The 19th year of the reunion of 4 polish princesses! We sisters get together every May - no husbands, no boyfriends, no kids!
TRAVEL: I used frequent flyer miles for my flight from Dallas on American Airlines. The flight out cost 25,000 miles but also included an upgrade to first class - I NEVER fly first class and this was a real treat. "Would you like a beverage"? "Champagne, please"! My sister got a great fare of $214 (she sat with the unwashed masses in the back - keep on walking sista!) Two other sisters were flying in from Milwaukee on Southwest. One arrived on Friday, the other came in on Saturday. The Texas contingent arrived on Sunday.
CAR RENTAL: We again got a great deal from Alamo for a weeklong rental for $88 (reserve early, reserve often)! We rented an economy car, but with a $5 tip to the guy in the garage and an inquiry as to which car had the biggest trunk for golf clubs, we got upgraded to a Chevy Impala.
HOTEL: The sisters from Milwaukee stayed at the M Resort over the weekend thanks to a great e-mail offer that fellow LVA’er Mare shared with us. They were able to stay for free in an absolutely gorgeous room. When we arrived on Sunday we drove to the M Resort to see their room before they checked out. They insisted we try the beds as they were some of the most comfortable beds they’d ever slept on. They gambled quite a bit, so hopefully they’ll generate some future room offers. They loved pretty much everything about the M. Great rooms, great food, fantastic people and not too crowded on the weekends. They spent many hours at the blackjack tables. The next 5 days were comped at Paris. We had requested adjoining rooms, but didn’t realize that their adjoining rooms were a king connected to 2 queens. So we settled for just being next door to each other so we each could have a bed of our own.
WEATHER: The weather was unseasonably cool. We barely hit 70 degrees most days. It was also very windy and we even had a little rain one of the days. Note to self: we might need more sweaters next year.
PROMOTIONS: We were able to take advantage of the “Press Your Luck” booth outside of Planet Hollywood for lots of free stuff. The booth is open noon-8pm and you can go every day if you want. Between us we ended up with (3) $20 food coupons, $10 slot play, $100 Macy’s gift card and lots of free drink coupons. We saw one lady win $200 in free play. We used the food coupons at Le Burger Brasserie and JJ’s Boloungerie at Paris. One of my sisters has a May birthday so she was able to swipe for gifts at Orleans ($5 food credit), Gold Coast (2000 points) and points at South Point. We also did a swipe at Palms and won free fudge and a movie coupon. We picked up many bottles of wine and champagne at M and also got their 2 year anniversary shirt.
FOOD: We are good bargain hunters and used the MRB coupons, restaurant.com coupons and other discounts every chance we got. In fact, I don’t think we ate anywhere when we didn’t use some kind of discount or players club points. We spent ridiculously little on food but we ate well. We ate buffets at Red Rock (free), M Resort (2 free & BOGO), Paris ($10 off w/MRB and points) and Gold Coast (points). We had burgers at Strip Burger (restaurant.com) and Le Burger Brasserie (BOGO MRB, $40 food discount). We had lunch at JJ’s Boloungerie at Paris ($20 food discount) and had an awesome BLT on a freshly baked cibatta role. On our final day we had the 3-course lunch at Rosemary’s ($3 online discount and discounted gift cards) before flying home – the absolute best meal of the trip. Between the 4 of us we were able to sample all the options of appetizers, entrées and desserts. They were all spectacular! I came home and tried to recreate a very simple appetizer of lightly steamed asparagus with a sublime goat cheese sauce. It was lightly covered in a crisp coating of lemon scented panko crumbs. Absolutely delicious and a perfect summer dish (their version). Not bad (my version) - but I'll keep trying.
GAMBLING: Overall, this trip sucked for me. I lost, lost, lost. 2 of my sisters did fairly well and were only down a little. And one sister hit 2 quarter Royals (at the Palms and Paris on the SAME DAY!) and went home with a pretty good win (she and I are going back in November!). We did gamble a lot though and I did have a few good hits. I got one of the minor progressives on Yahtzee at South Point for $258. That was the first time I played it, so now I'm a fan for life! My sister and I, sitting next to each other, each hit a 3 of-a-kind on 3-card poker at Bally’s. 2 of my sisters were just killing it on the Gold Fish slots the whole trip (the mermaid bonus version). We played bingo at the Gold Coast and couldn't believe how close we came without yelling "bingo" EVERY game, one of us was down to one number. In a really "I can't believe it" series, my sister was down to one of FIVE possible numbers, without getting it. The very next game, she was down to one of SIX possible numbers without winning. Next time, baby. NEXT TIME! We gambled at: M Resort, Red Rock, Cosmopolitan ($10 free play for new sign-ups), Bellagio, Mirage, Gold Coast, Orleans, Palms, South Point, Paris and Bally’s. Thanks to us, they will all remain in business for a little while longer!
