This is a delayed TR, but reality is a funny thing. When you get home from vacation, no one else really cares, and you%26#39;re expected to go back to normal... just like that! Don%26#39;t people know I%26#39;m still mentally in Vegas, and am not fully functional yet?;)
I%26#39;ll post as a reply...
TR-Flamingo 9/2-9/10- Very, Very Long!
Overview:
We are in our mid-30’s and normally, we travel with family. But this year, for the first time in 10 years, it was just us (my dh C and myself) in Vegas this year. Nice! The reason we were traveling alone this year is that we were celebrating our 15th anniversary and my birthday. We have been to Vegas 18 (we think) times, seen most of the big, traditional sites, and stayed at a wide variety of hotels, so we decided to take our time and relax this trip. We didn’t have any plans or commitments and decided to just go where the mood took us at the time. We went for 8 nights and stayed at the Flamingo in a standard room (16169) overlooking the pool. We are not high rollers, and believe it or not, we didn’t go to even one show over the eight nights, so if you’re looking for any details regarding those items, I can’t help. Sadly, we’re no longer club people, either. We were trying to think…what did we actually do? Not much, and that’s just what we needed. Time off! C called this our working man’s trip. We did try some different restaurants, play a lot of slots, try out shuttles and the duece, encounter many great servers, order several drinks at many different casinos, and relax in the pool. Plus, we went to the 9/6 meet and greet.
We eventually titled our trip “the one of self-discovery”. And what did we discover? Sadly, that we’re getting old and boring (lol). But more on that later…
I tend to write in a long and detailed style, so I’ll break this up into bullet points to try and make it somewhat easier to read.
The Flamingo Hotel:
My reason for staying here was two-fold. 1) I wanted to stay there for the historical significance and 2) the pool was very important to me this trip! I became a little apprehensive after some of the TR started filing in this summer, but I can say that my worries were unfounded. While the room was not the most luxurious on the strip, it was large, quiet, had floor-to-ceiling wall-to-wall windows, and had your typical hotel furnishings, nothing fancy, but it was all functional. I mention this because after reading some previous TR’s, I noticed people reported problems with the AC and lamps not working at the Flamingo. One nice surprise, though, was that this was the best housekeeping staff of anywhere we have ever stayed. We left tips daily along with a thank you note and were treated to extra towels and toiletries and exceptional service every day. Everyone we passed in the halls went out of their way to say hello. I’d have no problem recommending this room to anyone who wants a nice room at a great price. We were offered a Go room for $20/nt or strip view for $40/nt at check in, but since we were there 8 nights we declined. This actually turned out well, because we enjoyed overlooking the gardens and the flamingos, pools, and bearing witness to quite a few weddings on the grounds. It was a nice break from the hustle and bustle of the strip.
The only minor complaint we had was that the bathroom was showing it’s age. It had a very small tub/shower with an even lower ceiling so C, at 6’3”, had to fold him self in half to use it. But, it was exceptionally clean, and it was bright, which is nice change from most of the rooms in town that give you very dim lights to get ready in. While the soft light does make you look soft and glowing, it’s a shock to step out into real light and see how different the makeup looks.
Flamingo Pool:
Great! Loved it! Lots of chairs, countless palm trees, a nice mix of sun and shade, consistent cocktail service, plenty of sun shelves and benches in the water. If a pool is important to your trip, this is a nice choice. BTW- we didn’t go to the European (topless) pool, but our room overlooked it, so every time I’d come out from getting ready in the am, C was at the window with the binoculars. Too funny! (he claims he was just checking on the car in the parking garage)
Cocktail Service:
We found quick service everywhere we played except Man Bay. Caesars was far and away the most consistent and friendly, every time we sat down, we had a CW within 2 minutes.
Flamingo, Paris, Venetian, Harrahs, Golden Nugget, Orleans were all good.
While the service was fast at Excalibur, the drinks were subpar. (Not exactly a big surprise)
I was surprised (I don’t really know why) at how quick the service was at the Strat. And they were tasty, too.
