First off, I'd like to give a shout out to RecVP Player, Weggie 44 and Pjstroh for your thoughtful and helpful replies to my questions about the Gold Coast, Craps and VP pay schedules. Your suggestions were spot on - Thanks!
This is a l.o.n.g report.....Here goes - This is the 7th semi-annual sister bonding trip for City Girl and me.
Wednesday - June 4th - American Airlines from Boston to LV via Dallas with a TSA Pre-Check through security and priority boarding (Sweet!). Arrived on time and took the Bell Shuttle via the longest route imaginable up and down the Strip, finally arriving at the Gold Coast. We have never stayed there, so had no idea what to expect. Check in was fast and easy, finding the hotel elevator not so much. You'll need to drag your bags through the casino past the TGIF resturant to find the elevator. My Premium rooom on the 8th floor had a partial view of the Stratosphere and mountains. The room was clean, the bed comfy, the A/C did its job well in 107 degree heat, but what's up with that little window in the bathroom shower? City Girl's room on the opposite side, didn't have much of a view. It's absolutely a no-frills place, but no complaints.
Even though there was a Wrestling Federation alumni reunion, a bowling tournament, the third leg betting on the Triple Crown and some overflow from the WSOP going on over at the Rio, it never seemed crazy -- there is a low-key, good vibe there, and we experienced excellent service in all areas. We earned a couple of free buffets playing Video Poker, and there was a nice variation of food choices; most we tried were well prepared although the food offerings from day to day didn't vary much.
I did have a curious thing happen while playing JoB at the bar. I happened to look at my points register on the machine and saw a message -- "LVA $10 slot play", and later on, a message showed "Free LVA Buffet". I checked at the Players Club, and did have those benefits, but am curious how "They" knew I was a LVA member. I never did hit that elusive royal, but did pretty well with 4OAK's, and ended up ahead most days. GC has very favorable pay schedules as compared to Golden Nugget or Foxwoods Casino in CT. Points added up quickly, and I was able to play twice as long on the same investment.
As to Craps -- first time, and what a ball. I played the Pass Line and Odds, and that's it. On my first roll I rolled an 8 and then rolled 14 straight times -- apparently winning a lot for everyone else, but the 8 never did show up for me! I did okay on a $100 buy-in and "only" lost $40 in about an hour of play. Before leaving, I asked the boss if I had earned any comps --he said he'd comp me half a Subway sandwich -- the wise ass . The tables got crowed in the evening, but no one seemed to get too bothered when I rolled and the dice flew off the table. Embarrassing -- I won't do that again. Ladies...unless for intentional attention, watch your "girls" when you're leaning in to roll. I'm a slow learner..'nuff said on that!
We also tried Ping, Pang Pong, a silly name for a great Chinese Restaurant, and everything we tried was excellent, especially the lettuce wraps and noodle soup. I was intrigued by one solo diner who was literally inhaling his food: cracking a lobster and slurping out the meat while spooning up soup with one spoon and rice with another hand. Amazing and horrifying at the same time. One of those things you just can't look away from, as hard as you try. Bar service at the center bar by the Sports Book was outstanding with Dave and Sizer (sp?) taking excellent care of us. The Sports Book was crazy busy and we were often offered coupons for free cocktails by Book patrons who had dozens of extra coupons from their betting. The bar patrons were mostly a group of locals plus characters from the WSOP and alumni wrestlers. Same goes for the Red Zone sports bar which was pretty empty on our visits, but the service was quick and attentive, and the chairs very comfy. The Showroom had a good rock band playing to a packed room on Friday night. It looked like date night with everyone dressed in their party pants.
Meanwhile, I played Pharaoh's Fortune and the new Buffalo slot game, and won enough Bonus rounds between them to cash out at $120 up. Serious Woo-who.
