1/4/2002
By Angela Sparks, the Frugal Princess —
Here I sit at my mother’s laptop, taking some time off from our busy adventures in Las Vegas. My children — Zachary, 8, and Kaitlynn, 7 — and I have been here for nine days and something had to give for Queen Jean! So I’ll be her guest columnist for a few weeks while she recovers from our visit and finishes up Frugal 2. This week I report on planning for this frugal vacation, the first one we’ve made without my husband.
Step 1: Decide how to carry on after September 11. At that time we already knew my husband Steve would be on a peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, Bosnia, over the holidays, so we would have to make our plans without him. (Thank goodness they didn’t switch his assignment to Afghanistan.) I decided that the three of us would get on that plane and fly to Vegas to be with Jean and Brad.
Step 2: Find the cheapest fares possible. I went online to Travelocity.com to compare fares, both from Syracuse (only 65 miles from my house in Watertown, NY) and from Buffalo (200 miles away). The difference in price was astounding — around $450 from Syracuse and only $98 from Buffalo. At the time, the airlines were drastically cutting fares to fill seats, since so many were still apprehensive about flying. I was nervous about flying too, especially alone with my children, but the next-to-nothing $98 (apiece) helped ease my mind!
Step 3: OK, now my flight is booked, but how do I get to Buffalo? It’ll be the middle of winter — do I want to drive or take the bus? I checked Greyhound rates and schedules online and quickly realized I’d have to do too much transferring, lugging bags, and herding kids. I went back to the Web to look for hotels around the airport that had a park-and-fly package. I found the Holiday Inn Airport with a $59.99 room rate, free long-term parking, and a free shuttle to the airport. This was the best solution, especially since my flight arrives back into Buffalo late and I could stay overnight again and drive home the next morning.
Step 4: D-Day, Dec. 21. The Christmas shopping is done (but presents not wrapped in case our suitcases have to be inspected at the airport). We’re packed and ready to drive to Syracuse to stay with a girlfriend overnight on our way to Buffalo when Zachary comes down with strep throat. I take him to the doctor and we delay our drive a day, canceling the stop in Syracuse in order not to expose others to strep. But we get beautiful weather to drive to Buffalo the next day. I learned a good lesson — you sometimes have to be flexible in your trip plans!
After driving to Buffalo we parked at the Holiday Inn, stayed overnight, and took the shuttle to the airport. As Mom had trained me, I checked in with the gate agent immediately to see if they needed anyone bumped (with no luck), then flew to Cleveland, Continental’s hub.
We had a three-hour layover, so I was first in line and first on the bump list (with no luck). We boarded the plane with everyone else, but minutes later, the gate agent announced, “Would the lady with two children that volunteered to be bumped earlier please disembark the plane? We need your seats.” Our first bump! I couldn’t get off that plane fast enough.
It turns out there’d been a mistake and we shouldn’t have been bumped at all. They’d bumped us to let a woman and her two children fly with non-revenue tickets (ones they hadn’t paid for, but gotten through an employee friend). We didn’t mind, of course! We were each given $250 in airline credit, a hotel voucher (they made the reservations for us right then), and food vouchers for $18 and $38, then they booked us on one of the first flights out the next morning.
At first Zachary and Kaitlynn were disappointed that we wouldn’t get to Grandma’s until the next day, but I explained that we got free tickets to fly to Vegas again next summer, and that made it all better. We stayed at the Clarion, a fine hotel by the airport, and we used the smaller vouch
1/11/2002
By Angela Sparks, the Frugal Princess —
The children and I are back in the “North Country,” back to our normal routines of school, swimming lessons, and basketball practice. And yes, we’re freezing our tails off! I was disappointed when we didn’t get bumped on the way home, but I was happy to see that the Holiday Inn had dug our van out of the snow for us in Buffalo. Now I’m left with some of the best memories of Las Vegas ever — those that include being there for the holidays for the first time.
Many people couldn’t imagine spending the holidays in Las Vegas. Not just because they’d be away from home, but because of the different things one usually does in Las Vegas. I wondered about it myself; this was the first time that our family was separated (my husband is in Kosovo) and the first time in years that we spent the holidays away from home. I didn’t worry too much, though, since I knew the Queen of Comps would keep us too busy to think about anything except fun!
