I saw this vintage advertisement and it made me think of Las Vegas.
The best way to win it big in Las Vegas is EASY. Here is the secret:
DO NOT GAMBLE!
If you go to Las Vegas, stay in a nice hotel for a low price, eat at the fancy restaurants for nearly nothing and enjoy the museums, exhibits and attractions without gambling, then you come out a winner every time.
Photo via: vintage_ads: Winning Big In Vegas
While we covered the Consumer Electronics Show for The Gadgets Page earlier this month, Mike and I stayed at the Imperial Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Because it was so close to the Sands Expo Center, it was a convenient hotel for us. Unfortunately, that’s where the love for the hotel died. Geography and location are important for any real estate property, but CONDITION trumps it in this case.
The Imperial Palace looked like it was waiting for the implosion. From the stained carpets to the inattentive staff, the hotel had an air of resigned finality to it. I took the obligatory pictures of the Hotel SWAG and the room.
We stayed in room 17112.
Here is the Hotel SWAG:
You don’t need to pack a hair dryer:
Each room also has an iron and board so you can smooth out the wrinkles on your suitcase-squashed clothes.
I really hate it when a hotel assumes that I’ll steal from them. I know this sign has more to do with the kind of clientele that frequent an establishment than the establishment itself, but I HATE being treated like a criminal for no reason.
Worst of all, the toilet struggled to flush every time. It was so bad that Mike and I actually bought a plunger just in case. Considering how bad the maintenance was on the property, we had no hope that they would be able to provide us with a plunger if there was an incident. Here is a video of the toilet trying its best to flush.
To be fair, the toilet never plugged up and we didn’t have to use the plunger. However, the toilet wasn’t the only thing having trouble draining. The tub and sink had slow drains as well.
The whole hotel felt like it was just waiting to die. According to Wikipedia, it is:
During a conference call with investors on November 20, 2005, the Chairman for Harrah’s, Gary Loveman, noted that both the Imperial Palace and neighboring O’Sheas “are going to require very substantial modifications or complete tear-downs and rebuilds” in order to make room for a Harrah’s and/or Flamingo expansion on the Strip.[1] However, since then, Harrah’s has invested millions of dollars into refurbishing both the hotel rooms and the casino itself.
In July 2009, Harrah’s announced new plans for the area around the Imperial Palace, O’Shea’s, and Flamingo casinos, confirming that the Imperial Palace will not be demolished at this time.
Since the economy tanked, Harrah’s just seems to be waiting to do ANYTHING to the hotel, even clean the carpets. I liked how close it was to the Expo Center, but considering its tenuous grasp on life, I think I might have to say goodbye to the Imperial Palace.
This weekend, you can hike, camp and enjoy at over 100 National Parks for FREE! They offer fee free weekends a few times a year and there are a couple left. You can find out more here:
Mark your calendars for fee-free weekends this summer:
Mike and I enjoy several of the nearby National Parks. The photo shown is from a trip to Lake Mead in southern Nevada (near Las Vegas and the Hoover Dam), which is on the list of free parks this weekend. You can see all the photos of that camping trip here:
If you are feeling the financial squeeze this year, take advantage of the parks that your tax dollars go toward maintaining and try them out this weekend free of charge.
When Star Trek: The Experience closed at the Las Vegas Hilton last year, I grieved. Mike and I attended the last week they were open and took a ton of photos.
You can see the rest of them here:
It looks like Star Trek: The Experience is coming back to Las Vegas.
Perhaps most impressive, the attraction called Star Trek: The Experience appears also to be coming to Neonopolis. Plans are to retrofit a large amount of space on the first floor to allow for rides, as well as a Trek-themed restaurant and museum.
Journalist Mark Hansel, who writes for In Business Las Vegas, has seen the contracts signed by studio officials, Neonopolis owners and the city of Las Vegas. “I have seen the contract, and I know that the city redevelopment manager met with CBS officials in New York to seal the deal,” said Hansel, who has covered the downtown redevelopment for years for In Business and the Las Vegas Sun. “They are hoping that there will be some sort of premiere event at the time of the movie opening that will be out here. Obviously, the big premiere will be in Hollywood, but they hope to have something out here, too.”
I am so excited for the return of Star Trek: The Experience and I have been scrambling to find the closest hotel to Neonopolis. Suddenly, all those hotels that I wouldn’t think of staying at like The Four Queens, The Gold Spike, Binion’s and Lady Luck are looking like they might be my new favorite places to stay. These have always been the most reasonably priced hotels, but because they were downtown, we didn’t want to stay at them. Now that Star Trek: The Experience will be nearby, they are looking much more attractive.
Early this month, Nicole Lee visited Las Vegas and stayed at Palms Place Hotel. Here are some photos of her room.