SHOWS: We saw the Bee Gee’s tribute show at the Excalibur and all thought it just sucked. I think the problem was the sound system, but we were so disappointed after reading so many fantastic reviews. We got tickets through Goldstar, so I’m glad we didn’t play full price for this show. We also went to the Terry Fator show at the Mirage and absolutely LOVED it! Very entertaining, Very funny! We were able to get a 40% discount because my sister and I are both retired military (note, the military discount applies to all ticket levels, so this can be an awesome deal). He sure keeps things current too – he even had a few Arnold Schwarzenegger jokes.
GOLF: 2 of my sisters are avid golfers, so no trip to Vegas is complete without a few rounds of golf. Their first golf outing was supposed to be at Angel Park, but the day dawned with 30mph sustained winds with gusts up to 50. Not good golf weather. There was some pouting and whinning for awhile before they rallied and decided to go check out the Callaway Golf Center on the strip instead. They got a great deal with a package of unlimited range balls and unlimited golfing on the par 3 course for $25. And boy did they take advantage of that. Despite the wind, they each managed to hit 300 or so golf balls on the range and the equivalent of 4 times around on the par-3 course. They slept well that night! 2 days later, they were able to keep their date at Angel Park and credit their nice rounds with all the practice they got in at Callaway.
TV TIME: We did take some time out to watch the Survivor finale. We had several free bottles of champagne from the M Resort so we were able to settle in comfortably and watch Boston Rob finally win - really, was anybody else playing the game? One sister and I (with some more wine freebies from the M Resort) also watched the finale of The Good Wife - best show on TV!
I think we all got home tired and happy. Trip #19 check! Time to start planning #20!
Thanks for reading!
- Linda in TX
TRAVEL: I used frequent flyer miles for my flight from Dallas on American Airlines. The flight out cost 25,000 miles but also included an upgrade to first class - I NEVER fly first class and this was a real treat. "Would you like a beverage"? "Champagne, please"! My sister got a great fare of $214 (she sat with the unwashed masses in the back - keep on walking sista!) Two other sisters were flying in from Milwaukee on Southwest. One arrived on Friday, the other came in on Saturday. The Texas contingent arrived on Sunday.
CAR RENTAL: We again got a great deal from Alamo for a weeklong rental for $88 (reserve early, reserve often)! We rented an economy car, but with a $5 tip to the guy in the garage and an inquiry as to which car had the biggest trunk for golf clubs, we got upgraded to a Chevy Impala.
HOTEL: The sisters from Milwaukee stayed at the M Resort over the weekend thanks to a great e-mail offer that fellow LVA’er Mare shared with us. They were able to stay for free in an absolutely gorgeous room. When we arrived on Sunday we drove to the M Resort to see their room before they checked out. They insisted we try the beds as they were some of the most comfortable beds they’d ever slept on. They gambled quite a bit, so hopefully they’ll generate some future room offers. They loved pretty much everything about the M. Great rooms, great food, fantastic people and not too crowded on the weekends. They spent many hours at the blackjack tables. The next 5 days were comped at Paris. We had requested adjoining rooms, but didn’t realize that their adjoining rooms were a king connected to 2 queens. So we settled for just being next door to each other so we each could have a bed of our own.
WEATHER: The weather was unseasonably cool. We barely hit 70 degrees most days. It was also very windy and we even had a little rain one of the days. Note to self: we might need more sweaters next year.
PROMOTIONS: We were able to take advantage of the “Press Your Luck” booth outside of Planet Hollywood for lots of free stuff. The booth is open noon-8pm and you can go every day if you want. Between us we ended up with (3) $20 food coupons, $10 slot play, $100 Macy’s gift card and lots of free drink coupons. We saw one lady win $200 in free play. We used the food coupons at Le Burger Brasserie and JJ’s Boloungerie at Paris. One of my sisters has a May birthday so she was able to swipe for gifts at Orleans ($5 food credit), Gold Coast (2000 points) and points at South Point. We also did a swipe at Palms and won free fudge and a movie coupon. We picked up many bottles of wine and champagne at M and also got their 2 year anniversary shirt.
