Las Vegas 18 September - 4 October 2012 at the Plaza

Tuesday 18 September

Took off from Edinburgh (Scotland) airport at 12.20pm (15 mins late) on flight United Airlines 109 to Newark. We were served a quick snack of pretzels and a drink before dinner of salad, roll, chicken and potato wedges with carrots and green beans with a slice of cake for dessert. I watched the films Men in Black 3, Brave and What to Expect when you’re Expecting. An hour before arrival we were served a hot turkey and cheese sandwich, crisps and a chocolate. As there were high winds and lightning at Newark airport we had to circle for a while before landing. We were off our flight very quickly and cleared passport control but our luggage took ages to come through. We then transferred to terminal C and had to go through security again. We thought we were cutting it fine for our next flight but when we got to our gate it was running late. We took off for Las Vegas 40 minutes late, had a good flight and landed at 8pm Las Vegas time. We landed at terminal 1 but had to take a train to terminal 3 to collect our luggage. Then we had to take a shuttle bus back to terminal 1 to catch the 108 bus to Bonneville Transit Center and then change to the 106 to the Plaza downtown. We actually booked this trip for 16 nights back in January to stay in the Vegas Club but as it is only taking guests at the weekend they have transferred us to the Plaza for the whole of our stay. We asked for a non-smoking, non-adjoining room with a king size bed but she could only offer us a non-adjoining room with 2 beds so we accepted that. However, when we arrived at the room on the 10th floor it was adjoining so Jim went back down to registration and with the help of a manager we got a non-adjoining room with a king size bed on the 14th floor – result. We unpacked and went down for a little gamble and also had a bite to eat from McDs. Ended the night at 12.30am (10.30am UK time) so we’ve been awake for 27 hours with only a couple of naps on the plane.










Views from our room (1456 Plaza Hotel)

Wednesday 19 September

Awoke at 5am and tried to get back to sleep but to no avail. Had showers and wandered down to the McDs at the D for breakfast. My favourite oatmeal with fruit and maple was still on the menu so I was delighted. I then joined the D players club and received $3 in free play! We played it through and cashed out $1.82 and then went next door and put $10 onto the phone card in Walgreens. Strolled back up to the Plaza to phone home and then spent time at the pool before meeting up with our friends from Wales in the Plaza foyer. We chatted to them for nearly 2 hours and after we said our goodbyes we walked along to Bonneville and caught the BHX (Boulder Highway Express) to Boulder Station for a late lunch at their buffet with a 2 for 1 LVA coupon (total $6.84). 



We played the slots for a little while before catching the BHX back to Bonneville where I bought my 30 day bus ticket for $65. We took a 207 east back to the Plaza and had a nap as we were up so early this morning. Went to the D, Golden Gate and the Plaza to gamble. It was really cold in all the casinos tonight. Got to bed at 2am.

Thursday 20 September

Went to the McDs in the Plaza for breakfast then sat at the pool. Met up with our friends from Wales at the WAX (Westcliffe Airport Express) bus stop at the side of Binions and travelled with them to the airport as they are going home today. We waved them goodbye on the shuttle bus which took them over to terminal 3 and then tried to find a United desk to sort out our return journey as we are booked on 2 different flights from Las Vegas to Newark (long story so I won’t bore you with the details) but they are now based in terminal 3 so we looked up a freephone number for United and Jim phoned instead and managed to get the correct flight cancelled. We then caught the WAX bus all the way to the Suncoast and went in for their lunch buffet (2 for 1 with ACG coupon $9.72 total) Jim found his favourite Chinese soup – hot and sour – so he was happy. It was a really good buffet with several flavours of sorbet to have with your dessert. We found a 75cl bottle of vodka in the gift shop priced at $6.99 so we bought it. We got 10% off with our B-Connected players card and also asked if we could redeem any points on it. After she had redeemed the points we only had to pay a total of $3.71 for it – amazing. Had a rest in our room after taking the WAX bus back to the Plaza, before going to gamble in the Golden Gate, Vegas Club and the Plaza.

Friday 21 September

We were awoken quite early by 2 couples of loud talking Americans in the room opposite us and one along the corridor. They had no consideration for anyone else and were talking to each other out in the corridor. We had our “do not disturb” notice on our door so they knew there would be people sleeping in our room. Had our breakfast in the McDs in the Plaza and then caught the BHX to Sam’s Town to drop in to see our friend Ann, who works in the Bogart’s Leather Store there. 



Sam's Town pool

We chatted for quite a while and then wandered over to the Eastside Cannery and noticed that they have a $7 dinner buffet every Tuesday. Caught the BHX to Sunset Station and went in for a late lunch buffet (2 for 1 LVA coupon $8.64 total) then had a look round the casino and then watched the ten pin bowlers for a while. 