Dealers:
We only played tables at three places, but we had decent dealers at 2 of the 3, and exceptional dealers at one.
We played craps at Excalibur because as we were walking through on the way to Man Bay there seemed to be a hot table, with a lot of yelling and cheering. The dealers were friendly enough, but the dice beat us up pretty badly so we left quickly.
We played BJ at the Orleans, and sat down with a quiet dealer who didn’t smile. One personal rule I won’t break is to sit at a table with an unfriendly dealer. There are too many others out there. But…we were there and C wanted to play because they had 2 seats together at a $5 table. (We’re high rollers, huh…lol) So, I gave in. I made it my mission to make him smile. We began placing bets for him. This got a polite under the breathe “thank you” but no smile. I went on a losing streak, and quit placing bets for him. Then, I started winning, so I again placed a bet for him. I lost, with a 20. This started a pattern. Next bet, I didn’t place a bet for him. I won. Next, a bet for him, I lost with a 20. This began to make him smile. Finally! He said thanks for trying. I said he wasn’t going for my bribes, huh? Finally, he warmed up. Next hand, a bet for him, I draw to a 21! YES! We’re both going to win. He draws to a 21! Are you kidding me? He actually chuckled. I didn’t win any money, but my mission was complete!
Now, for the exceptional dealers! I had been reading all the TR’s mentioning downtown, so I wanted to go. However, we had been once and had a not-so-good time, so it was like pulling teeth to get C to agree to go. We had arrived on Sunday, but I wasn’t able to convince him to go until Saturday. Even then it was under protest and only because he was trying to get away from the Sat night strip crowd. We went and walked around for a while and C still wasn’t sure about DT. The last casino we went to was the Golden Nugget because I told C we had to look at the pool. The minute we walked in, C was a changed man. He liked this place. After walking around the pool aquarium, he was ready to stay there. Five minutes and he had done a complete 180! Then, we found the $5 BJ table with 2 seats together and what seemed like a friendly dealer. Both our requirements had been met so we had to sit down. Apparently DT was now calling C’s name. Our dealers name was Barry and if you go to the GN, you have to play at his table! He is the best. I don’t know what else to say, except he’s great and I hope he’ll still be there next time I visit. He was funny, friendly, joked a lot, and he was helpful. When he went on break, Edward took over. He’s also a lot of fun! We stayed at the table with these two for hours! We were grandfathered in at $5 when the prices went up, so we couldn’t give up our seats. We had to keep playing! (lol) If you go, say hi. And if you’re playing, ask the pit boss to play disco music. Barry hates disco, so he busts every time it’s playing. Yea for us. I know, not really, but it did seem to work out that way.
Food:
Let me start by stating we are not foodies by any means, and C’s exact words to me on the trip up were “I don’t want to eat any frou-frou food.” This can provide a challenge if you want to go anywhere other than a buffet, but we managed to meet this challenge while keeping us both happy.
Buffets: We did eat at a few. Our favorite by far was Caesars at Café Lago. It was exceptional.
Second was Man Bay. Average was Harrah’s and the Flamingo. Harrah’s was good for the large variety (and the gelato to go was great!) while the Flamingos best feature was the fruit bar. It was constantly being refilled while we were there, and it was so fresh. The rest of the food was edible.
Chicken sandwich: which was grilled poolside and it was surprisingly tasty.
Pizza: at the pool snack bar. C liked it, I thought it was disgusting.
2am dinner in the Flamingo café: Edible is the best I can say, C can’t even say that much.
Margaritaville: was good as always. We had the crab/mushroom dip with coconut shrimp and jumbalaya. Mmmm.
Café BaBaReba: we tried this place because of the reviews on TA. It was okay. We don’t know why but we didn’t really care for it. The food was alright, the service was decent, but the overall vibe was one of disinterest. Oh well.
