Senior Promotion

Early March Promos and News

A new holiday!  From a press release from the Rampart Casino:

Celebrate National Blackjack Day with Free Lessons and Special Offers at Rampart Casino

 March 2 (3/2) Brings Recognition to the Centuries-Old Game and a Celebration of the Few Casinos Which Still Boast the 3:2 Odds

WHAT:

National Blackjack Day was created to bring attention to one of the biggest casino games – Blackjack! Not only the game, but the declining number of casinos who still offer a 3:2 payout – hence the day falling on March 2nd (3/2)!

Casino guests can join the team at Rampart Casino who will be offering the following to celebrate National Blackjack Day:

  • Free Blackjack lessons throughout the day: 8 a.m., 10 a.m., Noon, 2 p.m., and 4 p.m.
  • A special Black Jack Cocktail will be featured at all casino bars for $3.20 – a mix of Jack Daniels, Kahlua, and Grand Marnier with a splash of Lemon Juice that can be served as a shot or cocktail
  • Clubhouse Deli (which is currently in its first phase of opening), will offer a $3.20 pastry selection

 WHEN:

Friday, March 2, 2018

Activities beginning at 8 a.m.

WHERE:

Rampart Casino

221 N. Rampart Blvd.

Las Vegas, NV 89145

Social Gaming News

From Mark’s Las Vegas:  myKonami Slots is part of the myVEGAS family. In addition to all of the usual myVEGAS Rewards, they have their own special myKonami Freeplay Reward.

Bargain Movies for Seniors 50+

(Check websites for details and exclusions.)

The Orleans, Gold Coast, Suncoast, and Sam’s Town – Part of the Wednesday Young at Heart (YAH) senior promotion:  One (1) $4 movie voucher valid on the Wednesday that the voucher is printed. Valid for movies prior to 6 p.m. at properties with theaters only.  The kiosk voucher must be claimed by 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday.

Station Casinos (excluding the Palms) – Part of the MyGeneration senior promotion – $4 Movie Matinées.  Present your Boarding Pass at Regal Cinemas or Century Theatres to redeem your offer. Valid Wednesdays before 6pm.

South Point – Mondays – part of their Prime Time senior promotion – and Wednesdays.     $4 all day both days.  (This seems to be a rather recent change for their senior movie discounts.)

Movie theater note:  Cinemark Theaters on March 1 will put in a “security and safety” measure, banning all bags or packages that measure over 12″by 12″by 6″, a maximum size limit at many sports and entertainment arenas.    Most other theaters who don’t have a specific size ban will inspect or reserve the right to inspect oversize bags.

 

 

Last-minute February New and Changed Info

Here’s a President’s Day freebie for all you outdoor lovers that don’t make casino holiday multiple points a priority in your life – and believe it or not, this describes not only many local residents but more out-of-town visitors than you might guess.  On Monday, February 19, no entrance fees will be charged to visit Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area.  This is an important date in that it will be the last day before a new schedule of fees kicks in on Tuesday, February 20, one that will significantly raise, even more than double, your cost, depending on how you plan to enter.  Check their website for details.  https://www.redrockcanyonlv.org/

The Palms

Remember how I told you in my blog early in the month how you could double-dip at the Palms by using the same points for two promotions for certain days.  At the time I knew the casino was aware of this “problem” – for them but not for the customer!  😊  Via the grapevine I heard they were trying to close this loophole so beloved by all of us players.  Well, they kinda did a few days ago by making a “rule” for the players club employees that they could not issue gift cards AND free buffet vouchers using the same earned points.  However, many customers just went the club desk to get these at different times and there was no guidance to the employees on how to check whether the proper points had been earned.

I have talked to one casino employee who wasn’t sure how this was going to play out the rest of February with two promotions still running on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  You can try to double-dip but I don’t guarantee your success.  However, I was told the casino was going to change/adjust promotion days in March so this would definitely no longer be a player option. ☹

South Point

This is probably not a new promotion but is one that just came to my attention.  South Point movie theaters are offering $4 movies for those 50+, not just on Monday senior day, but also on Wednesdays.  This price is good for all showings on those days, except there is an additional fee for 3D and XD.  You must show a South Point players card and ID.

