Day 4 continued....

I found out that we needed to join the Palms Players Club before we could use the LVA coupon so I did this and then we headed to Garduno's, which is a New Mexican restaurant we had eaten at in Albuquerque in 2008. It was about 5pm at this point and there were only a few people eating, to be honest the atmosphere was lacking a bit but we just needed feeding so we wouldn't want too much at the Ice Hockey. With the 50% LVA coupon the meal including tip was just over $20, amazing value considering we both had the 5 combo entree but I felt the food came out too quickly and our server was a bit too chilled for my liking. There was a good salsa bar and the food was tasty, although there was a strange blue corn tamale which had a nasty texture which we both agreed was not pleasant. After having a very quick look around the Palms we headed out to get a cab to the Orleans. We were contemplating getting the shuttle from the Gold Coast but we were a little too pushed for time. The cab from Palms to Orleans was $10 including tip.
On arrival at the Orleans we went to the box office to buy the Wranglers tickets and chose the $17.50 tickets and said to the woman serving us to choose best available. I then signed up for the B Connected card so I could take advantage of the free $10 slot play in the LVA. After eventually getting the promo to work on a machine I hit a few wins but lost it all fairly quickly and then it was off on the long walk to the Orleans Arena. After nipping to the toilet I came out to find Kel doing a free spin with a win everytime promotion which I knew was probably a timeshare operation. I did it as well and the coupons we won were standards you could get in any coupon book in Vegas and then we were directed to a guy with an A4 folder, it was a timeshare thing so I made our excuses and left and he seemed surprised we didn't want to find out more. Er, no....

Day 4 continued....

Before we entered the arena we both bought a beer which was not bad value at $6 each plus tip for the aluminum style bottle, I had a Michelob Ultra (first time since Key West in 2005) and Kel stuck to Bud Light. We found our seats and had an excellent view. We were told to sit high enough up so the glass around the rink was not in the way and to be fair to the lady in the box office she made sure we had this. The build up was quite amazing for a very minor league level and the supporters were extremely passionate but I suppose you would be in Vegas where there is no major league sports teams. Unfortunately, we were sat behind a family of about 8 who were a bit mental and although the father seemed like the most passionate supporter ever, he was soon playing games on his mobile which just about sums up the lack of attention span our American cousins tend to have. They did us no harm and in fact gave us some laughs. The Wranglers won 4-2, which was a great result over 'local' rival Alaska. It was a fun night but I still prefer Basketball and Baseball, although this was minor league so perhaps NHL would be a bit more exciting. I do like how they get into scraps on the rink though, totally all put on of course.
After we left the arena we headed to the shuttle pick up to go back to Bill's on the strip and I expected this to be busy. As it turned out there was only one guy in front of us and everybody bar two people got on the first shuttle back. Within minutes we were getting off the shuttle at Bill's and it was back to PH for some more slot play, this time my luck started to change and I had a good win on a 25c Top Dollar machine and Kel had some wins also. We were certainly well up on gambling overall. Although tonight we were aiming for a few bars we again felt so tired (a recurring theme all week unfortunately) so headed back to the room after another fun filled day and night in Vegas....

Day 5 Wednesday 28th March 2012

The holiday was now going too quickly, intially it was a nice pace but when you get beyond the half way point it tends to speed up and this was happening to us. I did regret only booking 6 nights but another night would have made little difference, the plan was to spend most time on the Strip and Downtown (with some shopping) and I think 6 nights is plenty for that. I don't know if a day trip to a Hoover Dam or a Valley of Fire would have helped slow it up a little but at the same time we didn't want an early start, despite the fact we were waking up early anyway.
We were heading Downtown today, so opted for some drinks from Starbucks (free of charge) before getting on a SDX to Fremont where we then headed to the Plaza to use another Restaurant.com gift certificate at HHaGG. We both actually preferred this restaurant to the Imperial Palace one but both are nice, in fact I was very impressed with the lobby and public areas in the Plaza. Again, no wait and this time we both went for the Man vs Food favourite which was the Andy's Sage Fried Chicken Benedict, fresh spinach, bacon, tomato, mozzarella, scrambled eggs (not for Kel) and chipotle sauce. This was better than the dish I had the other day, absolutely stunning but I couldn't finish it. Food won! Again the price was around $35 with the voucher (gratuity being included with the gift certificate) so again not cheap overall but worth it for food this good.
After a wander around the Plaza we walked to the Mob Museum which was something we desperately wanted to do on this trip and was recently opened a few blocks from Fremont. We got in at midday and didn't come out until after 2pm, an amazing museum and although busy and not particularly well laid out on floor 3 (where you start the tour) it was $14pp well spent. Thanks to LVA for providing an online $4pp off the entry price but at $18 it would be well worth it as well.....