Thursday, June 5th
While City Girl ventured off to the 109 degree Strip via the free shuttle, I opted no to -- deciding instead to lounge by the GC pool and catch up on my reading. As a New Englander who suffered through an unusually nasty winter and late blooming spring, I've had few ocasions so far to expose flesh to the sun, sadly resulting in the pale skin on the aforementioned decollete quickly turning a most unflattering lobster red color. Even after shunting aside my vanity by wrapping a pool towel around my head and shoulders and wading in the luke-warm water to shield other body parts, it's too much and I must retreat.
After spending a little too much time at the pool, I returned to my room, grabbed the nearest key-card and headed to the ice machine. Unfortunately, I had grabbed a Palms players' card in error which resulted in a call to security to unlock my room. After 15 minutes of standing outside my door in my bathing attire, clutching my ice bucket next to my scorched skin and avoiding eye contact or conversation with curious by-passers, two security guards came by, asked my name, peeked inside my room, checked their list, and let me inside -- no hassle. One of them jokingly told me not to try to use my GC card at the Palms, it probably wouldn't work there, either -- wise ass...
Meanwhile, left to run wild on the Strip, City Girl has manged to fit in the Nathan Burton show, a bubbly beverage and snack at the Bellagio, a ride on the High Roller and a tour through the Linq. She has pics and blisters to prove her wanderings! The girl gets around. I, having been left unsupervised since the unfortunate key card episode, enjoy a hot dog at the Sports Bar and several tasty adult beverages before returning to the Craps table and rapidly donating $60. I fared better at the Hex slot machine -- I do love the sound of those mirrors breaking.
City Girl has now returned from her travels, and we meeet up for a late snack, a few more unremarkable goes on bar top JoB, and head back to the room up $75 for the day. That's a win.
Friday - June 6th. After our "Only in Vegas Ritual" of pre-brunch Bloodys and Baileys at the center bar, we decide to explore another benefit of staying at the GC - it's a perfect location to easily walk to the Rio and Palms. Both are right accress the street in different directions. We used the LVA coupon for the Palms Buffet and enjoyed all of the selections and great mimosas. This was our first time at the Palms, and somehow we didn't enjoy the vibe there -- The slot machines seemed jammed together, it was very smoky and drink service was non-existent Maybe another time -- So, we can say we've been there, but don't have to go back anytime soon
We then headed over to the Rio to see the Strip light up at dusk from the outdoor deck at the Voodoo lounge. The elevator no longer runs to the 51st floor on the outside of the building and we were directed to use the hotel elevators. This may having something to do with the location of the new zip line - which we did not see. There's a $10 cover now which gets you a bright orange wrist band and a 2 for1 cocktail - Lemon Drop and Cosmo, please. It was interesting to see all of the helicopters doing the night-time Strip tour lined up one behind the other headed towards the strip, and then they circled back in the same order towards Downtown. Then, all the lights come on the Strip and it's an impressive 360 degree view over Las Vegas and beyond. City Girl said the High Roller view, while good, does not come close to the view from the Rio. We were there early, so practically had the place to ourselves, and can't say what the night-time crowd is like.
Next, we had tickets for the Michael Jackson tribute show at the Rio. We had perfect seats down front, and the MJ singer, live band, and dancers were spot on. I highly recommend you try this if you are a fan of MJ's music. A high energy 90-minute performance covering it all -- from early MJ on to Thriller, Billy Jean, Smooth Criminal and Bad.
It's only a 10 minute walk back from the Rio through the GC parking garage. We had a quick bite at Subway (using my imaginary half-sub comp...) and then off to the room to pack up and get ready to move Downtown tomorrow. We both would definitely stay at the Gold Coast again. It has enough energy and games to keep pus interested, the rooms were clean and servicable, all of the staff we met were helpful and friendly, the dining choices we tried were quite good, especially Ping Pang Pong. It's easy to earn points, and the VP was very good to us - Craps, not so much! I'll be interested to see if we get any offers for future stays. The only major drawback for me was the lack of an in-room safe. That's crazy when most visitors are carrying a significant amount of cash. It's a pain to have to lock up money, tickets and ID in baggage.
