LVLady
Tourist
I waited until today to start my trip report for a few reasons but the biggest being, this wasn’t a great trip and I needed to shake off the negativity before I started writing. Those of you who have read my reports in the past know that we like to have fun in Vegas, but something was off this trip. Not quite sure still what it was, I know we lost and that is never fun, but there is more to it.
Flights.
We took Delta from Memphis to Vegas with a stop in Atlanta. No delays coming and only a ½ hour delay on the way back. Smooth flights both ways. Got to Vegas 10 minutes early….wonderful except the bags took over an hour to come out.
Car.
We rented from Dollar using Express, took 10 minutes at most to get the car. We did lock and go with a rate of $134 for the week with taxes etc. On the contract estimated charges said $113, I didn’t argue. First win of the trip. Of course that was until we started driving the POS Jeep Liberty. Honestly it was the worse car we have ever had in Vegas, I thought for sure we were going to tip over going 20 miles an hour on an on or offramp, it was also very jerky while changing lanes. All around a bad car, but the price was great. We only ended up using a half tank of gas.
Day 1.
We got to the Mirage at about 4pm and pulled up to the North Valet, they had a full sign out and asked if we were guests. We told them we were there to check in so he took the car and off we went to get checked in. Hardly any wait. Got a room on the 19th floor. No view to speak of really, but the room was very nice with the exception of the postage stamp bathroom which was remodeled nicely but way too small. They also did away with the vanity so getting ready while DH got ready wasn’t an option here. I really do like the rooms though.
After checking in at Mirage we have a tradition of going to the Dolphin Bar and having our first cocktail. It was nice sitting out there but service was lacking and the bar only had a few people at it. It also had a bar rot smell. While we were have our extra large cocktails our friends called and said they were finally checked into their suite at Exaclibur and wanted to know if we wanted to meet them for dinner. They wanted to eat at Burger Bar and we decided to join them. We went and grabbed the rental car and headed down the strip. Traffic was on the heavier side but we managed to make it in about 20 minutes. Lots of construction going on and dang if City Center isn’t a HUGE eyesore. Met our friends and walked from Excalibur to Burger Bar by way of Luxor. WOW the casino looks so different. I am undecided about whether I like it of not, but I think I do. Very modern and darker than it used to be. We got to Burger Bar and there was a half hour wait so we sat and had drinks at the Bar at Giorgio’s or whatever it is called. After we finished our drinks we headed back to Burger Bar and we were seated pretty quickly. Everyone enjoyed their burgers, they were cooked right and yummy. I had the skinny fries with mine along with a Mothership Wit from New Belgium Brewery, it was yummy. No one wanted dessert so we headed back to Excalibur and then DH and I headed back to Mirage.
Back at Mirage we walked around and found a few machines, I played some lil’ lady machine that was ladybugs, it did let me play for a bit but nothing really. I then tried VP and nothing, by this time it was almost midnight and I couldn’t keep my eyes open so it was off to bed for me. Hubby had gone up an hour before me and was sound asleep when I came into the room. Lights out and next thing I know it is morning…..
Day 2
Woke up at 5:30 for some insane reason. Got showered and ready to go. We decided to check out Palazzo and grab coffee there. The place is gorgeous we spent about 2 hours just walking around. Very pretty, but I don’t get the warm fuzzies in the casino. After checking it out we walked back to Mirage and grabbed the car, we wanted to hit the hard rock for a bit. We came we saw, we broke even. Played a little blackjack then hit the golf store as hubby was playing golf with our friend on Wednesday and he needed new shoes. After that we were hungry and decided to go to Enoteca San Marco for lunch. We got two seats at the bar, I ordered some fruity drink and dh had a beer. We then ordered our meals, we had the gnocchi fritto for an app, it is fried dough with pecorino cheese and crushed red peppers. For entrees he had the eggplant pasta dish and I had a pizza. We also each had a glass wine. Food was good, but beware portions are small and the food is expensive. Lunch for two was $120 with tax and tip.