We flew in on Christmas Eve morning, and after a couple of stops for Mom and Brad to pick up bounce-back cash and all three of us to play some valuable soon-to-expire coupons, we all went home to Mom and Brad’s condo to unwind. That evening, instead of cooking a big meal, we went to the buffet at Palace Station. Surprisingly, the place was crowded with other folks enjoying the holidays together, without the hassle of cooking and cleaning up. Grandma Jean clipped the list of the most beautifully decorated houses from the newspaper, so on the way home we took a drive to see the Christmas lights. This is a tradition for our family, and brought back lovely memories of when my oldest, Zachary, was a baby and exclaiming, “Kites! Kites!” when he saw even the most meager string of lights.
That night we were too tired to go to church as we usually do, but we certainly kept the other traditions. There were new pajamas to wear, “The Night Before Christmas” to read (although now the kids read it to us!), and cookies with milk to leave for Santa. We were all suffering from jet lag so badly, though, that we barely made it through all that before the kids passed out. I don’t think they’ve ever fallen asleep so quickly on Christmas Eve!
The next morning the kids woke up with the birds, as I knew they would since their body clocks were so messed up with the 3-hour time difference. They were allowed to dig into their stockings, but had to wait for Grandma Jean and Poppy Brad to wake up before they could open their presents. This reminded me of my childhood, as Mom has never been much of a morning person! After all the presents were opened and we all donned our most festive outfits, we were off to friends of Jean and Brad’s for a Christmas party and dinner. It was a lovely day with family, friends, and good food, just as if we’d been home, but with the added advantage of being able to gamble!
We left the party and all went straight to the Gold Coast to play video poker. The kids love the free childcare there and after spending the whole day together, they didn’t mind having some play time without Mom and Grandma telling them to be polite and behave! I played Deuces Wild for a blissful three hours, the longest time I could leave the kids, and even got four deuces! Thank you, Santa!
1/18/2002
By Angela Sparks — the Frugal Princess
Last week I spoke about how the kids and I were able to enjoy a traditional holiday season in Las Vegas with Mom (Queen Jean) and Poppy Brad, yet with the extra activities that only this gambling town can provide. This week I’d like to discuss bringing children or grandchildren to Las Vegas. Although “”Sin City”” has recently returned to it roots, there’s still plenty to do with kids. And to parrot Mom, “”So much is free.”
One afternoon, while Mom and I shopped at Saver’s, our favorite thrift store chain (it was half-price day), Poppy Brad took the kids on their now traditional “”death-march”” sightseeing tour. Though we usually plan these trips around one corner of the Strip, casinos that are “”right next door”” can still be quite a walk, as the kids have experienced many times. This time it was the Tropicana corner.
First stop was at Excalibur for “”fuel”” — the Krispy Kreme donut factory where everyone can watch the donuts being made, then eat them. You have to pay for the donuts, of course, but the “”factory tour”” is free. Brad usually takes them to the bottom floor of Excalibur to play some of the arcade games, but since this was the holiday season and school was out, he decided he didn’t want to fight the hordes. Ditto for the amusement center at New York-New York. So he opted for a quieter destination, the lion habitat at the MGM, another free activity that can be as short or as long as you wish.
Then it was across the street to the Tropicana where “”The Birdman of Las Vegas”” does free afternoon shows (call ahead or check the local paper for times), another great value. It was the first time the kids had been to this show and they really enjoyed seeing the rare and exotic birds and the tricks they could do. By this time, the donut sugar buzz had worn off and Brad wisely headed for home. We learned long ago that you shouldn’t crowd too many sightseeing activities into one day.
I’m sure to no one’s surprise, Mom had arranged for many comped activities for us, either from hers and Brad’s play or by trading comps with friends. Our favorite was Cheval, which takes place in a tent between Bellagio and Monte Carlo. Created by one of the producers of the Cirque du Soleil, this show features beautiful horses and amazing trick riders. Though was somewhat long at 90 minutes, Cheval kept the kids entertained the whole time. We parked free at the Barbary Coast and walked to the show so we could watch the fountain show as we walked past Bellagio.