Mon Ami Gabi: We both love this place. I don’t understand why the locals give it such a bad rap. The prices are the same as everywhere else, and it is sooo good! This was our 2nd time and we loved it as much this time as the first. The steaks melt in your mouth, are seasoned perfectly, and the service was excellent. I’d highly recommend this place! We’ve now sat both in and outside and found that either way is enjoyable.
Ming’s Table, the asian place at Harrahs: We only ate here because we were starving and happened to be walking by. It was okay, the portions are huge, but it wasn’t anything to write home about. Plus, this was the only place we had a server who wasn’t good.
Grand Lux: I can’t believe we had never been here before. It was really good, ave prices, nice ambiance, and the Lemoncello Lemonade was divine!!!! One note though, the portions are the largest I have ever seen, so if you aren’t starving, you might want to consider splitting items!
StripBurger!: We called this place our happy accident because we had absolutely no idea it was even there, let alone were we planning to eat here. However, we were sad that we didn’t get to go back! It is part of Café BaBaReba, but it’s out their back door. It has a patio right on the strip that overlooks Wynn and the the new Trump tower, and it has great prices! It is a burger joint with a full bar, fun and funky dance music, and laid-back great service! We both loved our burgers and if you order a basket of fries, plan on splitting it. Again, the portions are huge! We loved this place.
Casa Di Amore!!!: We can’t rave about this place enough. I’d read about it on TA, and I bought the restaurant.com certificate, but wasn’t sure what to expect. I’m really into the Rat Pack and Vegas of days gone by, so I thought this might be fun! Yes, it is! It has only about 17 tables, it’s dark and cozy, with red and black booths and service that makes you feel like a regular from the moment you walk in. We called the day before for reservations and had the limo picked us up. The lady said to look for a big red limo, and I had read that it was kind of cheesy, so we weren’t expecting much. Wow, were we surprised. A newer red town car limo picked us, and only us, up for the trip. The driver was friendly, and answered any questions we had. He stopped, and walked us in when we arrived. We were seated and our server, Bradley, talked like he had known us forever. Frank and Dean were playing in the background, and there was a keyboard set up right next to our booth. The singer came out after we ordered and played even more standards (Come Fly With Me, It had To Be You). We felt right at home! This is the old Vegas feeling I always knew existed…no themes, no huge crowds or long lines, no gawking tourists, just a nice mix of locals and in-the-know visitors. And the food! Yum! We both had great traditional Italian, but they had a mixed menu with many new items and I can’t wait to go back and try more! Afterwards, let your server know that you brought the limo, and they will call for him to return and pick you up. This is a definite must do on our list from now on!
Transportation:
We drove to Vegas, but we love to park the car and not drive again for the entire trip. So, we decided since we had so much time this trip that we test out all the modes of public transportation available.
We had never gone to the Orleans because we didn’t know about the shuttles available. I highly recommend using these. They were easy to find, ran on regular schedules, were clean, and they were free, except for tips. We caught the one at Bills, and our driver was great, really talkative and knowledgeable. Because we had nice drivers, we tipped each time.
Shuttles to the Rio were also clean, easy, and convenient with fun drivers. Again, all it cost was a tip.
We rode the Duece a couple of times. This is an okay way to get around if you’re going long distances, like to DT. But, with all the stops, and at times, the unbearable crowds, if your destination is somewhat close, I’d walk it. We learned what turned out to be our best lesson the hard way. If a bus looks too crowded, don’t get on! Another one will be along shortly, and I guarantee you, if the bus in front of you looks full, it will be worth the wait for the next one! We crammed on to a crowded bus because we were up at the Strat and had started walking south, through the not so great neighborhood. We jumped on in the middle of the crowd, and since I’m only 5’1”, I got squished and pushed around, and my foot was crushed by a ton of drunk idiots who insisted that they all had to ride because some had paid, and they weren’t leaving anyone behind. Never mind that there were at least 10 of them, and only room for two, but no, they couldn’t break into groups. I would have gladly gotten off, and risked the seedy area over the ride, but we were stuck in the middle of the standing room only crowd, and couldn’t move. The driver let them get away with it since we were all standing anyway. Whatever! Enough of my rant, the rest of the trips were fine, one was actually pleasant as we moved to the upper level and had the front seats, plus we met a guy from Phoenix with his three kids and talked to them on the way DT.
