Reno-Tahoe Report + Pics
July 28th, 2014 at 12:18:56 PM
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As explained in my Summer 2013 and Winter 2013 trip reports, my son and I have been enjoying visits to Las Vegas every six months since he turned 21 a few years ago. However, that particular streak has now been broken in conjunction with a nice family vacation to Reno-Tahoe that I took this summer with my wife and daughter.
I have been taking trips to Reno-Tahoe with my wife (and later my daughter) every five years or so since the mid 1990’s. We have always thoroughly enjoyed our trips to Reno, and since the last time we were there was in 2009 we were very excited that it was time to go again!
Our Reno vacation lasted from Thursday, July 17th, through Monday, July 21st. We flew Southwest from Nashville, stayed at the Silver Legacy Hotel in downtown Reno, and had a rental car. The weather during our trip was quite warm during the day, and unfortunately there were also some thunderstorms that threw a monkey-wrench into a few of our plans. Overall though, the trip was fantastic and we had a wonderful time!
This was primarily a family-type vacation, so my report will include quite a few activities unrelated to gambling and such. I was actually the only one who did any gambling, and it was primarily early in the mornings or later in the evenings. I had some semi-nice hits here and there on the machines, but nothing life-changing (or even “day-changing” for that matter).
And although I did play my usual penny slot machines, I also spent some time before the trip practicing on an online video poker trainer for Jacks or Better. I played quite a bit of Jacks or Better VP (nickel level) on this trip, and found it to be a totally different experience having learned the strategies beforehand. I will be encouraging my son to learn/practice in anticipation of our next trip to Vegas.
In keeping with tradition, I’ll be making a separate post for each day and will give details on how each day transpired and what all activities were enjoyed. I’ll be listing the various costs/prices where appropriate, and will also include some photographs to hopefully enhance the report. As in previous reports, I’ll blur out our faces in the pictures to both protect the guilty and not offend the viewer.
;)
I have been taking trips to Reno-Tahoe with my wife (and later my daughter) every five years or so since the mid 1990’s. We have always thoroughly enjoyed our trips to Reno, and since the last time we were there was in 2009 we were very excited that it was time to go again!
Our Reno vacation lasted from Thursday, July 17th, through Monday, July 21st. We flew Southwest from Nashville, stayed at the Silver Legacy Hotel in downtown Reno, and had a rental car. The weather during our trip was quite warm during the day, and unfortunately there were also some thunderstorms that threw a monkey-wrench into a few of our plans. Overall though, the trip was fantastic and we had a wonderful time!
This was primarily a family-type vacation, so my report will include quite a few activities unrelated to gambling and such. I was actually the only one who did any gambling, and it was primarily early in the mornings or later in the evenings. I had some semi-nice hits here and there on the machines, but nothing life-changing (or even “day-changing” for that matter).
And although I did play my usual penny slot machines, I also spent some time before the trip practicing on an online video poker trainer for Jacks or Better. I played quite a bit of Jacks or Better VP (nickel level) on this trip, and found it to be a totally different experience having learned the strategies beforehand. I will be encouraging my son to learn/practice in anticipation of our next trip to Vegas.
In keeping with tradition, I’ll be making a separate post for each day and will give details on how each day transpired and what all activities were enjoyed. I’ll be listing the various costs/prices where appropriate, and will also include some photographs to hopefully enhance the report. As in previous reports, I’ll blur out our faces in the pictures to both protect the guilty and not offend the viewer.
;)
You serious, Clark?
July 28th, 2014 at 12:19:07 PM
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DAY 1 OF 5 - THURSDAY, JULY 17TH
It had been five years (2009) since we last vacationed in Reno-Tahoe and we were really looking forward to visiting there this summer. I had been watching the flight prices on Southwest since the beginning of the year, and at the end of March I went ahead and booked three roundtrip tickets to Reno right before Southwest’s devaluation of their Rapid Reward points on March 31st.
