Comps

35 Years of Advantage Play – Part 2

The saga continues.  After I posted Part 1 and then re-read it, I realized how the “background material” was overwhelming the “financial report.”  I must tighten up and quit rambling I said to myself.  But then I read all the comments here and on Facebook where I also post these blogs.  Seems that many enjoy reading the “stories” and are liking the idea of my weaving in the figures leisurely as I detail the memories.

Despite the heated argument of what should and should not open up again during this pandemic there seems to be almost universal agreement that people at high risk (like the elderly and those with medical issues) should continue to stay at home – perhaps indefinitely. So, it looks like I might have plenty of time to reminisce while wandering unhurried down this 35-year path. And surprising enough, without her knowing in advance about this project, daughter Angela brought me for Mother’s Day a most wonderful inspirational gift she had made – 2 albums of pictures she had found while going through old boxes of keepsakes found in her closets and mine. I will never run out of memories!

To continue about our early blackjack years, almost from the first I realized that the comp game was going to be an important factor in becoming successful gamblers. Later down the path when we were able to make a profit from our actual play, we would consider comps as “gravy.”  But during these early years we included the comps since we really were not as skilled at card counting as we wanted to be.  Brad had a natural talent for numbers and was better at it than I was.  Words were more my forte, and although I put in a lot of study and practice and effort, I found I would lose the count too often, having to go back to basic strategy until I could restart.  Another reason we were including comp benefits in our figures was that we were also trying to cover expenses, like airfare.

During 1986-89 we found a comp benefit that afforded us vacations that were beyond our wildest dreams – gambling junkets.  Actually, a junket host found us – at the BJ seminar we had attended during our early study of the game.  I look back on this time and still am amazed that these two novice players with a pretty modest bankroll felt they could go from red chips up to green.  These junkets had pretty high minimum gambling requirements. We sometimes protested that we were afraid we wouldn’t qualify, but the junket organizer would just brush off our fears and say that he needed us to fill up the plane.

So off we went every few months.  A small executive private jet to Tahoe. With a group on a commercial flight to Puerto Rico.  With most of the couples on these junkets only one of them gambled – so Brad and I managed to keep qualifying since both of us played.  A charter to Atlantic City. A flight to the Riviera in Las Vegas.  A phone call from the junket guy, “Did we want to go to Santo Domingo?”  Of course – that sounded exotic.  All we had to ask was “Where is Santo Domingo?”

And finally, the ultimate invitation: “Would we like to go on a 7-day trip to Monte Carlo, with a 3-day stop in Paris on the way?” That took a little while to ponder – there was a hefty 20k upfront deposit to assure that we gambled to the required minimum level. That deposit, if lost, and possible heavy losses at the BJ table would pretty much wipe out our savings for gambling for the next year or two or three – or forever.  The thought was scary.  But it sounded like a trip of a lifetime.

And it was.  Here is Brad in our ornate French Provincial digs at a luxury Monte Carlo hotel.

And we were easily able to gamble to the required minimum level – but kind of a funny story about that.  Funny now – but scary then.  We were gambling with French francs – Brad and I at 2 different tables.  After the first hour, I went over to see how Brad was doing and about had a heart attack.

“Stop! Are you up or down?”

“If I win this next hand I’ll be about even.”

“Thank goodness.  Pull all those chips back!”

Although he is usually very good with numbers, the francs had confused him.  He had been betting $500 a hand instead of what he thought was $50.

Sometimes the gambling gods take pity!

Oops, I need to finish now and I haven’t put in the figures for 1984-88.  My records are so messy.  I need to pull out non-casino winnings (which were large at Tonk and Catholic Church Monte Carlo craps) and travel expenses and drill down to BJ numbers only. One exact figure is that we spent 224 days playing BJ during those years. However, exact win/loss figures are not so easy to come by.  It looks like the numbers circled in red outnumber those in green.  But as I go through and add the estimated value of the high-level comps we enjoyed during that junket period, it looks like we were comfortably financially achieving our goal of “breaking even” and having wonderful vacations.

Next blog will take up our journey in 1989 when Brad retired and we became full-time casino wanderers.  And glory be – I finally started keeping more organized records and will be able to give a more exact financial picture.

35 Years of Advantage Play – Part 1

I’ve dragged out boxes full of hard-copy gambling records from the last 35 years. They safely survived two major moves – from Indianapolis to Las Vegas and now to Georgia, where they are scattered all over my office. When every desk and table and cabinet surface is full, the floor becomes an organizing station.

