vegas

[HAULN-SS]

So a buddy of mine is trying to talk me into going to vegas with him in a couple of months for some kind of convention or something, with other shenanigans involved as well. I've never been, but I'm trying to figure out what there is to do there besides gamble, because I really don't want to go out there and blow a ton of money. Any tips? I'd like to go into some casinos and stuff, without losing my shirt, which means i'll be playing low limit games and such. I was figuring 500$ might last me 3 days for dinners, gambling, and sight-seeing. This sound reasonable to those that have been?

[Apoc]

gamble. eat. drink. shows. people watch.

That's Vegas in a nutshell.

Gamble downtown (Fremont St) because the limits are like $1-$5 instead of the $15-25 on the strip. You can easily get by on $100/day (including meals) if you're not stupid about the gambling. With any luck, you might even win enough to pay for your meals and come back with what you left with.

[Evan]

Ive been to vegas twice, once with G and once for a company annual meeting. With G we went to clubs and stuff which was a blast. Great music, hot girls, and lots of crazy shit like acrobats and flames.
But Im not into gambling, at _all_ (tried it and bored my ass off) and Id never pay $200 to see a bunch of asians doing flips or some guys painted blue acting like dumbasses so the 2 biggest draws for vegas were instantly off the table.
When I went with my company, since there were no coworkers that I particularly like enough to hang out with, I just walked the strip, rode the roller coasters at the space needle, and people watched. Kinda boring overall. Good food though I guess.
Didnt have enough time to go see the grand canyon, or hoover dam, or any of the stuff surrounding the area, but if I went back Id definately do that.
We are going back this year but Im pretending I have a wedding to go to.

Vegas in the summer is HOT though. Like, sweaty balls the second you step outside hot so keep that in mind.

[HAULN-SS]

Yeah. I've already seen the grand canyon, and the desert before...might be nice again, but it's not like i'd die if I didn't see them. But I've never been in a vegas style casino, so that has a little appeal to me...but yeah, 5$ is about my max limit on any game. I also wouldnt pay 200$ to see acrobats or blue men, but I figured there were maybe cheaper acts in town worth watching? Sounds like if I don't gamble stupidly (here's my whole stack on black), then I should be able to get by on 4 - 500$ for a couple days then. I think flights right now are around 300. So is it worth potentially 7 - 800$ for the trip you think?

[Apoc]

So is it worth potentially 7 - 800$ for the trip you think?

IMO yes, but I've been there 4 times in 5 years so I'm probably biased.

Check <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.vegas.com">http://www.vegas.com</a><!-- m --> for an exhaustive listing of shows by type and price.

[mrbaggio]

When I was there last you could get tickets to most shows for $90 if that helps you any.

[Evan]

So is it worth potentially 7 - 800$ for the trip you think?

Thats a personal decision. For me, personally I would rather spend that same money on a 4 or 5 day all-inclusive trip to Playa Del Carmen....

EDIT: But it also depends on the people you go with too. It can definately be a non-stop party if you go with those kinds of people

[Ole]

I am a Vegas Regular. I go about 3-4x a year. If you are not going to gamble or see the Blue Man Group or any of the other top shows, there isn't much of a reason to go there. The Hoover Dam was one side trip I took a few years ago and was cool to see the inner workings of that. Most of the hotels that are off strip are dumps. The restaurants are expensive if you want a good meal $75 for a Filet Mignon that is worth every bite but you can go to Outback somewhere else and get close. I do not go to any strip clubs or that type of stuff that is so prevalent there so, I would go with Evan's idea if you are not into the gambling or spending lots of money.

[Sijray21]

If you are not going to gamble or see the Blue Man Group or any of the other top shows, there isn't much of a reason to go there.

that's how i feel as well. just go in there with a cap for gambling and i think you'll be fine.

if you want your money to go longer and you play conservatively then play in the poker room ($1-$2 no-limit) with $100 buy-in should last you quite a while. if you play the $25 blackjack/craps you could be up a lot or lose all of your $100-$300 in a short amount of time.

I've only been there 4 times (twice for my annual work conference) and the only thing i did was gamble in the casinos, take pictures of the outside of the casinos, and ate at nice places. I bought a few souveniers, but i have yet to go to a vegas show. The drinks were also rediculously expensive.

vegas (read: the main strip) is fun if you are willing to spend a LOT of money -- i've been told to try old vegas for cheaper fun

[Apoc]

The drinks were also rediculously expensive.

vegas (read: the main strip) is fun if you are willing to spend a LOT of money -- i've been told to try old vegas for cheaper fun

That's the best part about gambling downtown. You can play $2 craps and the drinks are not only free, but strong as shit. If you're paying for drinks in Vegas, you're doing it wrong.

