Trip Report
June 13 – July 13, 2016
Welcome to the Summer 2016 trip report. This trip will be one of the longest trips ever coming in at 30 nights. As always, Dee will be with me as we pound away at the machines, meet with friends, eat and explore. The cousins will also be joining us for a week too. There will be plenty of action this time around so let's get going!
Day 1
Monday June 13, 2016
Well today is the day we head back out to Las Vegas. Originally we weren't going to leave until tomorrow but I found some really low fares on Delta leaving from our local airport, Stewart. The only bad thing was it is a late afternoon flight. So to make up for the late departure, we're leaving a day early (like we need it on a month long trip).
We had the morning at home to finish up getting ready for the trip. We left here around 2:30pm. I took Dee up to the airport and then drove back down the hill to where I work to park my car and then walked back up to the terminal (about a mile). Flying out of Stewart so close to home is super convenient. I don't have to rent cars or stay in hotels and we're therein 10 minutes!
Normally fares from this airport are too high but for this trip I was able to get a one way flight out with Delta for just $152 per person. This is a super saver fare and you don't get your seats until you check in. We checked in at home yesterday and just had to check the suitcase to day and pay the lame baggage fee of $25. This went well and we were off to security. That's the other great thing about this airport. Security never takes more than a few minutes.
We got to the gate and waited for boarding to begin. This is a small puddle jumper type plane so boarding goes quickly. We are in seats 13E and 13F. This is flight 3750 scheduled to depart at 5:25pm and arrived in Detroit at 7:06pm. Before we left the captain came on the PA and said the flight would take 1:20.
We left on time and the flight was pretty good for a small plane. Very little turbulence. Before long we were making our initial approach into Detroit. This is not only my first time to this airport but it's also my first time ever being in Michigan.
Once we landed we took what seemed like the longest taxi ever at an airport. Once Dee's headed directly to the next gate to catch our connection. Of course I had to hoof it from Terminal C to Terminal first by going ¼ mile to the tunnel that goes under the tarmac then of course our gate was all of the way at the end of the terminal which had to be 45 miles. OK, that isn't true but it was effing far.
Boarding here took a little longer since this is a full sized plane. When we got there boarding already started before we got there. This time we had seats 40F & 41F. We were front & back this time, the drawback of these super saver fares on Delta. This is flight 1917 scheduled to depart at 7:59pm and arrive in Las Vegas at 9:19pm. We are told before take off that the flight would take 4 hours and we'd be landing at 9:30 pm. Even though we've already flown part way this flight in just over 4 hours and will be a treat compared to the 5-5 ½ it usually is on the non – stops. The flight was bumpy at times and I passed most of the time by playing games on my tablet, watching free entertainment and napping. Dee did the same.
We landed on time and taxied for a while to the gate. We had to wait for Dee's wheelchair to come up before we got off the plane. Once we did the first stop was to baggage claim. Of course our carousel was at the far end of the room. The bag was out when we got there.
The next stop was the shuttle to the rental car facility. For some reason the rental car rates for this trip have been very high going all of the way back to winter. I check the rates daily, sometimes more than once and they have remained high for the last 5 months. Since everything was high and we could use the extra space, especially when the cousins arrive I booked a full sized SUV (Tahoe or similar) from Alamo for a base rate of $850/month. I also have a discount code and a coupon that took $110 off. The real killer is the taxes on the car though that add up to almost 50% extra. The biggest part of that is the absurd daily facility charge.
Since we were arriving late I was worried there wouldn't be a decent SUV left. I ended up getting a Chevy Tahoe with almost 16000 miles on it. It was in great condition. I gave it a once over and loaded our stuff into it and we were on our way. The only hang up here was the long lines and lazy/slow workers at the exit gates.
We left the car facility and the next stop was to the Tropicana. Out of the blue I got a mail offer from them based on what I think is my limited play at the M. They recently combined slot clubs at both properties and appear to have done some cross marketing. This offer is good for 3 nights, $120 free play, 2 tickets to Raiding the Rock Vault or the Laugh Factory and $80 per day in food credits.
When we arrived checking in was really quick because it was so late. We were given room 532 in the Paradise tower. This is a handicap accessible room with 2 queen beds, a nightstand, dresser, flat screen TV, work desk,arm chair w/ ottoman and a side table. The bathroom has a tub, toilet and vanity with safety bars all around. It has a view of the airport and partial pool view.
We threw our things into the room and then went to the food court to get a quick bite to eat because it's the only thing open. They were running a very limited menu because they were deep cleaning the kitchen. Considering this is the only place to eat after midnight, I found it to be unacceptable. We both had a turkey sandwich, chips and a drink . We also got some fruit and yogurt to go since we had $80 to burn by 3am. I figured we'd use this food for our breakfast in the morning and save the full $80 for dinner tomorrow night.
We got back to the room at 12:30am which was 3:30am to our bodies and just crashed after a really long day.
Total coin in for the day $0
Total win/loss for the day $0
Total comps for the day $157
Room $99
Food $58
Day 2
Tuesday June 14, 2016
We were surprisingly up early today. We ate our breakfast the we got last night at the food court and got ready for the day.
We headed out for a few hours to pick up a few things. Our first stop was Vons, then to Savers so Dee could get some books to read during this lengthy trip. That was followed by a stop at 99¢ Only and finally Walgreen's for a few items that we didn't travel with.
Next was a stop at the Pinball Hall of Fame for the first time this trip. Staying at the Tropicana all of this was really convenient since everything is on Tropicana Avenue! Dee even came into the Pinball hall of Fame and played for a while. This is always a great time and very economical in price. I hope to come back a few more times this trip.
We left the Pinball Hall of Fame and had a quick mini lunch at Jack in the Box consisting of 2 tacos. I had a soda from the Pinball Hall of Fame and Dee got a coffee for an energy burst! This “meal” was just to hold us over until dinner.
Our next stop was to the Orleans just to pick up some tickets to see Steven Wright on Friday night. This is something Dee wanted to do for her birthday (that's on Saturday). I got us tickets for the show on Friday night and got 2 seats using the coupon from the American Casino Guide for buy one get one free. I got seats in section AA, Row B, Seats 8 & 9. To make it an even better deal I was able to use comps to cover the cost.
When we got back to the Tropicana we took a break up in the room until dinner. For dinner we had plans to meet up with AP at Biscayne Steak – Sea – Wine at the Tropicana to use up the food credits with the room. I had the pork chop with a baked potato and Dee had the scallops with asparagus. We also split a tostada appetizer which was marinated pork and some other toppings. They were very tasty. The tostada was pretty bland though. The food here was excellent tonight and the service was attentive but not snooty. AP had been in town for 2 weeks and tonight was his last night. He shared some of his war stories from his trip and we had a great time.
