Might the trend carry over to Vegas? Might we be so fortunate?

http://hotchickswithdouchebags.com/2010/03/breaking-new-orleans-club-bans-jersey-shore-type-douches/

A few years ago we went to the bar at the top of Stratosphere and it was so great it made us change our flight and stay an extra day..that ended up being a really expensive drink. ☺

The casinos can pay either by cash or check, they try and accomodate players desires, but large sums 10,000 $US are often paid by check. You can always leave money in a deposit box but you must return to that specific property to pick up your cash. I hope you fly home with a big check!!

If you win big in the casino do you always get paid out in cash from the cage or do casinos actually pay out using some sort of check (cheque if your english)?

If you have to, or decide to, take cash and you’re really drunk can you leave your money in the cage/hotel safe and come back for it the day after. Or do th ehotels work together to transfer cash to your hotel for pick up?

Hope there’s a big winner out there who knows the answers.

Still, good to hear you had a blast.

Looking forward to seeing City Centre next week, if only to try and disprove the preconceptions I have about it. At the moment thinking it might not be my cup of tea.

Day two. Drove to The M Resort before noon. This place is really nice. Well worth the effort to get out and see. I’d even consider it for a night or two. Highlight of the trip. In the afternoon, my first visit to City Center. In short, cold, impersonal, boring. I can’t see myself spending a lot of time there. Dinner at Bradley Ogden in Caesars Palace. Finally, I had the burger many people have talked about. It’s really damn good! Excellent waitress too.

Day three. Breakfast at Mon Ami Gabi. Came out from there and took Paris for $250 bucks. Upgraded myself to first class for my flight home on that. Won a little at Bellagio. Lunch at Red8 in Wynn and a liquid dinner back at the bar at Sinatra in Encore. Thanks Tim for playing my drunk dial at the end of this podcast. I totally forgot I called. A little embarrassing but I had a good laugh at myself. LOL !

If anyone is interested, I put up a few pictures here:

http://s857.photobucket.com/albums/ab132/Waynetripping/Vegas%20March%202010/?albumview=slideshow

Honestly, Lagasse’s is not a great place for March Madness due to the TV setup. A big part of the thrill of MM is the simultaneous games going on (4 at a time on Thurs and Fri and 2 at a time on the weekend) sorta like NFL Sundays. For this reason, the casinos that set up their their theaters with 4 or more big screens are much better for watching all the games.

Yes the terraced stadium section of Lagasse’s looks cool but there is only one big screen TV on that main wall. There are many smaller TVs you can see but if you are going to pay that much, you really should be able to see all 4 games easily.

For more info about where to watch MM basketball in Vegas, join this Yahoo Group
http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/marchmadnessinvegas/

Listening to the new podcast, and have some things to throw in about Lagasse’s stadium. We were there in November during football. Went in and the stadium seating was full and had to be reserved. We were told a table on the floor would require a commitment of $50 per person, and a table at the bar or a private side room was a commitment of $25.

There were 8 of us in our group, so we meandered into a side “private” room showing the game we wanted to watch. There were some couches and comfy chairs and ottomans. We couldn’t get sound for the game we were watching, and were told the sound being played would be for whatever the “main” game being shown was. We all ordered some food and drinks. The service was AWFUL but they were packed to the gills. We wound up only spending $10 or $15 a person and nothing was said to us (and if it had been, we”d have said we couldn’t possibly have spent $25 with the amount of time it took us to even get a beer), so I guess the rules aren’t too strictly enforced.

It was a cool place and a nice atmosphere. Love to go there again … maybe when they’re a little less crowded.

Awesome podcast, I enjoy every minute. 20 days until I’ll be in Sin City again, and I’ll try to hit you back with a trip report.

Here’s five suggestions for cool:

5 Red Square.. It’s a bar…made of ice. ICE. Huge selection, pricey, big luxurious drinks.

4. The Griffin..Fire, dungeon, a DJ, legendary Juke Box, Gasoline. Hipster. Seriously cool interior.

3. The Peppermill. Old Vegas. Massive drinks.

2. Mandarin Bar (Mandarin Oriental) jaw dropping views.

1. Don’t be afraid to go random, bar hop. It’s vegas baby. VEGASSS.

Anyone want to loan me your top 3 bars and lounges? Suggestions

Glad to hear gambling paid for your flight upgrade and winning the El Cortez challenge.

Looking forward to the next few episodes – sounds like lots of good content coming our way.

http://www.shufflemaster.com/assets/pdf/product_sheets/Rapid_Craps.pdf

http://www.dicesetter.com/Tid%20Bits/TidBit1.htm

If cost is an issue, especially with regards to meals, sundry items, entertainment, I wouldn’t stay at Aria or Wynn/Encore. I’d also rule out PHO based upon how boring you guys sound. And, we don’t know what Harrah’s is going to do to the excellent (but lound, and not-boring) coffe shop and buffet at Planet Harrah’s. I’d stay at Paris. It’s in the heart of the strip, the rooms are nice, the pool is great, and there are a lot of dining options on the cheap within a five minute walk. It gets high reviews from the 50+ set. You should be able to find rooms at Paris for around 90 bucks. The go-rooms at Flamingo or the rooms at Bally’s can be found even cheaper, and the location is still terrific. Easy access to Caesars, tons of rooms with Bellagio or above average strip views can be found at all three of these properties.

