Vegas scams

BINGO.....some cabbie tried this the last time in Vegas....we took a cab downtown from the IP and then on the way back got another cab ride who jumped on the I-15 and went WAY past the exit near the IP...nearly all the way to MGM Grand then back up to the IP on the strip....I called him on it when he did it and said he just enjoyed talking to us so much that he wasn't even going to charge us for the ride...but once we arrived at the IP and we got out he started YELLING we weren't paying for our ride...I finally gave him the same amount it cost us to get downtown from the IP MINUS a tip.....I should of just walked away and into the casino...if it ever happens again I will do just that.

SO YES....watch out for the gabby cabbie driver.

 

Ok, this actually pissed me off. What's wrong with people that they want to reward someone for being a criminal just because they were clever?

 

I do have a soft spot for those who are really in need. However, my BS detector went BEEP-BEEP-BEEP on this one for some reason.

I was in the parking lot of the Walgreens at Flamingo and Maryland one evening. This lady (smoking, if she had money for cigs? ...) came up to me and said that she was just at the ER and they wrote her a prescription and she did not have the $$$ for it and such. Yadda yadda. I declined. Just did not make sense.

Now the guy below I gave a buck to, which you can see in his hand. This was a few years back and signs like this were not that common. At least he's pretending to be honest! (I love the guy in the convertible giving me the thumbs up. I did not notice it when I took it.)

 

I stop in at that Walgreens every visit and am ALWAYS hit-up there! I almost always keep my cash in my briefcase and use a small travel wallet with a debit card, etc. I pay for everything in these stores with the card, so I can legitimately (as if I need to) say, I don't have cash, I just bought this with my credit card.

There was one time though that a skinny 20-something girl approached me with 2 kids (like 8 & 6), she told me that they'd just been evicted from there apartment and she's trying to get money for a place to stay for the night. She and the kids were both sobbin'... at first I told her I only had my card, but then as I drove off, I felt bad so drove around the block and came back and told her I went and got $60 from the ATM and that I hope it helped. She was very appreciative. Couldda been a scam, probably was, but gettin' the kids involved tipped the scale for me.

 

I purchased four tickets to Le Reve last year. My daughter and her friend were to fly in the afternoon of the show, but there was a medical emergency on their flight; sounded like some guy on the plane had a heart attack just before takeoff. The flight crew was so rattled that they had to send for another crew to take their place. My daughter called me a couple of hours before the show and told me that they wouldn't arriving until after the show started. Great, I have two tickets that will go unused. My girlfriend said that I should try selling the tickets to someone when we arrived at the Wynn for the show. I told her that I didn't think Steve would appreciate someone hawking show tickets in his casino. She said that I should give the tickets to someone then. I laughed and gave her the tickets and told her to knock herself out. It was amusing to watch the reactions of people when my girlfriend approached them and tried to give away the tickets. She gave up after the fifth try. I was beginning to worry that someone was going to call security on her.

I mentioned to the lady taking tickets at the entrance to the show that I had two tickets that I wanted to give away. A young gentleman standing next to her asked me if I was serious. This guy was from Oxford, England and was in town for a friend's wedding. He was traveling on limited funds and had come down to the show to see one of his friends that was performing in the show. I gave him a ticket and told him to enjoy the show. He was elated and thanked me profusely and again after the show. Later that evening I ran into this same guy outside of the Carnival Court at Harrah's and he insisted on buying me a drink.

I thought it was funny that I could not even give away my legit show tickets. Glad that Max took me up on my offer.

 

Whitejacket - I will admit to being one of those people who would have just said "no" (not to mention the fact I don't want to see Le Reve, but that aside....) I'm paranoid about scams, from city living and travel. I still want to enjoy myself and not freak out about what could happen to me, etc. But if I'm approached by someone I don't know, I ignore or decline, end of story.

I do love threads like this that tell me about what's going on out there to be aware of

 

pretty sure there may have still been a scam

why would anyone throw an expensive phone out the window? Just cost her friend a few hundred dollars. Maybe it was a stolen phone she did not want tracking her?

Just does not sound right.

 

It's so bad on the strip. My wife used to be nice to all and she got caught up in every BS deal they had so I told last time to hold my hand and if someone addresses us act like you speak no English and keep walking, even faster!