During the months leading up to the trip, I went through my normal “trip planning process” of preparing a tentative itinerary, researching & printing out restaurant menus, making reservations, looking for coupons/deals, etc., etc. With this being a more family-oriented trip (and my wife restricted to a gluten-free diet), the process was a little more challenging than when I plan my Vegas trips with my grown son. But perseverance pays off, and I developed what I felt was an appropriate schedule of activities and events for our Reno trip.
Our flight on Southwest was scheduled to depart from Nashville at the fairly early time of 7:00am CDT. We arrived at the airport around 5:15am, left the car in long-term parking, and caught the shuttle to the terminal. The early hour allowed for a pleasantly short line at security which translated to us being inside the gate area right before 6am. As has become my tradition, we enjoyed a nice breakfast at Whitt’s BBQ inside the terminal. My daughter and I each got a bacon/egg/cheese biscuit, and my wife had an order of scrambled eggs ($14 total).
We boarded the plane on time and settled in for the first leg of our flight. In a somewhat cruel twist of fate (for me anyway), our connecting flight on both the trip out there and on the trip home was in… you guessed it: Las Vegas!! It was kind of tough for me to see Vegas and be so close to it without being able to actually go out and enjoy it.
The flight was nice and smooth, but right before landing at Vegas we were informed by the flight attendant that the connecting flight to Reno was delayed by about 30 minutes. It was originally scheduled to depart at 9:45am, but had been changed to 10:20am local time.
This short delay gave us a little extra time and allowed my daughter and me to split a piece of pepperoni pizza & a drink from Sbarro’s inside the Vegas airport ($9). Although we had enjoyed some snacks on the 4 hour flight from Nashville, we were both happy to eat something a little more substantial.
The flight delays continued a bit more, and we ultimately boarded the plane around 10:30am. The flight from Vegas to Reno was short and smooth, and we got into Reno around noon which was about an hour later than originally scheduled.
After going to the baggage claim area and getting our luggage, I walked over to the Enterprise Car Rental counter to handle the paperwork for the rental car. The line at Enterprise was not super long, but it was very slow moving. My turn eventually came, and after signing the various forms we walked across the street to be assigned a car. We were given a brand new dark blue VW Jetta that had less than 200 miles on it. The car seemed very nice, but we would ultimately return to the airport the following day to exchange it for a different car due to the rough ride.
Upon securing our transportation it was time to drive to our hotel, the Silver Legacy. We really like the Silver Legacy and have chosen to stay there on all of our visits (except for the very first visit when we stayed at the JA Nugget).
We arrived at the Silver Legacy around 1pm and inquired about the possibility of an early check-in (which we have always received in the past). Unfortunately, we were told that they had been having water problems that morning and that an early check-in would not be possible. The desk clerk said to try back around 2:30pm and they might have a room available by then.
Since we had already brought our luggage from the car, we decided to leave most of the bags with the bell desk and go get some lunch.
We left the Silver Legacy and drove a few miles over to the In-N-Out Burger on Pyramid Way in Sparks. I had enjoyed the burgers from In-N-Out on my last two trips to Vegas, and was eager to try them here in Reno. The restaurant was very busy inside, but they were really efficient and were moving things along quickly. I chose a Double-Double combo, and my wife had a single cheeseburger prepared “protein-style” (i.e. no bun) in conjunction with her gluten-free requirements. In-N-Out has a great reputation for preparing items gluten-free when requested, and they did a great job on her order. Total cost for our meal came to $12.
Our meal at In-N-Out complete, we got back in the car and drove around a bit to re-familiarize ourselves with the layout of the city. We then decided to head back to Silver Legacy to check on the room situation. People were still hanging around in the lobby and nobody was being checked in. My wife said she would wait there in the lobby with my daughter if I wanted to take a few minutes and walk down to peek at the casino. I told her that sounded great and to give me a call or text if things started moving up there in the lobby before I returned.