After dinner we hit the casino. Since we really don't care if we ever get another offer here we have no set amount of play we plan on doing. The plan is to play what we want and if we're doing well and having fun to continue. If we're getting killed we stop and if we hit big, we lock up the win!
We found some 50 play machines and sat down to start playing. Things were not good. I was not getting any dealt winners at all and on draws I wasn't pulling much. Dee was streaky too but hit a hand with a bunch of bonus quads. I ended up dropping $500 and Dee dropped $100 and we cashed out with a total loss of $600 on only $4800 in play. I sure hope this isn't going to be the theme for the trip.
Next I ran $100 of my free play through a 3 way poker machine. Not much happened here but I did score a quad to get back into it and cashed out the full $100 after running it through.
The last $20 we ran through some penny slots. No major hits but we did play for close to an hour on it before it was all gone.
We decided to wrap things up for the night and came up here to the room to wind down and watch TV before bed.
Total coin in for the day $4850
Total win/loss for the day - $500
Total comps for the day $300
Room $99
Cash/Free Play $120
Food $81
Day 3
Wednesday June 15, 2016
We started today with a trip to the fitness center.
After a short work out we came back to the room and got ready for the day. Today's plan is to go downtown (where we will be spending quite a bit of time this trip) to the D.
Today's plan at the D is to use a mail offer that Dee got for 4 nights (don't need those) $150 in free play, $200 in food (we sure won't need that much), 2 show tickets and (3) $50 match plays. We are also going to use the coupon from the American Casino Guide that gives $5 free play for every 50 points (up to $100). They are also running a promo this month on Wednesday for 3x points on video poker on Wednesdays.
Our first stop was to the players club to activate Dee's coupon and to get her food vouchers then it was off to eat. We ate at the D Grill. I had the chicken fruit salad which was a salad, with a chicken breast and fruit and Dee had the western omelet. The food was excellent today and the service was good. We were filled up and then went to the casino for some video poker action.
We found some machines and started to pound away. We started the day off playing for halves. Thing here were choppy. Dee hit a quad right away but lost it as fast as she hit it. I was losing quickly but then hit a straight flush to get back into it. This was followed by a few quads and I went from being down almost 2 bills to being up over 2 bills. Dee struggled but then hit a straight flush of her own. Sadly it was the ultra dreaded A2345. From there it was a bleed as Dee lost $200 and I lost most of the $200 I was up.
We took a short break and walked out on Fremont for a while and then returned to the casino.
This time we played dollars and things were tough at first but then they got good. A key hand for me was being dealt 10, J, Q, K of hearts. On the draw I watched the fucking 9 of hearts fill the space as I hit the dreaded king high straight flush. This got me back into it and then I followed with 3 more quads soon after. Dee was bleeding and was down nearly 3 bills before hitting a straight followed by a bunch of other decent hands. She still lost but not as badly as it looked like it was going to be.
By the time we got enough play in to max out the ACG coupon were up around $150. We went back to the players club to get the $100 in free play added to the $150 she already had. We went back to the machines and ran it through 8/5 bonus at quarters turning the $250 free play into $215 as Dee's quad drought continued.
Before we left we were going to stop by the roulette table to run Dee's match play coupons. We couldn't though because like a dumb ass I left them here at the Trop so we'll have to use them tomorrow.
It was getting late and we headed back to the Tropicana. I made a reservation to eat dinner at Bacio. I had the chicken parm. It also came with a side of pasta. This was one of the better chicken parm meals with pasta I've had. Dee had shrimp and pasta. She said hers was very good as well. We finished off with the canoli dessert which was 3 small canoli each a different flavor. These were pretty good considering outside of NY it's tough to find a good one.
We have tickets to see Raiding the Rock Vault. I've heard it's a good show so we were going to give it a try. For the most part it's a group that does cover tunes from '80s bands but it's made up of former band members of some of those bands. It was a pretty good show and the prices was right being comped as part of the room offer. It's a good energy show and it's full of rock songs from the 70's and 80's, all of which you'd know.
We still had a few dollars in food credits for the day so stopped by the food court and picked up a few snacks for tomorrow.
It's getting late and it's been a long day so we came back up here to the room and wrapped up another day.
Total coin in for the day $10380
Total win/loss for the day $400
Total comps for the day $579
Room $99
Cash/Free Play $250
Food $110
Shows $120
Day 4
Thursday June 16, 2016
We got up early today and took a quick trip to the fitness center. When we got back to the room we got ready for the day and packed up our things getting ready for the first move of the trip.
When I looked at my account on the TV I was actually charged for the room each night as well as all of the food we charged. I was not amused and had to go to the front desk to get it all fixed. After pounding away on his computer the guy there got everything fixed and gave me a receipt showing a zero balance.
We left the Tropicana and headed back downtown to take care of some more gaming related business. The first thing we did was hit the D to use another one of Dee's food vouchers at the D Grill. I had the BBQ pulled pork sandwich with fries and she tried the special of the day, 2 pancakes, 2 bacon, and 2 eggs. Everything was good but this place is pricey for downtown.
On the way through the casino to Fremont we stopped at the roulette table to use Dee's three $50 match plays. The first spin we chose black and black 15 came up. This was a good start because even if we lost the next two we'd break even. On the second spin we chose odd and 17 hit. For the 3rd spin we chose HIGH and 14 came up for the loss. Net result was $150 in winning match play bets.
The next step of business downtown was to go to the Plaza and sign Dee up for a new players card and to do the new member sign up which is a $500 loss rebate. We got her card and also did their tier match with her diamond card from Caesars Entertainment. Once she had her card we went off in search of some video poker. Since we could lose up to $500 and get it back. Because of this we chose $1 double – double bonus. The goal was to hit a some kicker quads and take a profit giving up the rebate or playing until the $500 was gone. Things were really decent here. She hit a bunch of full houses right away and one quad which was actually dealt. Our goal was to get ahead by $500 which never happened. She got quite a bit of play in but then double-double did it;'s thing and sucked down the $300 she started with. I gave her the last $200 and switched to $2. Not much happened here and she was down the full $500.
Next up we stopped off at the Four Queens. Today we'd play on Dee's card. She got a mail offer for $225 free play. They are also celebrating their 50th anniversary and are offering different gifts for a certain number of points. 20 points is a key chain, 100 points is a t-shirt and if she earns 1000 points she's get an additional $50 free play. There is also a special silver coin for earning 2000 points. We chose to play jacks or better for dollars against my better judgment. Things were really good to start here. It seems when we play here we either do really well or we get killed. We had 2/3 of our play in being up as much as $500 and as always, the last 1/3 kills us. We went from being up $500 between us to being down $200.
We moved to the 50 play machines to get the rest of the action in and this was a killer as well. No major hits and nothing of importance dealt except Dee getting a natural quad dealt playing deuces.
By the time we ran through our normal amount of action we were down over $600, an $1100 swing in just 4k in action.