How to tackle this monster project! How to describe such a long road!  And how can I give a final financial report when there were so many stages and changing circumstances.

I guess I will start at the beginning – that’s always a good starting point! I will give some details about our activities and the gambling environment so that when I mention the financial details they will make more sense than if there was no background information.  An important note here:  I did not keep good records in the early years. How could I know then that 35 years later I would really want to remember some of those little details!

After our first trip to Vegas in 1984 as purely unknowledgeable recreational gamblers, we had decided that we needed to study so we wouldn’t lose as much as we had that time and we could go more often.  We didn’t know about video poker then – most people didn’t – so we started studying blackjack.  We read books from the library and went to a seminar and bought a workbook that described and gave instructions for card counting.  We practiced at home with cards on our kitchen table.  If there was Internet help, we didn’t know about it since I didn’t yet have a computer.

That first trip in April – when we had stayed at the Landmark but played mostly at the Westward Ho – generated a surprising invitation from the ‘Ho that came in the mail just a couple of weeks after we returned home. Wow!!! Free room for 3 nights, free mini-breakfasts every day, a free tournament, and a free party. “Free” had always been my favorite word and now I was seeing a wonderful world opening up to us just by giving our names to the BJ pit boss on that first trip.  I’m not sure I even realized then that these were called “comps.”    But “free” was a strong enough word to get my attention.

Soooo…we felt we just must return to take advantage of these free things, a feeling that would be an overwhelming motivator for the next 35 years.   We crunched the numbers and decided that with the Westward Ho freebies we could afford an “inexpensive vacation” back to Vegas in Sept.  On this second Vegas trip Brad ignored the slots he played – and lost on – that first trip and joined me at the BJ table where we both started using our very rudimentary card-counting skills. Then in November we went on our first cruise – a 4-night trip on the Carnival on which we were less excited about shore excursions in Freeport and Nassau than playing BJ, honing our skills in the little ship casino  from the time they opened until they closed  down in the wee hours of the morning.

We continued  getting regular  mailings from the Westward Ho so returned in March and May of 1985 and despite the sketchy records I have for this time period, I did note our first (of many more as we would find out later) airline bump of $800 TWA credit.  Hurrah – that would pay for our next TWO trips to Vegas!  Coupled with freebies the ‘Ho sent us regularly, we could take more frequent vacations than we would ordinarily be able to afford.

Our next casino trip was a 10-day road trip to Atlantic City, with lots of BJ play every day. Still doing very sketchy record-keeping.  But after modest losses (in red) in our previous low-level BJ play, I finally could add a green entry for this trip: “Broke Even.”   And a note I added then makes me smile now: “We know how. Start cumulative records.”

Little did I know how little we knew!

We were still in the “elementary school of gambling.”  But I did start keeping a little more detailed records, although diary-style in a 3-ring binder, adding pages frequently as our casino trips increased.  (It would be years until I broke down and bought a computer although I continued with mostly pen-and-paper records to the very end.)   Although Brad was still working full time, he had a lot of vacation time in his government job, and we took many casino trips for the next few years. At the end of 1988, I made a summary in my diary of those first 5 years: “33 casino vacations at the cost of $287 each.”

Looking back at my skeleton notes now, there is a problem with those figures.  First, we counted all expenses for these trips, including airfare.  And casino visits weren’t the only kind of gambling we were doing.  When we weren’t out of town on those usually short 3- or 4-day trips, we were doing heavy Tonk play at the local Moose Lodge just down the street. We never could figure out exactly what advantage percentage we had in that game full of mostly – how can I put this politely…well …not very savvy gamblers. All I know is that we made enough money over those years to pay cash for our Indianapolis condo and finance a lot of our travel during those years. I also made a lot of money at Catholic Church Monte Carlo crap tables. (That is a long and so far untold  story in itself.)  And we added all that income to our casino gambling figure.

There is another problem with my figures those first 5 years.  We had the common mindset that one could never beat a casino game.  I figured we could maybe break even counting cards at BJ.  But I was quickly learning that if you played the comp game wisely, you could take marvelous vacations for free.  And that was our only goal those early years.

I can see now that this “financial report” I promised may take more background explanation than I planned.  So, I just added Part 1 to the title and I will continue this saga in my next blog.

Taking Advantage of CZR Benefits

Last week I told you about our “surprise” trip back to Las Vegas.  People were surprised to see us there, and honestly Brad and I surprised ourselves with this trip so soon after we had made the permanent move to Georgia.  For one thing the move was extremely hard on both us, especially for Brad who is quite frail health wise, and we weren’t sure we had “recovered.”