As we were eating lunch we got in touch with our friends they were also at the Canal shops so they met us as we finished up our meal and drinks. After we were done we decided to walk the palazzo shops so they could seem them. I ended up buying a purse at Coach that you can where across your body and holds my wallet a pack of cigarettes and my phone perfectly. I will not have to worry about leaving it anywhere. We then decided to show our friends the rooms since they used to stay at Mirage all the time and the changes are amazing. Showed them the room and then decided to play a little, nothing happened for me so I went to the room, then hubby and I decided to try the Silverton for a bit. Head down there and again not much, atleast this time though I actually walked away from the blackjack table up $5!! We tried a few hands of Pai Gow and nothing there either, finally decided to head back to Mirage.
We relaxed and showered then headed down to STACK for dinner. We like sitting at the Bar and at 7 pm this was not a problem. Bartender was good and I tried a Pear Martini, it was alright but not get. For dinner I had the tomato soup with mini grilled cheese and the chicken parm on a stick. Hubby had the wings and these mini potato things, not exactly sure, they were like mashed or something. Both were good. We had second drinks and relaxed for a bit. Total Bill was about $80 with tax and tip. It was a fun meal. After dinner we tried some blackjack and then some slots. Again no luck this is becoming a habit. I think a hit for about $70 on the lil lady machine but other than that nothing. I tried the sports book bar, reg. vp and a few other things. I think I put a few bucks in a Wizard of Oz machine, I saw Glenda once but that wasn’t enough. Finally around 12:30 it was bedtime.
Day 3.
Woke up around 7 and went to the roasted bean for coffee. We decided to enjoy our lattes and banana nut muffin on the little patio outside. While we were sitting there enjoying our morning there were these little birds bouncing around, one bounced right up to us and was just standing there. We tried to feed it some of our muffin but she didn’t care for it and proceeded to hop over to the construction workers who were having their morning coffee. How funny it was to see this very big guy covered with tattoos making baby bird sounds trying to feed this little one. He said the mother will eat right out of your hands and that there were 3 babies who couldn’t fly up until last week. It was just adorable to see. After breakfast we went back up to the room but not before hitting the ladybugs again…..again nothing. We got up to the room and packed to head to Bellagio.
Getting from Mirage to Bellagio was easy, there was no traffic on the strip at 10am. We got to Bellagio and requested a room in the spa tower which was not ready yet. We decided to go to the café for breakfast. I had my first sunsplash of the trip and a frittata which was delicious hubby had eggs with a ham steak and really enjoyed it. After breakfast we hit the casino for a little while, I played some cops and donuts, I hit a few bonuses but nothing really to speak of. DH headed off on his own while I continued to play, a few minutes later someone comes up behind me and scares the pants off me!! It was our friends whom we were also staying at Bellagio. We decided to walk around and they found the Wizard of Oz Machine and began to play for a bit, he cashed out a few $100 ahead. We left him there while she and I decided to go check out the menu at Sensi where we were going to have lunch the next day while the guys played golf. I really liked the menu for lunch and the dinner menu looks good too.
DH finally met up with us at Sensi and he and I decided to check to see if our room was ready and it was. We grabbed our bags from the rental car and went up to our room in the spa tower, I believe it was 19-627 though I am not positive. The room itself was nice but it had a slight musty odor. We ignored it and unpacked. After unpacking I went down to see if I could find our friends and I did, they were still waiting for their room. Shortly after we split up while they tried to check in and I went to the Fontana to say hello to Diane. She told me she had seen my husband already and we chatted for a bit. I had two drinks but couldn’t hit a thing on the machines, at this time my friend called and said they were in the room and she was ready to hit the pool with us if we were still going. I said good-bye to Diane and told her I would return then went up to the room to change. Again I noticed the odor when we walked in, hubby said he didn’t notice it really so I just changed and down we went. We got 3 chairs near the big center pool which is the only heated one and shortly thereafter the cocktail waitress came around. We all ordered yummy cocktails and hung out at the pool for a few hours.
