I wanted to write this as soon as I got home, as I didn%26#39;t take notes and wanted as much to be as fresh in my mind as possible....so here it goes:
-Warning! Long Read!
Background: Me(J), Wife(A), Aunt(K), and Uncle(D) took this trip because we%26#39;ve been talking of going for like a year and it finally happened. This was our 2nd trip this year and one of many for K%26amp;D, they go all the time due to her travel agent rates. The main purpose for A%26amp;I was to get away, gamble some, drink plenty and do the things that we missed the first time.
Departure: Fly Allegiant out of Green Bay. Fun crew, smooth flight, all good things to say about them. Turbulence going into vegas was a bit rough for my tastes, but I read about it on here, so it was expected. Landing was perfect and we arrived right on time. I would fly allegiant again anytime, given their rates are comparable to the 89 each way that we flew. We also did pre book our seats and were glad we did. The plane was full both ways and I get a bit nervous flying so it was nice to be able to sit next to A and be a bit more comfortable.
Arrival: We got in on time and headed down to baggage claim where it took awhile to get our bags. Once all 4 were received, we took the shuttle over to the rental car place. K had a few rental car for the week from her work. We found our Lincoln Town Car in the Hertz lot and headed to the PH to check in.
Now a bit of background: I had read all the discussion on the boards here about using debit cards to check in at the hotel. Seeing as how I booked our 99 per night hotel thru K, I had her call the PH and ask their policy on check in for debit cards. She was told that as long as we told the check-in agent that we did not want incidentals charged to the room that we could use the debit card without an additional hold put on the card. We%26#39;ll I go to check in and when I explain that whole situation I%26#39;m told that a hold will be placed on the debit card...to make a longer story shorter, we%26#39;ll just say that it went on another%26#39;s CC and we checked in.
PH Room: Room 872 on the 8th floor. View of the air conditioning ducts, the paris balloon and bally%26#39;s. Not a great view but the room itself was good. Was re-done(not alladin) huge bathroom, but no fan in bathroom? Bed was comfy enough but housekeeping skipped us on the first day, and did a crap job on the 3rd day. All I need is my bed made and fresh towels, is that so difficult? I tipped 5 dollars daily, btw.
After checking in and putting things where they belong and such we decide to head out to the abc store in the miracle mile mall for some snacks, beer, soda and stuff for the room. I hit a .25 WOF on the way at PH. I got one cherry out of the whole 20 bucks I put in. Not a good way to start the trip. We arrive at ABC store and get what we need it was like 20 bucks for a six pack, chips, beef jerky and some cookies. It was then time for us to head to NYNY for the pizza from sirroco%26#39;s that we had last time. I had Sicillian Pepperoni and A had the same. It was good this time but not as good as last time. Still a good value at 3.50 a slice and all you need is one. I came here with the full intention of hitting some MIB nickel machines, but their all gone :( Couldn%26#39;t find many of these at all in fact. Either way, played some .25 WOF and broke dead even. Next thing we know it%26#39;s almost 8pm and we want to head to the fountains and get some rest. We see 3 fountain shows and call it a night. Asleep by 10pm.
8-28
Up at 9am. Out the door by 10. Time to search for some breakfast. Finally after walking through paris and ending up at bally%26#39;s, we decide just to get some muffins and juice from the counter across from the check in area. it was 12 bucks and fine for us. We really don%26#39;t like spending a lot of money on breakfast. It%26#39;s now 11:30 am and it%26#39;s time to gamble some. We head into the bellagio to start. I grab a penny Deal or No Deal machine and promptly hit the bonus round on my 4th spin, I win 60 bucks and cash out right away. We walk around some and hit the conservatory that we didn%26#39;t get to see last time. They had a Route 66 theme. It was pretty interesting. A was amazed at all the roses that were cut perfect and placed perfect. We crossed over and played some at bill%26#39;s. I love the penny big WOF there and normally do well. Well, A sits next to me and loses 20 bucks quickly, I on the other hand hit a bonus and then the 10000x multipler! I cash out up a hundred. We tried the Deal or no Deal machines and lose half of our winnings. Drink service here was excellent. However, why those little 8 oz glasses for beer? why not the whole bottle? Either way she was quick and I tipped her a buck each time. We head back to the room, freshen up and head out to meet D %26amp; K at the Mirage. We were going to eat at the carnegie deli till we decided to head to TI instead. We gambled a bit at the Mirage. I lost 60 in one of the few MIB%26#39;s I found and quickly left. Took the tram to TI and headed out to see what they had to eat. Not much to choose from so we decide on Kahunaville. D %26amp; K shared the sampler appetizer(was huge btw, complete with a flowing volcano) I had the 10 oz burger with cheese, and A had the chicken breast with wild mushrooms. All were good, but a bit pricy. Total for A and I with 2 beers and a soda was 52 bucks w/o tip. K %26amp; D head to venitian for blue man group. We shoot over to Paris to gamble some. We%26#39;re playing some penny machines and a gentleman askes us if we want free tickets to go up the eiffel tower. I thought he was a timeshare guy, but he just wanted us to sign up for the Total Rewards Club, so we do. Got our free tickets to use within one year. We win 40 bucks total and head out to the fountains again. We see 5 shows (including my favorite ';Time to say Goodbye';) and head up to the room for shower and bed. Drink service to notch at Paris. Not only quick, but 16 oz bottles too! I will come back here for sure.