However, we were pretty well settled into our new apartment home thanks to a lot of family support – and hopefully feeling strong enough for those long flights. And we really wanted to attend the Blackjack Ball on Feb. 22, to which we had been invited as special guests.  I’ll talk more about that fascinating event in a later blog, but today I will talk about something that made that trip very tempting.  Maybe you can guess why?  It would be FREE!!!!!

We may have retired from frugal gambling but not from frugal thinking – and we still had a lot of comps left back in Vegas.  Everyone knows how I hate to let valuable benefits expire and go to waste!

I’ve written a lot of negative things about CZR down through the years, and the future seems to look bleak for educated players as it is being taken over by El Dorado.  But for the moment, we enjoyed a surprise new benefit that CZR just introduced late last year. (I wrote about this in a Nov. 21st blog.)  Starting February 1st, 2020, they added a $600 travel benefit to Las Vegas for Diamond-tier players who had climbed up to 75,000 tier credits from the base requirement of 15,000.  What was surprising about this advanced tier benefit was that it was based on your entire 2019 play.  This backdating let us include our only play in 2019, which was early in the year before our decision to cut play at CZR and several other properties.

You can read more about these advanced Diamond benefits here.  Unfortunately, the details are a bit vague.  For example, since it mentions a flight to Vegas, what substitute benefit would a Las Vegas resident have?  Perhaps one of those would share their personal experience about this in the “Comments.”  This benefit is not as good as the Diamond travel perks of several years ago – but to have a new benefit of any kind from CZR was a welcome surprise.

In addition to having free airfare for the trip back to Vegas, we had another surprise.  Although this new Diamond travel perk did not come with any room comp, our long-time NCM host, who knew our history of heavy play, obtained 5 free comped hotel nights for us although we hadn’t put in any play for almost a year.  True, it was at the Rio, a neglected CZR property that hasn’t seen upgrades for years – and probably won’t until the new owner decides what to do with it after CZR management ends in two years.  I think they are just glad to get warm bodies in the rooms and hope they will wander down to the casino and do some play. However, it was large – all suites there – and clean and we don’t need fancy digs – we’ve had enough of those for 35 years to satisfy any long-ago enthusiasm for luxury.

With the basic expenses covered, we spent 5 days roaming around Vegas “burning comps.” We turned as much of our benefits as we could into Free Play.  Then comp-only balance would cover all our snacks and meals, but there was still so much left.  So, we treated family and friends to meals and movies and shopping in casino gift shops – that last one an only-option choice trying my frugal soul with their jacked-up high prices.  We bought candy for our great-grandkids Easter baskets.   And when we couldn’t think of another thing to buy, we passed out gift cards that weren’t in our names so they could be used by others in the future.

We got the job done!

Questions – Answered and Unanswered

I love to answer reader questions, but I am getting some this month – as I do every year during tax season – that I cannot tackle.  I would like to give you specific answers you may need as you start working on your tax return, but I just can’t – and for so many reasons.  Tax issues are so complex, and specifics depend on the individual’s total financial situation – there is almost never a one-answer-fits-all question. And to make matters worse there are so many gray areas for the gambling taxpayer.  So many answers would require long discussions about the exceptions, the varied opinions, the it-depends.

That is why Tax Help for Gamblers was born so many years ago.  And because there have always been constant changes in the tax world, that early “baby book” has had to “grow up,” and along the way I have had to bring on expert tax professionals to help me “raise” it to adulthood.   The latest edition, with up-to-date input from Russell Fox, who has personal gambling experience as well as long-time experience in tax preparation, will be the one place you can find the accurate details to help you with most of your gambling tax puzzles. Many do-it-yourself gambler filers consider it their bible.  And many use the book to guide them in their record-keeping all year long and then give it to their tax preparer, especially if he/she has little or no experience in dealing with gambling issues.

A personal note on our tax situation:  We were spoiled by having no state income taxes in NV.  Extra paperwork this month to start having Georgia state tax withheld!

Now for some questions I can answer:

Q:  Why don’t you use a map to get around Columbus if you are having trouble with your GPS?