Another discount day, for all ages, is Tuesday, with an all-day admission price of $5.25, with the same upcharges as just mentioned above.  (This promotion is available company-wide for Cinemark theaters.)  Also note that Tuesday Openings do not have this discount.

Inspirational Advice

“What helps luck is a habit of watching for opportunities, of having a patient, but restless mind, of sacrificing one’s ease or vanity, of uniting a love of details to foresight, and of passing through hard times bravely and cheerfully.” – Charles Victor Cherbuliez, a 19th-century French novelist.

February News and Promotions

Many major casino changes continue in February, most of them painful cuts for casino customers.  It’s shaping up to be a Dog Year for many of us even if we don’t follow the Chinese calendar.

 

Caesars Properties

Benefits have been slaughtered for Diamond and Seven Star tier players. No longer can their Reward Credits be converted to free play at a more favorable rate than when they were at lower levels.  No guaranteed comp rooms.  The two intermediate Aspiration Levels are completely eliminated.  Go here and get the details  to determine whether you think the benefits remaining make it a good deal for you personally to put in the major play to reach those higher tiers.

 

Palms

An unwelcome surprise in the February mailers of many heavy players:  the number of multiple-point days have been majorly reduced while lower-level players have the usual more frequent ones.  The Palms is usually not included in the “Station Casinos” newspaper ads touting frequent multiplier dates.  You will look in vain for that Palms logo.

The Palms still does not have a senior program like the other Station casinos.  They finally do now offer the same Stations check-cashing promotion but the benefits are extremely weak.

 

BOYD PROPERTIES (The Orleans, Gold Coast, Suncoast, and Sam’s Town)

The long-running Young at Heart (YAH) senior promotion on Wednesdays at these properties have a new set of features.  Some former benefits have been cut, and there are new ones.  It’s a mixed bag, depending on what benefits you like or won’t want to take advantage of.  Here are the nitty-gritty details, a very long complex explanation that takes very close reading to be sure you don’t misunderstand or overlook anything.

(I have not been able to find details about YAH promotions at downtown Boyd properties online.  You will need to visit the players club in person to see if there are changes there.)

I got an e-mail from Boyd Gaming talking about a check-cashing promotion at The Orleans, Gold Coast, Suncoast, and Sam’s Town.  I’m not sure if this is a new one but here are the details.

Okay, now not everything is negative this month.  Here is more positive news.

Skyline Casino

This small but expanding Henderson casino will be starting up a players club on March 5.

 

Golden Nugget Casinos

Golden Nugget Casinos have announced that 24K Select Club members across its five casinos can now earn comp dollars and tier credits in one account and redeem comp dollars in any of its casinos.  Tier credits accumulate in a centralized account.

Members of the 24K Select Club can now download the Golden Nugget Mobile App to have 24/7 access to view their comp dollars, tier credits and tier level status, slot point balance and special offers across all Golden Nugget casinos, and receive mobile-only bonuses.

The five casinos are Golden Nugget Atlantic City; Golden Nugget Biloxi in Biloxi, Mississippi; Golden Nugget Lake Charles in Lake Charles, Louisiana; the Golden Nugget Las Vegas; and Golden Nugget Laughlin in Laughlin, Nevada.

In addition to the casinos, comp dollars can be redeemed in more than 600 restaurants, including any brand that falls under the Landry’s umbrella throughout the country. Landry’s owns and operates more than 40 brands, including Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., Chart House, Morton’s The Steakhouse and Vic & Anthony’s Steakhouse.

 

Caesars Hotel Discounts

Details about hotel discounts for students, teachers, active military and veterans, government employees, and first responders.  Extra 10% off lowest available rate.  The discount will be in addition to any other promotions applied to your order.

 

Stations Senior Program

Check their website every month because benefits do change.

