April 21st to 28 Trip Report

This was our 3rd trip to Las Vegas this year.  Flight was a red eye on Alliagiant for 389 for both of us al in non stop round trip.  Rental car was with payless for 217 total for a midsize 7 days. Great car,  small mazda suv.  We could have went with fox fo 211 but this was more convienient for the difference.  We are starting to go with the midsize instead of the standard, because the standard now seems to be a compact.  Anyone else feel the same way?  We had 4 comped nights at Suncoast with 30 free play and 20 food credit.  3 comped nights at Green Valley Ranch with 75 in free play.  

      Our flight was 20 minites early, and the Payless window was closed so was sent to the Avis window.  No line , and no waiting.  We got a great golf view king at the Suncoast and went down to play for and hour and grab some waters.  We each ended up about 40 bucks and called it a night.  

       I will post more tomorrow

The places where you're staying are icons of a particular casino industry niche--"locals'" casinos in an affluent area. Suncoast and Rampart are on the edge of Summerlin and were built to cater to its residents; Summerlin's initial shtick, which continues to some extent today, is that if you live up there, you won't have to descend to the crowding and filth of Las Vegas proper. You need casinos? Here they are!

GVR borders the most affluent areas of Henderson, such as Seven Hills. Anything south of the freeway (215? 515?) is in the nouveau riche category. As such, it was bulit to cater to that crowd (in stark contrast to the nearby dust joints, such as Reserve/Fiesta Henderson). GVR provides local McMansion residents the opportunity to gamble without descending to mingle with the riffraff.

So I'd like to get your impressions of the two places, especially insofar as how they contrast with each other. Boyd has pretty much abandoned the concept of locals' casinos altogether; Stations has, too, to a large extent, but still pays lip service to it. Each casino has a lot of stuff that you'd never see in a Strip casino: a movie theater, kids' play areas, etc. Of course, that used to include buffets.

Also...there's a considerable climate difference between the two areas, due to elevation and wind direction; let us know if you discern anything noticeable. One amenities difference is that while both place have pools, GVR's is considerably more fancy-ass. Let us know what you think.

Both areas are pretty nice and the rooms are better than many on the strip.  The Rampart has gone too far local for us.  Players cards roll over every 3 months so it is very hard to qualify for multipliers days and all the goodies.  It gets pretty busy over  there with drawings a couple days a week and lots of promotions.  Some of the best rooms anywhere and great pools and resurants.  We had a nice run there for awhile after covid, now they are off our list.  The buffet is a pretty good one if you can get a 2 for 1.  Probably just a little below the Palms.

       The Suncoast is currently going though a big remodel, but the rooms are great.  They did bring back 5 dollar craps tables on our last trip, but i am not sure who they are trying to cater to since covid.  The casino is never very busy, and the bars have dropped in quality in recent years.  They are putting in a food hall , 2 new bars and a new bingo room, and complely redoing the casino floor.  Last year they took out the showroom and made it a really nice sportsbook.  We found some great old flat tops in the bowling center this last trip , which were great in the mournings.  The pool is just okay,.  We find it is pretty easy and quick to get to other oppertunities from the Suncoast..

         Redrocks is pretty great, and very comparable to Green Valley Ranch.  It is always a little cooler in Summerlin and a little less windy, and less traffic.

      Green Valley Ranch , Durango and Red Rocks now bring out snack treys at some of the bars, wihich is pretty cool.  The pool is great and doesn't get too crowded.  Table limits are a little high, but seem to be busy except for the craps tables.  Theys are 10 and 15 dollars, but don't get near the play they used to.  The bar tenders all seem to remember us at the station properties, and tend to be younger and very good looking.  Great resturants, and 6 bars with video poker.  All of these properties have free parking and free valet.  We find Henderson harder to get around if we want to go other places.  Not terrible, just avoid peak times.  I hope this helps

I lived on the west side of Henderson (Silverado Ranch area) about 20 years ago, just when the building frenzy in that area was really getting started. I was bemused by the way the neighborhood was being built up, in that it was so different in order of completion than on Planet Earth:

1. Housing developments

2. Passable roads

3. Casinos

4. Convenience stores

5. Stop signs, street signs

6. Sidewalks

7. Gas stations

8. Grocery stores

9. Other shopping 

10. Schools

658. Parks (if at all)

Summerlin, by contrast, was a "planned community " So if you moved there, even in the early stages, you felt like you were in an actual community rather than on a movie set.