We went to the players club to get Dee's gifts and free play added to her account. Now armed with $275 in free play we chose to run it through jacks for halves and turned it into $410 thanks to a few quads.
We went back over to the D to get the car and then it was up to Summerlin and the JW Marriott at Rampart Casino where we would be spending the next 6 nights. I got a mail offer for 3 nights, $525 free play and $20 in food. Dee got an offer for 3 nights, $300 in free play, $30 in food and an additional $60 food for her birthday. I booked these back to back and our casino host has upgraded us to a one bedroom suite and has also increased our free play (I'll believe that when I see it).
When we arrived I tried to check in and the room was ready. We were assigned room 3114 in the Spa Tower. This is a 1 bedroom suite. It has double doors to enter though into a large entry way. Off to the side is a powder room with toilet and vanity.
The entry way opens up into a large living room with a work desk, couch, coffee table, arm chairs, end tables, wall unit with flat screen TV, and small wet bar area. To the side there is a dining room with a large dining room table. Through a set of double doors is the bedroom with a king bed, nightstands, arm chair and ottoman and wall unit with a flat screen TV and dresser.
The main bathroom is very large with a walk in closet to the right and toilet room (with bidet) to the left. Straight ahead is a dual sink vanity, to the left a whirlpool tub and to the right is the walk in shower.
We have a view of the valet area, Angel Park Golf Course, Suncoast, and part of the strip.
We got our things to the room and settled in for the next six days and then it was off the promenade cafe for dinner. We both ordered the 3 for $9.99 deal which offers an appetizer, entree, and dessert. Dee had a salad, the spaghetti and meatballs and apple cobbler with vanilla ice cream. I had the chicken pot pie for an extra $1. My appetizer was chicken egg rolls and I also had the apple cobbler.
Next up we were off to the casino. We started off with stopping at the players club to activate my free play for the day. I asked about extra free play from my host but there was nothing. The lady at the slot club called her and she added $200 to my account. This was quite a bit less than I was expecting but I wasn't going to argue about it with a boothling. They recently downgraded most of the 9/6 jacks machines here so instead we opted for quarter 5 – play and 8/5 bonus. Things were smooth here, at first. Then they turned, especially on me. I was feeding in bill after bill. Dee hovered the whole time thanks to a large number of quads including aces twice. One main feature was getting dealt trip nines and pulling a quad on 3 of the 5 lines. I couldn't hit a pair, never mind a quad.
We switched to a different bank of machines and this time Dee got beat up while I hovered. No major hits but I got more dealt winners in this shorter session than I did the entire previous one. By the time we were done playing we'd dropped $800 between us and I wasn't amused.
To finish up the night I ran my free play through single line 8/5 bonus for quarters turning $375 into $410 thanks to a bunch of full houses.
It was getting late and it has been a long day at this point so we wrapped thing up and came up to the room to wrap up another day.
Total coin in for the day $37355
Total win/loss for the day - $900
Total comps for the day $843
Room $135
Cash/Free Play $650
Food $58
Day 5
Friday June 17, 2016
Today we started off with some time at the pool. They've got a great pool area here with plenty of space.
We came back to the room and got clean ed up and started the day with breakfast at the Promenade Cafe. Dee had the California Scramble and I had deuces wild (2 pancakes, 2 eggs, 2 bacon, 2 sausage and hash browns). The food was great and we were filled up. I paid the bill with the $20 coupon that came with my room offer.
We hit the 5 play machines after breakfast. Dee started off with a quad on her first hand and then started hitting them regularly. I was doing fine and then hit aces for $100 which was gone as quickly as I hit them. I bled to death again with only a few other quads. Dee continued to hit quads and even a straight flush but couldn't seem to get anywhere. Between quads she'd just bleed. Between u we dropped $500 and only did about 8k in action.
I activated my free play but we decided to do that later and take a short break. After the break we hit the casino again. I played a Carnival type video poker game that looked interesting but dropped a quick $100 on it with few hits.
Next we tried some Spin Poker. It was a good here with a good amount of dealt winners for each of us. I scored a straight flush that landed on 3 lines and a few quads that allowed me to double up my initial buy in of $300. Dee soon after did the same thing. We got a decent amount of play in and won almost everything back we'd lost earlier.
From here it was off to the Plaza to get the first half of Dee's loss rebate. This place is really uptight and you can't use free play on most video poker. The exception is the super short pay crap at the sportsbook bar. I wasn't really worried about this since it was super short term. We ran the rebate money through a lame 7/5 DDB progressive turning $250 free play into $180 cash in a blood bath. I'd like to blame the pay table but I didn't hit a single full house and only hit 2 flushes. We left the Plaza, took a quick walk to La Bayou and Mermaids just because they are closing in a few weeks. I honestly hadn't been in La Bayou since it was Coin Castle and that was about 15 years ago.
We left the downtown area and went to the Orleans. Two things are happening here tonight. The first is dinner at the buffet with Norm. Then we're going to see Steven Wright. Funny thing was before we met up with Norm my buddy Steve came walking by. He was there to meet up with my friend Anne (his wife).
The buffet here at the Orleans is pretty good and tonight was no exception. Tonight was actually seafood night which I wasn't aware of until we paid the high price (with points). We ate too much as always. We had a good time visiting with Norm tonight. He was going to a different show tonight and headed out and we went over to the showroom.
We still had some time before the show so played a penny version of 3 Way Poker for a few minutes. Dee had no luck but I hit a few good hands including a dealt full house. Dee busted out a $20 bill but I won $8.
Next up was show times. I got these tickets a few days ago using a 2 for 1 coupon and paid the balance with points from my B-Connected card. They were normally $70 each which to me is too much for a comedian. We are seated in Section AA, Row 2, Seats 8-9.
The show had no opening act and lasted for 75 minutes. It was pretty funny stuff. Steven Wright has a delivery like no other.
We came back up to the Rampart and got the rest of our action in for the day on Spin Poker. I was getting beat up and not hitting much of anything. Dee was struggling as well. I finally hit a quad and a straight flush and Dee had a big come back with another one of those 3 straight flush hands and a 3 quad hand. Even with those hits we still lost $500 between us.
I ran today's free play through single line quarters and turned $175 into $155. No major hits but enough to keep alive.
We wrapped up the day with some TV in the room and then it was time for sleep.
Total coin in for the day $18225
Total win/loss for the day - $200
Total comps for the day $852
Room $167
Cash/Free Play $425
Food $98
Shows $160
Day 6
Saturday June 18, 2016
Happy Birthday to Dee!
Today is Dee's birthday and as we've done the last few years she gets to plan the day. The only exception to that is having to go to the Plaza so she can use the LVA coupon for 2x your age in free play and get the second half of her free play from the loss rebate.