8-29
South Strip day. Up at 9:30 out the door by 11. Got 241 buffet coupon at the PH at check in, so took advantage of that. We did miss breakfast, but lunch was not bad. I would not call it great either. No prime rib or good carving stations, but a great seafood and salad and dessert section. only 16 bucks plus tax for the two of us, and I thought that was a good value. Off to the Monte Carlo that we didn%26#39;t see last time. What%26#39;s up with the construction INSIDE the casino? I knew about the outside construction but didn%26#39;t expect this. We head around and find the Top Gun penny slots. A loses 20 again and I hit 3 bonuses and win another 100 (see a pattern here?) I cashed in the ticket and we head twards the Luxor, where we stayed last year. I wanted to see the renovation work being done. We had to pass through the crappy Excal on the way. I don%26#39;t care for this place. Kids all over and just plain unorganized. We got to the luxor and wow holy construction. The whole middle area is now becoming the new LAX nightclub the Britney Spears is hosting tonight.....I gambled at a Piggy machine and lost 20 bucks and we headed out. I like the Luxor, but won%26#39;t be back untill the construction is finished. We walked to Mandaly Bay so we could see the Shark Reef. Of course it%26#39;s all the way in the back so you have to walk the entire casino to get to it. We get there and the pricing is all confusing. It looked to me to be about 30 bucks per person based on what I saw, but when I got the tickets the girl charged me 32.95 total, which was fine by me! We went in and got our little ';wands'; to listen to as we go. I thought it was on ok tour. Nothing great, but certainly not bad. Had I paid 32 bucks each, then I would have been upset. Also, I wish some parents would keep their kids in check when at attractions....I don%26#39;t run infront of you and your camera screaming and yelling unsupervised. Meanwhile, the kids parents are 3 sections ahead of them and the kid does whatever they want, it%26#39;s frustrating. Then we head to MGM to see if the Lions are in, their not :( Walked around some and head out. We%26#39;re gonna use our eiffel tower tickets tonight so we go to the room and freshen up and head back around 6pm so we can stay up and get both day and night pictures from the tower. While were gambling a bit before going up these 3 girls in black outfits show up in the middle of the casino(right by the Eiffel Tower Restaraunt check in) and start dancing to music. Nothing spectacular but entertaining none the less. So we go up the tower(no beer allowed boo!) and take a million photos. I don%26#39;t even want to upload them, they%26#39;ll eat my entire hard drive. Great view, even better for free. We saw 3 shows up there and had a great time. I got some real good pictures of the City Center Project being done. We head down and need some food. We stopped at the Planet Dailies Cafe. Expensive and OK food, but not worth the 48 bucks we paid. Wife had a chopped salad and I had the country fried steak with one beer and a soda. Would not eat here again without a discount.