DH went to the room about a half hour before I did and then D’s hubby showed up after going to the gym and we both grabbed a beer at the pool bar. After chatting a bit we headed our separate ways and had planned on dinner that night I believe we were going to do Olive’s or Sensi I can’t remember, we made reservations while sitting at the pool. Up in the room I showered and headed back to the casino and chatted with Diane again, again nothing was happening but I did have a great Pomegranate Lemondrop Martini. She really makes an awesome cocktail. I finally hit something and was able to have two drinks and come out $5 ahead, now this was something for me!! LOL While I was sitting there our friends called and she said she wasn’t feeling well and wouldn’t make dinner. We were hoping it was just the sun. I cancelled the reservations wherever we had them and hubby and I decided to hit Sergio’s Italian Garden off the strip. Before going we went back to the room to grab a sweater for me and the smell was bad, it definitely smelled like a mold problem. I decided to go to the front desk and ask for a room change when we got back. I asked to speak to a manager but she wouldn’t come out of the back, instead the front desk girl called her. The manager said the room would have to be checked before they could move us!! WHAT!!! I wasn’t asking to be put in a suite, I asked to change rooms…The front desk girl said something about protocol, whatever. I stopped at the concierge and talked to someone there, he also tried to get me a manager, again no one would come out. I was getting mad at this point, I was not raising my voice nor was I being nasty to anyone yet this person would not come out. I found this unacceptable. Honestly being in this room made us feel sick, there was something terribly wrong and there was no way I was going to sleep there. Mold is a nasty thing and I am 100% positive that was the issue. It wasn’t carpet cleaner it was a musty disgusting smell. I have been in moldy buildings in Florida, it isn’t something you forget the smell of. When we couldn’t get anywhere with the front desk I asked him to call casino marketing since I had booked through them. Guess what, all of sudden we were being moved! He asked us to go to our old room and said a bellhop would be right up with our new keys. They were right he was right up and we were moved to room 25086 in the main tower overlooking the pool. What a great view with the expection of the eyesore I will call City Center. What an ugly place that is, very cold. It actually dwarfs the Bellagio. Not to mention the Jockey Club, just what were those people thinking? I was still mad about the treatment at the front desk but decided to let it go. I will send Bellagio a letter in the next few days though. It really did upset me that they wouldn’t move us worse yet that a manager would not come out. I guess I am just used to how my husband does business and never would he tell one of his members that he couldn’t see them, and if they had a problem he would fix it without making them jump through hoops. It was 7:30 at night and we were headed to dinner!
Finally we were moved and ready to go,we headed there around 8:30. The food was fantastic, I had Pasta Fagiole DH had the Minestrone. Both soups were great for main courses I had the Penne Alla Checca and he had the Gnocchi both were awesome. Sergio’s has been in Vegas for well over 10 years and everytime we eat there the food is as good if not better than the last. It isn’t cheap but by no means would I call it expensive. Dinner with soup and entrees, along with 2 glasses of wine and a bottle of water was around $85 and completely worth every penny we paid. It puts any Italian Restaurant on the strip to shame. I highly, highly recommend it.
After dinner we headed back to the Bellagio, dh had bet on the Yankees (I called him a traitor and told him he was breaking my heart, but hey, he won!) so he went to collect. The book was closed so he was able to cash his bet at the Cage. The night before at Mirage he be on the Red Sox and had also won his bet. DH headed to the room and I hit the machines again. I tried a little bit of everything and nothing worked again, around 12:30 hubby came and found me, he had slept a bit in our freshly cleaned carpet room (this was a different smell then the old moldy room). We knew it was clean for sure. Anyway we decided to play some blackjack and it was up and down, up and down but we had fun. Probably played for an hour and half then called it quits when the cards changed. We were still up $15 so that was a plus. I went and played some VP with hubby for a little while and again, couldn’t do anything. But yeah, sometimes it just isn’t there. We headed up to the room around 2:30 or so. Another day had come to an end.