 

Last time mom and I were in town, we took a cab back to the airport. Our cabbie actually rolled down the window and gave this man standing in the median some change. I'm not sure if that was supposed to make us sympathetic and tip her more or if she was just a soft heart herself. The gentleman was barely clothed and had a lot of scars as if he had been burned in the past. I'm not sure if it was a scam or not, but I have never had that happen before or since. For what its worth, we didn't tip her any differently than had she not given the man change.

I too have been a victim of the gabby cabbie! 20 bucks to Mandalay Bay!

 

That's quite a bit to go from Dickscalibur to Mandalay Bay. Did you know there's a tram that's quite a bit cheaper??...

 

There's a tram? Whaaa?

From the airport to the entrance of the hotel was 20 bucks. It might of been a few less and I just gave him a 20. I don't remember. I know I got ripped off when I paid 35 bucks at 2 am to go from Dickscalibur to Encore. No gabbin' though. But those aren't really scams like the OP mentioned.

 

People have certainly become more suspicious because I also had an experience where I had a difficult time giving away legitimate tickets. On my last trip, I had tickets to Brad Garrett's at MGM with Brad Garrett appearing for our first evening. My friend's flight was delayed and no way was I going to a comedy club by myself. It took me several tries to be able to give away the tickets and a few suspicious looks.

 

Did the guy tell you his "name"? If so, was it "Mike"? I realize events like this are a dime a dozen in Vegas, but the same thing happened to my friend; it was the same offer, and they met under roughly the same circumstances. MY friend didn't offer a ride to the airport, but he did part with 40 bucks so "Mike" could "get a cab ride and buy cigarettes." Oddly enough, the next time we were in Vegas my friend spotted the scammer while we were walking to Wynn. Of course, his name was no longer Mike and he didn't remember my friend, but I still found it amusing.

I generally go to Vegas solo, so I'm an easy target for these types of things. The only time I ever felt tempted to give in was when a guy approached me and asked for some money for a cab. I forget the story he fed me, but he had a little girl, about 5 or 6, with him, which I found incredibly effective. Not sure if it was legit or not, but track record suggested it wasn't. Still felt slightly bad after walking away.

 

I too, have tried to give away tickets to no avail, lol. I have ended up giving them to bartenders who REALLY appreciated them

 

The reason you are having trouble giving away the show tickets is probably they think YOU are scammers. It seems that there are all kinds of people walking around asking about going to shows. Unless we were both at the craps table for an hour talking and then you mentioned you had a couple of extra tickets you couldn't use, I would walk right by anyone trying to give me anything in Las Vegas.
Whenever I'm walking the strip with newer visitors, they always tend to either enage the punks in conversation or feel guilty for just rudely walking by. Any of the musicians playing I will stop and listen to and throw in a 5, because that seems a little more talented than putting on a minney mouse head and standing there.
Now the kick me in the nuts guy for $20 though....... Hmmmmm. Tempting

 

Ya think?

That is why unless I can use the tickets myself, I simply don't take them anymore. Even if they come free with whatever offer I am using.

 

Sonya, my husband is normally a shrewd man. But, he can be naive about some things. It's worse in Vegas. My husband was bad for talking to timeshare people on our first trip. After a few days I had to lay down the law with him. New rule-you're not talking to anybody, you let me do the talking, if I walk by somebody who's trying to talk to us you keep walking along with me. I felt bad because he's a grown man, but, I had to do it. Anyhow, I'm glad I did now because of stories like this.

 

Few things are as useful in this day and age than a healthy skepticism and a finely tuned BS radar.

Guy on the street, email from friend, Fox news, random phone call, heard it in the office - 99% of the information gathered from these sources is BS.

 

So? Did any of you actually believe the tale of the kidney and the ice and the bathtub in the hotel?

("Heard it from a friend who, heard it from a friend who, heard it from another ...")

 

Just helpfully point out the nearest police officer/security guard/casino manager. If it's legit and they are really stranded, they will get the assistance they need. If it's not, they'll scurry off.

If all these people are stranded and have no money, how come they never ask for $2 for bus fare? They always need $20 or $40 for a cab? You're supposedly broke and a beggar, take the f**king bus!