 

PALMS

The good buffet promotion I talked about in January continues in February.  Go to a detailed review written after the boss here at the LVA did the promotion personally. I want to add just a couple of notes.  First, you don’t have to actually “redeem” the points, just “earn” them.  You can redeem them later for free play, comps, or cash – so that actually is another dip on your promotion ice cream cone, in addition to any other benefits I discussed in my blog, i.e., the free movie tickets and free car washes.

Another important feature of this promotion is the flexibility of the time when you can use this food voucher you have earned.  As you see on the photo of the receipt, it is valid for 48 hours – which seems to be correct even though it says 24 hours on our monthly mailers.

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I love to end on an upbeat note!

 

FRUGAL TIDBITS+Laughlin Trip

Senior Park Passes

Hurry for this one: The lifetime senior pass to national parks and other federal lands will go up – way up – on August 28, from the present cost of $10 to $80. This pass, available for seniors 62 and older, covers entrance/day fees at federally run parks and properties all over the US. At some parks the pass will also give discounts on paid activities like tours and camping. More information can be found at the National Park Service website.

This pass can be bought at any park location covered by the pass. Closest to Las Vegas is Red Rock Canyon and Lake Mead. You can also order one by mail or online but will pay a $10 processing fee.

If you already have a pass – as Brad has had for the last 20+ years – that will be valid the rest of your life.

 

Airline Bumps

I just read this newspaper headline: U.S. airlines’ bumping rate declines to 22-year low. This is a good news-bad news situation, depending on your personal druthers.

If you always need to travel on a tight non-flexible schedule, you don’t ever want to be bumped from your airline seat for any reason. But if you love to get paid to give up your seat, then this news can be a mixed bag. On one hand, these volunteers might see higher compensation since the airlines want to avoid the bad publicity of angry passengers being involuntarily bumped. However, airlines are starting to look at the whole overbooking procedure and considering whether it is more trouble than it’s worth. In fact, Southwest no longer overbooks at all so pre-boarding volunteer bumps have mostly gone away for us since we almost always fly SW. At our ages, we need their flexibility to change reservations with no penalty.  We call it the don’t-buy-green-bananas factor!

 

Movie Discounts

Frugal moviegoers – like Brad and me – are always looking for theater bargains. Of course, “free” is always the best price – and you can score this by just a little play at the Palms on their Tuesday movie ticket promo. There are a few restrictions on these free passes: no IMAX or Sony titles and good only Monday-Friday. However, on those days, they are good for showings at all times. There is also an expiration date on the passes, but I noticed that the ones we earned recently are good until the end of 2018.  Palms also has an all-ages bargain all day on Mondays – all tickets $4 but with the same restriction as above.

South Point has changed its movie discounts. They still have $5.25 Tuesday for all ages, all day. However, the senior discount that used to be in effect every day before 4 p.m. is gone. Seniors now have a $4 admission price only on Mondays, part of the benefits of the casino’s  50+ Prime Time Mondays. This discount is good all day but you must show a players card and there is an extra charge for 3D and XD showings.

Do you have more tips for reducing your movie-going expense?  Feel free to share in the “Comments” section below.

Final Note:  We will be at Harrah’s Laughlin this weekend (Aug 17-19).  Stop and say hi if you see us there.

JULY CASINO PROMOTION NEWS

For the second month in a row Brad and I are leaving town around the first of the month, this time to visit family in Georgia. Thus I will cover just a few promotions now and will likely have more information to share when we return. But be sure to check out special holiday offers for the 4th of July. There are usually a number of multiple-point promotions that day; consult Scot’s list closer to that time.

The Westin

Max Casino at this casino is closing June 30.  Scot Krause’s article in “Gaming Today” gives all the details.

 

TUSCANY

The 20% senior discount moves to the Pub e65 for the whole month of July.

 

RAMPART

They are advertising that their newly-named senior “50 Plus PARTY Tuesdays” is “new and improved, offering more benefits.” See the details here.