One evening we all went to see Melinda the Magician at the Venetian. I couldn’t believe the price of the tickets — $50 apiece, for a total $250 if we’d bought them! A high point of the show was Zachary, 8, being invited up to the stage to check out an airplane that would later disappear. It was an entertaining show, but I must say a bit too racy for younger children. Melinda and her dancers are obviously trying to keep up with the old sexy Vegas show tradition! There’s another magic show in town that we have been told is better for children — Lance Burton at Monte Carlo. I guess he does spectacular fewer big-production tricks and is more up close and personal with the audience.
The night before we left we did the Spring Mountain corner of the Strip. We went to Madam Tussaud’s Wax Museum at the Venetian, again with comped tickets in hand. It was an amazing experience for all three of us adults, but the kids were somewhat in the dark as to whom they were looking at most of the time — although their eyes got big when they saw how real the figures seemed. Kaitlynn, 7 going on 17, knew who Brad Pitt was and teased me about wanting my picture taken with him! I think this is a great activity, but a better value for adults who can recognize more of the figures. Always look in a freebie magazine for a discount coupon if you’re paying for this (or any Vegas) attraction; you can get one free child’s admission (age 12 and u
1/25/2002
By Angela Sparks The Frugal Princess
Las Vegas is one of the fastest growing cities in the country, seemingly with every piece of desert furiously being covered with some new building. I usually have a new casino to visit every time I come to town. Often these are on the Strip, but sometimes they are not there or downtown, but in the outlying new neighborhoods of Las Vegas where they are local favorites. The Suncoast casino is one of these and I was able to discover for myself this trip why it is so popular.
Mom had gotten a room for us there, comped of course, and at check-in, all three adults were given a very valuable funbook that included a $25, $10 and $5 match-play coupon for each table game – Pai Gow, Craps, Roulette, and Blackjack. The theoretical value of these coupons was very high, but, as we found out when we used the first two books, you still can come out a loser temporarily – we would win the little ones and lose the big ones! However, I have done enough coupon runs in casinos that I was not discouraged; I know we would win in the long run. You can have a string of losses that may make it seem not worthwhile, but keep at it. We did. After using the 3rd coupon book and other coupons during my Vegas stay, we did come out in the black, with a good amount of profit that Mom sent home with me. (Note from Jean: These great game coupons are no longer in the Suncoast coupon book.)
I especially enjoyed playing video poker at the Suncoast because of the new ticket in/ticket out system. This is the first time I had used it. With the old system, it’s hard to take a short break when you’re playing alone. You don’t want to cash out and scoop coins and, if you really need to “go,” it seems you will need to wait forever for a hopper fill. At a ticket machine, you just hit “collect” and a paper ticket comes out, one that you just reinsert into the bill acceptor when you come back to the machine. I’m sure this system will help to prevent many bladder infections in machine players who delay too long answering the call of nature!
One word of warning about the new multi-game, multi-denomination machines the Suncoast and many casinos have installed. Be sure to pay attention and make sure you are playing the denomination you want, and even the right game. I sat for an hour and half at the Gold Coast playing NICKLE Deuces Wild (not a full-pay game) when I intended to be playing quarter Deuces Wild (an over 100% game)! What threw me was that I sat down at a machine that I had played just the day before and took for granted that I was playing at the same quarter level. I got sick to my stomach when I realized my error and what could have happened. I have never been happier to MISS getting the 4 deuces or a royal flush!
The Suncoast has many non-gambling activities in-house that helped us enjoy our time there. There is a bowling alley and a multi-screen movie theater, showing all the latest films. Mom and Brad couldn’t wait for my kids to get in town so they could go see Harry Potter with someone to explain it to them! Movies can be comped but not Kids Tyme, their childcare facility. However, you can redeem slot club points to pay for the charges, at a better rate than for cash back — .3% for comp dollars versus .25% for cash. It costs $5.40 an hour per child with snacks available for purchase extra. This is a well-equipped play center, with a large crawl-through jungle gym, video games, and toys for all ages.
We tried a wide range of food at the Suncoast, and all of it I found to be very good. We ate at the Italian restaurant, Via Venetos and it was scrumptious, although allow at least 2 hours because the service is very slow. The Mexican restaurant was very good too and a little more comfortable for the children. Any buffet is a great place for kids, and with the wide range of food available at the Suncoast’s, even the pickiest eater can find something to fill them”