Five days of fun

Just returned from July 28-Aug. 2 trip. Here are some random observations.

Entertainment: Ronn Lucas (ventriloquist) was a very very funny afternoon show at the Rio. Highly recommended. Both adults and kids. Saw O at Bellagio. A very good show, but not my kind of entertainment. It was really a talent show for athletes. Some amazing stuff, but give me some kind of plot. Price very expensive. For eight of us it was $968. Tony N Tina's Wedding at the Rio was a triple hoot from beginning to end. If you're an extravert it's your kind of interactive show. Even if you're not it's still very fun. The wedding from hell. We were first in line (about 6 p.m. for the 7 p.m. show) so got a great table and lots of interaction with the cast (I got called Mr. Dole for my Hawaiian shirt). People way back in line were seated way too far back to see much. Table 2 is what you want.

Hotels: We stayed at Monte Carlo. Nothing fancy, but nice pool area and GREAT location. An especially good valet and cab area really makes it easy. And actually loved being on the 13th floor. First stop on the way up in the elevators. And last stop going down. I'm not superstitious. The tram to Bellagio makes a good takeoff point going north on the Strip. Incidentally, pay no attention to the signs that state no one under 18 can enter Bellagio. It's a crock. There is no enforcement whatsoever. The security folks in the red blazers are just that. No one questions anyone about age. My teen-agers walked right through on their way to the sites. So this begs the question: Why have the signs up if no one really cares?
We drove out to Green Valley Ranch and were absolutely wowed. What a first-rate property!!! Pit bosses and dealers very friendly. Free jazz by the pool. Magnificent view. Spotless surroundings. Nice restaurants. My wife has a special birthday in October (somewhere between 40 and 60...) so she wants to stay there. No argument from me. I'm hoping there might be some kind of special room offer in the mail.

Car rental: I was very angry with Dollar on Sunday. Nowhere in the rental reservation or on line does it say that the hotel offices close at 3 p.m. This ain't Mayberry!!! I had sauntered over at 3:30 p.m. to pick up my car. Office closed!!! I made a new reservation for the next day and everything was smooth. Cars are kept in a hotel parking lot a few steps away. But I never did get a satisfactory response from Dollar about why customers are kept in the dark about short hours in a 24-hour town. Sheesh!

Food: Had a fantastic meal at Gardino's at the Palms. Used the $50 LVA coupon to bring the cost down to $47 for the four of us. What a deal!!! Enjoyed a good breakfast buffet at Mandalay Bay. Never much of a line there and food is really good in a nice atmosphere.

Gambling: Was up $250 in the first 12 hours. Bad omen. All downhill from there. What really hurt was hold em at MC. I was holding a queen high diamond flush, with the king on the table. And, of course, I bet into the guy holding the ace. My kind of week...

Flights: Very smooth for me on United. Flew Portland-LA-Vegas on way down and Vegas-SF-Portland on way back. I used up a $200 certificate. Rest of family flew non-stop on Alaska. Ride home was a couple hours late. Very tiring to get home at 2 a.m. Just glad I didn't have to work the next day.

 

Hey Stan-

I have to agree with you about the great buffet at Mandalay Bay. It seems to be a bit underrated, well, maybe not underrated, but nobody talks about it much. I've eaten there for breakfast a few times, and managed, accidentally, to get the lunch carry-over.

If we're staying on the south strip, MB Buffet is always near the top of our list.

Did you try the mushrooms that come with the breakfast steaks? To die for.

Mikey

 

Got hosed by the Ace of diamonds huh? Damn. You gotta bet that hand no matter what though. One of the things I like about staying at MC is the poker room.

 

I guess you got the car rental from the horel and not the airport right?

I am going to make sure we see Ronn Lucas. Everything I've heard about this show has been great.

 

Yes, from the hotel. Downside is that you have to cab it back to airport. Probably makes more sense to rent at airport and save cab both ways.
Except for the hours hassle, I would rent from Dollar again. Fastlane check-in and out very easy.

Ronn Lucas a major bargain at $20.

 

Yes. Good poker room. I found the seven-card stud game to be very lame. Hold em the way to go if you're a serious poker player.

 

Darn. Missed those mushrooms! That will have to be for next time. Food was so much better than Monte Carlo. We had a bad experience there Sunday. We were starved and didn't realize it was the champagne brunch. Not worth $16 a person. Not even close. It was about 2:30 p.m. and the food had been sitting awhile. Or what was left of it. MB sooo much better