Took a walk over to the newly remodelled Wildfire casino before catching the BHX bus back to the Plaza. Relaxed in our room then gambled in the Vegas Club, Golden Gate, Binions and the Plaza. We had an amazing bonus on Duck in a Row slot in Binions playing just 10c a bet and winning over $28!

Saturday 22 September

Had breakfast in the McDs in the Plaza then spent time at the pool. Caught the 2.45pm 106 bus north to Santa Fe casino where we had a late lunch in the Feast Buffet (2 for 1 LVA coupon $8.64 total). Had a quick gamble on the slots before catching the 106 back to the Plaza. Fell asleep in our room for an hour before gambling at the 4 Queens, Binions, MSS and the Plaza.

Sunday 23 September

Had breakfast in the McDs in the Plaza where we got chatting to a couple from Blackpool in the UK who are in Vegas for 22 nights staying at the Riviera. Phoned home and then spent time at the pool. Caught the SDX to the Sahara and walked to the LVH for a look round. 



Elvis statue outside LVH



We then checked out the Riviera and as we were getting hungry we nipped over to the Viva McDonald’s over the road and had our dinner. After wandering through Slots of Fun we went to Circus Circus to see what changes they have made. We noticed a few new bars and eateries and the slots seem to be more spread out but apart from that it was still full of screaming kids! 



Restaurant in Circus Circus



Circus act in Circus Circus

Caught a very crowded Deuce bus back to downtown and gambled in the California and the Plaza.

Monday 24 September

Had breakfast in the McDs in the Plaza and phoned home then spent time at the pool. Caught the SDX to the Fashion Show Mall and then walked through the Palazzo, 





the Venetian, 











Harrah’s and the Imperial Palace where we booked free show tickets to Jeff Civillico for Thursday at 2pm. Next we crossed over to the Bellagio and visited their conservatory. 







We then jumped on a Deuce down to the Luxor where we booked tickets for Menopause the Musical for Wednesday at 5.30pm and Criss Angel for Thursday at 7pm. If you book at the Luxor or Excalibur box offices you can get 2 shows for $75 (some of them have a surcharge like Criss Angel – we had to pay $15 extra for his show to be included). The reason we are going to see Menopause the Musical is that the couple from Blackpool that we spoke to, recommended it. Jim wasn’t that keen but we were undecided which show to book along with Criss Angel so he went with it. We caught the WAX bus next to NYNY back to downtown and had a 2 for 1 buffet in MSS (FSE coupon) 



and after a nap in our room we gambled in the Golden Gate, Vegas Club and the Plaza.

Tuesday 25 September

Had breakfast in the McDs in the Plaza and met and chatted to the couple from Blackpool that we met a couple of days ago. We then spent time at the pool and then came back to our room and fell asleep – we seem to have done nothing except sleep and relax since we got here. It must be the hot weather that’s making us tired. We caught the 4pm 106 bus north to Fiesta Rancho for their dinner buffet (2 for 1 LVA coupon $8.64 total). After we caught the 106 bus back to the Plaza we played the 7pm session of bingo but didn’t win. We gambled in the Vegas Club and the Plaza.

Wednesday 26 September

Had breakfast in the McDs in the Plaza then spent time at the pool. Caught the 2.25pm WAX bus to the Tropicana and had a look round. We discovered a new Race and Sports Book 



and the pool has been upgraded. 




The whole hotel seems bright and airy now. Crossed over the walkway to Excalibur and took the walkway through to the Luxor. Had a bite to eat in their food court before going in to see Menopause the Musical at 5.30pm. We really enjoyed the show, which lasted for an hour and a half. It consisted of 4 very different ladies in Bloomingdales. They were all going through the menopause and sang loads of songs, mainly from the 60s, and changed the lyrics with hilarious results. They were all fantastic singers and I would definitely recommend this show to both men and women of all ages. The only down side was that the theatre was absolutely freezing. Luckily we had gone prepared with a jumper and cardigan but we were still frozen. We caught the 7.15pm WAX bus at NYNY back to Bonneville and jumped on a Deuce bus to the Stratosphere. We played some of our favourite slots there to keep the points ticking over on our cards. When we sat down at a Kitty Glitter slot we got the bonus on our first spin – then a couple of spins later we got the bonus again which retriggered twice so we had 45 free spins which resulted in a $34 win and all for a 10c bet! 




Popped next door to the garage to buy nuts, cookies, bananas and a paper then caught the SDX back downtown and gambled in the Golden Gate and the Plaza.

Thursday 27 September

Had breakfast in the McDs in the Plaza then spent time at the pool. We caught the SDX to the Fashion Show Mall and walked through Treasure Island 





Christmas has come early to Treasure Island!



