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Finally! Back to Vegas after 22 LOOONG months! :D

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by JRRestoule, Nov 11, 2021.

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  1. winner

    winner Low-Roller

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    Maybe I missed it but the 50/50 at the hockey game was 51/49 who gets the larger amount LOL
     
  2. DiamondJim21

    DiamondJim21 High-Roller

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    Golden Nugget - giant gold nugget
     
  3. JRRestoule

    JRRestoule VIP Whale

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    It is 51/49... not sure who gets what though!
     
  4. JRRestoule

    JRRestoule VIP Whale

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    I figured this would be an easy one :)

    Yes, it's the "The Hand of Faith Nugget" at the Golden Nugget!

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  5. JRRestoule

    JRRestoule VIP Whale

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    This is a tough one... any guesses as to what/where this is?

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  6. NWAKALUM08

    NWAKALUM08 Low-Roller

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    Berlin wall MSS
     
  7. JRRestoule

    JRRestoule VIP Whale

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    Nope... already posted that one :)
     
  8. westcanguy

    westcanguy High-Roller

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    Could you let us know when you bought your ticket for the game and through what reseller?
     
  9. Krussell1205

    Krussell1205 Low-Roller

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    I was at that same game. I sat behind the guy in the purple cancer sweater across the ice from you, you can see him in this picture.Fun time.
     
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  10. Not at the table Carlos

    Not at the table Carlos Cheapskate

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    Cool stuff meeting the Trooper. He’s a fine guy. From my hometown. Met him a couple times…even drunkenly ended up in the vlog once
     
    Earl's 21st Trip
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  11. mickyblueeyes

    mickyblueeyes VIP Whale

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    Sushisamba
     
  12. JRRestoule

    JRRestoule VIP Whale

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    The first game I went to on Sat Nov 13, I had purchased the ticket a couple weeks in advance as I thought it was a great deal ($50 - Sec 119 Row J Seat 15)

    The second game on Thurs Nov 18, I purchased the ticket about 3 hours before the game ($60 - Sec 2 Row N Seat 9)

    I went on the their website at: www.nhl.com/goldenknights/tickets

    From here I clicked on Single Game Ticket then picked the game I wanted to go to. Agreed to policy for masks, then clicked on Get Tickets, then I picked my seat.
     
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  13. JRRestoule

    JRRestoule VIP Whale

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    Nope... it was the ceiling of the Chandelier Bar at Cosmo... the full pic was on the next post after the clue :)
     
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  14. JRRestoule

    JRRestoule VIP Whale

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    This one is The Blarney Stone located upstairs at the D!

    It mentions kissing the stone for good luck... might want to hold off on that for awhile lol

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  15. JRRestoule

    JRRestoule VIP Whale

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    Final thoughts…

    Well it’s been almost a week since I’ve been back to reality from my week long trip to Vegas. I’ve had some time to reflect on the highlights of the trip and the parts that stuck out to me.

    Losing...
    I’m still in a bit of disbelief on just how bad the gambling ended up being on the Strip. Alright, I played mostly slots, which are usually bad to begin with, but they just seemed extremely tight this trip, more than ever before. Tied into this is the casinos not giving you your change when cashing out. This was a real annoyance to me. It’s bad enough to be charged $16 for a baked potato, or being charged CNF fees, or Covid fees, service fees, resort fees, fees fees, etc. But to not even give me all my money after gambling in your casino just seems like the bottom of the barrel. I’m sure there are ways around this, like for example, why don’t they give you the option to have the change put on your players card for future use. Could be an easy option that doesn’t go against their excuse of a “change shortage” or staff shortage. With gaming moving away from cash this may be what happens in the future.

    Downtown really stood out as a highlight…
    I only stayed downtown once before (Golden Nugget) and that was around 2007 or 2008. I remember at that time thinking that I probably wouldn’t stay downtown again in the future. Not necessarily because I didn’t like downtown (although it is much better now than it was then), but because I spent most of that trip on the Strip. Over the past few years we’ve been visiting downtown for a solid night out of each trip and we’ve had a blast each time. A couple trips back we decided we wanted to try staying downtown for a couple nights in a future trip and we were actively trying to fit this in. But there are several factors we have been considering that makes it a bit tougher decision for us, such as comps on the Strip vs paying downtown, pool options, etc.