I walked through the hotel lobby and took the escalator down to the casino to check things out. I made a loop around the casino floor and then went to the player’s club counter to get my players card reprinted. It only took about three minutes, and as I was walking away from the player’s club my wife called and said they were starting to check people in.
I hurried back up to the lobby and my wife was next in line when I arrived. Everything was reserved under my name, so I gave the desk clerk my ID and credit card and she pulled up the reservation and assigned us a room on the 17th floor. We retrieved our luggage from the bell desk and headed on up to the room around 2:20pm.
Our room was a good size and had a nice view of the mountains, so we were very pleased with it. At a total of $438 for the 4 nights it was a bit more expensive than the rooms I’ve been able to get in Vegas, but I suppose room rates in Vegas are going to be hard to beat!
After getting unpacked, my wife and daughter decided they wanted to rest up from all the traveling and relax in the room for a while. Not me!! So after going to the vending machine to get them some sodas, I proceeded to head down to the casino for a little first-taste of some gambling!
I played some VP for a while as well as playing some of my favorite slots such as the Stacked Lions, Dragon Orb, etc., etc. I hit a few things here and there, but the nicest one was a $40 jackpot on the Stacked Lions.
A note about the video poker. The VP machines I played were the kind that have multiple types of games, and I eventually realized that there were times when I wasn’t playing regular Jacks or Better. One time I noticed that I only got paid 5 credits for two-pair (I was expecting to be paid 10 credits), and it turned out I was not in a regular JoB game. I finally learned to make certain that the correct game was selected before I started playing!
I had also printed out a JoB strategy guide from the WOO site to bring with me. I referred to it whenever there was a play I was unsure of, and it was very handy to have. I would keep it stuck under my leg as I was sitting in the chair, and one time I inadvertently forgot the strategy sheet and stood up and left it. I went back about 10 minutes later, and luckily it was still there. Anyway, the strategy sheet was very helpful and I was glad I had brought it.
Below are a few pics of some decent “low-roller” hits I enjoyed. :)
After playing in the casino for a while, I went back up to the room around 4:30pm to rest and regroup for a bit.
The evening activity on the agenda was to enjoy some bowling at the Grand Sierra Resort. My wife still needed to rest and decided she would pass on the bowling plans, so my daughter and I retrieved the car from the Silver Legacy parking garage and headed over towards the Grand Sierra Resort (which was only around 5 minutes away).
We arrived at the GSR around 6pm, and proceeded inside to locate the bowling center. The center was very nice and was not crowded at all, which I suppose is not unexpected for a Thursday night. We bowled two games each, and although neither one of us is very good at bowling (as evidenced by the scores below) we had a wonderful time! Total cost of $24 for two shoe rentals and two games each.
We were considering bowling a third game, but my daughter said she was hungry (and my thumb was kind of sore from the first two games) so we elected to call it a night and depart the GSR. We headed over to McDonald’s on Kietzke Lane and enjoyed a modest dinner of cheeseburgers and chicken mcnuggets ($10). I called and checked on my wife, and she asked us to please bring her another “protein-style” burger from In-N-Out, so we swung by there after leaving McDonald’s and picked one up for her ($3).
We got back to the room around 8:30pm and, after delivering my wife her burger, I went back down to the casino for a little more play.
They had several $5 Pai Gow Poker tables open, so I bought in for $100 and proceeded to play for a little over an hour or so. I sat down at a fairly lively table and enjoyed a few rounds of my favorite cocktail (white russian) while playing. As usual, there were a lot of pushes on the hands and when I got up to leave around 10pm I was only down $10 or so.
I went to the cage & cashed out and then headed back up to the room to get a good night’s sleep. The beds were very comfortable and we didn’t have any problems with noise during our entire visit, which was nice.
.
.