Flights.
We took Delta from Memphis to Vegas with a stop in Atlanta. No delays coming and only a ½ hour delay on the way back. Smooth flights both ways. Got to Vegas 10 minutes early….wonderful except the bags took over an hour to come out.
Car.
We rented from Dollar using Express, took 10 minutes at most to get the car. We did lock and go with a rate of $134 for the week with taxes etc. On the contract estimated charges said $113, I didn’t argue. First win of the trip. Of course that was until we started driving the POS Jeep Liberty. Honestly it was the worse car we have ever had in Vegas, I thought for sure we were going to tip over going 20 miles an hour on an on or offramp, it was also very jerky while changing lanes. All around a bad car, but the price was great. We only ended up using a half tank of gas.
Day 1.
We got to the Mirage at about 4pm and pulled up to the North Valet, they had a full sign out and asked if we were guests. We told them we were there to check in so he took the car and off we went to get checked in. Hardly any wait. Got a room on the 19th floor. No view to speak of really, but the room was very nice with the exception of the postage stamp bathroom which was remodeled nicely but way too small. They also did away with the vanity so getting ready while DH got ready wasn’t an option here. I really do like the rooms though.
After checking in at Mirage we have a tradition of going to the Dolphin Bar and having our first cocktail. It was nice sitting out there but service was lacking and the bar only had a few people at it. It also had a bar rot smell. While we were have our extra large cocktails our friends called and said they were finally checked into their suite at Exaclibur and wanted to know if we wanted to meet them for dinner. They wanted to eat at Burger Bar and we decided to join them. We went and grabbed the rental car and headed down the strip. Traffic was on the heavier side but we managed to make it in about 20 minutes. Lots of construction going on and dang if City Center isn’t a HUGE eyesore. Met our friends and walked from Excalibur to Burger Bar by way of Luxor. WOW the casino looks so different. I am undecided about whether I like it of not, but I think I do. Very modern and darker than it used to be. We got to Burger Bar and there was a half hour wait so we sat and had drinks at the Bar at Giorgio’s or whatever it is called. After we finished our drinks we headed back to Burger Bar and we were seated pretty quickly. Everyone enjoyed their burgers, they were cooked right and yummy. I had the skinny fries with mine along with a Mothership Wit from New Belgium Brewery, it was yummy. No one wanted dessert so we headed back to Excalibur and then DH and I headed back to Mirage.
Back at Mirage we walked around and found a few machines, I played some lil’ lady machine that was ladybugs, it did let me play for a bit but nothing really. I then tried VP and nothing, by this time it was almost midnight and I couldn’t keep my eyes open so it was off to bed for me. Hubby had gone up an hour before me and was sound asleep when I came into the room. Lights out and next thing I know it is morning…..
Day 2
Woke up at 5:30 for some insane reason. Got showered and ready to go. We decided to check out Palazzo and grab coffee there. The place is gorgeous we spent about 2 hours just walking around. Very pretty, but I don’t get the warm fuzzies in the casino. After checking it out we walked back to Mirage and grabbed the car, we wanted to hit the hard rock for a bit. We came we saw, we broke even. Played a little blackjack then hit the golf store as hubby was playing golf with our friend on Wednesday and he needed new shoes. After that we were hungry and decided to go to Enoteca San Marco for lunch. We got two seats at the bar, I ordered some fruity drink and dh had a beer. We then ordered our meals, we had the gnocchi fritto for an app, it is fried dough with pecorino cheese and crushed red peppers. For entrees he had the eggplant pasta dish and I had a pizza. We also each had a glass wine. Food was good, but beware portions are small and the food is expensive. Lunch for two was $120 with tax and tip.