I have been to Aria to gamble but not have stayed there. Therefore i will not encourage or discourage that property.

Heading back myself in 6 days. (Staying a Palazzo…comped rooms…easy decision)

Good luck

In the Paris LV lounge, snacks include two hot appetizers (hot wings and some sort of tasty stuffed beef wraps, for example) from 4-6. During other hours, they have a variety of deserts, potato chips, tortilla chips, a few salsas/dips and pretzel bread.

Seriously, there is like a Vegas blog/website/podcast fight over comments made by Troy. I don’t think it matters either way.

Actually think Troy is a genius. He got everyone buzzing on the Vegas websites. Bravo!

Troy, you probably just got yourself into the next Trippies. I am thinking your are going to make it into “Pet Peeve” or “News Of The Year.”

http://www.vegastripping.com/news/news.php?news_id=3142

OBEY

They use to do that here in Colorado right before the Quarterly Tax was due, they had to pay a tax on active slots in a casino, but I think the repealed that rule here. Just a guess that or the license fees have something to do with it.

The other rule we have here is number of slots determines the size of the casino so to keep the smaller casinos open they do give a tax break to those with smaller number of slots.

Agreed. We went at night and so pictures are all blurry. If you like looking at Mandalay Bay it is an awesome view but after a few minutes we were “Uh, ok.” On the flip side, for the price it was short. I guess what I am trying to say is, for us at least, it was not a good value.
Worth the experience but will not go again and will recommend anyone who is going to find some sort of discount somewhere.

Instead of dealing with the City Center’s massive and crazy parking structure, park easily at Monte Carlo and take the free tram (which is much nicer than the metro link) that has stops at Vdara, Crystals shopping thing, and ARIA (where the new casino is!).

Try to PARK ON LEVEL 2 as that has a covered walkway directly into the heart of Monte Carlo, and close to the tram depot. The parking garage is located behind the Monte Carlo, off of Monte Carlo Drive (between Frank Sinatra and Las Vegas Blvd.)

PURE 21.5 BLACKJACK

PURE 21 ½ BLACKJACK is played with a fifty-two card deck consisting of aces through nines in standard suits and sixteen Bonus cards (four each of King, Queen, Jack and ten). The game is dealt from a shoe containing a minimum of four decks and a maximum of eight decks.

ll cards 2-9 have face value.
Aces have a value of 1 or 11.
K, Q, J, 10 “Bonus cards” have a value of 10, lt with an Ace on the initial deal, when it will have a value of 10.5.

A Bonus card and an Ace, on the initial deal, is the best possible hand. It is known as a Pure 21.5 Blackjack and pays 6 to 5.

The value of each hand is the sum of its cards.
The object of Pure 21.5 Blackjack is for the players and the Designated Player (DP) to add the numerical value of their cards and:

Achieve the best possible point total of 21.5 by being dealt a Bonus card and an Ace on the initial two cards dealt, a Pure 21.5 Blackjack. This pays 6 to 5.
Form a hand that does not exceed 21.5.

Not good.

http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/marchmadnessinvegas/

You should tell your callers to go fuck themselves more. Fuckin’ hillarial!

Hey Tim,

You should use Auto-Tune whenever you update the Celine Dion countdown.

Hey Tim,

You should get a Mission Statement for FHBM.

Hey Tim and Michele,

You should have a great trip to Vegas!

i just got back from lv and i stayed at aria. this is another plug for it. ive heard all the negative reviews but i wanted to see for myself. i loved aria! fair prices and great food at julian serrano and cafe vettero. the service was outstanding all around and the concierge has some great hookups around town! its my new fav and i will be staying there for many years!

also i had dinner on feb 13 at the eiffel tower restaurant and it was amazing. highly recommended. jet night club was cool and gave out free shots all night.

went on cloud nine. its cool but nothing to brag about.

I read this article on HENNES & MAURITZ yesterday and thought of you:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/you/article-1249693/H-M-Meet-brains-fashions-megabrand.html

Loved this bit:If you’d invested £100 in the company in 1974, your investment would be worth £430,000 today.

That shows how much Michele has spent there over the years!!

Thanks for another great show. Best wishes on the trip. Looking forward to the report. Wish our trips would overlap…i am heading back first week in March.

Klaus Meine from the band The Scorpions (”Las Vegas Nevadaaaaaah!!!!”)—This clip comes from a bootleg recording of a live show the band did at Aladdin a couple years ago. We attended the show.