A:  Thanks for reading my last blog and offering some advice.  Actually, I was a super navigator for some 35 years while I rode shotgun with Brad all over the country – and a map was always in my lap – or close by.  But when he gave up his keys last year, I had to shine up my rusty driving skills – I had driven probably no more than a dozen times in the last 20 years.  However, starting back to driving in Vegas wasn’t too hard for me – and I didn’t need a map.  I knew every route and every shortcut, without ever trying to learn to use the GPS in our car or on my phone.  But when we moved to Columbus, I realized that I needed my full attention on the unfamiliar streets, and so – checking to be sure she is programmed correctly – Ms. GPS will be my best friend for some time!

And speaking of driving:  This is the first time in 65 years that Brad doesn’t have a driver’s license.

Q:  What change in your life do you notice most since your move from Vegas?

A:  There have been so many major changes, but I guess the one that comes up most often is that we have to pull out a credit card ALL THE TIME.  We miss comps!

More November Bonuses and News

November is turning out to be a good month for gambling bonuses and food specials, particularly on holidays.

VETERANS DAY – Monday, November 11

Boyd Gaming is offering a 11x multiplier for all players with a Sapphire tier card and above.

Silverton is offering 10x on reels and 2x on VP.  They are also advertising a BOGO buffet that day for all players club members.

Many casinos will offer a free buffet for military members and veterans on this day. Most require a players card and verification of their status to be shown at the cashier, with military ID, VA ID, or a DD-214.    This includes the Rampart, South Point, Silverton and Boyd Gaming properties.

The Station casinos also offer a free military buffet, but the procedure is a bit different. You have to swipe your military Boarding Pass at any kiosk to redeem voucher.  If you don’t have the military flag on your card, you can take your official documents to verify your active or veteran status to the players club and get that military card.  (That will also qualify you for extra benefits for the on-going Military Mondays promotions.)

South Point’s offer is the plum one since the buffet freebie is not only for the qualified person but he/she can bring a guest who can also eat free.  The lines are long at all the casinos offering this free meal, even at those who have separate VIP lines, but you might find the wait at South Point excruciatingly long all day long – there doesn’t seem to be any “off time.”

There is another plum offer for all active or retired military personnel with verifying credentials but it involves a bit of a drive for Las Vegas residents, about 90 miles.  The Virgin River and Casa Blanca casinos in Mesquite are offering free buffets all day for both the qualified person and guest.

No free buffet at the El Cortez but you might not have to waste time waiting in line that day to eat – free White Castle hamburgers will be passed out to the active players on the casino floor, both at the tables and the machines.  And you don’t have to even be military or a veteran!

 

THANKSGIVING DAY – November 28

Boyd Gaming is running their 11x multiplier all day – and as usual only Sapphire tier and above can take advantage of this bonus.  So sorry, Ruby players.

South Point is running a Hot Seat promotion from 8 a.m. until midnight Nov. 28.

And almost every casino restaurant is serving a special Thanksgiving menu.  The lines may be long everywhere – I think very few in Las Vegas cook a holiday dinner at home!

 

MONTH-LONG PROMOTIONS

Here is a newly-released promotion, one which was not mentioned in the monthly mailer but which I first learned about from an ad in the R-J.  The Gold Coast is continuing their mid-week multipliers for all of November:  11x all day Monday through Thursday.  Check Scot’s player club bonus list for the varying multiple-point days for other Boyd properties – they are not all the same!   The same warning for Station Casinos:  The Fiestas and the Palms often march to different orders!

South Point is running their popular 1/2 -price player club point “sale,” this month for Amazon gift cards.

Tuscany is having a “Play and Win” promotion:

YOU COULD EARN UP TO $200 IN FREE SLOT PLAY NOVEMBER 4TH – 28TH

Earn 5,000 base slot points once during each week of dates listed, and receive $50 in Free Slot play. November 4th – 10th, 11th – 17th, 18th – 24th and 25th – 28th. Must visit Player’s Club each week to claim.

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An important note for all players who are looking for extra value: Always check out possibilities for double-dipping, combining monthly and holiday promotions.

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And finally, a hint for getting around during the Las Vegas Marathon coming up later this month:

Once again, the Las Vegas Monorail will be the only Strip transportation option available during the 2019 Humana Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon & ½ Marathon. The Humana Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon & ½ Marathon event gives participants a one-of-a-kind nighttime running experience as the only private event to close Las Vegas Boulevard at night. The largest event on the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series tour will take place on the Las Vegas Strip at night on Saturday-Sunday, Nov. 16 – 17, 2019. Year after year, thousands of runners and spectators attend the Humana Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon & ½ Marathon and its four days of events, relying upon the Monorail for getting to and from the start and finish lines of the weekend’s races. The Monorail also has a station at the Las Vegas Convention Center, which is the site of the events three-day Health & Fitness Expo, held on Thursday – Saturday, Nov. 14 – 16.