The room had TWO televisions: one in front of the bed and one in front of the couch.
The living room area looks very spacious.
Oh, and there was a kitchen as well. It had a fridge, microwave and dishwasher.
The third television was in the bathroom. Remember folks, this is a HOTEL room!
I was hoping to get a glimpse of the Hotel Swag, but no such luck. Thanks for the photos, Nicole! Palms Place looks AWESOME!
Las Vegas has snow for the first time in years, and they got 6-8 INCHES! That’s probably the best Christmas present they could get this year.
Mike and I were caught in a snowstorm in Vegas once. It was that flurry of dandruff-like snow that we Utahans are very used to dealing with, so we drove right through it without a second thought. It melted before the end of the day.
To see my beloved Luxor Hotel covered with snow like this is so strange. It’s almost as if the black pyramid has been turned white.
More photos after the break: (Continue Reading…)
You may remember my unpleasant stay at Buffalo Bill’s Hotel and Casino back in November of last year. If not, you can read about it here:
A few months after posting that entry, I received a call. I didn’t recognize the number, but I answered the call anyway.
“Hello?”
“Hello, is this Laura Moncur?” He mispronounced my name, but then again, everyone does.
“Yes?”
“I’m calling from Buffalo Bill’s Casino and I notice that you stayed here last November. We were wondering how your stay was.”
“You can find out about my stay on Starling Travel.”
“Ah… yes… I have that review here. We were wondering if there is any chance you’d be willing to stay with us again.”
The first response that came to my mind wasn’t very polite, so I asked Mike. “Is there any chance that we’d be willing to stay at Buffalo Bill’s again?”
Mike said, “Yeah, I guess…”
I replied to the man on the other end of the phone, “Yeah, I guess…”
“Well, we’d like to give you a couple nights’ stay to try us again.”
I gave him my address and he made promises of free meals and hotel suites before he hung up. Mike and I discussed the offer and decided that we would take them up on it, but at the same time, bring Stacey and Dan and see how they treat normal customers. We’d test them again.
We talked to Stacey and Dan about it. “Isn’t that the hotel on the California/Nevada border?”
“Yes.”
“That’s like a half hour away from Vegas. Didn’t you say that their Internet was slow?”
“Like molasses.”
“Um… no… As inviting as that sounds… no.”
“Fine. We’ll test ‘em on our own.”
Over a month later, the letter finally arrived.
Dear Ms. Moncur,
Thank you for contacting us during your recent visit. One of most important tasks is to learn directly from our guests how they enjoyed their Primm Valley Casino Resorts experience.
Please accept my sincere apologies for the disappointments and inconveniences you experienced during your stay at Buffalo Bill’s. I regret that your stay with us did not meet all of your expectations.
As a gesture of goodwill, I would like to offer you a complimentary room for one night at Whiskey Pete’s, Primm Valley or Buffalo Bill’s. Please contact my assistant, XXXXX, directly at (XXX)XXX-XXXX extension XXXX, and she will make the necessary arrangements. She may be reached Monday through Friday between the hours of 9am-5pm. This offer is based on availability, valid through February 2009 and excludes holidays, special events and major conventions.
You are truly a valued guest of ours and we look forward to welcoming you back to Primm Valley Resorts in the near future.
It took a month for the form letter to come and when it finally did, they offered us ONE night’s stay with restrictions and based on availability. They didn’t address any of the deferred maintenance problems or the Internet connectivity issues. One night’s stay at their hotels ranges from $31-$50. After all the issues that Mike and I had that night, all they offered was a one-night stay. It teetered on the edge of insulting.
They say that customer complaints are the perfect opportunity to create a loyal customer for life. Unfortunately, Primm Valley didn’t achieve that. As “gracious” as their offer seems, I won’t be taking them up on it.
We made reservations to stay at the Luxor Hotel, but when we arrived, I was heartbroken. They were tearing out everything I loved in the hotel and it was all blocked off by big walls. It was 1996.
They had already removed the Nile River Ride on the lower level and were constructing a huge registration desk right at the front of the pyramid (where it should have been in the first place). I had been looking forward to riding the Nile River Ride again, but it wasn’t going to be. If I had known, I would have taken a bunch of pictures the previous time.
Large portions of the attractions level were quartered off. The Manhattan Buffet was gone and a transformation was overtaking the big city skyline. I’m so glad I took this photo with my beloved 110 camera. It was the last time I was going to see that little King Kong on the top of the Empire State Building in the Luxor. Sure, the “building” is still there, but it is painted to look like a building from Egypt instead of New York.
The Millennium Cafe was intact. Little did I know that it was going to become a La Salsa. I like the foot long margaritas and the Mexican food, but I still miss the “Cafe Eighties” feel of the Millennium Cafe.