Day 5 continued....

The only downside to the Mob Museum was in the part where a film is shown in the actual courtroom used and some American woman decided to answer her mobile and have a 5 minute conversation whilst the film was showing. So rude, but death stares didn't bother her. I think we would have needed to grab the phone and chuck it out of the window to stop her. That aside, it was a great couple of hours.
We hopped on an SDX to the Bonneville Transit Center where we knew we could walk to the Pawn Stars Shop within 5 minutes. We have only been watching the TV programme since Christmas but have become a bit addicted so we had to pay a visit. There were no stars there but we did only queue for 5 minutes, I have heard queues of up to 2 hours at times. The shop itself was kind of neat but has more tourist tat than I was expecting, i.e. t-shirts, magnets most of which were incredibly naff. Kel did buy a magnet for $5 after I convinced her the Chumlee t-shirt was perhaps not the best idea. A fun stop and we got some decent photos. We walked back over to the Transit Center and then rode the SDX back to the Bellagio/PH stop and back up for some much needed rest.
Tonight we had decided to go to the Cheesecake Factory in the Forum Shops for tea as it would just be wrong not to visit a CF when in the USA. It really is an easy walk to Caesars from PH and although the property is huge we were soon at the restaurant and it was here we encountered our first major wait. We were quoted 35-40mins and given a ticket, fine, so we went off to watch the Gods fountain/light show, but after going back after waiting for the alloted time we still had a further 10-15mins wait. We were then given a patio table, right next to where people were standing and waiting so I refused that and eventually we were given a table inside the restaurant......

Day 5 continued....

The food at the CF was as good as ever. Kel had a Monterey Cheeseburger with sweet potato fries and I had Cajun Chicken Littles with mash and succotash. We both shared a new cheesecake (for us), White Chocolate Caramel Macadamia which was divine. Bill was $43 so we left a $50. The server seemed pre-occupied. I must admit out of all the CF's we have been to in the USA the one in Vegas is my least favourite, nothing to do with the food, but the service and wait often bug me.
We stopped off in Caesars on the way back for some slot action but didn't have any joy and never have in this place so we walked back to PH to continue our lucky streak on the Top Dollar machine (and the other which I can't remember the name of). We played for an hour or so before tiredness hit us again. I think Kel wanted to keep playing tonight but I was just whacked out. Never before have I slept so badly in the USA.

Day 6 Thursday 29th March 2012

Today was our last full day in Vegas and it was probably our best sleep which was typical really. The plan was to eat at Le Village Buffet at Paris, where we had a LVA coupon for $10 off per person making the total $12.95 for two of us. I can't enthuse about this deal too much, it really is a cracking deal. As we had laid in a bit longer this morning it was also typical we would get to Le Village and there be a queue, although it did move very quickly. We had threatened to eat here many times in the past but never got round to it, boy I wish we had, it was fantastic. Such a pleasant dining room and with great food and service it was $12.95 well spent. Again we probably overdid it but there you go!
We knew we had Gordie Brown tonight and as were using the SDX we knew we had to allow plenty of time. With that in the back of our minds we didn't really do that much on our final day. We did go back to the Monte Carlo and played the greyhound video machine again which didn't last quite as long as before but we still had a few beers and some fun. We also had a peek in the Bellagio Conservatory and took the tram to Aria (very nice, but a bit plastic), Vdara (not much to look at obviously) and also bought some makeup from CVS for Kel. We also went back to the Ross Dross near the Peppermill just to see if anything new had come in. Kel managed to buy a new pair of Levi's for $18 so it was well worth it.
About mid afternoon we returned to the PH and as we were eating after Gordie Brown we shared a Earl's Club from Earl of Sandwich and I went to Starbucks to get free juice and a nice cake which we thought would tide us over until after the show. The Club sandwich was $6.48 and I still think it is difficult to beat the sandwiches from the Earl.....

I'm worn out just reading what you managed to fit in so far. Thanks for such a detailed trip report.

Day 6 continued....