Back on the Frugal Job

Just finished going through the 5 weeks of mail that piled up during our unexpected extended stay in GA.  Lots of expired comps pitched into the wastebasket!  But I looked them all over – and realized that although the casino environment is looking grim these days for the gambler searching for good value, there are some areas, at least in some casinos, where there seems to be a sudden realization by the powers-that-be that all those cuts suggested by the bean counters might be driving away customers!

Now I’m not saying the casinos are going back to those glory days of generous free play, easy comps, and good games. But I am seeing some positive moves.  Wynn/Encore have dropped all parking fees, even for valet.  It hasn’t happened yet but there is now talk that perhaps high and too “hidden” resort fees should be adjusted to attract those that are cutting down – or completely cutting off – their trips to Vegas casinos. And although it doesn’t seem that Boyd is thinking about getting rid of some of the onerous parts of their new players club – like Ruby players not earning points or being eligible for most promotions that are based on point earnings – there are some signs that they are trying to win back some of the customers that have fled.  Must have been a lot of them at the Gold Coast because they have been adding extra bonus-point days for the last few months – in October this runs for four days each week, 11x Monday through Thursday. (Remember, this is like 5.5X for VP players since it now takes $2 VP play to earn one point instead of $1 like under the old club program.)

However, the most common positive note for many casinos is that they are upping food comps. Every free or discounted meal you get, leaves you more money in your pocket.  Now not every casino is doing this increased food comp quite right. This has been a pet peeve of mine for 35 years.  A casino sends out a free-buffet coupon to – it seems – everyone who has ever been a player club member, some who haven’t played there for years and even some who can’t participate because they are dead!

Are you listening, Palms?  Does anyone from the ivory-tower offices in the sky ever come down to the casino floor and see the lines (both VIP as well as the regular one) snaked an unbelievable distance all over the place.  Do you see the tired, disappointed, and often angry looks on the faces of people in those lines who know they are looking at probably more than an hour of boring wait time?  When they finally do get seated and then finish their meal, how many are so mad by that time that the last thing they want to do is go to a machine or a table to gamble.  A food comp is supposed to be something that makes a player happy and glad to be in the casino – not something that makes them mad at a company that doesn’t use good sense in their marketing tactics.  Why can’t they spread out the dates for these coupons?  We no longer even try to use all those free buffet coupons we are getting in the mail; Brad, like many other seniors, just isn’t able to endure such a long wait.

Related to this food gripe, is the gift-giveaways.  These seem to be on the increase and I guess this is a popular perk for many players.  Not my favorite and probably not for many of my fellow seniors – we are trying to size down, not collect stuff.  It would be nice if there was an alternative free play choice.  For years in some casinos we would schedule our time to pick up gifts for late in the give-away period, knowing that if they ran out of the advertised gift, we would be given a gift card or extra free play.

There is also the same long-line problem during gift-giveaways I discussed earlier.  These often take place in cramped crowded areas and the lines have to snake through crowded slot machine aisles.  This should only happen once in a casino.  Someone in authority would see the problem and the next time it would be moved to a less crowded part of the casino and there would be enough staffing that long lines would not develop.  And a personal wish: They would train the employees to smile and act friendly when they are checking in the players and/or giving out the gifts.  So often we feel like these employees actually hate that we have shown up to ruin their day!

End of rant and a last technical note:  Some people have told me that they can’t subscribe to this blog.  We did have some problems with this earlier, but they have been resolved.  So, you might try again.  If it still does not work for you, drop a note to [email protected]  and we will subscribe you manually.

Cherokee Casino Surprise

After dealing with casinos for 36 years – and coping with the constant changes, especially the last five or so years of major downgrades – you would think I wouldn’t be surprised when I’m faced with a new negative casino wrinkle.  However, I must confess that when I checked my e-mail in the car on the 4 ½-hour drive to Cherokee and read that the casino had just done some major downgrading – blackjack under $15 gone to 6/5 and tier requirements seriously bumped up for play on their best VP games – I was a bit jolted for the moment.  But then I quickly came back to reality – this had been perhaps the best advantage play in the whole Caesars Empire for quite a few years; it was really surprising it had lasted as long as it did.