Tomorrow - Part II - Downtown Advertures. Thank you for reading!
This is a l.o.n.g report.....Here goes - This is the 7th semi-annual sister bonding trip for City Girl and me.
Wednesday - June 4th - American Airlines from Boston to LV via Dallas with a TSA Pre-Check through security and priority boarding (Sweet!). Arrived on time and took the Bell Shuttle via the longest route imaginable up and down the Strip, finally arriving at the Gold Coast. We have never stayed there, so had no idea what to expect. Check in was fast and easy, finding the hotel elevator not so much. You'll need to drag your bags through the casino past the TGIF resturant to find the elevator. My Premium rooom on the 8th floor had a partial view of the Stratosphere and mountains. The room was clean, the bed comfy, the A/C did its job well in 107 degree heat, but what's up with that little window in the bathroom shower? City Girl's room on the opposite side, didn't have much of a view. It's absolutely a no-frills place, but no complaints.
Even though there was a Wrestling Federation alumni reunion, a bowling tournament, the third leg betting on the Triple Crown and some overflow from the WSOP going on over at the Rio, it never seemed crazy -- there is a low-key, good vibe there, and we experienced excellent service in all areas. We earned a couple of free buffets playing Video Poker, and there was a nice variation of food choices; most we tried were well prepared although the food offerings from day to day didn't vary much.
I did have a curious thing happen while playing JoB at the bar. I happened to look at my points register on the machine and saw a message -- "LVA $10 slot play", and later on, a message showed "Free LVA Buffet". I checked at the Players Club, and did have those benefits, but am curious how "They" knew I was a LVA member. I never did hit that elusive royal, but did pretty well with 4OAK's, and ended up ahead most days. GC has very favorable pay schedules as compared to Golden Nugget or Foxwoods Casino in CT. Points added up quickly, and I was able to play twice as long on the same investment.
As to Craps -- first time, and what a ball. I played the Pass Line and Odds, and that's it. On my first roll I rolled an 8 and then rolled 14 straight times -- apparently winning a lot for everyone else, but the 8 never did show up for me! I did okay on a $100 buy-in and "only" lost $40 in about an hour of play. Before leaving, I asked the boss if I had earned any comps --he said he'd comp me half a Subway sandwich -- the wise ass . The tables got crowed in the evening, but no one seemed to get too bothered when I rolled and the dice flew off the table. Embarrassing -- I won't do that again. Ladies...unless for intentional attention, watch your "girls" when you're leaning in to roll. I'm a slow learner..'nuff said on that!
We also tried Ping, Pang Pong, a silly name for a great Chinese Restaurant, and everything we tried was excellent, especially the lettuce wraps and noodle soup. I was intrigued by one solo diner who was literally inhaling his food: cracking a lobster and slurping out the meat while spooning up soup with one spoon and rice with another hand. Amazing and horrifying at the same time. One of those things you just can't look away from, as hard as you try. Bar service at the center bar by the Sports Book was outstanding with Dave and Sizer (sp?) taking excellent care of us. The Sports Book was crazy busy and we were often offered coupons for free cocktails by Book patrons who had dozens of extra coupons from their betting. The bar patrons were mostly a group of locals plus characters from the WSOP and alumni wrestlers. Same goes for the Red Zone sports bar which was pretty empty on our visits, but the service was quick and attentive, and the chairs very comfy. The Showroom had a good rock band playing to a packed room on Friday night. It looked like date night with everyone dressed in their party pants.
Meanwhile, I played Pharaoh's Fortune and the new Buffalo slot game, and won enough Bonus rounds between them to cash out at $120 up. Serious Woo-who.
Thursday, June 5th
While City Girl ventured off to the 109 degree Strip via the free shuttle, I opted no to -- deciding instead to lounge by the GC pool and catch up on my reading. As a New Englander who suffered through an unusually nasty winter and late blooming spring, I've had few ocasions so far to expose flesh to the sun, sadly resulting in the pale skin on the aforementioned decollete quickly turning a most unflattering lobster red color. Even after shunting aside my vanity by wrapping a pool towel around my head and shoulders and wading in the luke-warm water to shield other body parts, it's too much and I must retreat.
