I'm intrigued by a recent QofD that involved an Amtrak (Chicago) to Kingman, Ariz., trip and then on to Laughlin and Vegas by bus. Sounds like a lot of fun. Any idea how much it would cost and how long it would take? The airline fares are killing us folks these days!

I'm nuts for all things basketball, so I was a bit surprised to hear that when Nevada finally got an NBA-affiliated basketball team, it wound up in Reno and not Las Vegas. Why did the D-League team go to Reno and what else can you tell us about the Reno Bighorns?

Just got back from LV over the Thanksgiving Day weekend. I will not mention the hotel but the view would have been exceptional if the windows had not been really dirty. How often do the Strip hotels wash their hotel-room windows? I know it will vary depending on the size of the hotel, but how much does it cost per hotel to wash the windows? How long does it take? How many windows are in some of the hotels?

Is there a feud between Bally's properties and the Las Vegas newspapers? They seem to be unavailable to Bally's, Paris, etc.

I have been to Las Vegas many times, but will be there on New Year's Eve for the first time this year. What can I expect?

My wife and I will be arriving in Vegas on Sunday Dec 7th. We will be staying at the Rio on the 7 & 8, and then staying at the Palazzo until we leave on Friday the 12th. What would be avaliable for a medical scooter at both casinos? What charges will there be?

We are planning our yearly trip to Vegas and have decided to try a new hotel. I reviewed the hotel ratings posted on your Web site and am somewhat confused. The previous hotel we stayed only received a 3-1/2 star rating, yet had real good comments, while the new hotel we are looking at although rated at 4-1/2 stars, without near the same amount of good comments. In fact, most were negative comments. Can you please explain your hotel rating method for this Web site. There must be more to it than just customer comments. Thanks.

The famous Welcome to Las Vegas sign is such a symbol and easily recognized as an icon of the city. Has it (or its less famous Welcome to Downtown sign) ever been involved in any type of accident or damaged? I know when I visited at the beginning of October they were working on a parking lot to keep picture takers safe, but I just wonder about the possibilty of crime involving the sign.

In a casino, a good tipper is called "George." Where did this come from? And is there a word (you can print) for someone who wins a lot, but doesn't tip?

Every time a casino is about to open, I hear about a "soft" opening. What is the difference between a soft opening and a grand opening?