    Well, going solo this trip I made the decision to stay downtown for a couple nights and I loved my time there. It will definitely be something we incorporate into future trips, even if we have to pay for our room until we can get the comp train going.

    The gambling was like night and day compared to the Strip. Slots would give enough to play and have fun and even let you win sometimes! (*except for Circa). Tables were lower minimums with better blackjack rules than even the $25 games on the Strip. Atmosphere was more fun. Everything being close together made it easy to casino hop. Food options are actually quite good. It was just an overall great experience. I can’t see us going to Vegas and not staying downtown for part of our next trip.

    Vegas Golden Knights games are awesome!
    We’ve been going to one game in Vegas per year since the teams inception but with the way things have gone over the past year and a half I haven’t been able to get back to Vegas to catch a game. I did go see them in Montreal for their 2-1 OT win in the playoffs last June and caught their game against the Senators in Ottawa the week before my trip which was awesome as I had seats right on the glass…

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    I’ve been to a few NHL games over the years in other arenas as well and nothing compares to the atmosphere in Vegas. It’s just great! I’ve had friends go to games in Vegas and say the same thing… it’s more than just the hockey game.

    Fortunately they were in the middle of a string of home games while I was in Vegas this trip and was able to catch 2 of their games. They were both awesome and I would suggest to anybody to go check out a game in the future!

    And yes, I am their good luck charm as they have won all 7 of their games while I’ve been in attendance :D

    Hotel rooms...
    All 3 rooms I had were good. The room at Park MGM was nice and clean, the only 'complaint' would be the safe wasn't working. But I didn't get robbed so it was ok. The room at the D downtown was fine as well. Not huge, but clean. The room in the Mountain Tower at Harrah's was also nice and clean. I would stay in any of these again in the future. Common thread was no bath tubs, they all had stand up showers, which I prefer so that was a plus. The D and Harrah's had no door on their showers, which I don't really mind but I did find it cold while showering at Harrah's for some reason.

    First visits...
    I stopped at Resorts World, Virgin and Circa for the first time this trip. Resorts World was nice, I could see myself spending some decent time playing in the casino here in the future. I don't think I would be interested in staying here at this point as I do find it too far from everything else and I like to casino hop while I'm in Vegas so it wouldn't work for me in that sense. Virgin was nice and clean and shiny and new. I don't see myself visiting again in the future as the casino is on the small side and it is not in a great location. Circa was fun to check out, I think it's the new jewel of downtown, has a Strip feel to it as it is soooo different from every other casino on Fremont. Slots are super tight. Pool area was very cool. I would stay here in the future, however I would limit my gaming here as I didn't get a good vibe in this sense right from the beginning and the fact that I took a beatdown compared to every other casino downtown didn't help haha

    Food...
    I'm not a foodie at all as I'm sure you noticed. Although, I did eat more steak this trip than any other trip, however I paid for zero of it :) I think I had pizza 5 times, and I would have had more because pizza is the best. Galagher's at NYNY was very good, I would definitely recommend and will probably go back on a future trip. Bugsy & Meyer's at Flamingo was good, but I didn't get a great vibe from the place, it felt a little like it was trying too hard. And the prices are a little high considering it's in the Flamingo. I can see this place closing at some point in the not so distant future. The beef wellington at GR Pub & Grill in Caesars Palace was pretty good. It's the same as what you get at Hell's Kitchen so if you don't care for the atmosphere and the fanciness you can enjoy GR's signature dish here. I did enjoy the chicken tenders at Binions Cafe, I think they have some good food there at very reasonable prices so I do recommend a stop there for lunch. Same for Magnolia's at the 4 Queens.

    Binion's and 4 Queen App prizes...
    If you have any Binion's or 4 Queens app prizes to redeem they said they will continue to honor them until November of 2022. So you have some time to get down there.