 

SOUTH POINT

From a press release: Beginning Monday, July 3, South Point Hotel will introduce “Prime Time Mondays” for our Casino Club Card holders age 50 and older. Prime Time Mondays will offer a $5,000 Free Slot Tournament from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The tournament’s first place winner will receive a $1,000 cash prize and additional places will be rewarded with free play.  In addition, guests who pay with their points will receive half point dining all day at all restaurants (Primarily Prime Rib & Baja Miguel’s are closed on Monday) and half point bingo all day. Movies will also be offered at a discounted rate of just $4 all day (additional fee for 3D & XD). This promotion is not valid on holidays or during special bingo events.

 

PALMS

The last day for their buffet before they close it for major changes is July 30. The new 24-hour coffee shop, the Lucky Penny, will open to the public on Saturday morning, July 1. I saw it today as it was practicing a soft opening with invited guests. Fancy-dancy!

Watch for machines to disappear or be moved around as they continue to replace carpeting. Hopefully our favorite ones will re-appear and intact.

New parking passes are available at the players club. The old ones expired on June 30.

No plans to put in the check-cashing program available at other Station casinos until after the cage area is renovated. Proposed time for that to start is late summer.

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If you get to missing my gambling chatter here while we are on vacation, you can listen to me talk about gambling and casinos in a couple recent interviews:

  1. A podcast from the “House of Cards” radio show

 

  1. An American Casino Guide YouTube video

And if you want to read a funny little story about Brad, it is buried in the middle of a recent long Review-Journal article about casino chairs.  

 

MORE JUNE INFORMATION

We are back home from vacation and I am processing more casino information I found piled up in our mailbox and my computer Inbox, plus what I gleaned from chatting with fellow casino players who have had a week or so to check out June offers in person. This last-mentioned technique can often be a valuable source of useful and accurate casino information.

This is a good time to mention another technique that I may not have talked about recently but one that is becoming a very valuable instrument in my promotion toolbox. I’m talking about giving an e-mail address to all casinos where I have a card and regularly play or even might want to play in the future. Some may refrain from doing this to reduce the junk mail that clogs our Inboxes. However, I quickly scan all casino e-mails and delete those that are just ads for activities and entertainment options that don’t appeal to me but lately I have been finding some real gems among the “trash.” Maybe they are offering me extra free play that wasn’t scheduled in my regular mailer. Or there is a by-invitation-only bonus point multiplier for one day or even a designated day once a week.

I see a trend of casinos using e-mails to encourage players to come in on extra days with these mid-month or last-minute surprises – perhaps free show tickets or an extra nice gift for those in the higher club tiers. Brad and I play almost exclusively at Vegas locals casinos these days, not on the Strip, so my experience with these e-mails has been limited to those casinos. But I would not be surprised if in other areas casinos that cater to locals would not be doing the same thing. Feel free to use the “Comment” section below to share this information.

Now to some specific details.

CAESARS ENTERTAINMENT

JUNE CASINO PROMOTION NEWS

This will be an abbreviated promotions blog. This is partly the fault of casinos that don’t plan ahead; when there is a holiday near the first of the month we players often don’t get our mailers in a timely fashion. This has been a problem for me and other writers for many years!

However, the other “fault” is mine personally – but one that I wouldn’t want to change. Brad and I are taking a vacation trip back to Indianapolis for a big reunion with his family and co-workers from his former place of employment, Naval Avionics.

However, a few casinos do get their mailers out early and I do get some early news through casino press releases or personal e-mails. Here are a few I know about:

SOUTH POINT

The Pump & Pantry promotion running in June will be a popular one since it basically gives players a chance to earn the equivalent of 2x points on their play all month, up to the stated limit.

Here are the details from a press release

January Promotions

Here are some money-saving tidbits to help you tackle better the casino environment in 2017 .

MGM Properties

Mad about having to pay for parking while you are visiting most MGM properties on the Strip. This link gives the complete details on how to avoid that irritating charge.  Definitely a wonderful frugal “secret.”