So…as I have done hundreds of times over the years when one casino advantage opportunity disappeared, I sat down when we arrived at the casino and starting figuring what our next best move could be.  Fortunately, this would not be a hard decision for Brad and me this time.  We had already decided, especially after Brad’s recent medical problems, that we were going to phase ourselves out of CZR after this Cherokee trip.  So, we would just call it quits a little earlier.

However, since we were already in Cherokee, we would keep this Seven Star retreat reservation, a benefit we had already earned.  In the past, we had always been careful not to “burn our bridges,” giving at least a little play whenever we were taking advantage of a casino benefit.  However, this time we weren’t going to worry about our “reputation,” having decided we weren’t interested in having any future offers anyway.  We were not going to play at all!

It was relaxing – Steve and Angela and we just using our $500 folio for lots of good food and in the retail shops looking for educational toys for our three great-grandchildren.  We had a nice balance of accumulated Reward Credits that we could turn into cash, something we couldn’t do at other CZR properties.

We all four had a bunch of coupons good for free play, including $40 for taking advantage of their no-housekeeping program, those from monthly mailers, and about $1100 in airfare reimbursement.  Angela and Steve got lucky on the slots and hit a jackpot that almost doubled their free play amount.  Brad and I used ours on electronic blackjack and felt lucky that we got back the full free play amount. None of us were interested in doing recreational (non-advantage) play after we had run our free play through the required one time. We all decided we would rather use our money later for other entertainment choices.  It was going to be so much more fun to come home from a casino with a fatter wallet!

This Cherokee experience also did something really important for Brad and me – and it may explain to some who have questioned why we are retiring within the next few months. I’ve already detailed the health reason, which is very important.  But there is another – one about which Brad and I weren’t yet 100% sure.  Was this something we really wanted to do?

But when we got the news about the Cherokee downgrades, instead of feeling sad and disappointed as we have reacted in the past, we both felt…. well… RELIEVED.  We have 36 years of gloriously happy casino memories – but smart gambling is “work” as well as fun.  We are ready to stop working!

Off to Cherokee + CZR Benefits

Emergency rooms, hospitals, endless medical testing – unexpected activities this last week during our GA vacation when Brad’s 87-year old plumbing and cardio systems decided to break down.  But I am happy to report that medical science knew how to make repairs and he is now home – home for the present being the big house of daughter Angela and Steve, who have been such appreciated major support during this emergency time.

Here is a picture of Brad being transferred from the military hospital at Fort Benning to a civilian one in Columbus, the latter one having a better cardiac department.

Brad is still a little weak, but with strong meds kicking in and the help of a walker (and a wheelchair which is complimentary at the casino), he feels he is up to a short 4 ½-hour road trip from Columbus, GA to Harrah’s Cherokee, with Angela and me and tough ex-Ranger Steve as his “nursing assistants.”

This trip is my Harrah’s 7* retreat that we had to cancel for last weekend.  So, for those of you on property this weekend who might want to stop and chat, we will be on the casino floor or at the buffet or the Laurel Lounge (Formerly called the Diamond Lounge) on this Friday evening (20th), off and on all day Saturday, and Sunday until early afternoon when we will be driving back to Columbus.

I don’t want to clutter up this blog with personal details but if you want to follow more of our “real life,” as opposed to our casino one, you can join us on my Jean Scott Facebook page for updated news.  I’ll be happy to friend you if you are not there already.

Now for some details for those who don’t know much about this beautiful Indian casino, managed by Harrah’s.  We have visited here once or twice a year for many years.  In my opinion it is located in one of the prettiest areas of the U.S, the Smoky Mountains.  (Tied with Lake Tahoe at the top of our casino favorites.) We especially like to visit in the fall to see the leaf-changing spectacular – something we miss in Las Vegas.  And it is always a good place to take the family, with many non-gambling options, like sightseeing, hiking, and fishing.  It also has our very favorite casino buffet, bar none.

Cherokee has many advantages for those in the Harrah’s 7* players club tier.  Unlimited comped movies.  Free Internet access for 5 devices.  Large selection of free beverages at check-in.  Opt out of daily housekeeping and get $20 free play per night stay.  A special set-aside room in the Laurel Lounge, with additional food selections.  And very valuable, you can get cash instead of free play when you cash in your Reward Credits.  If you are on your 7* retreat, you can use your $500 folio money in the many shops, not just for food and beverage.

A friend recently sent me this good hint, one which I didn’t know:

You can use Celebration “vouchers” for room service.  Before we used ours, I checked at the Rewards Center and was told that I could use the voucher for room service, but I needed to tell the room service people when I placed our order.  I did and it worked perfectly.

