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7 Out, Take the Line, Pay the Don'ts! (Long)

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by jfaspen, Feb 16, 2010.

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  1. jfaspen

    jfaspen Low-Roller

    Joined:
    May 9, 2009
    Messages:
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    Trips to Las Vegas:
    2

    My Trip Report

    This.. My first of hopefully many TR's starts back in June. My last night for that trip in Vegas when I discovered craps. At O'Sheas.. Had an experience like many before me. Bought in for $40.. Played pass/odds, place 6/8 and won over a hundred bucks. I was hooked.

    In the intervening months, i talked one of my buddies, we'll call him Ox into making a return trip with the goals of have fun and play as much craps as possible.

    Booked direct flights from Detroit to Vegas.. Staying Weds 2/10- Sun 2/14.
    Staying at Ballys in the standard South Tower Room.

    Flights: 2/10 was the day most of the east coast was digging out from a blizzard of epic proportions. For people flying out of Detroit at 5:30, it was great. The airport was nearly empty and our plane got off on time and landed 30 minutes early.
    Asked Cabbie to take us to Ballys via Swenson and saved about $8 over being tunneled last trip.

    Ballys was good overall. $20 trick almost got me upgraded to an executive suite. The clerk took the $20, went and asked her manager, got us a 1/2 price rate (which we declined) and instead got us into a Jr. Suite in the North Tower. Very large room. Great view of Flamingo, IP, Wynn Golf Club and other such properties. Room was nice, but nothing special.

    Gambled a lot. Played mostly craps. Started off on an AWEFUL losing streak. The magic had faded at Oshea's (all buyins there were promptly lost) and for the first time ever, the drink service was bad..

    Favorite Craps for atmosphere was mornings at Paris. The location of the tables puts you within an arms reach of baileys and coffee. + the crews + pit bosses were pretty great.. More losses suffered there.

    Turned around the trip gaming wise at Casino Royale. Ox bought in for $200.. I decided to just watch and conserve bankroll.. He started hitting a couple points.. I quickly bought in for $40.. I rolled probably 3 points and hit a number of come points. Guy next to me got the dice and hit everything for 30 minutes or so. Cashed out up $335. Ox meanwhile bet more aggressivly and cashed out over $800. A great rebound for the first two days.

    Overall best craps was at IP. Great crews.. Good dealers who placed your bets for you and in one case even paid out when they forgot to place a bet. Drink service was the most consistent here. What we really liked about the place was that it was ok to get rowdy. Ox had his brother join us for the last night. While we were killing the palace, we all hit a $5 yo.. You would have thought we had won 1000's. Good place to have a good time.

    Hit a couple of mini slot wins ($100+ payouts) which was fun. First time for that. Still in search of the handpay though.

    Eats: As a tip for people going.. It's great to find places where you can eat/drink on the cheap.. if you want to. Bills $1 newcastles and Oshea's $1 guiness were lifesavers when the rolling was cold. Had more than one burrito at Chipolte.

    Ate at Thursday night at N9NE at the Palms. Fantastic place. Great server. Had the Bone In Ribeye and was cooked to perfection. They gave us a free tuna app which was very good. Also poured a glass of free desert wine after I spoke with the Sommlier for a bit.

    Friday night, to celebrate the winnings we went to Joe's Stonecrab at Ceasar's. Server was great and it was cool to eat in the Forum shops. Had the stonecrab app plate and it was good. Had some Ahi Tuna for dinner which was great. The lemon on hand/hot towel service was awesome here.

    Saturday night ate at the Bellagio Buffet. Overall I felt it was good, but not great. I think I was spoiled by the specialty places we had eaten at the first two nights. Can't fault their selection though. Long 1+ hour line to get in. Not sure I'd do it again with that kind of wait.

    Random thoughts.
    -Ghostbar has the coolest view in the city. Just amazing. It was somewhat dead when we were there on thursday, but it's a great place to enjoy a cocktail.
    -Hated Aria and esp Crystals. Crystals is another mall indoors with high end shops/eats. The place is completely white and devoid of character. If you take the tram over from Bellagio, this is your first exposure to City Center and it leaves a lot to be desired.
    -Aria itself was dark. The casino was not a place i wanted to stay in for awhile. The eats looked good though.
    -Bellagio was excellent to walk through a couple of times. A place I'd like to stay once I'm a little bit of a higher roller. Everything was very classy, bright and also fun.
    -Negative about Bellagio. Going there for a drink after craps on Saturday. Got into Olives just as they were getting ready to shut down. Tipped the bartenders huge for making 3 weak drinks. Then were basically thrown out a few minutes later. The attitude of the bartenders did not reflect the rest of the property.
    -Could watch the fountains for days.
    -Would love to check out PH one of these days. Hung out there before the flight back. Great casino/vibe.. Good location.

