12 Day "Family" Vegas Trip: Aug 31-Sept 11

PROLOGUE:
I started to plan this 12 day Vegas extravaganza back in May. This started out as planning for a solo trip, but when I mentioned to my son and his wife about going to Sin City they thought that it would be a perfect trip to celebrate their 5th wedding anniversary, as that is where they spent their honeymoon. So I guess I just invited them to join me??? The tricky part was putting together hotel stays for us and still take advantage of as many free hotel nights as possible. It took some doing, but I laid out a patch work of hotel stays which I will detail later. I flew on Sun Country again, RT for $240. I opted for the 1st class upgrade each way; I'm getting spoiled flying first class. I kept on checking car rental rates and was lucky enough to hit on a price of $271 for the entire 12 day trip for a full sized car. I booked an ATV tour for the kids along with tickets to see MJ One at Mandalay Bay as their anniversary gift.

Things were in place by mid August when my youngest son, Alex, decided that September would be a good time to take a vacation, so Vegas would be a great place to go....right Dad? He booked his flight a week before I left for Vegas.....great, now I have three kids in tow....whatever happened to my carefree solo trip?

MONDAY AUG 31;
I had an early evening flight, so I was able to take a nice long nap after my night shift at work before heading to the airport. Sun Country uses the smaller Humphrey terminal at the MSP airport, so checking in and going thru security is a lot less of a hassle. I sat down at the bar and ordered up my usual double Hendrick's gin and tonic...NFL....no frick'in lime. I asked the bartender for some cucumber slices for my drink...he smiled and said, "We've had this conversation before, haven't we?" He talked to his bar-back and she returned a minute later with my cucumber slices...perfect. The flight left on time and only seemed to be about 50% full; I had a first class row all to myself...tasty G & T's during the flight.

I'm going to refrain from giving a day to day rendition of the trip because of it's length and all of the activities and running around that was involved. I'll break it up into categories and fill in with some details.

HOTELS:

This took some planning, but I managed pretty well in getting free or reduced hotel rates for the most part.

Flamingo: I booked nine nights; stayed in a king Fab room overlooking the high roller and the pool area on the top (28th) floor. I stayed there for the 1st two nights and then let my son Andrew and his wife, Heather, have the room from Wednesday thru Sunday. I then moved back into the room the following Monday and Tuesday with my other son, Alex. I ordered a rollaway bed for him so he didn't have to sleep on the couch. It was a large room, quiet, just around the hall from the elevators..no complaints from the kids or myself.

Southpoint: I received a free one night offer from them for entering their NASCAR contest this spring. I stayed here one night after getting Andrew and Heather settled into my (their) room at the Flamingo. It was a nice 4th floor room, with a beautiful view of a wall about 10 feet away. I arrived around midnight, checked in, had a cheap and satisfactory graveyard breakfast special for $4.99 and then gambled for about an hour, breaking even, before calling it a night. The casino and the room were very nice, just wish it wasn't located so far from everything else.

Mirage: Stayed there on Thursday on a MyVegas comp. Alex flew in late (11:30PM) and stayed with me. The clerk at the desk was very pleasant...had no problem with the room comp and switching from a king to a two queen room at the last minute. This was my first stay at a MGM property in almost 20 years. Had a room on the 19th floor with a view of the Interstate and north strip. Nice quiet room.

Gold Coast: Stayed here on Friday and Saturday on a room comp. I had made the reservation for a king bed, but that was before I knew of Alex's plans. They didn't have any non-smoking queen bed rooms available, but the nice desk clerk said that she would have a rollaway bed brought up to the room right away. We went to have some lunch and when we returned the bed was in the room...nice service. The rollaway made for the room being a little cramped, but it was not a big deal. We didn't have a room safe, but I hear that they are in the process of installing in-room safes in all of the hotel rooms.

Luxor: Stayed there on Sunday on a MyVegas room comp. We had a 6th floor Pyramid room. The carpet was a little worn in some places, but the bathroom was large and the beds were comfortable...no complaints.

Golden Gate: I stayed here for the last three days of my trip on a room comp. Small room, but clean and comfortable. The bathrooms are really small and you have to have the deft touch of a neurosurgeon in getting the water temperature in the shower just right. After staying at the Gate several times, I've finally mastered the technique.

Mandalay Bay: I reserved this room for Andrew and Heather for Monday and Tuesday nights, while Alex and I returned to the Flamingo room. Since they were seeing the show there, I thought that they might enjoy the pool complex as well.