We started the day off with a room service breakfast. This is one of Dee's favorite things to do so I placed an order last night. She had an egg white frittata and I had steak and eggs. I also ordered some pastry and beverages. It was pricey and with service charge, delivery charge and tax was almost 80 bucks. Two things that should never be said in the same sentence are Eighty dollars and breakfast. The food was excellent and it was nice to eat here in the room.
After we ate it was time for some pool time and then got ourselves ready.
We hit the casino and started off with a stop at the players club to have my $10 free play coupon from the LVA added to my account. From here it was Spin Poker again. This was a bit of a roller coaster but Dee hit a hand with 3 sets of aces that kept her going. I got dealt quad jacks for a nice boost as well. By the time we were done we had actually lost a small amount.
On the way through the casino back to the room we stopped at the roulette table to play a $10 match play from the ACG. We bet it on black and 15 came up for the $20 win.
We took a short break and then once again we went downtown. We had to go to the Plaza to get Dee's 2nd installment of her loss rebate. On the way there we stopped off at jack in the box for a snack to hold us over until dinner and we both got a couple of tacos.
We also played 3k on jacks or better. This was a pretty smooth ride today with a few quads to keep us alive. Towards the end Dee started getting beat up but I was ahead enough to offset it. We finished up with a $20 win.
We went to the players club to get Dee's free play added using the coupon from the LVA for 2x your age in free play, the $10 coupon from the LVA and the second half of her loss rebate. That lady at the booth asked “How old is Dee?” and without missing a beat blurted out 600 (hoping she'd fall for it and giver her $1200 free play). It was a good laugh.
We ran it through a variety of crap and didn't do very well turning the $356 it into $260.
We also had Dee's $25 match play from the LVA. We couldn't get near the roulette wheel so I played it on one hand of blackjack. I got a 20 against a dealer 4. She flipped over a 9, dropped a 2 on it, followed by an ace, followed by a 6 for a dealer break and a $50 win.
After 3 days of doing promotions here and taking a shot at high stakes, getting the loss rebate, the LVA coupon free play coupon, 2x your age in slot play, and the match play we won a total of about $38. Not really what we were hoping for but maybe the future will bring some mailers that will be decent.
We went back to Rampart where we ha dinner reservations at the Carmel Room for Dee's birthday dinner. We were seated immediately. Dee ordered a spinach salad to start with and had the butternut squash ravioli. I ordered the prime rib with quinoa and creamed corn side dishes. Dee said hers was ok but wasn't quite what she was expecting. My prim rib was good but far from the best I ever had. The service was also spotty. It seemed at times they were constantly checking on us to the point of being annoying to almost being ignored at times. This is the 3rd time we've tried this place (the first since it moved to it's new location) and haven't been overly impressed with it.
After dinner we hit the casino again. I activated my free play for the day and then hit the Spin Poker machines again. It was pretty good here but another roller coaster ride. Dee struggled to hit much of anything and I was hovering. We both hit a good amount of quads but the best was when I hit a dealt bonus quad.
It was the end of the night so we ran my free play through single line quarters turning the $185 of free play into $182 cash. I also cashed in $100 worth of points and turned that into $110 cash. All in all it was a pretty good day of gaming action.
We came up to the room and wrapped up another day.
Total coin in for the day $26344
Total win/loss for the day $550
Total comps for the day $977
Room $167
Cash/Free Play $641
Food $169
Day 7
Sunday June 19, 2016
Happy Father's Day
We started off the day with out normal routine of the some pool time. I normally wait to give an eff you until the end of the report but I need to give a huge eff you to the slob that clammed in the pool. There's nothing more disgusting than seeing a giant clam come floating by you while you're trying to enjoy the pool. Luckily it didn't get on either of us and I was able to get it to the skimmer.
For breakfast we ate in the room and had the pastry that I had ordered yesterday and used the in room coffee maker to make Dee coffee and myself some hot tea.
Once we were done with breakfast we started the gaming day. For the next 3 days we'd be playing on Dee's card. Our first stop was to the hotel check in to roll me out of the room and roll Dee into it on her offer. Her offer is for 3 nights, $300 free play, $30 food and another $60 food for her birthday.
We activated her free play and then played Spin Poker again. This was an up and down session. Quads were sparse but hitting enough to keep us alive. Dee hit aces a few times and I hit them once. She also hit a straight flush but only on one line. We played for a few hours and dropped about $200 on about 10k in action.
Dee ran her free play through a single line 8/5 bonus machine and got slaughtered turning it into only $70. She also got to play some kiosk game for earning 10 points. You could take the guaranteed $10 food coupon or risk it for a look into the crystal ball. She took the risk and got $10 free play. This she did better with turning it into $8.
I had a ticket to WWE Money in the Bank on Pay Per View and the WWE Network at the T Mobile Arena down on the strip. Dee wasn't going to come with me but had lots planned to keep busy.
I stopped off at Jack in the Box for a snack of 2 tacos and a Jr Bacon cheeseburger.
I headed out down to the strip. I refuse to pay to park at an MGM property so my plan was to park at the Cromwell and walk over. This plan had a wrench thrown into it when some jackass decided to jump off the bridge on Flamingo down to I – 15. Because of this they closed Flamingo Road going east. All traffic was being diverted to Industrial and through the Rio. I took the detour and traffic was totally jammed up with everyone going through Jay Sarno and Caesars to get back to the strip. I decided to go down Industrial to Spring Mountain. This was also jammed up in both directions. I ended up in Treasure Island's parking garage and hoofed it all of the way to T -mobile. Folks, this is a walk! After making the lengthy walk I was finally at the arena, 2 ½ hours after I had left Rampart.
I bought this ticket on the secondary market on Stub Hub for $90. It's too much money but it's vacation so I figured why not. I was in section 223, row L, seat 1. This was a great seat with a centered view of the ring but it was WAY up there. I was closer to the ceiling than I was to anything else only 3 rows from the top. The event was typical WWE and I was entertained with a few twists and turns in the story lines.
One note to the fans of WWE. If you're a grown man (more than 16 years old), you don't look cool carrying around a Money in the Bank briefcase (that you paid $200 for), you look like a tool. Also, you don't look cool wearing, or carrying on your shoulder, a replica championship belt. You're not the champion, and you'll never be the champion.
After the event was over it was a nightmare getting out of the place. For some reason even though they had both escalators in the downward direction but were only using one. It took close to 20 minutes to get out of this place.
For dinner Dee ordered Room service. She got a turkey club with fries and also got me one but with a salad (fries would be nasty by the time I got back). She also got herself a slice of carrot cake. When I got back to the room I ate half of mine and saved the salad and the other half for tomorrow's lunch. We saved her other half as well.
Right now we're in the room getting ready to watch some TV and then to get some sleep.