    Question:
    Regarding Comps. We played almost exclusivly at HET properties but very rarely at our own hotel. At checkout, spoke to a host who indicated that a comp post-stay is only done based on play at that particular resort. I was under the impression that by using my TR card, I could play at any HET property and earn comps.. I guess I was wrong.

    Overall it was a great trip to vegas. I can see why some (Beeejay) go as much as they can. I'm already looking forward to a trip sometime when the pools heat back up.

    Jeff
     
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  2. sailor53

    sailor53 Tourist

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Pensacola, FL
    Trips to Las Vegas:
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    Sounds like great fun - enjoyed the read and thanks for posting.
     
  3. DonD

    DonD VIP Whale

    Joined:
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    So Cal 91748
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    Great report, thanks.
     
  4. BeeeJay

    BeeeJay President of The Red Lobster Hostess Satisfaction

    Joined:
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    great report! sounds like good times at the craps tables, I like those tables at O Sheas and Casino Royale.

    those hosts make up all kinds of BS to get out of comping. sounds like you guys comped yourselves by playing smart and playing where and when you wanted to. When I low roll or don't lose a bunch I like to say I comped myself the $1,000 I DIDN'T lose.

    thanks for taking the time to write this fun report.:beer:
     
  5. VegasDiva

    VegasDiva VIP Whale

    Joined:
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    Calgary , Alberta , Canada
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    Nice TR glad you had fun on the craps tables :)
     
  6. Rick1323

    Rick1323 Low-Roller

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Upstate NY
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    Table comps are difficult for them to manage over several properties. Slot comps are easy, by the next morning they are added to the total. Thanks for a great TR!
     
  7. pass line man

    pass line man VIP Whale

    Joined:
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    I echo the previous post, thanks for a great TR!
     
  8. hammer88814

    hammer88814 Tourist

    Joined:
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    Location:
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    Great TR. Sounds like you guys had a blast.
     
  9. darnae

    darnae High-Roller

    Joined:
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    Location:
    St. Robert, MO
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    Nice TR. Thanks for sharing
     
  10. Royal Flusher

    Royal Flusher Savvy Gambler

    Joined:
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    They still have that tub table at Casino Royale or is it full sized these days?
     
  11. jfaspen

    jfaspen Low-Roller

    Joined:
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    Trips to Las Vegas:
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    2 full size tables.. $5 anytime i saw them.
     
  12. TommyToledo

    TommyToledo Low-Roller

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    I love the craps crews at the IP, they always remember me and take good care to ensure I put up my odds, etc.

    Nice TR!
     
  13. ccalewis

    ccalewis Tourist

    Joined:
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    Location:
    ManchVegas, NH
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    Re: Craps Comps

    They're not going to give you much for playing $5 tables with a buy-in of only $40. I play like your friend Ox, $200-$300 a session and I'm lucky if I get $3 added to my HET card. Craps comps are notoriously stingy unless you spread $100+ a roll around the table. Start laying down some quarters and they'll start paying attention.
     
  14. Kingbarkus

    Kingbarkus Low-Roller

    Joined:
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    Location:
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    The CR now has 3 full size crap tables. The third is located where the roulette
    tables were previously located. The place has been remodeled mostly the rear area werhe some eating places have been installed (cinnabon, Subway, etc).
     
  15. Steve in RI.

    Steve in RI. Low-Roller

    Joined:
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    Did anyone see $3.00 craps tables at Casino Royale? I'd like to teach my brother the game on a low limit table. If not there, I'll maybe head to Slots of Fun or Sahara.
     
  16. achow87

    achow87 Tourist

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    there's a $3 craps table at circus circus. it's not in the main casino but in that side casino right by the valet parking.
     
  17. jenluvsvegas

    jenluvsvegas Guest

    Sounds like a fun trip! I have always wanted to try craps but it intimidates the hell out of me! Maybe someday...
     
  18. mjamesp

    mjamesp High-Roller

    Joined:
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    Play downtown if you want to teach your brother. There are $3 tables downtown.

    Add $1 Michlobe Light at Casino Royale to the cheap bottled beer list.
     
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