Taxis, we had some good (who we tipped), one lady who was wonderful (who we tipped almost 50%, mainly because we realized we didn’t have any ones, but she was worth it), and one absolute jerk! (I stiffed him! C thought I should give him at least something, but I just couldn’t bring myself to reward such a horrible person)
The monorail. Ok, where to start… Well, it’s clean, and not crowded. But, it is a long walk from everywhere except the Hilton. But, has this happened to anyone else? The entrance scanner ate my ticket. My all day unlimited ticket which I’d only used once. And of course, C had already gone through. And it was late so there were no attendants anywhere around. C handed me his unlimited ticket and it beeped and read invalid. Ok, now what? C convinced me to jump over it and run. I felt like a real rebel! Needless to say, we didn’t use it again.
Service:
We found most everyone we came in contact with to be helpful and friendly, with some of the waiters actually reaching exceptional levels. They helped make our trip so wonderful so I just feel I have to mention them by name!
Casa Di Amore: Bradley! He was friendly and welcoming, and knew the items he was serving. We asked for suggestions and found him to be very enthusiastic and helpful. Excellent!
Café Lago: Juan Carlos. He should be working at top tier restaurant, not a café. He was courteous, soft-spoken, attentive, and an all-around delight.
Mon Ami Gabi: Phil. Very professional, attentive without being intrusive, and again very knowledgeable.
Grand Lux: Julian. He exemplified extreme professionalism and helpfulness.
StripBurger: The whole staff. The waitress was nice even though she was swamped, and the bartender came out to check on us to make sure we enjoyed our meal. Even the young hostess was pleasant, with a great disposition, something you don’t usually find in a teenager working late at night.
Caesars Palace: Kim, the cocktail waitress. C really liked her in particular =-) but I found them all to be very pleasant, not to mention fast.
Surprises (Some Good, Some Not So Good):
The best: StripBurger. Great food, fun music, strip side patio, and cheap prices. Enough said.
Great: The Hilton. We hadn’t been here since the Star Trek Experience had opened. Glad we went back. We won here on penny slots, they have quick cocktail service, and easy monorail access.
Fun: The Rio. With the easy to use shuttle, this is an enjoyable casino. Last year we went to the Voodoo Lounge, but didn’t stop to explore. I’m so glad this year that we spent an evening here. The free shows, the parade in the sky, they were all entertaining. Plus, we stopped in at Ibar and had drinks. C truly enjoyed the servers outfits here! And the drinks were scrumptious, too. It was fun because every so often the servers climb onto lit pedestals and dance, then get down and go on like nothing happened.
Wow factor: Golden Nugget. While I had wanted to go back DT, I did not expect to like this place this much! It is so nice, and I have to mention…the nicest bathroom ever. (and the ladies will agree that this is very important!!!)
Fun: The Orleans. Again, used the shuttle. We liked this place. Fewer crowds, quick CW’s, more than one $5 BJ table. We’ll be back.
This is so cool: The parrots which you can pose with in front of the Flamingo. We stopped and had our pics taken, because they said you weren’t obligated to buy them. They pose you 3 ways with all these parrots all over you, and you then look at the pics. The photos turned out fabulous so we had to buy all three for $20. All the money is donated to rescue more birds so we gave $25. The first pic we had parrots on our heads and shoulders, and the other pics we were holding them and it was just so fun!
Good and bad: The Drop Bar in Paris. I had read that these were the best Lemon Drops in town, so when the waitress took our orders, I told her what I’d heard and ordered one. She actually seemed more annoyed than anything and couldn’t have cared less about it. When she finally came back with our order, she dropped it, we paid, with a nice tip, but she never came back, even though we sat there for quite a while. But, I have to agree, it was the best Lemon Drop I’d ever had!