As we were eating lunch we got in touch with our friends they were also at the Canal shops so they met us as we finished up our meal and drinks. After we were done we decided to walk the palazzo shops so they could seem them. I ended up buying a purse at Coach that you can where across your body and holds my wallet a pack of cigarettes and my phone perfectly. I will not have to worry about leaving it anywhere. We then decided to show our friends the rooms since they used to stay at Mirage all the time and the changes are amazing. Showed them the room and then decided to play a little, nothing happened for me so I went to the room, then hubby and I decided to try the Silverton for a bit. Head down there and again not much, atleast this time though I actually walked away from the blackjack table up $5!! We tried a few hands of Pai Gow and nothing there either, finally decided to head back to Mirage.
We relaxed and showered then headed down to STACK for dinner. We like sitting at the Bar and at 7 pm this was not a problem. Bartender was good and I tried a Pear Martini, it was alright but not get. For dinner I had the tomato soup with mini grilled cheese and the chicken parm on a stick. Hubby had the wings and these mini potato things, not exactly sure, they were like mashed or something. Both were good. We had second drinks and relaxed for a bit. Total Bill was about $80 with tax and tip. It was a fun meal. After dinner we tried some blackjack and then some slots. Again no luck this is becoming a habit. I think a hit for about $70 on the lil lady machine but other than that nothing. I tried the sports book bar, reg. vp and a few other things. I think I put a few bucks in a Wizard of Oz machine, I saw Glenda once but that wasn’t enough. Finally around 12:30 it was bedtime.
Day 3.
Woke up around 7 and went to the roasted bean for coffee. We decided to enjoy our lattes and banana nut muffin on the little patio outside. While we were sitting there enjoying our morning there were these little birds bouncing around, one bounced right up to us and was just standing there. We tried to feed it some of our muffin but she didn’t care for it and proceeded to hop over to the construction workers who were having their morning coffee. How funny it was to see this very big guy covered with tattoos making baby bird sounds trying to feed this little one. He said the mother will eat right out of your hands and that there were 3 babies who couldn’t fly up until last week. It was just adorable to see. After breakfast we went back up to the room but not before hitting the ladybugs again…..again nothing. We got up to the room and packed to head to Bellagio.
Getting from Mirage to Bellagio was easy, there was no traffic on the strip at 10am. We got to Bellagio and requested a room in the spa tower which was not ready yet. We decided to go to the café for breakfast. I had my first sunsplash of the trip and a frittata which was delicious hubby had eggs with a ham steak and really enjoyed it. After breakfast we hit the casino for a little while, I played some cops and donuts, I hit a few bonuses but nothing really to speak of. DH headed off on his own while I continued to play, a few minutes later someone comes up behind me and scares the pants off me!! It was our friends whom we were also staying at Bellagio. We decided to walk around and they found the Wizard of Oz Machine and began to play for a bit, he cashed out a few $100 ahead. We left him there while she and I decided to go check out the menu at Sensi where we were going to have lunch the next day while the guys played golf. I really liked the menu for lunch and the dinner menu looks good too.
DH finally met up with us at Sensi and he and I decided to check to see if our room was ready and it was. We grabbed our bags from the rental car and went up to our room in the spa tower, I believe it was 19-627 though I am not positive. The room itself was nice but it had a slight musty odor. We ignored it and unpacked. After unpacking I went down to see if I could find our friends and I did, they were still waiting for their room. Shortly after we split up while they tried to check in and I went to the Fontana to say hello to Diane. She told me she had seen my husband already and we chatted for a bit. I had two drinks but couldn’t hit a thing on the machines, at this time my friend called and said they were in the room and she was ready to hit the pool with us if we were still going. I said good-bye to Diane and told her I would return then went up to the room to change. Again I noticed the odor when we walked in, hubby said he didn’t notice it really so I just changed and down we went. We got 3 chairs near the big center pool which is the only heated one and shortly thereafter the cocktail waitress came around. We all ordered yummy cocktails and hung out at the pool for a few hours.