Perhaps this will work at other CZR properties?  You could check.

If you want more hints about this property and extra benefits, go to the Seven Star Insider,  where you will find tons of very detailed information about Cherokee and all other CZR properties.  Although this website zeroes in on 7* benefits, there is much information that would help lower-tier players maximize the value of their play.

The main drawback for many VP players is that there are not good paytables at the lower denominations.  The best ones are at the $5 machines.

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If Brad continues to gain his strength back, we plan to return to Vegas on September 28th – and I can be back here with more Las Vegas casino frugal information.

Food for Thought

I am going to hijack the saying “Man can not live by bread alone” and revise it for the subject of this blog: “You can not gamble in a casino 24 hours a day; you have to stop and eat once in a while!”

It’s not that I haven’t talked about food in previous writings.  I have given many frugal hints for getting good value for casino eats, like scheduling late buffet lunches, with their lower prices, that often spill into the availability of higher-level dinner selections.  But in this blog, I am going to talk about Brad’s and my personal eating habits, mainly because I get so many questions about this subject and realize many people have false ideas about our Vegas life.   They often compare it to their routine  when they come to town for a vacation and stay in a casino for several days.

Most Vegas locals eat about the same way they would if they lived in a non-casino town.  They do not eat in a casino every day but regularly cook meals at home.  However, like people everywhere, they do eat out frequently and, especially if they gamble at all, they often choose a casino restaurant where they play.  And even non-gamblers often look to casino eateries because of the wide choice of high-end and famous choices.  The picture changes a bit if you look at those local gamblers who are earning comps. Obviously, those people will be eating at the casino more often – how often depending on their comp level.

Brad and I did eat in casinos a lot after we moved to Vegas 20 years ago – even almost every day – because we were playing frequently and heavily and earning more comps than we could eat up!  We made a big effort to find friends and relatives to help us with this “task.” But we were never foodies and, even then, much preferred buffets, delis, and coffee shops over gourmet restaurants.  For years we would have hosts who would beg us to let them write us a comp for their top-level epicurean offerings – and they would just shake their head in disbelief when we turned it down.

Things are so much different these days.  First, all casinos have made significant cuts to their comp benefits.  This is true at every level – from the fanciest Strip properties down to the smallest local joints – hitting both visitors and locals. And, for us personally, we do not have the energy to play as much as we used to.  We go to a casino 3 or 4 days a week and are usually able to play only two-or-three-hour sessions.  Therefore, we do not have the flood of comps as in former days.  Believe it or not, my cleaning lady doesn’t just have to dust my stove; my return to some cooking after 35 years gives her some grease to remove!

But all that said, you will still see us eating in a casino fairly often.  You would never catch us eating one of these giant stacked-high-with-whatever “gourmet” hamburgers that seem so popular these days.  We aren’t big beef eaters in the first place, but we would always prefer a single-patty with cheese; Brad wants nothing added but pickle and onion and I would add just lettuce and tomato.  We like those at Steak’n Shake at South Point, combined with half-price milkshakes between 2-4 p.m.  We do hit other casino fast-food places occasionally.  Love the hot dogs at South Point and sometimes stop at the hot-dog cart or Subway at Gold Coast.  We like the sugar-free butter pecan ice cream at Java Vegas Coffee at the Gold Coast or at Kate’s Corner at South Point.  And we can grab a pizza slice at Little Tony’s near the sports book at Palace Station or have a great spaghetti meal to eat there or carry home.  (Stations run a senior special on Wednesdays with discounts on restaurants that vary from month to month.  Check these out on their website and watch for 50% off your favorite place to eat.)

We are a bit picky about buffets.  When we have comps, we take our out-of-town visitors to the widely publicized Caesars Palace Bacchanal over-the-top buffet, but we never choose that just for the two of us even if we have comps.  We aren’t big eaters and just don’t need so many “exotic” choices.  We like comfort food.  The Orleans and Gold Coast are good choices for us, especially their special weekend brunches.  We have mixed emotions about the new buffets at Palace Station and the Palms.  They both usually have sugar-free brownies and good soup selections so that keeps Brad from complaining too much about “weird food.”