The false facade on top of Walgreens to camouflage construction

to the Imperial Palace where we took part in a free slot tournament. I clocked up over 4,000 but the attendant said that wasn’t high enough to win anything that day so we didn’t bother going back after 2pm to check. We enjoyed the Jeff Civillico show. He is a comedy juggler and gets several volunteers up from the audience to help him. 



As we hadn’t paid anything to see him we were surprised at how good our seats were. We had a really good view of the stage. The show lasted for about an hour and again the theatre was very cold but we took jackets with us. After the show we walked up to the Wynn and caught the SDX back to the Plaza and used a coupon at Subway – buy a foot long sub and a 30 oz drink and get a 6” sub free. We ate it in our room whilst looking out of our window down to the Strip. Caught the WAX bus to the Tropicana and walked through Excalibur to the Criss Angel theatre in the Luxor. It holds 1557 people and the attendant told us that it was close to a sell out that night. We were in section 204 row KK seats 1 and 2 and although the stage was quite far away we could see reasonably well. Not being American we were unaware of the magic of Criss Angel and we were expecting great things of him from reading his publicity notices in the foyer. Well, we were bitterly disappointed. He got a minor magician/comedian to open the show and talked and showed clips of film constantly throughout the show. The illusions that he did (and there weren’t very many of them) were good but not as spectacular as what we were expecting. He kept shouting at the audience trying to get them to applaud and cheer which was really annoying. Overall he had no charisma and we both felt it was one of the worst shows we’ve seen in Las Vegas. He didn’t have any rapport with the members of the audience that he got up on stage either. The show lasts for an hour and a half but at least half of that is taken up with photos of him growing up, film footage of illusions that he has done on Fremont Street (would have liked to have seen him do some of them live on the show) and Criss Angel trying to whip up the audience to a state of frenzy like some aging rock and roll star. 



We caught the 9.15pm WAX bus from NYNY back to downtown and watched the 10pm Queen lightshow. Gambled in the Golden Gate and the Plaza. I have been enjoying a hot chocolate topped up with whipped cream nearly every night in the casino along with a chocolate chip cookie (I have a stash of them that I have smuggled out of the numerous buffets that we’ve had). This is my treat as I’m not allowed to drink spirits along with the medication that I am on.

Friday 28 September

Had breakfast in the McDs in the Plaza and spent time at the pool. 




Inside Oscar's Steakhouse at the Plaza








Just outside Oscar's Steakhouse

The hotel and downtown in general is a lot busier this weekend due to the annual Bike Fest. We discovered that part of their enjoyment was a Poker Walk and we asked a couple of bikers how it worked. They visit each casino downtown and locate the Poker Walk desk and pick a card and it is marked on their score sheet. Once they finish they see who has the best poker hand. We forgot to ask if there was a prize but we presume there was. We thought it was a great idea and would let them see all the downtown casinos. We phoned home and then did some souvenir shopping 



Bar outside the Golden Gate




John Gotti's 1972 Red Jaguar

and caught the 3.45pm BHX to Arizona Charlies for a 2 for 1 buffet (LVA coupon $8.93 total). After catching the BHX back to the Plaza we fell asleep for a couple of hours before going to gamble in the Golden Gate and the Plaza.

Saturday 29 September

Had breakfast in the McDs in the Plaza and then did some souvenir shopping before spending time at the pool. Went to the 3pm bingo session in the Plaza – no luck – then went for a 2 for 1 dinner buffet in the Fremont Hotel (FSE coupon $15.12 total). 




Went back to the 9pm bingo session but still no luck although one lucky lady won $1000. Gambled in the Golden Gate and the Plaza.

Sunday 30 September

Had breakfast in the McDs in the Plaza and spent a couple of hours at the pool. Watched some of the Ryder Cup coverage in our room before catching the SDX to Sahara and then the Sahara Express (SX) to Red Rock casino. 




We enjoyed their Feast Buffet (2 for 1 with a LVA coupon $15.12 total) 




and then went up to the top floor of the parking garage to take film and photos of the surrounding views 




before catching the SX and the Deuce back to Fremont Street. Gambled in the Golden Gate, Vegas Club and the Plaza.

Monday 1 October

Had breakfast in the McDs in the Plaza then went to the 11pm bingo session – no luck. We then sat by the pool for a while and then went back to the 1pm bingo session – no luck again. We went back to the pool again to read and catch up with emails whilst sitting in the shade. We caught the 3.48pm 206 bus from Bonneville to Arizona Charlies on Decatur 



for our 2 for 1 buffet (LVA coupon $5.60 total). Don’t know how it was that cheap. I know we had 25% off for having an orange players card plus the lady at the players club had marked down for the cashier to deduct $11 as a marketing comp. I think the cashier put us down as seniors too. Whether that was a mistake or not, who knows, but they definitely charged more than that at Arizona Charlies Boulder. We noticed a Wal-mart when we walked back to Charleston to get the bus so we nipped in to get cigars for Jim’s friend back home before catching the 206 bus back to Bonneville and then the SDX to Fremont Street.  We walked back to the Plaza via the Golden Nugget so that we could film and take photos of The Tank – their swimming pool. 