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Soon to Follow: Day 2 of 5…
It had been five years (2009) since we last vacationed in Reno-Tahoe and we were really looking forward to visiting there this summer. I had been watching the flight prices on Southwest since the beginning of the year, and at the end of March I went ahead and booked three roundtrip tickets to Reno right before Southwest’s devaluation of their Rapid Reward points on March 31st.
During the months leading up to the trip, I went through my normal “trip planning process” of preparing a tentative itinerary, researching & printing out restaurant menus, making reservations, looking for coupons/deals, etc., etc. With this being a more family-oriented trip (and my wife restricted to a gluten-free diet), the process was a little more challenging than when I plan my Vegas trips with my grown son. But perseverance pays off, and I developed what I felt was an appropriate schedule of activities and events for our Reno trip.
Our flight on Southwest was scheduled to depart from Nashville at the fairly early time of 7:00am CDT. We arrived at the airport around 5:15am, left the car in long-term parking, and caught the shuttle to the terminal. The early hour allowed for a pleasantly short line at security which translated to us being inside the gate area right before 6am. As has become my tradition, we enjoyed a nice breakfast at Whitt’s BBQ inside the terminal. My daughter and I each got a bacon/egg/cheese biscuit, and my wife had an order of scrambled eggs ($14 total).
We boarded the plane on time and settled in for the first leg of our flight. In a somewhat cruel twist of fate (for me anyway), our connecting flight on both the trip out there and on the trip home was in… you guessed it: Las Vegas!! It was kind of tough for me to see Vegas and be so close to it without being able to actually go out and enjoy it.
The flight was nice and smooth, but right before landing at Vegas we were informed by the flight attendant that the connecting flight to Reno was delayed by about 30 minutes. It was originally scheduled to depart at 9:45am, but had been changed to 10:20am local time.
This short delay gave us a little extra time and allowed my daughter and me to split a piece of pepperoni pizza & a drink from Sbarro’s inside the Vegas airport ($9). Although we had enjoyed some snacks on the 4 hour flight from Nashville, we were both happy to eat something a little more substantial.
The flight delays continued a bit more, and we ultimately boarded the plane around 10:30am. The flight from Vegas to Reno was short and smooth, and we got into Reno around noon which was about an hour later than originally scheduled.
After going to the baggage claim area and getting our luggage, I walked over to the Enterprise Car Rental counter to handle the paperwork for the rental car. The line at Enterprise was not super long, but it was very slow moving. My turn eventually came, and after signing the various forms we walked across the street to be assigned a car. We were given a brand new dark blue VW Jetta that had less than 200 miles on it. The car seemed very nice, but we would ultimately return to the airport the following day to exchange it for a different car due to the rough ride.
Upon securing our transportation it was time to drive to our hotel, the Silver Legacy. We really like the Silver Legacy and have chosen to stay there on all of our visits (except for the very first visit when we stayed at the JA Nugget).
We arrived at the Silver Legacy around 1pm and inquired about the possibility of an early check-in (which we have always received in the past). Unfortunately, we were told that they had been having water problems that morning and that an early check-in would not be possible. The desk clerk said to try back around 2:30pm and they might have a room available by then.
Since we had already brought our luggage from the car, we decided to leave most of the bags with the bell desk and go get some lunch.
We left the Silver Legacy and drove a few miles over to the In-N-Out Burger on Pyramid Way in Sparks. I had enjoyed the burgers from In-N-Out on my last two trips to Vegas, and was eager to try them here in Reno. The restaurant was very busy inside, but they were really efficient and were moving things along quickly. I chose a Double-Double combo, and my wife had a single cheeseburger prepared “protein-style” (i.e. no bun) in conjunction with her gluten-free requirements. In-N-Out has a great reputation for preparing items gluten-free when requested, and they did a great job on her order. Total cost for our meal came to $12.