Recently we have found a new meal idea that appeals to us even though it involves gourmet restaurants which we eschew.  Going to the Cornerstone lounge at the Gold Coast during happy hour – 4-6 p.m. – has become one of our favorite activities.  We like the idea of sharing small plates which gives us variety even though we are light eaters.  Many steak houses and other upscale restaurants run these with very reasonable prices on both food and drinks in a relaxing comfortable but still “gourmet” atmosphere.  Check  out this frugal option at your favorite casino’s fine restaurants!

Obviously, we eat in other places than casinos.  We always eat breakfast at home – and always the same menu for many years:  Hot oats, with walnuts and flavored with dark chocolate mix, a daily coco extract supplement that has proven to reduce inflammation in the body.  We drink green tea and V8 juice – low sodium – and add fresh fruit, like bananas, oranges, or berries.

Lunch is light – sandwiches or soup.  If we are out and about, we might stop at a fast-food place.  Our favorites include Wendy burgers or chili, Mexican pizzas at Taco Bell, and hot pretzel sticks and  sugar-free Dilly Bars at the Dairy Queen.

If we are having dinner at home, it is often left-overs brought home from a casino or a Nutrisystem selection.  If I am cooking, it is usually a one-dish meal like stir-fry.

We try to eat healthy as much as possible wherever we are.  More fruits and vegetables.  Less sodium. Very little red meat – more chicken.  We take some vitamins and supplements.  Nothing different than if we lived in a non-casino atmosphere.  Brad doesn’t gain weight, but I am always trying to watch mine.  And that is a problem in Vegas – buffets can jeopardize any healthy diet unless you have strong self control!

 

 

A Short Trip Report

Actually this report may not be short.  It was the trip that was short, both in time and geographical distance – just a short drive across Flamingo Road from our condo to the Cromwell Hotel and Casino.

As I have mentioned in past blogs, we are planning to phase out our play at CZR, but it is a slower process than we expected.  They keep sending us good offers!  First, we had a monster offer in April from Harrah’s Tahoe.  And then we got a good offer if we checked into a Vegas Caesar property in May or June.

We hadn’t stayed or played locally for several years, so decided to choose the Cromwell, an old haunt of ours back when it was called the Barbary Coast.  We did have a room there once when it was first bought by CZR and renamed the Cromwell, and I had written how the rooms reminded us of a stately old library that was the scene of an English murder mystery – dark, with heavy old furnishings.  That was still our impression when we walked in our room this time, much the same historical romantic mysterious atmosphere of that old Barbary Coast.

We had chosen the Cromwell over other local CZR properties because it is easy in- and-out self-parking and you didn’t have to walk a mile to check-in and then to your room.  Brad and I are both having trouble walking long distances these days, a major change in our lives from when we would take long power walks up and down the Strip.  However, we had forgotten that going through and between casinos is always a longer distance that one expects.  So, our plan to walk down to Harrah’s for dinner and a show became a stop-and-go experience as we would grab an empty slot machine chair for a rest period every so often!

We enjoyed a return to Harrah’s buffet, one that we had visited many times in the past but not recently.  Not as fancy as some, but with a large selection of food we liked – as Brad remarks when we visit some of the new buffets and restaurants around town, “No weird food.”  The only lack for me was no-sugar-added ice cream, but they did have other SF desserts.

We rarely take advantage of shows in Vegas these days, even when we could have them comped.  After 35+ years we have seen most of the on-going big productions, and many of the new shows feature modern music that is not to our tastes.  We miss our “oldies” music, with so many of the stars we loved passing on.  But sometimes a “tribute” show can bring back some happy memories of by-gone days, and so we used the monthly free-show Seven Star benefit to go see the new Harrah’s show called “Heartbreak Hotel.”

I hate to review a show really, because it is like trying to recommend a restaurant.  So many different tastes!  But I really enjoyed this tribute to Elvis.  It was high energy with a live band of six guys and 3 gal singers – all very talented!  It concentrated first on Elvis’ early life, with biographical narrative and photos on 4 huge LED walls in-between the performances of his early hits, then covering many of his most well-known songs.  Here is a review that gives more details about the performance.

I talked earlier about the old-fashion atmosphere we liked about the Cromwell room.  So why am I writing this blog tonight from home when we are checked into the Cromwell.  Well, it’s hard to explain.  Maybe it’s because we are old – or maybe just jaded?  We have enjoyed staying in fancy casino hotels for 35 years.  But with this offer we could do just “down the street” we decided to skip the packing and lugging the CPAP machine. Just go for the day and do the little bit of play we needed to do, eat, and see a show.  Mess up the bed and gather up all the nice toiletries, and then return home to sleep in our own bed.

Some of you might understand.

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