Total coin in for the day $10380
Total win/loss for the day - $100
Total comps for the day $315
Room $135
Cash/Free Play $110
Food $70
June 13 – July 13, 2016
Welcome to the Summer 2016 trip report. This trip will be one of the longest trips ever coming in at 30 nights. As always, Dee will be with me as we pound away at the machines, meet with friends, eat and explore. The cousins will also be joining us for a week too. There will be plenty of action this time around so let's get going!
Day 1
Monday June 13, 2016
Well today is the day we head back out to Las Vegas. Originally we weren't going to leave until tomorrow but I found some really low fares on Delta leaving from our local airport, Stewart. The only bad thing was it is a late afternoon flight. So to make up for the late departure, we're leaving a day early (like we need it on a month long trip).
We had the morning at home to finish up getting ready for the trip. We left here around 2:30pm. I took Dee up to the airport and then drove back down the hill to where I work to park my car and then walked back up to the terminal (about a mile). Flying out of Stewart so close to home is super convenient. I don't have to rent cars or stay in hotels and we're therein 10 minutes!
Normally fares from this airport are too high but for this trip I was able to get a one way flight out with Delta for just $152 per person. This is a super saver fare and you don't get your seats until you check in. We checked in at home yesterday and just had to check the suitcase to day and pay the lame baggage fee of $25. This went well and we were off to security. That's the other great thing about this airport. Security never takes more than a few minutes.
We got to the gate and waited for boarding to begin. This is a small puddle jumper type plane so boarding goes quickly. We are in seats 13E and 13F. This is flight 3750 scheduled to depart at 5:25pm and arrived in Detroit at 7:06pm. Before we left the captain came on the PA and said the flight would take 1:20.
We left on time and the flight was pretty good for a small plane. Very little turbulence. Before long we were making our initial approach into Detroit. This is not only my first time to this airport but it's also my first time ever being in Michigan.
Once we landed we took what seemed like the longest taxi ever at an airport. Once Dee's headed directly to the next gate to catch our connection. Of course I had to hoof it from Terminal C to Terminal first by going ¼ mile to the tunnel that goes under the tarmac then of course our gate was all of the way at the end of the terminal which had to be 45 miles. OK, that isn't true but it was effing far.
Boarding here took a little longer since this is a full sized plane. When we got there boarding already started before we got there. This time we had seats 40F & 41F. We were front & back this time, the drawback of these super saver fares on Delta. This is flight 1917 scheduled to depart at 7:59pm and arrive in Las Vegas at 9:19pm. We are told before take off that the flight would take 4 hours and we'd be landing at 9:30 pm. Even though we've already flown part way this flight in just over 4 hours and will be a treat compared to the 5-5 ½ it usually is on the non – stops. The flight was bumpy at times and I passed most of the time by playing games on my tablet, watching free entertainment and napping. Dee did the same.
We landed on time and taxied for a while to the gate. We had to wait for Dee's wheelchair to come up before we got off the plane. Once we did the first stop was to baggage claim. Of course our carousel was at the far end of the room. The bag was out when we got there.
The next stop was the shuttle to the rental car facility. For some reason the rental car rates for this trip have been very high going all of the way back to winter. I check the rates daily, sometimes more than once and they have remained high for the last 5 months. Since everything was high and we could use the extra space, especially when the cousins arrive I booked a full sized SUV (Tahoe or similar) from Alamo for a base rate of $850/month. I also have a discount code and a coupon that took $110 off. The real killer is the taxes on the car though that add up to almost 50% extra. The biggest part of that is the absurd daily facility charge.
Since we were arriving late I was worried there wouldn't be a decent SUV left. I ended up getting a Chevy Tahoe with almost 16000 miles on it. It was in great condition. I gave it a once over and loaded our stuff into it and we were on our way. The only hang up here was the long lines and lazy/slow workers at the exit gates.
We left the car facility and the next stop was to the Tropicana. Out of the blue I got a mail offer from them based on what I think is my limited play at the M. They recently combined slot clubs at both properties and appear to have done some cross marketing. This offer is good for 3 nights, $120 free play, 2 tickets to Raiding the Rock Vault or the Laugh Factory and $80 per day in food credits.
When we arrived checking in was really quick because it was so late. We were given room 532 in the Paradise tower. This is a handicap accessible room with 2 queen beds, a nightstand, dresser, flat screen TV, work desk,arm chair w/ ottoman and a side table. The bathroom has a tub, toilet and vanity with safety bars all around. It has a view of the airport and partial pool view.
We threw our things into the room and then went to the food court to get a quick bite to eat because it's the only thing open. They were running a very limited menu because they were deep cleaning the kitchen. Considering this is the only place to eat after midnight, I found it to be unacceptable. We both had a turkey sandwich, chips and a drink . We also got some fruit and yogurt to go since we had $80 to burn by 3am. I figured we'd use this food for our breakfast in the morning and save the full $80 for dinner tomorrow night.
We got back to the room at 12:30am which was 3:30am to our bodies and just crashed after a really long day.
Total coin in for the day $0
Total win/loss for the day $0
Total comps for the day $157
Room $99
Food $58
Day 2
Tuesday June 14, 2016
We were surprisingly up early today. We ate our breakfast the we got last night at the food court and got ready for the day.
We headed out for a few hours to pick up a few things. Our first stop was Vons, then to Savers so Dee could get some books to read during this lengthy trip. That was followed by a stop at 99¢ Only and finally Walgreen's for a few items that we didn't travel with.
Next was a stop at the Pinball Hall of Fame for the first time this trip. Staying at the Tropicana all of this was really convenient since everything is on Tropicana Avenue! Dee even came into the Pinball hall of Fame and played for a while. This is always a great time and very economical in price. I hope to come back a few more times this trip.
We left the Pinball Hall of Fame and had a quick mini lunch at Jack in the Box consisting of 2 tacos. I had a soda from the Pinball Hall of Fame and Dee got a coffee for an energy burst! This “meal” was just to hold us over until dinner.
Our next stop was to the Orleans just to pick up some tickets to see Steven Wright on Friday night. This is something Dee wanted to do for her birthday (that's on Saturday). I got us tickets for the show on Friday night and got 2 seats using the coupon from the American Casino Guide for buy one get one free. I got seats in section AA, Row B, Seats 8 & 9. To make it an even better deal I was able to use comps to cover the cost.
When we got back to the Tropicana we took a break up in the room until dinner. For dinner we had plans to meet up with AP at Biscayne Steak – Sea – Wine at the Tropicana to use up the food credits with the room. I had the pork chop with a baked potato and Dee had the scallops with asparagus. We also split a tostada appetizer which was marinated pork and some other toppings. They were very tasty. The tostada was pretty bland though. The food here was excellent tonight and the service was attentive but not snooty. AP had been in town for 2 weeks and tonight was his last night. He shared some of his war stories from his trip and we had a great time.