8-30
Last full day :( Wax Museum and Downtown Day! We%26#39;re out the door by 9:30 and off to the venitian. I had to stop at harrah%26#39;s and get some water because it was so hot that day. Actually it was above 100 every day, but Thursday seemed the worst. We got to the Venetian and present our 4 dollar coupons for the event. Still costs almost 50 with tax for two, but we wanted to do it, so what the hell. Let%26#39;s just say that we went through it quickly. We took some photos, but I didn%26#39;t think it was worth it. We were heading downtown for the rest of the day so we went back to the room, got ready, and met K %26amp; D in the PH lobby. We arrived Downtown around 3pm. Parked at the 4Q and A and I gambled some there. Did real well on 2 monopoly machines cashing out 150 between the 2 of us. We then wanted to see the rest of downtown. Stopped in at mermaids quickly and left, what a dive!@ Got plenty of pics and hit up the Golden Nugget. Seemed like the nicest casino DT and their pool looks great! Lady luck was ok and so was the Plaza. We did see two ummmm ';trashy'; people fighting verbally at the Plaza, so that was entertaining. We headed back and gambled at the Fitz on the big Wheel for awhile, and didn%26#39;t do so well. Got the bonus early and often, but nothing later. Left down almost a hundred here. We were getting the prime rib dinner at Magnolias at the 4Q so we headed back there with about 30 minutes to gamble. I hit the penny machines again. I have to say that this was the most outstanding drink service I%26#39;ve ever received. The girl in my section remembered me when I left and any time she walked by she would look at me and ask if I wanted another. I tipped her a dollar each time and one more 5 at the end and thanked her for a job well done. I lost like 40 bucks on the machine and headed to dinner. We all got the players club prime rib and they were all good. Even better at 6.95 for potatoe, prime rib and soup/salad. I was the only one to get the soup(minstrone) and it was ok, but needed seasoning. I would call this a great value at 7 bucks. We then headed back to the strip for our last fountain shows and to get to bed early. Had to be up at 3:30am for our flight :( We saw 2 shows and headed up to the room. We packed almost everything and went to bed.
Departure:
Up at 3:30(ugh) and to the car rental return by 4:30. We checked in at the allegiant counter around 5:15 am and cleared security in about 15 minutes. The line moved quickly which was good. By the time I got a water for the flight and used the restroom, we were boarding. We grabbed our seats at 17A and C and relaxed. Takeoff shortly and we were off. We watched some Friends on our dvd player and tried to sleep, but couldn%26#39;t without pillows and the wife was freezing. Landed about 20 minutes early, got our stuff and headed back home.
Conclusions from this trip:
Yet another fun trip, but it didn%26#39;t have the ';awe'; factor that the first one did. That would be expected, I%26#39;d suppose.
I would prefer to fly in at night to see the lights and such, but allegiant was a really good airline. They get you up and down, safely, that%26#39;s all that matters.
Leave the kids at home! Don%26#39;t slam me on this, it%26#39;s just my opinion. So many unsupervised kids! I was ready to kick a few at the was museum.
Plenty of fun, drinks, but not big wins, and mostly losses for the trip. I apologize this is so long, but I hope you enjoyed it, any feedback or questions appreciated!
Jeff
TR 8-27-8-31 Planet Ho
Great TR! Thanks for the construction update. And sounds like you had some great winnings!
TR 8-27-8-31 Planet Hobump
Umm, for your downtown day, you said Lady Luck was ok asn so was the Golden Nugget. You didn%26#39;t mean the hotel Lady Luck. It couldn%26#39;t have been that hotel. It%26#39;s been closed for a while now. What did you mean?
Thanks for the trip report!! I enjoy reading the trip reports most of all. It sounds like you had a good time.
My mistake on the lady luck, I meant the Binions Casino....my mind is mush after traveling and lack of sleep :)
Long but a very enjoyable TR thanks for sharing.
Great trip report. I agree about the kids. They need to be at grandmas.... lol.
You really got to see and do alot...I was also getting ready to ask about Lady Luck! LOL
We didn%26#39;t come home winners our most recent trip either, but we are always glad we make the trip since we enjoy spending time together in our favorite city!
Thanks.
I totally forgot one really funny thing....
We were headed back to the room on the 2nd night and heard ';Tim'; from the front desk knocking on a door down the hall......He asked if there were any drugs in the room, and the occupants said yes, so I guess he found what he was looking for. We thought that was entertaining.
bump, any other thoughts?
Nice TR. We ate at Planet Dailies for breakfast and thought it was a decent value and fine food. We will be staying at PH again in Oct., so it was fun for me to read your report!
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