DH went to the room about a half hour before I did and then D’s hubby showed up after going to the gym and we both grabbed a beer at the pool bar. After chatting a bit we headed our separate ways and had planned on dinner that night I believe we were going to do Olive’s or Sensi I can’t remember, we made reservations while sitting at the pool. Up in the room I showered and headed back to the casino and chatted with Diane again, again nothing was happening but I did have a great Pomegranate Lemondrop Martini. She really makes an awesome cocktail. I finally hit something and was able to have two drinks and come out $5 ahead, now this was something for me!! LOL While I was sitting there our friends called and she said she wasn’t feeling well and wouldn’t make dinner. We were hoping it was just the sun. I cancelled the reservations wherever we had them and hubby and I decided to hit Sergio’s Italian Garden off the strip. Before going we went back to the room to grab a sweater for me and the smell was bad, it definitely smelled like a mold problem. I decided to go to the front desk and ask for a room change when we got back. I asked to speak to a manager but she wouldn’t come out of the back, instead the front desk girl called her. The manager said the room would have to be checked before they could move us!! WHAT!!! I wasn’t asking to be put in a suite, I asked to change rooms…The front desk girl said something about protocol, whatever. I stopped at the concierge and talked to someone there, he also tried to get me a manager, again no one would come out. I was getting mad at this point, I was not raising my voice nor was I being nasty to anyone yet this person would not come out. I found this unacceptable. Honestly being in this room made us feel sick, there was something terribly wrong and there was no way I was going to sleep there. Mold is a nasty thing and I am 100% positive that was the issue. It wasn’t carpet cleaner it was a musty disgusting smell. I have been in moldy buildings in Florida, it isn’t something you forget the smell of. When we couldn’t get anywhere with the front desk I asked him to call casino marketing since I had booked through them. Guess what, all of sudden we were being moved! He asked us to go to our old room and said a bellhop would be right up with our new keys. They were right he was right up and we were moved to room 25086 in the main tower overlooking the pool. What a great view with the expection of the eyesore I will call City Center. What an ugly place that is, very cold. It actually dwarfs the Bellagio. Not to mention the Jockey Club, just what were those people thinking? I was still mad about the treatment at the front desk but decided to let it go. I will send Bellagio a letter in the next few days though. It really did upset me that they wouldn’t move us worse yet that a manager would not come out. I guess I am just used to how my husband does business and never would he tell one of his members that he couldn’t see them, and if they had a problem he would fix it without making them jump through hoops. It was 7:30 at night and we were headed to dinner!
Finally we were moved and ready to go,we headed there around 8:30. The food was fantastic, I had Pasta Fagiole DH had the Minestrone. Both soups were great for main courses I had the Penne Alla Checca and he had the Gnocchi both were awesome. Sergio’s has been in Vegas for well over 10 years and everytime we eat there the food is as good if not better than the last. It isn’t cheap but by no means would I call it expensive. Dinner with soup and entrees, along with 2 glasses of wine and a bottle of water was around $85 and completely worth every penny we paid. It puts any Italian Restaurant on the strip to shame. I highly, highly recommend it.
After dinner we headed back to the Bellagio, dh had bet on the Yankees (I called him a traitor and told him he was breaking my heart, but hey, he won!) so he went to collect. The book was closed so he was able to cash his bet at the Cage. The night before at Mirage he be on the Red Sox and had also won his bet. DH headed to the room and I hit the machines again. I tried a little bit of everything and nothing worked again, around 12:30 hubby came and found me, he had slept a bit in our freshly cleaned carpet room (this was a different smell then the old moldy room). We knew it was clean for sure. Anyway we decided to play some blackjack and it was up and down, up and down but we had fun. Probably played for an hour and half then called it quits when the cards changed. We were still up $15 so that was a plus. I went and played some VP with hubby for a little while and again, couldn’t do anything. But yeah, sometimes it just isn’t there. We headed up to the room around 2:30 or so. Another day had come to an end.