After a rest and shower (by the way the shower was amazing in the Hollywood Hip Room) we headed out to catch the SDX to Downtown which actually got down there much quicker than I was expecting. We even had time to go into one of the casinos to take advantage of $2 Corona's so took this with us into the Golden Nugget and after going up the escalator we were in the queue to see Gordie Brown. At this point the Country Superstars show had just kicked out and Kel spotted Willie Nelson and Reba Mcentire (who?) and there was Cody somebody who I think was in Lonestar, but wasn't the lead singer when the dullfest that is Amazed was released. People were getting autographs so they must have been big. I'm not a huge country fan admittedly. It's not like Brandon Flowers standing next to us in a Golden Nugget show queue.
We were slightly worried that we seemed to be the youngest people in the queue (not bad for 39 & 34) but fortunately some younger people turned up just as we were going in! The showroom was small and our seats were amazing, about 5 rows from the front. There was a 20 minute delay to the start of the show which seemed to upset some people but when Gordie came on he soon got everybody on his side. He was excellent, very funny. Well worth the $30pp we had spent. Some jokes went over our heads a bit as you would expect but the impressions were mostly spot on. It really is amazing how he can change his face to actually look like the person he is impersonating. He got a standing ovation and with a tough crowd that pretty much sums it up. A good end to the holiday.....

Day 6 continued....

After the show we opted for the Grand Lux Cafe in the Venetian for some food. I forgot to mention after our visit to the GLC in Palazzo we had been given a $10 gift certificate on the receipt so activated this and took it with us. I think I preferred the Palazzo restaurant but there was not a lot in it. Food was great (again) but the server was a bit awkward. I do think that some servers hear a British voice and think they are going to get stiffed on a tip, this was the impression I got from this guy. We also didn't have a great table, it was right next to the server station so we were sometimes surrounded by servers. We could have asked to be moved of course but didn't bother. Kel had the flatbread chicken sandwich and I had a Bacon Cheeseburger, with the $10 off it was just $25 all in. Who said Vegas has got too expensive? It was slightly sad this was our final meal and the walk back up the Strip (against the tide again) was a little muted. We had done so much but also felt we had only just got there. We gambled some more at PH and still had some luck, it turned out we were $700 up overall on the trip so that was some result. No major win, just lots of little wins but I think our tiredness contributed to this. If we had been more up for it after food in the evening we might have gambled more and possibly gone to a few bars.

Departure Day Friday 30th March 2012

Up early again for a change and a quick call down to PH front desk and we were given a late check out until midday for free. Nice touch. We opted for a full Starbucks breakfast today, so Latte, Juice and pastry each which again was nice and free and then we headed out on the Strip for the final time to go up to Dross at MGM and the Adidas Store. We also went in some gift shops to get some cheap magnets and also the PH shop again to get a magnet. I needed to buy some sweets for work which I got from the new Walgreens next to PH. Then it was back to PH for the final shower and pack and we headed downstairs at about 12.05pm. The queue to check in/out was quite busy so we filled out a card and checked out that way and then dropped our bags with the bell boys and headed off to Harley Davidson Cafe for a final lunch. We had a $10 gift certificate from Restaurant.com for here which could have been used at anytime but we thought we would save it for this lunchtime. We have always had good food in the Harley and today was no different. I had a BBQ Burger and Kel had a Brisket sandwich. I must admit prices seem to have risen quite dramatically in this particular restaurant since our early visits but the food was worth it. Feeling very full, we headed back to PH, picked up our cases and hopped in a cab to the airport. For some reason the cabbie took us out onto the Strip which I suppose was a lame attempt at being long haulled but the fare was $13.90 and I only had $15 in small notes, so he got that. He said thanks for that but I don't think he realised what I had given. Still a tip is a tip and there really was no need to go on the Strip from PH. Bag drop at the Virgin check in was quiet and we went straight through to security and the delights of nothing in terminal 2. We have always eaten before getting to the airport as we know how poor the food choices are here. The flight was on time but turned out to be an hour late leaving, the monitor said departed even though we were all still sitting in the lounge!

Departure Day continued...

The flight home was tough going. We seemed to be on a very old plane with uncomfortable seats and it didn't help that a 10 year old girl reclined immediately which in turned caused the guy in front of me to recline so I had his head on my lap the whole journey. My lack of sleep on holiday helped as I managed to sleep for most of the flight and I didn't eat anything (just drunk) so didn't have any food laying heavy during the flight. We got in about 40 minutes late which helped us as we had specific timed train tickets from Gatwick to Victoria and then some further time to kill before our coach back to Norwich. Everything seemed to go very smoothly and my Dad was at the agreed meet up point with a lift back home. The end to a very eventful week away.