As you can readily see, I moved around from hotel to hotel for most of the trip...a lot of "one night stands". I kept a roof over everyone's head while keeping expenses to a minimum. Everything considered, I won't be doing this type of thing again. It was hard getting up every morning and packing up to move to another place. It was especially hard when I had my son to contend with. I've seen three-toed sloths move faster in the morning than this kid. He would stay out until 3-4 in the morning and then expect to sleep in. Getting him up and packed before check out time was exasperating.

RENTAL CAR:
My rate from Enterprise for a 12 day full sized car rental ran me only $271 all in...pretty good deal. When I arrived at the rental counter around 9 PM there was only one guy at the counter ahead of me. Looking at the other rental counters...they were packed with weary tourists. The lone customer at my counter turned out to be a royal pain in the ass. He didn't have a reservation, didn't know what type of car he wanted, whined about the prices...took 15 minutes to get him squared away. It took me 30 seconds to show the clerk my credit card and ID and I was on my way to the car lot. I ended up with a Nissan Altima that has one of those keyless ignition systems. That will be the last time I choose a car with one of them. We drove up to Zion National Park one day; did a lot of hiking and sightseeing. At the end of the day we returned to the car exhausted and hungry. We piled into the car, I put my foot on the brake and pushed the ignition button to start the car....nothing. Checked to see if I still had the key fob in my pocket, if the car was in park, battery was okay....pushed the button again...nothing. At this point I started to sweat a little bit...last thing I needed was to be stranded out in the middle of nowhere, on a Holiday weekend with car trouble. No car manual in the glove box...nuts. I ended up playing with the key fob...lock, unlock the doors...repeating this several times and then the car started...whew.

This happened several times throughout the trip, which got to be a pain. I didn't return the car because it was Labor Day weekend and I thought that all of the decent cars had already been rented out. I complained to the lot attendant at the end of the trip..he seemed pretty puzzled about why this would happen, but he knocked off a day's rental rate from my bill....so I felt satisfied. The car performed well during the trip, smooth, quiet ride, lots of zip on the interstate...just a little dicey about getting it started from time to time.

SHOWS:
Mac King: Took in the 1 PM show with Andrew and Heather one afternoon; seats in the center section, 2nd row. I've seen the show several times already, but still enjoyed it. Heather was amazed at some of the tricks. This is hands down the best afternoon show that Vegas has to offer. I bought tickets that included a BOGO buffet offer, which we used later in the trip; turned out to be 4 buffets for the price of two...good deal.

Absinthe: The kids really wanted to see this, even though I wasn't sure how my daughter in law would handle the crude language. The guy at the ticket desk was going to give me front row seats...no way...I've been to the show a couple of times before, and the Gazillionaire always picks on and humiliates the people sitting in the front row...what else you got? Seats in the middle of the 3rd row...close to the action, but should be out of "harms" way (Hah). VIP seating, which afforded us a special entrance and a small bottle of champagne. The champagne was truly vile tasting, I could only drink half a glassful. The seats were great and we really enjoyed the performers, but this is where I made my "theatrical" debut. Towards the end of the show the Gazillionaire pointed me out and asked me to come up on stage. I tried to play dumb, thinking that he was pointing to someone else..."No, I mean you, asshole!" No use in refusing, it would only lead to more abuse...I'm hooked. He called on another guy to come up along with a petite Asian lady sitting in the first row. The two of us had to perform a lap dance competition with this unfortunate lady. I did my best, trying to remember some of the moves that I have seen performed at the Spearmint Rhino, during my excursions there with MadMan Mike and Freddie Five Fingers....unbuttoning my shirt, playing with her hair, a little grinding on her lap...alas, she picked the other guy as the winner...story of my life when it comes to women. Of course my son Alex got everything on video. I did get a free drink out of the performance after the show. I had several women come up to me outside of the show tent and said that I was clearly the winner. One lady thought that I was a "plant"..an actual show member as part of the act....didn't get any phone numbers however. Well, I've had my 15 minutes of fame...I just hope I don't end up on You Tube.

Michael Jackson One: Andrew and Heather were amazed with this show...they talked about it for weeks after the trip. I had reserved seats in the center section about 2/3 of the way back, so that they had a better vantage point to see all of the things that go on "off stage".

Going to take a break at this point and finish up later...very soon. Hope you have enjoyed reading so far.

Excellent report so far - sounds like ya'll had a great time at Absinthe...

I agree with you about the water temp at golden gate. it is quite annoying and I don't have the patience for it. If you don't mind sharing, what is the technique? it seems like there is a delay. you turn the knob but it takes a minute to "catch up" as if it is traveling from a water heater in somewhere Montana.

Your TRs are always great fun to read!

RESTAURANTS:

In and Out Burger: Alex and I ate there for lunch one afternoon; what a zoo..place was packed. I'll give them credit, they had three guys at the counter taking orders, so the line moved quickly..tricky part was finding a place to sit and eat inside. Good burgers; the animal fries that my son ordered looked like a potential gastrointestinal disaster, so I passed on trying them.

Margaritaville: I had lunch there one afternoon; sitting at the bar. Average food, delicious beer and great people watching.

Ping Pang Pong: Timberwolf and I ate there for a late, late, late dinner (around 2:30 A.M.?), the food was good and plentiful...service was rather slow, considering that we were the only diners.

Johnny Rockets(Flamingo): Let the kids use my ACG BOGO coupon for a burger and shake. They thought both were pretty good.

HHAGG (Rio) Alex and I ate there for breakfast...huge portions, Alex couldn't believe the amount of food.

Trevi(Caesars Forum shops)--An Italian restaurant with mediocre food and poor service....and way over priced. They messed up my son's order..took a long time to get things straightened out. Waiter was nonexistent never refilled our empty water glasses, etc. Should have eaten at Bastista's Hole in the wall...they have average Italian food too, but at least they have an accordion player. Won't be eating at this place again...ever.

Harrah's Buffet: We ate there twice using coupons so made for dining on the cheap. Plenty of selections to choose from. My diamond card came in handy in avoiding the long buffet line. Not the best buffet in town, but decent.

Redwood Room(California): We ate here on the kid's final night in town. Andrew and I had the porterhouse steak special, Alex had lamb chops and Heather had some type of pasta dish. The steak wasn't the best that I have ever had, but for $24 for a complete meal, including a delicious dessert...you can't beat it. The waiter was excellent, quiet atmosphere, and good food and a decent price. I wish they still had the piano player in the bar lounge...he really added a touch of class to the dining experience.

Lawry's Prime Rib: This was the anniversary celebration dinner and the dining highlight of the trip. A great dining experience, the food and service was outstanding, as always. Everything is served tableside, Andrew devoured their largest prime rib offering...it was huge. Very nice wine selection, and we ordered and shared a couple of different desserts. Can't say enough good things about this place....first rate.

Rio Buffet: Alex and I dined there for brunch..a little pricey, but plenty of food to choose from, very good meal.

Dupars: We had the famous Golden Gate shrimp cocktails for a mid-afternoon snack. My daughter in law inhaled hers before I even had mine halfway done. I had a $15 food voucher which paid for most of our 4 servings. I also ate breakfast there a couple of times towards the end of my trip. I usually sit at the counter and chat with the waitresses....mine called me "sweetie"...how quaint.

ACTIVITIES:

The kids had a limited gambling budget, so I tried to find other things that we could do. The day trip to Zion National Park was great. It was mostly cloudy, so it did not get too hot. We hiked up the Narrows for a ways, stopping several times to take pictures and soak in the beautiful scenery. We also took some short hikes on some the trails. I could see that my daughter in law was getting fatigued ...she wasn't drinking enough water and started to get dehydrated. We saw lots of wildlife....plenty of deer, wild turkeys and some very inquisitive squirrels that would walk right up to us. A week after we were there, 7 hikers perished in a flash flood in one of the side canyons...very tragic.

I bought Andrew and Heather an ATV tour package and they spent an afternoon, tearing through the desert in one of those two seater ATV's (Razor?) They had a blast, and came back covered from head to toe with dirt.

Alex and I went to Battlefield Vegas gun range one afternoon. My son was determined to shoot a 50 caliber rifle. One round cost $30..yikes. What a beast of a gun, the muzzle blast is something to behold. My son put his round into the bullseye. I've been to this place several times and they have a first class operation. All of the range instructors have been very professional. They have plenty of weaponry to choose from. They will also pick you up and drop you off at your hotel in a humvee free of charge.

Here is a list of some of the other things that we did during the trip...in no particular order.

Went atop of the Eiffel tower, toured the Bellagio conservatory, Flamingo wildlife habitat, Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay, Rio wine cellar(thanks Jose), group picture at Binion's(free) and took advantage of several Diamond lounges. We sat in the lounge at the Pho one evening and watched the Minnesota vs TCU football game on their big screen TV while drinking free cocktails and munchies. The place was practically empty so we had our own private viewing area.

The kids, of course, enjoyed several afternoons poolside. I on the other hand, did not spend one second at any of the pools for the entire trip. I was too busy moving from hotel to hotel, taking the kids to various places...no pool time. I did make an attempt late one afternoon at the Flamingo pool but was turned away by the security guard..."Sorry we are closed." But the pool is open to 6 pm and it is only 5:40...nope we are closed. He then started to lecture me about having a room key and proper ID...which I pulled out of my shirt pocket...."you mean these, sir?"...still wouldn't budge.

GAMBLING:

I spent very little time gambling this trip, considering being there for 12 days. My youngest son did a lot of hit and runs at the roulette tables and did quite well. He didn't fare so well on his sports bets. Andrew and Heather played some slots and video roulette. I took them down to the El Cortez one night so that they could experience what it is like to play at a "live" table. They have 25 cent roulette with $1 minimum bets. Heather was hooked, she really enjoyed the experience. Both of them ended up leaving the table with a profit which added to the fun. As we were playing I watched the other roulette table...black came up 13 times in a row. These guys were betting heavy on red..."It just can't come up black again, can it?" They lost their shirts.

I played VP at the Tag bar at the Linq, but my sessions were short and late at night....(between midnight and 2 AM) I did play quite a bit of VP at the Gold Coast with Timberwolf a couple of nights before the kids arrived...no quads. The last couple of days I was solo again so I was able to pick up my gambling pace. I got beat up pretty well at the Blackjack tables at the Golden Gate, but rallied on the last day playing craps to recoup some of my loses there. I also hit 4 ducks for $250 playing at the Golden Gate bartops. I made some money playing at the Boar's head bar at MSS only to give it all back and then some at the Vue bar at the D. I again ran into a quad drought this trip. I think I hit only 5 quads the entire time and 3 of them happened within a 15 minute span at the Boars Head. When I added everything up, I was down a grand for the trip gambling wise. I brought a hefty bankroll with me, so I have plenty of dough in my gambling war chest for the next trip.

MISCELLANEOUS RAMBLINGS:

I have never seen so many people in Las Vegas as with this trip. I have been here for Super Bowls, St Patrick's Day, Kentucky Derby weekend, Memorial Day weekend, July 4th, Halloween, Thanksgiving and during the rodeo in December. None of those trips compares to the crowds that I encountered this time...lots of people...dumb ass people everywhere. I am glad I have my diamond status, as I was able to avoid the long lines at the Harrah's properties. The lines to check in at the Flamingo were huge all week..there must have been 50 people in line one night...at 2 A.M. I used the valet at the Flamingo several times as the self parking garage was a nightmare. A couple of times, the valet was full, except for diamond card holders..score.

I witnessed a hot game of 3 card Monte going at the overpass between Bally's and the Cromwell one afternoon..quite a crowd of people/suckers trying their luck. One afternoon we walked by a guy receiving a $2500 handpay at a video keno machine just by our elevators. Four hours later when I walked by he was still playing at the same machine. When I came down from the room the next morning, he was sitting at the same machine, playing while contently drinking his coffee. I came back late afternoon...still there. One night we were walking thru the Flamingo...place was packed. My daughter in law had her purse dangling at her side when someone made a grab for it. Fortunately the strap around her wrist was solid and he couldn't break/pull it away from her wrist. She didn't tell me about it for about 15 seconds after it happened...by that time the culprit had vanished into the crowd.

Alex and I each had a Verbena cocktail at the 2nd floor Chandileer bar at the Cosmo one afternoon. Interesting drink..it gives your mouth a unique sensation which is hard to describe. I had told my son about how the hookers seem to flock to the Luxor late at night. He encountered two of them when we stayed there. I was exhausted after a week in Vegas, so when he wanted to hit the casino at 2AM, I declined and sent him on his way. He returned quietly to the room around 4:30 and I had a hard time getting him up before check out time. I asked him how he did in the casino and he laughed. Two hookers approached him as he was cashing in a TITO ticket. He instantly knew what was up and decided to have some "fun" with them. He played the part of a young starry eyed Vegas virgin bumpkin. "Yeah, this is my first time in Las Vegas, I'm actually staying in a Pyramid...can you believe it!" "First time in Vegas for you girls?" "Did you know that they give you free drinks while you are gambling...isn't that great!" One of the hookers left quickly, while the other one persisted...all the while my son pretended to be totally oblivious to what she was suggesting. After a few minutes she said, "Are you for real?" and walked away in a huff. We had a good laugh to start out the day.

I had another great time hanging out with Timberwolf...great guy. Good times playing VP at the Gold Coast bar and having several adult libations...maybe too many. After our late night meal at Ping Pang Pong I said my goodbyes (he was staying the the GC) and left for the Flamingo. I got the bright(drunken) idea that I could save myself a couple of bucks on a cab fare if I just walked back to the Strip....at 3:30 in the morning....with 2 grand in my wallet....DUMB. I had a long, but uneventful walk back to the hotel....haven't done something that stupid in quite a while. What the hell was I thinking?

I spent a fun afternoon drinking and chatting with the female bartenders at Hogs and Heifers. Good afternoon crowd..several people from Minnesota. I had to take a detour on my way to the airport the last night in town. They had Industrial blocked off...seems like some guy decided he wanted to jump off the top of the Fashion Mall..cops had the whole area blocked off. I purchased a coupon to use the Airport lounge on the D concourse...pretty sweet deal. I had several gin and tonics(free), read the local newspaper, had some free snacks and recharge by phone. I timed it so that I walked from the lounge to my boarding gate just in time for the attendant to call for first class boarding. The flight back went smoothly, slept most of the way(redeye flight). The temps were in the 40's when we landed, which was kind of a shock considering the temperatures in Vegas. I was totally exhausted when I arrived home...I don't think that I can take another 12 day trip again....maybe..certainly not with the kids.....didn't have a whole lot of "me" time. A big "Thanks" goes out to Timberwolf...great hanging out with you again...looking forward to seeing you in December.

I have already booked my December trip...all set...hotel (Rio), premium car(Enterprise) and RT flight on Sun Country. My daughter is flying in from California, so it will be nice to spend some one on one time with her. I am sure that we will be spending several evenings at the Rio wine cellar and hitting some nice restaurants...thinking about Sinatra at the Encore. Still trying to come up with a show to see for this trip. I wanted to see "Showstoppers" at the Wynn, but they will be "dark" during my stay. My next thought was to see the Sinatra show at the Palazzo, the guy does a great impersonation of Frank and is backed up with a 32 piece live orchestra. Now I read that the show is closing a few days before our trip.

FLASH....late breaking news......Spirit Airlines had a one day airfare sale. RT from MSP to Vegas for $74.18.....booked it. Will use my American Tourister tote as a personal item...so no baggage fees. Staying at the Golden Gate for free...bus pass for transportation...Diamond lounges for free snacks/food/drinks...life can be good, very good. I guess I'll get to have my solo trip after all. Leave next Monday for four nights. Stand by for the next trip report. This will be my fifth trip to Vegas this year! Thanks for reading.

Having your adult children in Vegas can be fun, but even the best can expect Mimi and Big Poppi to smooth the rough spots, still you did a great job handling all the lodging issues. We recently returned from Vegas, Oct 2 and I had a drought on 4OK only 2 in 6 days. Thanks for the Trip Report, we will post ours in a few days.

Very nice, Larry! Thanks for that very nice, well detailed report! Sorry to read of your gaming losses! Great that you spent some time with the kids and the D-I-L!

I have been telling people about the Quarter Roulette With $1 Minimum bets at El Cortez. People are surprised that you can play for that low of a denomination nowadays. As for Black coming out 13 times in a row, with Roulette, I can't say that this actually surprises me since I know that Roulette can be a streaky game.

As for the keyless car stuff, I had one experience with that one day when my car needed a part that the dealership didn't have and so they gave me a rental car which was a Toyota Prius. I absolutely hated it since I had no idea what was what, I needed it for less than 24 hours, and then I had to spend time reading the Owners manual and then I found out that this rental car had a tire issue. The whole thing was exasperating and just a horrible experience!

And a just over $74 RT for your upcoming trip sounds really great!

But yes, 12 days is a whole lot and I could never handle something that long to LV. About 4 or 5 nights would be my max for LV. And that was quite a lot of hotel rooms moving around that you did. But I'm happy that it all did work out for all of you!

RecVPPlayer