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Budget Birthday Bash Jan 10-14

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by lemoncakegirl83, Jan 10, 2016.

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  1. lemoncakegirl83

    lemoncakegirl83 Tourist

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    My Trip Report

    Hi All! This is my first ever trip report and it's going to be semi-live.

    This will be DH and my sixth trip to Vegas together and a total of seven for me. We love Vegas so much because it's so fun. It's our get away from the daily grind. We really don't gamble that much (my "bankroll" is $150 for the whole trip), but I like the slots and he likes to play blackjack on the bar tops. We also like the Vegas club scene and to eat really well.

    So why is this thread titled as such? Well, it's my birthday this week and I did it on a limited budget.

    I booked the trip in November flying SWA from MDW. The price? $89 one way which then dropped a couple of weeks later to $64. So total per person for DH and myself $128! I've never had a price like that before but then I've never flown to Vegas in January. As far as our hotel room, it started at a total of over $400 and ended $80 less. This is the cheapest we've ever gone to Vegas. Let's see how that works when we get there.

    Some other budget items:
    Using two MyVegas rewards for the BOGO for Aria and Mirage. Using a MGM properties gift card to pay for the buffets. Received this via AMEX rewards. (Free food).

    There is more but let me get to the live portion of this trip. Thanks for reading!
     
  2. lemoncakegirl83

    lemoncakegirl83 Tourist

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    We are currently waiting in the airport. Made it 3.5 hours before flight. We somehow found ourselves in the longest security line. DH had to go through extra screening because the scanner "detected" something on his lower extremities. Sigh.

    We ate Potbelly using gift cards and now just waiting for our flight. I can't wait to use these. [​IMG] Go free drinks!
     
  3. Raptor

    Raptor High-Roller

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    Have a great time! I love reading budget trip reports, some of the best trips we have had to Vegas have been done cheap cheap! Looking forward to the updates.
     
  4. lemoncakegirl83

    lemoncakegirl83 Tourist

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    Usually when we go to Vegas, we bring drinks from home. Since we decided to do carry-on luggage, no full-size bottle would do. I was able to bring about three drinks worth liquor one in a refilled shot bottle and another in a 100ml glass flask.
    [​IMG]

    Boarding soon!
     
  5. lemoncakegirl83

    lemoncakegirl83 Tourist

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    Boarded! See ya in Vegas![​IMG]
     
  6. tringlomane

    tringlomane STP Addicted Beer Snob

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    Good luck!!!
     
  7. IWannaBeInVegas

    IWannaBeInVegas VIP Whale

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    Enjoy the trip. Love low roller reports. Will follow for sure.
     
  8. lemoncakegirl83

    lemoncakegirl83 Tourist

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    Hello Vegas!

    [​IMG]


    The flight was very good and we arrived about 35 minutes early! Now we just need to get off the plane and find the ride share post.
     
  9. lemoncakegirl83

    lemoncakegirl83 Tourist

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    Made a pit stop at The Liquor Library[​IMG]

    Since I'm on a budget, I bought
    [​IMG]

    Now let's get this Lyft.
     
  10. lemoncakegirl83

    lemoncakegirl83 Tourist

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    The Lyft ride was great! It did take us a little bit to find the pickup area at the airport, but it was smooth sailing to our hotel. With my $5.00 ride credit and tip, it cost a total of $6.47.
     
  11. pleepleus

    pleepleus 2016 - The monkey is back

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    Good luck. Have a nice birthday trip.
     
  12. pphold

    pphold pp Park Place Degenerate

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    I've got to try Lyft or Uber in Vegas sometime. I've used Uber in Dallas and Chicago and it works great. Have not tried in Vegas.

    Which Hotel did you go to that is a pretty cheap trip. $6.47 plus $5 credit is $11.47 and that is pretty good.



    Since pleepleus wont get me.:cry::cry: Told me to take a LIMO. I know Take the LIMO.
     
  13. lemoncakegirl83

    lemoncakegirl83 Tourist

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    Planet Hollywood
     
  14. pleepleus

    pleepleus 2016 - The monkey is back

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    They recently did a rate drop where both services are around a buck a mile.

    Uber and Lyft have been hit or miss lately out here.
     
  15. BayouBengal

    BayouBengal VIP Whale

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    Good luck and happy birthday.

    Which slots do you play to stretch your dollar?
     
  16. wanker751

    wanker751 Dutch Rudder Enthusiast

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    Happy Birthday! Manny's is my go to airport food at MDW.

    Good luck on the trip.
     
  17. lemoncakegirl83

    lemoncakegirl83 Tourist

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    I have a soft spot for $.25 slots that have a maximum of $.75. My favorite is the Wheel of Fortune. I like that bonus wheel.
     
  18. lemoncakegirl83

    lemoncakegirl83 Tourist

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    Good morning!

    [​IMG]

    It's my birthday today! Woohoo! DH has something planned for tonight, but I have no clue to what it is.
     
  19. Simpatt

    Simpatt Low-Roller

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    Happy birthday and good luck!!
     
  20. lemoncakegirl83

    lemoncakegirl83 Tourist

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    Yesterday, my birthday, DH and I enjoyed the Cravings buffet in the Mirage for zero dollars. It was a combination of the MyVegas reward and the MGM properties.

    The buffet serves unlimited beer and wine, so we took advantage. The food was hot, fresh, and very good. I particularly loved the desserts.

    We had such a great time at the buffet. Maybe it was the drinks, but we were able to meet an executive thanks to our server. She saw it was my birthday as I had on a birthday crown. We had a great conversation with him. He let us know about the dinner rollover and said we should stick around for dinner.
    So we did. We were at the buffet for close to three hours. I was stuffed.

    Some of the limited pictures I took.

    Lovely glass of Moscato
    [​IMG]

    Various desserts
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    Crab Legs for dinner
    [​IMG]

    We headed to TI on the tram from Mirage after the buffet. I played a Buffalo machine after seeing so many folks here on VMB like it. I was able to get a bonus, but only walked away with $.25 as I started with $20. So I was up $.25.

    Finally bought three day bus passes. It was $20 per person but it's worth it.

    Came back to PH and I played at some machines. All the Wheel of Fortune machines were taken so I looked for a different machine. This particular machine was able to win $10 after going up to $40 with $20 put in. [​IMG]

    I thought I'd try a $1 slot machine. That was a bad decision. I lost $40 so now I'm down $30. I'll stick to my $.25 machines.

    We dressed for dinner that evening, but I was still full from the buffet and didn't feel well. We walked all the way to the bus stop and it was just too much for me so we went back to the room. I was in for the rest of the night. At least DH was able to watch the Alabama/Clemson game. He also moved our dinner reservation to Wednesday.
     
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