None of all this has really affected the vibe for visitors. Summerlin is still somewhat more moneyed than west Henderson. That is reflected in the huge success of the upscale -ish Elmer Fudd's Wed Wock Wanch.

Tuesday , day one, we started by sleeping in and having breakfast at Dupars.  It is 10 times points at boyd so we hit the same machines as last night, but it was a slow drain.  So we headed out to Aliante for lunch at Rubios for the great fish taco special on tuesdays.  Everything made  fresh, and loaded up.

      We had alot of fun out there for a couple of people that had maybe the worst day in a casino ever.  I think we were trying so hard to win, and pressing bets, and being agressive, that we lost perspective..  Anyway we ended up having a great meal in the steakhouse during happy hour.  The steak frites was awesome.

      Then back to the Suncoast, to play  before bed.  Unfortunately we were still chasing, and lost some more.  Overall a brutal day like we have never had before.  We both lost about half our bankroll for a 7 day trip on day one.  And there were 5 and 10 cent games available at the bars.   Pretty sad day that we will hopefully learn from.  Just because one casino or one game or whatever was good last time or in the past,doesn;t mean anything for the current machine you are playing, and we should all know that as much as we play.

    Sorry for the downer first day.  I will post more tomarrow 

Hope your luck changes for the better.  Thanks for the trip report. 

Thanks for the trip report. I can relate on 2 trips my wife & I lost most of our bankroll for our trip in 1 day. We learned our lesson the hard way.

It's always a drag to lose a substantial portion of your bankroll on Day One. That's why several gambling authors, Jean Scott among them, recommend dividing your bankroll by the number of days you will be playing/staying, and then "retiring" the relevant portion at the end of a given day, win or lose. For instance: you have a $2000 trip bankroll and you're staying a week. You decide to do six days of play and one "break day" when you might see a show, play golf, etc. without gambling. So you have six "play days," and you allocate $350 for each. That's your daily bankroll, and you don't exceed it. At the end of the day, you put away whatever's left (or stash the daily roll plus your winnings) and don't touch it for the rest of the trip.

I find that there are two beneficial components to this approach. One, my action is at the same level on any given day no matter what my results have been on previous days. Two, my mindset and enjoyment aren't affected nearly as much. I can bank my wins (however modest) and don't have to chase my losses (which will be capped on any given day).

That's what I would do if I were in your shoes. You got massacred, and the reality is that you won't get even for the rest of your trip. So don't try. Evaluate your remaining bankroll, and divide it by the number of "play days" remaining. Limit your play each day to that amount. Yes, you're going to have to dial it back, in terms of limits and maybe play hours. That's much better on the psyche than suffering further substantial losses. Maybe your small daily bankroll won't withstand $15 minimum table games. Fine. Don't try. Play some bingo or nickel video poker. The idea is to make sure you get to enjoy the rest of your trip without exceeding your original expenditure plans. And of course, if you have LVA coupons, doing a coupon run is an excellent way to burn up time and make a little profit--and it's fun.

As a "for instance," Emerald Island gives $20 cashback for $1400 coin-in on Tuesdays. They have 99%+ video poker in denominations as low as one penny. I can go there with $100 and play all day--and I'll earn enough points for lunch. A couple of trips ago, I got absolutely pounded for minus $1100 on the first two days. I then decided that it was 50 cents a hand video poker for the rest of the trip. And wouldn't you know it--a 12X royal on Ultimate X got me even.

So be a low roller and forget your losses so far. Your mindset should be to have as much fun as possible with your remaining bankroll, and don't even think about getting even. That's my advice.

Wife and I set a daily limit and when it's gone, we're done playing.  We'll go to a movie (Sam's Town or Orleans) depending on what's showing and at what time, hit the fitness center, take in a cheap show, hit the pool- if the weather is tolerable, and open, or head out to Springs Preserve for a nice walk, again if the weather is tolerable.  We'll also hit up spots where we have free play if it's near one of the activites we are planning. 

Me too.Daily limit.Theres a lot of intertainment.Also day trip.