[Sijray21]

If you're paying for drinks in Vegas, you're doing it wrong.

i pay for them one way or another. i don't drink as much as i used to at the tables due to me losing more money as i drink more (i stop thinking and just throw chips on the table). i call my gambling losses 'expensive drinks' :wink:

[G.Irish]

I've been to VegASS three times as well as Reno once so here's my advice:

Gambling
*Play Craps and Blackjack, those are the two games with the best odds

*Do not make the mistake of thinking that you will end up ahead by getting wasted with comped drinks while gambling. Getting drunk at the tables impairs your judgment and you will lose more money. That's why they do it.

If you wanna get drunk for cheap buy some liquor from a store and pre-party in your room.

*As others have said, gamble off the strip where the minimum bets are lower. Also note that during the daytime (10am - 4pm-ish) there are casinos on the strip with low minimums. Places like Flamingo and Imperial Palace are cheap during the day.

*Read up on how to properly play Blackjack or Craps. You can play a lot longer if you know what the hell you're doing. Craps in particular has a lot of things to it that most people don't know.

Food
*Buffets, buffets, buffets. The one at Aladdin is pretty good and the one at the Bellagio is cool because they have a lot of exotic meats like ostrich, wild board, buffalo, etc. In downtown and on the South end of the strip you're bound to find at least a few cheap prime rib deals, take advantage of these.

Nightlife
*If you're clubbing go early otherwise you're going to wait a long ass time in line. This is where you are going to meet ladies from out of town who are trying to be wild.

*Hard Rock is a good spot (and the attached club, Body English). Rain is off the strip in the Palms but it has pyrotechnics and is pretty fancy. You can do your own research on the other spots.

*The after hours stripper spot is Drai's. It is at the bottom of the Barbary Coast casino

Strip Clubs
*Spearmint Rhino and Sapphire are two of the best.

*Do not use the ATM's at the clubs, they have much higher fees

*Go there early in the night before you go clubbing but make sure you get to the club by 10 or before. Go there after hours too but the quality of dancers declines significantly towards dawn.

Other
*There are exotic car rentals in Vegas if you wanna do that as well as motorcycle rentals

*There is a go-karting complex right outside the city that rents shifters

*Another fun place to go is a firing range called the Gun Store. You can fire MP5's, M16's, .45's, shotguns, and the like

[HAULN-SS]

Nice tips everyone. I am thinking the Gun Store would definatelyt be on my list. I have never been to a strip club, actually, so we'd probably hit that up too. Not sure about the nightlife - i've heard that unless you got a bunch of ladies on your arm, its hard to get in places. I do like to eat, so if I go i'll definately try to track down some of the places for a good meal or 3. I'm sure it'd be a drinking good time too, the people i'd be there with are like that. I would like to play some cards of some sort - blackjack and hold'em, just to say I played in vegas really. I'm pretty good at online hold'em, and better in person and home games, but i've never played in a casino, and pretty much plan on losing whatever I take, which is why i"d like to be at low-limit places.

[G.Irish]

Whoever told you that you can't get in without girls is wrong. Yeah if you show up at 12 o'clock trying to get in that may be true but if you go relatively early you won't have a problem. I've never had a problem getting in anywhere in Vegas.

Just make sure everyone in your crew is up on the dress code.

[Ole]

The Venetian has a couple good $1-$2 no limit tables during the weekends. Get your name on the list early though and remember they are No Limit tables. Very few of the larger casinos will have many low limit tables. Try the Monte Carlo as well. The Venetian is cool to walk around the shops. There is some good eating there as well. The buffet at The Mirage has some decent sushi. If you want a good steak, try Boa at the Forum Shops at Ceasars. The Hotties are at Mandalay Bay's pool.

[John]

You should at least go once to experience it. I think it's a fun place to visit, but out of all the places in the country, it's pretty low on my priority list as I don't have that much of an interest in gambling. If I want to blow money on gambling, I'd rather have a good poker night with the guys. But again, everybody has a different opinion of the place.

[Ryan T]

I've never been to vegas, but one skill I've acquired is the ability to count cards. Learn how to do this, and hide it, and you can make some money.

[Ole]

You get caught though, you will have an accident off the building....

[G.Irish]

Nah, casinos are not really concerned with small fry card counters. If you're at $5 tables and you make off with $500 or $800 they're not going to waste their time blacklisting you. Now if you show up at the Bellagio and make off with $80,000 then you're going to get in trouble.

Speaking of which, you can card count more effectively on single deck tables but they usually have the rules changed so that Blackjack only pays out 7/6 instead of the usual 2/1. Don't play any of the sucker bet Blackjack variants like Spanish Blackjack or whatever. Those will eat your money.

[Apoc]

I don't have that much of an interest in gambling.

Is that what you told the Pit Boss after you said "hit me bitch!" to the dealer at 3 am in the Aladdin? :lol: