped three night stay and an invite to their Super Bowl party. I called the host's number and booked that sucker. So now I have a room at Bally's and the 4Q's over Super Bowl weekend. I offered the room downtown to my buddy Dave, but he had made arrangements to stay on the Strip at Harrah's.

    I walked down to the Gate to meet up with Mike and as I passed their player's club desk I saw a Super Bowl promotion. They have a football square with 100 entries. You can win a square for 50 tier points playing slots or VP. I sat down and played some full pay BP and got my 50 points, so I am literally 'on the board'. I collected Mike and Dave and we went down to Le Thai for lunch. They have recently undergone a remodel and the place looks nice. As we were being seated we passed Derek Stevens as he was leaving. We had a delicious inexpensive lunch and paid for it with comp dollars from the D and Golden Gate. I hope to dine there for lunch sometime later this trip.

    Fully satisfied, we ambled back down to the Gate and Mike and I sat down at a blackjack table and played for a couple of hours, mostly with a great and friendly dealer named Carol. Mike had another good run, but I lost steadily and at one point I was down about $125. I gradually climbed my way out of my hole, then back down again and finally cashed out with a 50 dollar lost. I loaded up Dave and Mike's luggage in my car and we drove down and parked at Harrah's and made our way to the diamond lounge. We grabbed a couple of seats at the bar and Orhan, the bartender, gave me his customary warm greeting and prepared my usual side car cocktail to perfection. We chatted with some of the "regulars" until closing time.

    Dave collected his bags from my car and I drove Mike to the airport for his trip back home to Minnesota and to reality. I returned to the Strip and again parked at the Cromwell's parking ramp and met Dave at Bally's lobby bar. We were chatting at the bar when this very drunk gentleman leaned over and asked us, " Hey guys, what's the most exciting thing that you have done here in Vegas in the past 24 hours?" Before I could reply he asked me if I had ever been to the Spearmint Rhino strip club. I told him that I had been there several times over the years, but not recently. He then asked me if I wanted to go and that he would take us there. I told him no thanks as strip clubs are not really my thing anymore; that I would much rather spend my money on other things in Vegas. He then asked me, "Well what about whores?" "I can set you up." Now he had my attention, and I turned to him and said, "No Thanks, hookers are definitely not my thing." He then rambled on about hiking in the Appalachian Mountain trail and how great it was. It was kind of getting a little weird when thankfully he decided to leave. Wow...only in Vegas. The crowds are rolling into town so it should be a very busy weekend. Dave and I parted ways and we agreed to me up at the Paris diamond lounge around noon tomorrow.
     
    Last edited: Feb 2, 2019
    • Like Like x 3
  16. gailtherese

    gailtherese Upper Middle Class ?!

    Joined:
    Jul 25, 2011
    Messages:
    267
    Location:
    Minnesota
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    26
    How did Mad Man end up gambling-wise?
     
  17. WHITEJACKET73

    WHITEJACKET73 VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Dec 17, 2009
    Messages:
    1,336
    Location:
    Rochester,Mn
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    92
    What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas...you know that
     
    • Funny Funny x 1
  18. smerrian

    smerrian View from Bally's

    Joined:
    Apr 22, 2014
    Messages:
    8,343
    Location:
    South Jersey
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    50
    Love following along. Almost all of my trips are 2-weeks solo. You have to meet someone at noon tomorrow? I can't do that. Too much commitment. It means frequently checking the time and having to think about meeting over and over. I don't think I can travel to Vegas any other way than solo anymore.
     
    • Like Like x 3
    • Agree Agree x 2
  19. WHITEJACKET73

    WHITEJACKET73 VIP Whale

    Joined:
    Dec 17, 2009
    Messages:
    1,336
    Location:
    Rochester,Mn
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    92
    1722C92C-5BE7-4928-85B2-C3EEF4676DF6.jpeg 4E55F91D-D29C-49B8-8606-1CFC8A64BB35.jpeg 052DECB4-80CC-47DC-A042-F35F645020F1.jpeg So today was my first full day of this trip staying on the Strip. I grabbed a sausage, egg and cheese croissant at Nosh and a bottle of OJ. The lady at the counter I knew from my last trip in December so I chatted with her briefly. She is from Duluth so we talked about the brutal weather back home. I took my breakfast back to the room and brewed up a pot of coffee and got ready for the day. I looked outside and it was heavily overcast and drizzling. I arranged to meet up with Dave so we could hit the Paris diamond lounge and have a couple of Hendricks gin and tonics, but the lounge was packed so we decided to forego the drinking until later. I wanted to get a new players card at the Bally's TR desk but it was a mass of people in line. CET has a February promotion where you can earn double tier points this month, so I guess it was time to do some serious gambling. We settled into a couple of triple play VP machines near the keno lounge at Bally's; me playing BP and Dave playing some double triple whatever bonus poker with cheese type of game. I plugged away and was getting hammered. After slipping in my fourth hundy the magic began. I started hitting some full houses, some quads, then some premium quads, a dealt quad of queens....oh those lovely ladies never looked so good. I had regained about half of my buy in when I hit a Royal flush....oh what a beautiful thing to behold. I'm back in the game folks. Dave was up and down....mostly down. He came so close to hitting some big hands. He finally hit quad aces which pulled him out of a hole and we then decided to quit and get some food.

    We were waiting at the light to cross Flamingo...remember I earlier mentioned about that crossing even at the light had some risks.....when the light changed so that we could cross, a large SUV pulled out of Bally's drove through the crosswalk and did a U turn right in front of us and took off like a bat out of hell heading west on Flamingo. There was a line to get into the Harrah's lounge, but after a 15 minute wait we grabbed a couple of seats at the bar. We spent the next three hours eating, drinking and talking with several people that we knew and then closed the place down at 9 pm. We tried to get tickets to the 10pm show for X-Country but they said that no tickets were available for diamond members, but we could purchase a ticket for a mere $79...plus whatever BS fees that they could tack on....no thanks.

    We walked over to the Linq and talked to Valeria who was dancing at the 3535 bar tonight and then had a glass of Craggy Range sauvignon blanc at the lobby bar and chatted with Po, the bartender there....great guy. I decided to call it a night and Dave decided to go over to the Pho to see another dancer that we know...gorgeous, friendly lady and gamble some more in their high limit room. The plan is to meet up around noon tomorrow and drive downtown to the Four Queens and to the Super Bowl party that I have been invited to. So tomorrow will be football, eating, drinking, football and hopefully winning some sports bets.
     
    Last edited: Feb 3, 2019
    • Like Like x 7
  20. smerrian

    smerrian View from Bally's

    Joined:
    Apr 22, 2014
    Messages:
    8,343
    Location:
    South Jersey
    Trips to Las Vegas:
    50
    Congrats on the Royal! Always makes for a great trip.
    Oh, Flamingo runs E-W, not N-S...but you get your idea across.
    Does the 3535 bar still sub in as free booze for diamond level guests since the Linq has no lounge?
     
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.