Not so great: Mix. This place is just too pretentious without anything to back it up. I had hoped for more, and had read it was one of the few places people dressed up. Not the night we went. Oh well. C liked the view better from Voodoo better, too.
Uh oh: I had my embarrassing moment of the trip in the Mix ladies room. I can’t believe I’m going to share, but who cares, we’re all friends here, right? This is the famous bathroom that is entirely glass, with a great view. Not your usual stall. So, being the intelligent girl I am, I decide I must take photos. Never mind that it is dark out. And the room is painted black And my camera requires that I turn off the flash or it will go off automatically. I decide to close the door, fumble for the camera, and point it outward. Talk about blinding yourself. A bright light reflected back at me from 3 angles. Geez, what was I thinking? Ok, I’m calm now. So I turn off the flash and stumble in my heels towards the glass to take another pic, this time of the view. I’m not one who suffers vertigo, but this angle apparently did me in. I was a little dizzy, and decided it was time to get out of here and rejoin C. Now, if you’ve been in these rooms, you’ll know what I mean when I say they are actual rooms with actual doors. For some reason, (again, don’t know why), I decided the door must swing out. It didn’t. I pushed again. Still nothing. Nothing except the loud sound of a door rattling in a room of glass with very loud echoes. This went on for about five minutes…(well, really more like 20 seconds, but it felt much longer) before I finally came to the realization that if I’d simply pull, I could walk right like a sane person. By the time I threw my self through the door and exited, the girl at the sink had an absolutely panic stricken expression. She looked at me, turned, and hurried out. I then gathered my composure and left. By the time I reached C, I couldn’t contain the embarrassed laughter. The worst part of all this is that I was completely…100%…sober. No, I can’t even blame it on my imbibing.
So sad: How much the Mirage and TI have changed. They really lost their identity, and are now more generic versions of their former selves. I guess everything must evolve, but I miss the atrium and aquarium in the Mirage entrance.
Too much: I know Vegas is growing, but all the skyscrapers on the strip have caused “the strip skyline” to become less distinctive.
WHAT?: We tried to go to Peppermill for dinner, but the night we went the 24/7 Vegas institution was “temporarily closed.” Why? We are “temporarily closed.” OK…when will you re-open? “We don’t know.” OK?! We never did find out why they were closed, but we never tried to go back. Didn’t want to chance anything.
The M%26amp;G on 9/6:
This was so fun, and a very pleasant way to spend an afternoon! It was a much smaller group than anticipated, but it was nice to meet those who did come. Squigman and Mrs Squigman, Vegas Cats and her husband Jeff, Bon’s Mom, Wandering Nomad and her husband Matt, Aquarious59, Firsttimer and Mrs Firstimer were all there and a delight to talk with. Special thanks to Spike for coming and sharing his stories about previous M%26amp;G’s as well as many ideas for what to do while in town. And to Firstimer, I especially enjoyed meeting your wife! She was wonderful and warm, even though she admitted that she’s not one of “us” on this forum. If you ever get a chance, I highly recommend joining one of these. But, I’d try to find a new location. The tequila bar is too loud with a stuffy, not so friendly staff.
General Observations:
Why do people who rent cabanas feel they’re then entitled to take any general lounge chair they want when they decide they don’t want the shade of their cabana?
Why do people stop in the middle of the street when crossing it? Even though they’re in the middle of a crowd? And a street? Hello! Keep moving, the taxis WILL run you over!
I love going in early September! It’s still hot, (but we’re from Phoenix so that’s the way we like it) definitely pool weather, but there were very few kids! It was awesome!
I never thought we could become addicted to slots but we found ourselves looking everywhere for Top Gun slots! We also liked the Hot Shots slots, even tough they didn’t ever pay us.
