I’ve played at Caesars properties for a few decades and generally play up to Seven Stars status. If Bonnie and I didn’t enjoy cruising, we might not play here. But we do, and we do.
They used to have Seven Stars lounges at each property. While each property did these lounges differently than the other properties, generally you could get free food and beverages for the price of a tip. The company was sold several times, went through a bankruptcy or two, and now Seven Stars lounges are called Laurel Lounges — and basically don’t exist.
Still, each property modestly rewards their Seven Stars customers with respect to food and beverages. Whenever we go to a different Caesars/Harrah’s/Eldorado property, we check out how the system works there. In Las Vegas, Seven Stars players get four drink coupons and one $10 food voucher daily. (Diamond players get the drink coupons but not the $10 food voucher.) The drink tickets can be used for any beverages which cost $25 or less — and at a significant number of restaurants and bars across town. Each property also has bars and restaurants that don’t accept these food and beverage vouchers.
There are some glasses of wine that cost $25.99 available at these bars and restaurants. It seems obvious that your $25 voucher would cover most of that, leaving you with a small overage to pay for using a different means. But obvious answers aren’t always correct. Here if you order that glass of wine, you can’t apply a voucher at all. It’s over $25 and that’s that. The restaurant servers don’t like this rule, but they have to abide by it.
In late February, Bonnie and I had some Seven Stars visitors and so we all went to Gordon Ramsay Pub & Grill inside Caesars Palace. Bonnie and I each get 10 annual $100 “Seven Stars Celebration” Dinners, from February 1 to January 31. We’re not big eaters and, including our $10 food vouchers, can easily order enough food for $120 to satisfy both of us. Our friends had their own vouchers.
I was not playing anymore on this day, so I ordered a glass of wine. My first choice of wine would have been a $25.99 glass, but I knew the rules and ordered a glass for $21.99. While I was ordering, Bonnie took her ID and Player’s Card to one outlet where she can get 750 ml bottles of Diet Pepsi for her tickets. While I’m sure diet soda isn’t healthy for her to drink, and have told her as much, she enjoys them, and she uses two of her drink tickets each time we go there to get soda to take home. She knows how I feel about diet soda, figures that I’m probably right healthwise, but it’s not a battle either one of us want to fight repeatedly. She’s 80 years old. That’s one of her pleasures in life. Let her be!
Until recently, one of the fast-food outlets, DiFara Pizza, sold liter bottles of Fiji water at a hotel price of $9.99 apiece. Any extra drink tickets that are not spent elsewhere go towards this water. They seem to have done away with this water, and now 700 ml bottles of Aquafina are the biggest you can get. Still, we always need portable water in a desert.
On this particular night, Bonnie got two bottles of Diet Pepsi, I had one glass of wine charged to her drink tickets, and so we stopped to pick up five bottles of water on our way to the car. Somehow, though, the system showed that I indeed had four drink vouchers to spend, but Bonnie didn’t have any. Either the outlet where she got the soda or the restaurant over-charged her.
I suppose we could have spent 15-20 minutes and figured out exactly what happened and gotten it rectified, but we’re talking about a bottle of water here. Probably costs $4 at Walmart – although certainly more than that here.
I did mention to the server that it’s not fair that we don’t get that fifth bottle of water. The server was polite enough, but unbudging. If her computer doesn’t tell her that Bonnie has another bottle of water coming, we weren’t going to get one. So, we let it go. Another battle not worth fighting.
Both Bonnie and I were slightly irritated — but that feeling passed quickly. We’re fortunate that we’re able to shrug off these things and not sweat the small stuff.
I have been a diamond at caesars for awhile and have never heard of drink coupons. Have I been missing the boat?
“We’re fortunate that we’re able to shrug off these things and not sweat the small stuff.”
Pretty much everything you write is about obsessing over small stuff. People who don’t sweat the small stuff don’t even use drink coupons. They just pay for their damn soda and move on with their lives. They don’t, “mention to the server that it’s not fair that we don’t get that fifth bottle of water.”
An exception with your obsessing over small stuff was your writing very informatively about your hip surgery. I hope your new hip is functioning well.
As long as she doesn’t overdo the ‘diet’ sodas. My husband had me start buying him Coke Zero. He can knock out a 12 pack of whatever soda in 3 days or less. Recently I noticed, or thought so, that his chronic depression was raising its ugly head again. I went through his medicines…anything new that might be causing this? But no new meds. Somehow I thouight of the Coke Zero, relatively new in his over-indulgence. Looked on the can and of course it contains Aspartame, like most other diet sodas.
I consulted Dr. Google and learned a lot about Aspartame. Years ago there was worry of assocation with bladder cancer, but that has been discounted. BUT, it apparently has significant affect on the brain, and depression was on the short list of effects. Probably one or two a day wouldn’t hurt, but the amount my husband was drinking…not worth taking a chance. I cut him off Coke Zero immediately (“Honey, I like you a little overweight better than how your depression symptoms are worsening.” In maybe 3 days those symptoms were clearing up, amazingly. Back to regular Coke.
So, like all things, moderation is the key. Apology for diverting from the main topic, but I thought this might be helpful to someone else. Depression is a bitch to have and a bitch to live with someone who is cursed with it.
Wow, that is an informative and frightening story. I drink more diet pop than I should but lately have been trying to drink more water and iced tea. I had never heard of the Aspartame depression link. Thanks for the story.
Don’t you have to be Diamond Plus or Elite to receive the drink vouchers? I thought regular Diamond does not get you the drinks.
Yeahhhh…Thank You. I used to be a Rum & Diet Coke drinker. I stopped because rum prices went sky high. I dont really enjoy Diet Coke. I drank that mix because it wasn’t as sweet as a Rum & Coke. I gotta look up that Aspertame article. Im 70 now & look forward to 80. Thanks again!
Bob lives in a bubble. “Not sweating the small stuff.” Literally no self-reflection ability with this guy.
If and when my wife reaches 80, I’ll be pushing 100. I somehow can’t see her nagging at me for drinking too much diet coke. Not if she’s “only” 80 years old.