Bono from U2 (”I was just thinking about all the amazing times we’ve had here in Las Vegas.”)—another one that comes from a bootleg recording from a show we attended… U2’s Nov. 18, 2001, show at Thomas and Mack Center.

Frank Sinatra (”I hope you have an enjoyable stay here in Las Vegas… I do wish that for you.”—Sinatra at the Sands.

And finally the clip from the movie Swingers… the line where the name of the show came from.

The song is “Las Vegas is Waiting” by the great Kevin Bowe.

http://snltranscripts.jt.org/84/84oprince.phtml

http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/157697/Bros-star-Matt-wins-Sinatra-s-Las-Vegas-gig

It is an intereting show, quite funny at times – especially when he comes out in a naked body suit – and interesting philosophies – men lying and a good – not a great – show.

Would I pay for it? Not sure.

Dan

The rest of the slot inventory at Planet Hollywood seems to be paying about the same as it used to.

For now.

James & Debbie

Speaking of which, Viva Elvis hasn’t even officially opened. They are actively making major adjustments to the show. In my personal opinion, I do not like it as much as Love but it is still a pretty cool show IF you go to it NOT expecting to see a Cirque Du Soleil type of show.

Golden Nugget is a nice place to stay. So is Golden Gate.

I agree that if they take out the fountain at Paris they are making a MAJOR mistake like Monte Carlo did with Diablo.

Gamblers General Store is a pretty cool place to check out. You can buy the same game tables they have in the casinos. And yes, the people that work there are all pretty cool.

WONDERGROUND is amazing. It is a showcase for magicians. Some of the biggest names around will be there hanging out and or performing but the also have tarot card readers and body painters and a live DJ and gogo dancers. A really cool experience.

It is RAIN people. Friggin relax. Yes, it is a desert and it rains in the desert. So? If you don’t like the rain DON’T FRIGGIN COME IN JANUARY!

Those shuttle busses from Wynne to ??? have been discontinued for over a year now. There were four or five of them and they are now parked in a lot just to the north of the employee parking. They never made sence to me as there was one that was dedicted to drive ONLY from my hotel to the Wynne and back. At the time I was across the street from Sahara/F Blue and there were quite a few people that got on the bus but most people used it for free transportation but Wynne was smart in that the busses dropped folks off at the BACK of the hotel so they HAD to walk through in order to get to the Strip.

The tower rooms are pretty big and have a small couch and table by the window. The only slight downside I remember is that the sink and bathroom areas are fairly small.

The Jr. Cabana Suite I had was really nice. It’s a bit cramped, but well-appointed. The HDTV actually has true HD content, not just stretched crappy TV. And like the pictures, if you have an aversion to the color green, you may not like it.

It’s been a while since I’ve been to the Golden Nugget, but the rooms there were quite nice, too.

Thanks for the podcast. I look forward to it every week. Two and a half weeks until the next time in Vegas for NASCAR weekend.

Kids under 25 might be too young to appreciate something like LOVE, but if I had to pick a Cirque show for the younger set, I’d highly reccomend KA @ MGM, with the advice that it’s clearly the most masculine of the Cirque Shows. There’s also Blue Man Group, which is very loud, but pretty rockin, and has one of the best crowd-involved special effects I’ve seen. Blue Man group would be substantially less expensive.

If it’s your sons first trip to Vegas, something like Bally’s or the Flamingo might be a good choice because of the prime location it can offer, and 20 somethings don’t spend much time in their rooms. Rooms can be found under $100 at either property if you seek them out. Since the pools will be closed I won’t suggest Mandalay Bay, which could still also be good for the younger set.

As for food, there’s obviously the burger places like the excellent Burger Bar @ Mandalay. Last time I took some 20 somethings to Vegas we ate at Samba Brazilian Steak House at the Mirage, which offers a rodizio style service that is truly a value. For an old school experience combining downtown and a steakhouse, the Golden Nugget has an outstanding steakhouse that is very casual, and Michelin rated.

Good luck and call in with your trip report and tell us what you ended up doing!

hey Tim and Michele i don’t want to burst your bubble but a listener in the end call segment said harrahs already changed the video poker pay tables….hope its not true but i dont doubt it..harrahs fucks up everything!

take care guys

The rain was bad and the huge puddles on the street were tolerable. What I found odd was the puddles on the walkways over the strip, it was also interesting that apparently Porn Slappers are alergic to water, as they were no where all day except when the sky turned blue, and then bam they were out again slap slap slapping away.

I forgot to mention that there is construction at TI, from where I thought Gillys would be going, in the cove basically but closer to the Mirage side.

Also I saw no signs of where the new Wine bar will be going at Wynncore

Good times, good times

I’ve done that several times. But the most memorable was during a morning commute ride on the ferry across San Francisco Bay. Normally the morning commute is pretty quiet with riders reading the news or napping. I was listening to the podcast with my eyes closed and laughed several times before I realized where I was and opened my eyes with several passengers in seats near me looking over to see what was so funny. I wish I could remember what the actual subject was that I was listening to.