    Random observations…
    The casinos on the Strip seem to have a lot more open space in them, meaning there are a lot less slot machines than there used to be. I’m not a big fan of this. I like a busy casino filled with machines that are like a labyrinth. The exception to this was Resorts World where it seemed ‘full’ like the casinos used to be. Downtown was also quite normal in this sense. I’m not sure what determines how many slot machines a casino will have available, but I’m hoping it gets a little more ‘full’ than what it is now. I kinda felt like a deer in an open field during hunting season sometimes.

    No cocktail service. It amazed me how much of the trip went by without getting any service, nevermind slow service, it was just non-existent on a lot of occasions. It wouldn’t surprise me if “free” drinks while gambling disappears in the near future, just like giving you your damn change has disappeared. I mean, they already have some control by not having any servers, giving drink tickets, etc so how hard it is to just keep going down that road until it just doesn’t exist. It’s sad because that is one of the cool things about Vegas, but I think it might be on it’s way out.

    I lost my way… After not being in Vegas for 22 looong months I seemed to have lost my way. I had been going twice a year for many years and had somewhat of a plan in place that I loosely followed… it basically consisted of taking it easy on the gambling front for the first few days of the trip and givin’er a good go at the tail end of the trip. This has worked for me for a long time in the sense of prolonging the bankroll, essentially making sure I still have $$ on the last day of the trip, as well as the enjoyment of the full trip from start to finish. Unfortunately, this time I was like a young boy in my first sexual encounter. It was fast and short lol We came out of the gate guns-a-blazin’ only to be bitch slapped by the casinos.

    Speaking of bankroll, I took a good beatdown. With everything included I ended up spending an average of about $1k per day. I didn’t leave broke, but I left with a lot less than I was hoping to.

    There’s always “next time”… this next time took forever to happen, but it finally did. I am currently planning a summer 2022 trip with the GF which will very likely consist of a couple nights downtown, more shows, pool time, more drinks, and more late nights. And, hopefully a luckier gambooool! I can’t wait!

    Thank you all for keeping me company! I thought the “What is it/Where is it?” mystery picture game thingamajiggy idea would be kinda fun and thanks for making it just that :)

    I’ll leave you with a few random photos from the trip that I don’t think I posted…

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  16. gr8whitenorth

    gr8whitenorth VIP Whale

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    Great TR, loved following along. You almost have me convinced to stay DT on at least some of our next trip.
     
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  17. Viva Las Vegas

    Viva Las Vegas Elvis has left the building

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    Enjoyed your trip report.

    Do you ever consider playing video poker? You could eliminate a few of the things you did not like about your recent trip. Primary would be playing bar tops with good odds and drink service whenever you like. You would also preserve your bankroll. Practicing while at home before trips gets you some adrenaline while anticipating your next trip. The one drawback is you would get less in comps, but since they tyrpically comp 1/4-1/3 of your losses (actual or theo), you still come out ahead financially.

    I understand some people prefer slots, and people should do what is fun, but just something to consider given your trip summary and things you would like to go better in future trips.

    Viva Las Vegas!
     
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  18. LB9

    LB9 PH Blackjack Degen

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    Agreed, this was a really excellent TR and appreciate you sharing!
     
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  19. JRRestoule

    JRRestoule VIP Whale

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    You should definitely try it out!
     
  20. JRRestoule

    JRRestoule VIP Whale

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    Thanks for the tip! I do play a little VP as you seen in my TR. I don't mind it and could play a bit more but I also like the damn slots unfortunately. Those big jackpot numbers, flashing lights and catchy music are like crack lol This would have been a perfect trip to play more VP as I was solo. Unfortunately this trip I felt like a kid in a candy store... because I hadn't been in Vegas for so long I was wanting to go everywhere and do everything all at once it felt. I'm not usually like this haha

    I would have liked to play more blackjack than I did as well.

    I had a great solo trip a few years back, this time I should have followed that blueprint a little more than I did, but I was just too excited. Oh well, it was a blast nonetheless :)
     
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