TUSCANY

The Senior Thank-You Thursdays (50+) promo continues, featuring food discounts and a free slot tournament. Also continuing is the monthly senior 20% discount that moves around to various departments. In January it stops at the Pub 365, the eatery that last year replaced their Mexican restaurant.

For everyone: The monthly mailer describes a “Winter Free Play Grab” on Wednesdays. “Earn 500 slot points for one grab from the prize Box. Win up to $500 Free Play – $5 minimum prize.” On Tuesdays you can earn 200 base points and receive a 2-for-1 entrée coupon to Marilyn’s Café or Pub 365.

PALMS

Many of us oldsters had been anxiously waiting to see what Stations would be doing for us who play at their newest acquisition, the Palms. Would it be transferring here the My Generation Wednesday Senior 50+ program that they have in all of their other properties?

Our January Palms mailer answered that question. First, our special day is Tuesday, referred to as Timeless Tuesdays, with a new name “Boom 50+.” (Perhaps appealing to the Baby Boomer gang although some of us from the previous gang are still kicking around in casinos!) There are some good benefits: food and drink specials; drawings and tournament; hot-seat promo; and $5 movies. No multiple points like in the My Generation program elsewhere. There are no details I could find online so I can’t give you a complete report until I pick up printed material that I hope will be at the players club next time I stop in. Another question left unanswered is whether this is planned to be an on-going program or will change from month to month. Time will tell – and then maybe I can tell you here!

As far as Palms promotions for everyone, most seem to be separate from Station-wide ones, i.e., the January Balloon Zoom.  The Palms Friday drawings seem to be patterned after the ones that have been running there for years. You have to be very careful how you read about multiple-point days; check the logos on all ads and mailers to see what individual casinos, or casino groups, are giving these bonus points and on what days. Many players who played at a Stations or Fiesta casino in the past will get a separate mailer for these casinos and for the Palms. It is just like I have discussed for years about the Boyd properties. “Child” properties under a “mother” umbrella company like to show their independence by having their own goals and plans and interests. Don’t assume because one “child” casino is doing a particular promotion or offers a certain benefit that these will be available at a sister property.

Cannery and Eastside Cannery

Boyd Gaming has completed their acquisition of the Cannery and Eastside Cannery casinos. However, as yet no date has been given as to when they will be folded into the BConnected players club program.

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I try to be as positive as I can about casino policies and the frequent changes. But sometimes my optimism is challenged big time. In my next blog I am going to share some of my frustrations, including some recent changes that may impact negatively your use of promotions.

PALMS TO STATIONS UPDATE

It’s still transition time. Many changes have been made, but all the kinks haven’t been worked out and some programs and policies have not yet gone through a switch.  Often there are excruciating long lines at the players club, but I will have to praise the patience of the workers there who will go to all lengths to try to solve problems . And when they are unsuccessful to find answers and solutions, they can turn to supervisors who are very knowledgeable and can almost always provide a satisfactory resolution.

Often when I ask a question, an employee will say that this particular issue will probably not change or be settled until January or later. This seems to be the situation

More Promotional Tidbits

Today – Thursday the 10th – South Point is jumping the gun with a free Veterans Day buffet a day early.  This offer is one of the few that includes a free meal for both the veteran and a guest.

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Work fast if you want to take advantage of the offer House Seats is running – two years for the price of one.  It expires tomorrow November 11.  A very frugal way to see lots of Vegas shows!

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“Glittering Lights at Las Vegas Motor Speedway” opens tomorrow, November 11.   Special offers for free admission, with official valid ID:

Nov. 11 – Free for Veterans.

Nov. 13 – First 200 cars get a “kindness pass” for a future visit or to give away.

Nov. 14 – Free for military families and veterans – active and inactive

Note:  Weekday tickets are cheaper than weekend ones.

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Word from a knowledgeable Palms employee: A senior benefit program will not start until the first of the year. I do not know the details or whether it will be the same or similar to the ones at other Station properties.

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