Hope you enjoyed the TR and it wasn't too long or boring. Good luck to all those who have trips planned this year.

Excellent. You had some good deals there with r.com certs and other coupons. Gordie Brown was on our to do list a few years ago just before he moved to the Venetian, but like a lot of things, we haven't got round to seeing him.

I was confused by your entry into the IP as the casino is on ground level and not up an escalator. You enter along the passageway between Vince Neil Ink and the shops at the front of the IP. We have always had excellent cocktail service at the IP and they usually have the latest slots.

luci

luci HT Mod wrote:

Excellent. You had some good deals there with r.com certs and other coupons. Gordie Brown was on our to do list a few years ago just before he moved to the Venetian, but like a lot of things, we haven't got round to seeing him.
I was confused by your entry into the IP as the casino is on ground level and not up an escalator. You enter along the passageway between Vince Neil Ink and the shops at the front of the IP. We have always had excellent cocktail service at the IP and they usually have the latest slots.

We didn't purposely go with the plan to use so many coupons/vouchers but when they are available for places you would probably eat at anyway it makes sense to try and save money if you can. The HHaGG coupons for example helped us out no end as hitting towards $50 for breakfast is against my frugal nature!

We screwed up getting into IP. There is a small entrance with an escalator up to a casino of sorts (it's not the main casino) and we had to come down again before getting an escalator back up to HHaGG which has its own dedicated escalator. After the meal we came down the escalator from HHaGG and then walked straight out of the main casino doors. I thought the in and out for IP was cars only but there was a narrow sidewalk either side. I forgot to mention I won $20 after putting $5 into a 25c slot in the IP straight after HHaGG.....

Sounds like a fantastic trip - I agree with pebbles, exhausted just reading it - that was a very busy 6 days....could you have done many more days like that? We go for longer, but we do a bit of pool time, so we probably don't even end up doing as much as you did overall.

Some good deals in there too - I always enjoy reading the prices....as I am also frugal We hope to spend a few days in Henderson (GVR probably), so when I recently saw a groupon deal for Gaetano's down there I bought that.

We intend to do more shows this year, we only did some comedy last time I think, so we'll definitely be on the lookout for reports on shows. Gordie Brown sounds good, might look into that.

We saw Gordie Brown a year or so ago, and really enjoyed his show.

I felt exhasusted after reading it back but at the time whilst over in LV it didn't feel like we did that much! We are not really pool people (and it was borderline pool weather anyway) so we tend to fit everything into our days and then in the evenings chill a little more, this is easy to do in most US cities but Vegas is so different, we really did feel whacked come mid-late evening but this isn't surprising if you think we were consistently out and about for upwards of 8 hours each day. In Seattle and Portland last year we were back in the room reading/watching TV come 9pm after a full day, but that isn't Vegas (although of course it is your holiday, you can do what you want!).

On reflection I think something was missing on this trip. It was 4 years since the last visit (after 3 years on the trot) so it wasn't over familiar and in fact staying in PH really did put a different perspective on things and also the cooler weather helped as well. Maybe we should have booked more activities, like an ATV tour or a trip to the Hoover Dam or Lake Mead, maybe we undersold ourselves on the shows, Gordie was brilliant but it was our last night and I think perhaps we could swapped some daytime walking for a couple of daytime shows. Maybe we should have made it a 10 night trip and combined with somewhere else, maybe Zion NP midway through just to break things up. All too late now of course. I've said it before, but maybe the love affair with Vegas is slowly dwindling
Anyway, thanks for the comments on the TR and I'm glad you enjoyed it. If HT stays around in some form, I look forward to hearing all about your forthcoming and future trips.

Loved reading your trip review! I'm going to Vegas in July for the 1st time and can't wait!

Great report , I had only read half when we lost HT and I thought that was it but it came back and have just caught up with the rest,Thanks

Glad you enjoyed it. I must admit I completely forgot about the issues with HT when I wrote it and then I wondered whether I would get the chance to see it again when the site went down. I always promised to do the TR on here because I know there are so many people passionate about Vegas.

It seems a distant memory now, not helped by a mate being over there at the moment.