They didn’t ruin everything. The view from my hotel room on the twentieth floor was still spectacular. The pool looked inviting as ever. It is the one facet of the Luxor Hotel that has changed little over the years.
You can see more photos from my 1996 stay at the Luxor Hotel here:
The Luxor Hotel has gone through yet ANOTHER renovation this year and I talk about it here:
What used to be my favorite hotel in Las Vegas has dwindled down to just another casino. It makes me sad and I wish for its glory days of the Nineties.
Dear Luxor Hotel,
I used to really love you, but the Luxor has really gone downhill. Despite all the renovations, I really don’t want to step into a casino with Carrot Top with top billing and EVERY casino has a strip show. Advertising yours (Fantasy) just makes you look pathetic.
You keep sending me these “offers,” but they aren’t appealing in the least. If you don’t have a good show to draw me in (in all honesty, your shows are scaring me away), and you don’t have anything else to draw me in, then the price of the room needs to draw me in and I can beat your price at the Las Vegas Hilton or Imperial Palace every time. Barry Manilow and “Dealer-tainers” are just as scary as 3 Redneck Tenors, but I pay MUCH MUCH less for the room.
Seriously, the Luxor hotel used to be my FAVORITE hotel. I’ve written about it online many times:
I didn’t realize how many times I had written about the Luxor until I looked it up. I even went so far as to call it my “beloved Luxor Hotel.”
I’ve visited since the “new pulse” was installed. Stripping the hotel of the theme was kind of silly, but I understand that you’re trying to make it upscale. A lot of casinos are trying to play down their kid-friendly aspects right now. Of course, that doesn’t explain Ronn Lucas and his puppets. I understand what you’re trying to do, but there is NO WAY that you’ll be able to be upscale if you don’t draw in some better entertainment. And by the way, paying stars to come dance at your nightclub doesn’t count as entertainment.
And don’t even get me started about the billboards plastered on the side of the pyramid. Anubis himself might have come to take down that Absolut bottle if the wind storm hadn’t gotten to it first. Adidas? Since when are you a sports bar? Aren’t you embarrassed that Google Maps shows you with half a sign advertising Motorola from InterOp plastered on your beautiful, black pyramid? You should be.
When your advertising isn’t merely unappealing, it’s downright insulting. For example, take the Valentines Day offer you sent in February 2008. Here was the offer:
Complimentary admission for two to Cathouse: This is your restaurant where women in lingerie serve you food right? I noticed you didn’t offer me a dinner there, just admission so I don’t have to pay the cover charge. Do you really think women in lingerie feeding my husband food is romantic? What kind of Valentines Day do YOU celebrate?
2 for 1 Admission to Fantasy: THE STRIP SHOW? What kind of couple goes to a strip show on Valentines Day? Not only that, you expect my husband to pay for himself and I get in FREE? Wow… thanks for the offer… I’m so underwhelmed.
Chocolate Covered Strawberries (from in-room dining): That sounds nice, I guess…
Complimentary admission for 2 to Nuture The Spa: I don’t care what you call it. Nuture The Spa is just a hotel gym with a massage therapist or two. I’ve been there. I know. I love to exercise there, but your admission doesn’t include the cost of a massage, so really all you’re offering me are a few treadmills and a hot soak in a tub. Admission to your spa should ALWAYS be free.
Complimentary Deluxe Tower Room Upgrade (based on availability): Have you not figured out yet that the coolest part of staying at the Luxor Hotel is the room in the pyramid with the fun, slanty walls? I don’t WANT to stay in the tower, but if I did, I would be pretty underwhelmed with the lack of promise that “based on availability” gives me.
Really? Is this really the best Valentines Day offer you could make me? Mike and I were in Vegas right before Valentines Day. A really good offer might have made us stay a couple of days longer at YOUR hotel. Instead, you insulted everything about the holiday.
Every time we drive past the Luxor now, my heart aches for what you used to be. How much longer until you dismantle whatever is left of cool that you had? Please, please, please fire the advertising company that you have hired. If you are doing this in-house, STOP IT and hire a good advertising agency. I would hate for the Luxor to suffer the fate of The Sands, Stardust and so many other great casinos that couldn’t compete in this market. You deserve so much more than a burst of fireworks and a carefully timed implosion.
Best,
Laura Moncur
After our horrible stay at Buffalo Bill’s the Las Vegas Hilton felt like a blissful home. We have stayed here many times before and have loved the Internet access (despite the $12 a day charge) and the Star Trek Experience. We ate at Quark’s every night.
Here is the room key:
Here is the swag setup with lotion, shampoo, facial soap and shower soap.
You can drink this water, but it will cost you four bucks.
We had a great stay at the Las Vegas Hilton and I didn’t want to leave it.
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(c) 2005 Michael Moncur, Laura Moncur, and Starling Studios