After dinner we hit the casino. Since we really don't care if we ever get another offer here we have no set amount of play we plan on doing. The plan is to play what we want and if we're doing well and having fun to continue. If we're getting killed we stop and if we hit big, we lock up the win!
We found some 50 play machines and sat down to start playing. Things were not good. I was not getting any dealt winners at all and on draws I wasn't pulling much. Dee was streaky too but hit a hand with a bunch of bonus quads. I ended up dropping $500 and Dee dropped $100 and we cashed out with a total loss of $600 on only $4800 in play. I sure hope this isn't going to be the theme for the trip.
Next I ran $100 of my free play through a 3 way poker machine. Not much happened here but I did score a quad to get back into it and cashed out the full $100 after running it through.
The last $20 we ran through some penny slots. No major hits but we did play for close to an hour on it before it was all gone.
We decided to wrap things up for the night and came up here to the room to wind down and watch TV before bed.
Total coin in for the day $4850
Total win/loss for the day - $500
Total comps for the day $300
Room $99
Cash/Free Play $120
Food $81
Day 3
Wednesday June 15, 2016
We started today with a trip to the fitness center.
After a short work out we came back to the room and got ready for the day. Today's plan is to go downtown (where we will be spending quite a bit of time this trip) to the D.
Today's plan at the D is to use a mail offer that Dee got for 4 nights (don't need those) $150 in free play, $200 in food (we sure won't need that much), 2 show tickets and (3) $50 match plays. We are also going to use the coupon from the American Casino Guide that gives $5 free play for every 50 points (up to $100). They are also running a promo this month on Wednesday for 3x points on video poker on Wednesdays.
Our first stop was to the players club to activate Dee's coupon and to get her food vouchers then it was off to eat. We ate at the D Grill. I had the chicken fruit salad which was a salad, with a chicken breast and fruit and Dee had the western omelet. The food was excellent today and the service was good. We were filled up and then went to the casino for some video poker action.
We found some machines and started to pound away. We started the day off playing for halves. Thing here were choppy. Dee hit a quad right away but lost it as fast as she hit it. I was losing quickly but then hit a straight flush to get back into it. This was followed by a few quads and I went from being down almost 2 bills to being up over 2 bills. Dee struggled but then hit a straight flush of her own. Sadly it was the ultra dreaded A2345. From there it was a bleed as Dee lost $200 and I lost most of the $200 I was up.
We took a short break and walked out on Fremont for a while and then returned to the casino.
This time we played dollars and things were tough at first but then they got good. A key hand for me was being dealt 10, J, Q, K of hearts. On the draw I watched the fucking 9 of hearts fill the space as I hit the dreaded king high straight flush. This got me back into it and then I followed with 3 more quads soon after. Dee was bleeding and was down nearly 3 bills before hitting a straight followed by a bunch of other decent hands. She still lost but not as badly as it looked like it was going to be.
By the time we got enough play in to max out the ACG coupon were up around $150. We went back to the players club to get the $100 in free play added to the $150 she already had. We went back to the machines and ran it through 8/5 bonus at quarters turning the $250 free play into $215 as Dee's quad drought continued.
Before we left we were going to stop by the roulette table to run Dee's match play coupons. We couldn't though because like a dumb ass I left them here at the Trop so we'll have to use them tomorrow.
It was getting late and we headed back to the Tropicana. I made a reservation to eat dinner at Bacio. I had the chicken parm. It also came with a side of pasta. This was one of the better chicken parm meals with pasta I've had. Dee had shrimp and pasta. She said hers was very good as well. We finished off with the canoli dessert which was 3 small canoli each a different flavor. These were pretty good considering outside of NY it's tough to find a good one.
We have tickets to see Raiding the Rock Vault. I've heard it's a good show so we were going to give it a try. For the most part it's a group that does cover tunes from '80s bands but it's made up of former band members of some of those bands. It was a pretty good show and the prices was right being comped as part of the room offer. It's a good energy show and it's full of rock songs from the 70's and 80's, all of which you'd know.
We still had a few dollars in food credits for the day so stopped by the food court and picked up a few snacks for tomorrow.
It's getting late and it's been a long day so we came back up here to the room and wrapped up another day.
Total coin in for the day $10380
Total win/loss for the day $400
Total comps for the day $579
Room $99
Cash/Free Play $250
Food $110
Shows $120
Day 4
Thursday June 16, 2016
We got up early today and took a quick trip to the fitness center. When we got back to the room we got ready for the day and packed up our things getting ready for the first move of the trip.
When I looked at my account on the TV I was actually charged for the room each night as well as all of the food we charged. I was not amused and had to go to the front desk to get it all fixed. After pounding away on his computer the guy there got everything fixed and gave me a receipt showing a zero balance.
We left the Tropicana and headed back downtown to take care of some more gaming related business. The first thing we did was hit the D to use another one of Dee's food vouchers at the D Grill. I had the BBQ pulled pork sandwich with fries and she tried the special of the day, 2 pancakes, 2 bacon, and 2 eggs. Everything was good but this place is pricey for downtown.
On the way through the casino to Fremont we stopped at the roulette table to use Dee's three $50 match plays. The first spin we chose black and black 15 came up. This was a good start because even if we lost the next two we'd break even. On the second spin we chose odd and 17 hit. For the 3rd spin we chose HIGH and 14 came up for the loss. Net result was $150 in winning match play bets.
The next step of business downtown was to go to the Plaza and sign Dee up for a new players card and to do the new member sign up which is a $500 loss rebate. We got her card and also did their tier match with her diamond card from Caesars Entertainment. Once she had her card we went off in search of some video poker. Since we could lose up to $500 and get it back. Because of this we chose $1 double – double bonus. The goal was to hit a some kicker quads and take a profit giving up the rebate or playing until the $500 was gone. Things were really decent here. She hit a bunch of full houses right away and one quad which was actually dealt. Our goal was to get ahead by $500 which never happened. She got quite a bit of play in but then double-double did it;'s thing and sucked down the $300 she started with. I gave her the last $200 and switched to $2. Not much happened here and she was down the full $500.
Next up we stopped off at the Four Queens. Today we'd play on Dee's card. She got a mail offer for $225 free play. They are also celebrating their 50th anniversary and are offering different gifts for a certain number of points. 20 points is a key chain, 100 points is a t-shirt and if she earns 1000 points she's get an additional $50 free play. There is also a special silver coin for earning 2000 points. We chose to play jacks or better for dollars against my better judgment. Things were really good to start here. It seems when we play here we either do really well or we get killed. We had 2/3 of our play in being up as much as $500 and as always, the last 1/3 kills us. We went from being up $500 between us to being down $200.
We moved to the 50 play machines to get the rest of the action in and this was a killer as well. No major hits and nothing of importance dealt except Dee getting a natural quad dealt playing deuces.
By the time we ran through our normal amount of action we were down over $600, an $1100 swing in just 4k in action.
We went to the players club to get Dee's gifts and free play added to her account. Now armed with $275 in free play we chose to run it through jacks for halves and turned it into $410 thanks to a few quads.
We went back over to the D to get the car and then it was up to Summerlin and the JW Marriott at Rampart Casino where we would be spending the next 6 nights. I got a mail offer for 3 nights, $525 free play and $20 in food. Dee got an offer for 3 nights, $300 in free play, $30 in food and an additional $60 food for her birthday. I booked these back to back and our casino host has upgraded us to a one bedroom suite and has also increased our free play (I'll believe that when I see it).
When we arrived I tried to check in and the room was ready. We were assigned room 3114 in the Spa Tower. This is a 1 bedroom suite. It has double doors to enter though into a large entry way. Off to the side is a powder room with toilet and vanity.
The entry way opens up into a large living room with a work desk, couch, coffee table, arm chairs, end tables, wall unit with flat screen TV, and small wet bar area. To the side there is a dining room with a large dining room table. Through a set of double doors is the bedroom with a king bed, nightstands, arm chair and ottoman and wall unit with a flat screen TV and dresser.
The main bathroom is very large with a walk in closet to the right and toilet room (with bidet) to the left. Straight ahead is a dual sink vanity, to the left a whirlpool tub and to the right is the walk in shower.
We have a view of the valet area, Angel Park Golf Course, Suncoast, and part of the strip.
We got our things to the room and settled in for the next six days and then it was off the promenade cafe for dinner. We both ordered the 3 for $9.99 deal which offers an appetizer, entree, and dessert. Dee had a salad, the spaghetti and meatballs and apple cobbler with vanilla ice cream. I had the chicken pot pie for an extra $1. My appetizer was chicken egg rolls and I also had the apple cobbler.
Next up we were off to the casino. We started off with stopping at the players club to activate my free play for the day. I asked about extra free play from my host but there was nothing. The lady at the slot club called her and she added $200 to my account. This was quite a bit less than I was expecting but I wasn't going to argue about it with a boothling. They recently downgraded most of the 9/6 jacks machines here so instead we opted for quarter 5 – play and 8/5 bonus. Things were smooth here, at first. Then they turned, especially on me. I was feeding in bill after bill. Dee hovered the whole time thanks to a large number of quads including aces twice. One main feature was getting dealt trip nines and pulling a quad on 3 of the 5 lines. I couldn't hit a pair, never mind a quad.
We switched to a different bank of machines and this time Dee got beat up while I hovered. No major hits but I got more dealt winners in this shorter session than I did the entire previous one. By the time we were done playing we'd dropped $800 between us and I wasn't amused.
To finish up the night I ran my free play through single line 8/5 bonus for quarters turning $375 into $410 thanks to a bunch of full houses.
It was getting late and it has been a long day at this point so we wrapped thing up and came up to the room to wrap up another day.
Total coin in for the day $37355
Total win/loss for the day - $900
Total comps for the day $843
Room $135
Cash/Free Play $650
Food $58
Day 5
Friday June 17, 2016
Today we started off with some time at the pool. They've got a great pool area here with plenty of space.
We came back to the room and got clean ed up and started the day with breakfast at the Promenade Cafe. Dee had the California Scramble and I had deuces wild (2 pancakes, 2 eggs, 2 bacon, 2 sausage and hash browns). The food was great and we were filled up. I paid the bill with the $20 coupon that came with my room offer.
We hit the 5 play machines after breakfast. Dee started off with a quad on her first hand and then started hitting them regularly. I was doing fine and then hit aces for $100 which was gone as quickly as I hit them. I bled to death again with only a few other quads. Dee continued to hit quads and even a straight flush but couldn't seem to get anywhere. Between quads she'd just bleed. Between u we dropped $500 and only did about 8k in action.
I activated my free play but we decided to do that later and take a short break. After the break we hit the casino again. I played a Carnival type video poker game that looked interesting but dropped a quick $100 on it with few hits.
Next we tried some Spin Poker. It was a good here with a good amount of dealt winners for each of us. I scored a straight flush that landed on 3 lines and a few quads that allowed me to double up my initial buy in of $300. Dee soon after did the same thing. We got a decent amount of play in and won almost everything back we'd lost earlier.
From here it was off to the Plaza to get the first half of Dee's loss rebate. This place is really uptight and you can't use free play on most video poker. The exception is the super short pay crap at the sportsbook bar. I wasn't really worried about this since it was super short term. We ran the rebate money through a lame 7/5 DDB progressive turning $250 free play into $180 cash in a blood bath. I'd like to blame the pay table but I didn't hit a single full house and only hit 2 flushes. We left the Plaza, took a quick walk to La Bayou and Mermaids just because they are closing in a few weeks. I honestly hadn't been in La Bayou since it was Coin Castle and that was about 15 years ago.
We left the downtown area and went to the Orleans. Two things are happening here tonight. The first is dinner at the buffet with Norm. Then we're going to see Steven Wright. Funny thing was before we met up with Norm my buddy Steve came walking by. He was there to meet up with my friend Anne (his wife).
The buffet here at the Orleans is pretty good and tonight was no exception. Tonight was actually seafood night which I wasn't aware of until we paid the high price (with points). We ate too much as always. We had a good time visiting with Norm tonight. He was going to a different show tonight and headed out and we went over to the showroom.
We still had some time before the show so played a penny version of 3 Way Poker for a few minutes. Dee had no luck but I hit a few good hands including a dealt full house. Dee busted out a $20 bill but I won $8.
Next up was show times. I got these tickets a few days ago using a 2 for 1 coupon and paid the balance with points from my B-Connected card. They were normally $70 each which to me is too much for a comedian. We are seated in Section AA, Row 2, Seats 8-9.
The show had no opening act and lasted for 75 minutes. It was pretty funny stuff. Steven Wright has a delivery like no other.
We came back up to the Rampart and got the rest of our action in for the day on Spin Poker. I was getting beat up and not hitting much of anything. Dee was struggling as well. I finally hit a quad and a straight flush and Dee had a big come back with another one of those 3 straight flush hands and a 3 quad hand. Even with those hits we still lost $500 between us.
I ran today's free play through single line quarters and turned $175 into $155. No major hits but enough to keep alive.
We wrapped up the day with some TV in the room and then it was time for sleep.
Total coin in for the day $18225
Total win/loss for the day - $200
Total comps for the day $852
Room $167
Cash/Free Play $425
Food $98
Shows $160
Day 6
Saturday June 18, 2016
Happy Birthday to Dee!
Today is Dee's birthday and as we've done the last few years she gets to plan the day. The only exception to that is having to go to the Plaza so she can use the LVA coupon for 2x your age in free play and get the second half of her free play from the loss rebate.
We started the day off with a room service breakfast. This is one of Dee's favorite things to do so I placed an order last night. She had an egg white frittata and I had steak and eggs. I also ordered some pastry and beverages. It was pricey and with service charge, delivery charge and tax was almost 80 bucks. Two things that should never be said in the same sentence are Eighty dollars and breakfast. The food was excellent and it was nice to eat here in the room.
After we ate it was time for some pool time and then got ourselves ready.
We hit the casino and started off with a stop at the players club to have my $10 free play coupon from the LVA added to my account. From here it was Spin Poker again. This was a bit of a roller coaster but Dee hit a hand with 3 sets of aces that kept her going. I got dealt quad jacks for a nice boost as well. By the time we were done we had actually lost a small amount.
On the way through the casino back to the room we stopped at the roulette table to play a $10 match play from the ACG. We bet it on black and 15 came up for the $20 win.
We took a short break and then once again we went downtown. We had to go to the Plaza to get Dee's 2nd installment of her loss rebate. On the way there we stopped off at jack in the box for a snack to hold us over until dinner and we both got a couple of tacos.
We also played 3k on jacks or better. This was a pretty smooth ride today with a few quads to keep us alive. Towards the end Dee started getting beat up but I was ahead enough to offset it. We finished up with a $20 win.
We went to the players club to get Dee's free play added using the coupon from the LVA for 2x your age in free play, the $10 coupon from the LVA and the second half of her loss rebate. That lady at the booth asked “How old is Dee?” and without missing a beat blurted out 600 (hoping she'd fall for it and giver her $1200 free play). It was a good laugh.
We ran it through a variety of crap and didn't do very well turning the $356 it into $260.
We also had Dee's $25 match play from the LVA. We couldn't get near the roulette wheel so I played it on one hand of blackjack. I got a 20 against a dealer 4. She flipped over a 9, dropped a 2 on it, followed by an ace, followed by a 6 for a dealer break and a $50 win.
After 3 days of doing promotions here and taking a shot at high stakes, getting the loss rebate, the LVA coupon free play coupon, 2x your age in slot play, and the match play we won a total of about $38. Not really what we were hoping for but maybe the future will bring some mailers that will be decent.
We went back to Rampart where we ha dinner reservations at the Carmel Room for Dee's birthday dinner. We were seated immediately. Dee ordered a spinach salad to start with and had the butternut squash ravioli. I ordered the prime rib with quinoa and creamed corn side dishes. Dee said hers was ok but wasn't quite what she was expecting. My prim rib was good but far from the best I ever had. The service was also spotty. It seemed at times they were constantly checking on us to the point of being annoying to almost being ignored at times. This is the 3rd time we've tried this place (the first since it moved to it's new location) and haven't been overly impressed with it.
After dinner we hit the casino again. I activated my free play for the day and then hit the Spin Poker machines again. It was pretty good here but another roller coaster ride. Dee struggled to hit much of anything and I was hovering. We both hit a good amount of quads but the best was when I hit a dealt bonus quad.
It was the end of the night so we ran my free play through single line quarters turning the $185 of free play into $182 cash. I also cashed in $100 worth of points and turned that into $110 cash. All in all it was a pretty good day of gaming action.
We came up to the room and wrapped up another day.
Total coin in for the day $26344
Total win/loss for the day $550
Total comps for the day $977
Room $167
Cash/Free Play $641
Food $169
Day 7
Sunday June 19, 2016
Happy Father's Day
We started off the day with out normal routine of the some pool time. I normally wait to give an eff you until the end of the report but I need to give a huge eff you to the slob that clammed in the pool. There's nothing more disgusting than seeing a giant clam come floating by you while you're trying to enjoy the pool. Luckily it didn't get on either of us and I was able to get it to the skimmer.
For breakfast we ate in the room and had the pastry that I had ordered yesterday and used the in room coffee maker to make Dee coffee and myself some hot tea.
Once we were done with breakfast we started the gaming day. For the next 3 days we'd be playing on Dee's card. Our first stop was to the hotel check in to roll me out of the room and roll Dee into it on her offer. Her offer is for 3 nights, $300 free play, $30 food and another $60 food for her birthday.
We activated her free play and then played Spin Poker again. This was an up and down session. Quads were sparse but hitting enough to keep us alive. Dee hit aces a few times and I hit them once. She also hit a straight flush but only on one line. We played for a few hours and dropped about $200 on about 10k in action.
Dee ran her free play through a single line 8/5 bonus machine and got slaughtered turning it into only $70. She also got to play some kiosk game for earning 10 points. You could take the guaranteed $10 food coupon or risk it for a look into the crystal ball. She took the risk and got $10 free play. This she did better with turning it into $8.
I had a ticket to WWE Money in the Bank on Pay Per View and the WWE Network at the T Mobile Arena down on the strip. Dee wasn't going to come with me but had lots planned to keep busy.
I stopped off at Jack in the Box for a snack of 2 tacos and a Jr Bacon cheeseburger.
I headed out down to the strip. I refuse to pay to park at an MGM property so my plan was to park at the Cromwell and walk over. This plan had a wrench thrown into it when some jackass decided to jump off the bridge on Flamingo down to I – 15. Because of this they closed Flamingo Road going east. All traffic was being diverted to Industrial and through the Rio. I took the detour and traffic was totally jammed up with everyone going through Jay Sarno and Caesars to get back to the strip. I decided to go down Industrial to Spring Mountain. This was also jammed up in both directions. I ended up in Treasure Island's parking garage and hoofed it all of the way to T -mobile. Folks, this is a walk! After making the lengthy walk I was finally at the arena, 2 ½ hours after I had left Rampart.
I bought this ticket on the secondary market on Stub Hub for $90. It's too much money but it's vacation so I figured why not. I was in section 223, row L, seat 1. This was a great seat with a centered view of the ring but it was WAY up there. I was closer to the ceiling than I was to anything else only 3 rows from the top. The event was typical WWE and I was entertained with a few twists and turns in the story lines.
One note to the fans of WWE. If you're a grown man (more than 16 years old), you don't look cool carrying around a Money in the Bank briefcase (that you paid $200 for), you look like a tool. Also, you don't look cool wearing, or carrying on your shoulder, a replica championship belt. You're not the champion, and you'll never be the champion.
After the event was over it was a nightmare getting out of the place. For some reason even though they had both escalators in the downward direction but were only using one. It took close to 20 minutes to get out of this place.
For dinner Dee ordered Room service. She got a turkey club with fries and also got me one but with a salad (fries would be nasty by the time I got back). She also got herself a slice of carrot cake. When I got back to the room I ate half of mine and saved the salad and the other half for tomorrow's lunch. We saved her other half as well.
Right now we're in the room getting ready to watch some TV and then to get some sleep.
Total coin in for the day $10380
Total win/loss for the day - $100
Total comps for the day $315
Room $135
Cash/Free Play $110
Food $70