We then played the 9pm bingo session and guess what – we still didn’t win! Gambled in the Golden Gate, Vegas Club and the Plaza.

Tuesday 2 October

Had breakfast in the McDs in the Plaza and sat at the pool for a while. Went down to the biggest gift shop in the world at Sahara and did some souvenir shopping then had our dinner in Du-pars in the Golden Gate paid for with our points. We then redeemed our $20 free play from our points and managed to accumulate $10.71 cash. We played the 7pm bingo session – no luck again – before catching the SDX to the Stratosphere for a change of slots. We gambled there for a couple of hours and amazingly hit the bonus on a Stinkin’ Rich slot which paid out $52.30 and we were only playing 10c a bet. 




Caught the Deuce back to Fremont Street and gambled in the Vegas Club and the Plaza. There was some kind of commercial being filmed outside the Plaza tonight with a big film crew. We asked one of the security guards what was going on and he said it was to advertise the Soul Train Awards which take place at the end of November in LA. Cedric the Entertainer, who is hosting the event, was there along with some other people we had never heard of!



Wednesday 3 October

Had breakfast in the McDs in the Plaza then caught the BHX down Boulder Highway to Sam’s Town to see our friend Ann again in the Bogart’s Leather store. We chatted to her for ages and then walked over to Wal-mart to buy more cigars for Jim’s friend back home. Caught the BHX back to the Plaza and had our dinner from Pop-Up Pizza in the Plaza with our $20 food comps. 



We had a huge slice of pizza each plus onion rings and mozerella and garlic French fries. We nearly managed to finish it all but it was a struggle. 



We then packed our suitcases and went down to Binions for a change to gamble. 



Halloween display in Binions.

Got to bed at 10.30pm for our early start in the morning.

Here are a few extra photos that I took:-




These two photos were taken outside the Golden Gate




These people are advertising The Asylum which is the Haunted House in the background.



A couple of showgirls



Michael Jackson and Elvis enjoying Fremont Street.



Halloween display outside Binions



Beetlejuice overseeing a slot tournament in the Plaza!



Bar in the Golden Nugget



The biggest golden nugget in the world in the Golden Nugget



Some old slots in the Golden Gate



The Golden Gate are giving away a car a month for the next year!



Criss Angel - what a bummer 😉

Thursday 4 October

Woke up at 4.30am and caught the 5.20am WAX bus to the airport. Had breakfast in Burger King (they also serve oatmeal so that was good). Took off on time at 8.20am and arrived 4 and a half hours later in Newark. The only entertainment on the flight was DirecTV which you had to pay for - $7.99 – what a rip off! We had a light lunch at McDs and then waited the layover time of approx 4 hours for our next flight. We were over an hour late taking off as we were in a backlog queue of flights. I watched the films The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and Rock of Ages and we were served beef cannelloni for dinner. A few hours later we were served breakfast of some melon and croissant with butter and jam. We arrived back in Edinburgh at 8.15am – only 20 minutes late.

This was our 15th trip to Las Vegas and as always we have loved every minute of it. It is just so relaxing being able to walk about in shorts and t-shirts every single day and night. We arrived back home to temperatures in the low 50s which will soon drop to the 40s and lower over the winter. We are counting the days until we return in April 2013.

Pluses:-
Great weather – in the 90s most of the time we were there.
Good room with a really comfortable bed.
Numerous 2 for 1 delicious buffets.
Really quiet pool.
Menopause the Musical – brilliant show not to be missed.
The WAX (Westcliffe Airport bus) is fantastic. Not only does it go from the airport right out to the Suncoast via Tropicana and Downtown, it will take you from Downtown and drop you outside the Tropicana in about 20 minutes so if you are going anywhere at the south end of the Strip it is really worth considering. There is a timetable for it on the leaflet that you can pick up on the SDX and the Deuce.



We only play 10c a bet when we play the slots so we are never going to win a fortune but at the same time we are never going to lose a fortune. I won’t lie and say we won but we only lost about $12 a night on average, which isn’t bad for about 3 – 4 hours of entertainment and $1 a drink for Jim.



Minuses:-

The Plaza tried to charge us the $10 a night resort fee and it took 4 visits to registration to finally have it removed. We originally booked in January for the Vegas Club so we were not expecting to pay a resort fee.



I found some of the casinos really cold especially the Golden Gate. I think they could turn down their A/C a bit. Also the theatres could be a bit warmer.



We should have listened to the reviews of Criss Angel and stayed away.