It seems people are becoming ruder than ever, we witnessed customers yelling at waiters, shoving to get through crowds, just all-around thoughtlessness. Plus, one of the sales girls where we were shopping flirted with C relentlessly, and even if I answered her question, her gaze never left him. It was so obvious that he even noticed, which never happens.
7 reasons we know we’re old:
1. While watching the Binion Babes writhe and wiggle, C turned to me and said the show would be better if they’d just turn down the volume.
2. After seeing the line to get into Pure, I decided I’d rather find another penny Top Gun machine than wait in that long to get into a club.
3. After being handed a free pass for a club, and we wound up not using it because we didn’t want to stand around the club with “all those kids”.
4. C realized he was more concerned for the two very drunk 21 y.o. girls walking in front of us in mini dresses making it safely across the street without falling down than anything “else“. And when one did fall down, he was trying to help her up instead of making a comment about how she landed on her knees.
5. I realized that just because the cw goes by, I don’t have to slam my drink so I can order another one. She’ll be back.
6. We went to the Palms for the VMA arrivals and I didn’t know 90% of the celebrities. (sigh)
Good thing Vegas doesn’t have age restrictions! (LOL)
7. We discovered our new favorite game is watching “drag the drunk chick”, and realizing it’s much more entertaining watch than to participate in!
Summary:
I can’t believe it’s over! After 8 nights, there are still things we didn’t get to. I need to go back! Soon! And, while I tried to keep it short, this still turned pretty lengthy, so hopefully you stuck it out and were able to get some helpful hints. I know that reading this forum helped me discover new things, even though I ’d been so many times before. I’d be glad to answer any questions=-)
TR-Flamingo 9/2-9/10- Very, Very Long!There’s also a link to the pics if you want to see them. Warning, there are a lot of them! A disclaimer: my camera is old and cranky, so some of the pics are dark and grainy (we prefer to say they have mood lighting) or they are a bit blurry (or how half the visitors actually view Vegas!) Enjoy! (Hopefully, I’ll get the link right on the first try)
travel.webshots.com/album/560742509xxSFJy…
Thank you so much for the wonderful TR and pictures! I%26#39;m with you on that ';favorite sign/Margaritaville'; picture! I%26#39;m a Margarita girl! Happy Birthday, and anniversary........you look like you had a WONDERFUL time, and it just makes me SO excited to be counting down the days to MY next trip! Thanks, blazyn!!
blazyn- great trip report. I felt like I was there all over again.
It was so nice meeting you and chris at the Sept 6 M%26amp;G. thanks to Firstimer for organizing it. I%26#39;m still not fully functioning and it%26#39;s been over 2 weeks that I%26#39;ve been home!
Great trip report. Thanks for taking the time to write it. You made Casa Di Amore sound great. Will definitely put it on my list for my next trip.
Thanks so much for your TR report!! I could definitely relate to your report, as my H wanted no part of ';fru fru'; food either. We also felt out of place at many of the bars, since we have kids that are college and almost college age.
I laughed out loud at your description of the new game ';drag the drunk';! We watched that many a time during our trip too.
Loved your pictures, what a great way to spend your anniversary and birthday! (our anniversary is in Sept too, so we love to spend it in Vegas).
LOVE Chris%26#39;s shirt with the margarita%26#39;s! where did he get it? DH definitely needs one!
And I definitely need to put Strip Burger on my list of places to try next time. Sounds like you guys really enjoyed it and it would be right up our alley.
Vegascats: We loved meeting you and Jeff, too. I really enjoyed our M%26amp;G!
Thanks, eveyone, for the positive responses. I wasn%26#39;t sure anyone would stick it out and read a report so long!
Texasteejay: Isn%26#39;t Margaritaville so much fun. My DH even said he%26#39;d eat frou-frou food (just for me on my b-day,) but I wanted to go and have fun and let loose, not a prim and proper ';dining experience';
blazyn, so where did Chris get his shirt?
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