FOOD: We are good bargain hunters and used the MRB coupons, restaurant.com coupons and other discounts every chance we got. In fact, I don’t think we ate anywhere when we didn’t use some kind of discount or players club points. We spent ridiculously little on food but we ate well. We ate buffets at Red Rock (free), M Resort (2 free & BOGO), Paris ($10 off w/MRB and points) and Gold Coast (points). We had burgers at Strip Burger (restaurant.com) and Le Burger Brasserie (BOGO MRB, $40 food discount). We had lunch at JJ’s Boloungerie at Paris ($20 food discount) and had an awesome BLT on a freshly baked cibatta role. On our final day we had the 3-course lunch at Rosemary’s ($3 online discount and discounted gift cards) before flying home – the absolute best meal of the trip. Between the 4 of us we were able to sample all the options of appetizers, entrées and desserts. They were all spectacular! I came home and tried to recreate a very simple appetizer of lightly steamed asparagus with a sublime goat cheese sauce. It was lightly covered in a crisp coating of lemon scented panko crumbs. Absolutely delicious and a perfect summer dish (their version). Not bad (my version) - but I'll keep trying.
GAMBLING: Overall, this trip sucked for me. I lost, lost, lost. 2 of my sisters did fairly well and were only down a little. And one sister hit 2 quarter Royals (at the Palms and Paris on the SAME DAY!) and went home with a pretty good win (she and I are going back in November!). We did gamble a lot though and I did have a few good hits. I got one of the minor progressives on Yahtzee at South Point for $258. That was the first time I played it, so now I'm a fan for life! My sister and I, sitting next to each other, each hit a 3 of-a-kind on 3-card poker at Bally’s. 2 of my sisters were just killing it on the Gold Fish slots the whole trip (the mermaid bonus version). We played bingo at the Gold Coast and couldn't believe how close we came without yelling "bingo" EVERY game, one of us was down to one number. In a really "I can't believe it" series, my sister was down to one of FIVE possible numbers, without getting it. The very next game, she was down to one of SIX possible numbers without winning. Next time, baby. NEXT TIME! We gambled at: M Resort, Red Rock, Cosmopolitan ($10 free play for new sign-ups), Bellagio, Mirage, Gold Coast, Orleans, Palms, South Point, Paris and Bally’s. Thanks to us, they will all remain in business for a little while longer!
SHOWS: We saw the Bee Gee’s tribute show at the Excalibur and all thought it just sucked. I think the problem was the sound system, but we were so disappointed after reading so many fantastic reviews. We got tickets through Goldstar, so I’m glad we didn’t play full price for this show. We also went to the Terry Fator show at the Mirage and absolutely LOVED it! Very entertaining, Very funny! We were able to get a 40% discount because my sister and I are both retired military (note, the military discount applies to all ticket levels, so this can be an awesome deal). He sure keeps things current too – he even had a few Arnold Schwarzenegger jokes.
GOLF: 2 of my sisters are avid golfers, so no trip to Vegas is complete without a few rounds of golf. Their first golf outing was supposed to be at Angel Park, but the day dawned with 30mph sustained winds with gusts up to 50. Not good golf weather. There was some pouting and whinning for awhile before they rallied and decided to go check out the Callaway Golf Center on the strip instead. They got a great deal with a package of unlimited range balls and unlimited golfing on the par 3 course for $25. And boy did they take advantage of that. Despite the wind, they each managed to hit 300 or so golf balls on the range and the equivalent of 4 times around on the par-3 course. They slept well that night! 2 days later, they were able to keep their date at Angel Park and credit their nice rounds with all the practice they got in at Callaway.
TV TIME: We did take some time out to watch the Survivor finale. We had several free bottles of champagne from the M Resort so we were able to settle in comfortably and watch Boston Rob finally win - really, was anybody else playing the game? One sister and I (with some more wine freebies from the M Resort) also watched the finale of The Good Wife - best show on TV!
I think we all got home tired and happy. Trip #19 check! Time to start planning #20!
Thanks for reading!
- Linda in TX