After spending a little too much time at the pool, I returned to my room, grabbed the nearest key-card and headed to the ice machine. Unfortunately, I had grabbed a Palms players' card in error which resulted in a call to security to unlock my room. After 15 minutes of standing outside my door in my bathing attire, clutching my ice bucket next to my scorched skin and avoiding eye contact or conversation with curious by-passers, two security guards came by, asked my name, peeked inside my room, checked their list, and let me inside -- no hassle. One of them jokingly told me not to try to use my GC card at the Palms, it probably wouldn't work there, either -- wise ass...
Meanwhile, left to run wild on the Strip, City Girl has manged to fit in the Nathan Burton show, a bubbly beverage and snack at the Bellagio, a ride on the High Roller and a tour through the Linq. She has pics and blisters to prove her wanderings! The girl gets around. I, having been left unsupervised since the unfortunate key card episode, enjoy a hot dog at the Sports Bar and several tasty adult beverages before returning to the Craps table and rapidly donating $60. I fared better at the Hex slot machine -- I do love the sound of those mirrors breaking.
City Girl has now returned from her travels, and we meeet up for a late snack, a few more unremarkable goes on bar top JoB, and head back to the room up $75 for the day. That's a win.
Friday - June 6th. After our "Only in Vegas Ritual" of pre-brunch Bloodys and Baileys at the center bar, we decide to explore another benefit of staying at the GC - it's a perfect location to easily walk to the Rio and Palms. Both are right accress the street in different directions. We used the LVA coupon for the Palms Buffet and enjoyed all of the selections and great mimosas. This was our first time at the Palms, and somehow we didn't enjoy the vibe there -- The slot machines seemed jammed together, it was very smoky and drink service was non-existent Maybe another time -- So, we can say we've been there, but don't have to go back anytime soon
We then headed over to the Rio to see the Strip light up at dusk from the outdoor deck at the Voodoo lounge. The elevator no longer runs to the 51st floor on the outside of the building and we were directed to use the hotel elevators. This may having something to do with the location of the new zip line - which we did not see. There's a $10 cover now which gets you a bright orange wrist band and a 2 for1 cocktail - Lemon Drop and Cosmo, please. It was interesting to see all of the helicopters doing the night-time Strip tour lined up one behind the other headed towards the strip, and then they circled back in the same order towards Downtown. Then, all the lights come on the Strip and it's an impressive 360 degree view over Las Vegas and beyond. City Girl said the High Roller view, while good, does not come close to the view from the Rio. We were there early, so practically had the place to ourselves, and can't say what the night-time crowd is like.
Next, we had tickets for the Michael Jackson tribute show at the Rio. We had perfect seats down front, and the MJ singer, live band, and dancers were spot on. I highly recommend you try this if you are a fan of MJ's music. A high energy 90-minute performance covering it all -- from early MJ on to Thriller, Billy Jean, Smooth Criminal and Bad.
It's only a 10 minute walk back from the Rio through the GC parking garage. We had a quick bite at Subway (using my imaginary half-sub comp...) and then off to the room to pack up and get ready to move Downtown tomorrow. We both would definitely stay at the Gold Coast again. It has enough energy and games to keep pus interested, the rooms were clean and servicable, all of the staff we met were helpful and friendly, the dining choices we tried were quite good, especially Ping Pang Pong. It's easy to earn points, and the VP was very good to us - Craps, not so much! I'll be interested to see if we get any offers for future stays. The only major drawback for me was the lack of an in-room safe. That's crazy when most visitors are carrying a significant amount of cash. It's a pain to have to lock up money, tickets and ID in baggage.
Tomorrow - Part II - Downtown Advertures. Thank you for reading!