Our meal at In-N-Out complete, we got back in the car and drove around a bit to re-familiarize ourselves with the layout of the city. We then decided to head back to Silver Legacy to check on the room situation. People were still hanging around in the lobby and nobody was being checked in. My wife said she would wait there in the lobby with my daughter if I wanted to take a few minutes and walk down to peek at the casino. I told her that sounded great and to give me a call or text if things started moving up there in the lobby before I returned.
I walked through the hotel lobby and took the escalator down to the casino to check things out. I made a loop around the casino floor and then went to the player’s club counter to get my players card reprinted. It only took about three minutes, and as I was walking away from the player’s club my wife called and said they were starting to check people in.
I hurried back up to the lobby and my wife was next in line when I arrived. Everything was reserved under my name, so I gave the desk clerk my ID and credit card and she pulled up the reservation and assigned us a room on the 17th floor. We retrieved our luggage from the bell desk and headed on up to the room around 2:20pm.
Our room was a good size and had a nice view of the mountains, so we were very pleased with it. At a total of $438 for the 4 nights it was a bit more expensive than the rooms I’ve been able to get in Vegas, but I suppose room rates in Vegas are going to be hard to beat!
After getting unpacked, my wife and daughter decided they wanted to rest up from all the traveling and relax in the room for a while. Not me!! So after going to the vending machine to get them some sodas, I proceeded to head down to the casino for a little first-taste of some gambling!
I played some VP for a while as well as playing some of my favorite slots such as the Stacked Lions, Dragon Orb, etc., etc. I hit a few things here and there, but the nicest one was a $40 jackpot on the Stacked Lions.
A note about the video poker. The VP machines I played were the kind that have multiple types of games, and I eventually realized that there were times when I wasn’t playing regular Jacks or Better. One time I noticed that I only got paid 5 credits for two-pair (I was expecting to be paid 10 credits), and it turned out I was not in a regular JoB game. I finally learned to make certain that the correct game was selected before I started playing!
I had also printed out a JoB strategy guide from the WOO site to bring with me. I referred to it whenever there was a play I was unsure of, and it was very handy to have. I would keep it stuck under my leg as I was sitting in the chair, and one time I inadvertently forgot the strategy sheet and stood up and left it. I went back about 10 minutes later, and luckily it was still there. Anyway, the strategy sheet was very helpful and I was glad I had brought it.
Below are a few pics of some decent “low-roller” hits I enjoyed. :)
After playing in the casino for a while, I went back up to the room around 4:30pm to rest and regroup for a bit.
The evening activity on the agenda was to enjoy some bowling at the Grand Sierra Resort. My wife still needed to rest and decided she would pass on the bowling plans, so my daughter and I retrieved the car from the Silver Legacy parking garage and headed over towards the Grand Sierra Resort (which was only around 5 minutes away).
We arrived at the GSR around 6pm, and proceeded inside to locate the bowling center. The center was very nice and was not crowded at all, which I suppose is not unexpected for a Thursday night. We bowled two games each, and although neither one of us is very good at bowling (as evidenced by the scores below) we had a wonderful time! Total cost of $24 for two shoe rentals and two games each.
We were considering bowling a third game, but my daughter said she was hungry (and my thumb was kind of sore from the first two games) so we elected to call it a night and depart the GSR. We headed over to McDonald’s on Kietzke Lane and enjoyed a modest dinner of cheeseburgers and chicken mcnuggets ($10). I called and checked on my wife, and she asked us to please bring her another “protein-style” burger from In-N-Out, so we swung by there after leaving McDonald’s and picked one up for her ($3).
We got back to the room around 8:30pm and, after delivering my wife her burger, I went back down to the casino for a little more play.
They had several $5 Pai Gow Poker tables open, so I bought in for $100 and proceeded to play for a little over an hour or so. I sat down at a fairly lively table and enjoyed a few rounds of my favorite cocktail (white russian) while playing. As usual, there were a lot of pushes on the hands and when I got up to leave around 10pm I was only down $10 or so.
I went to the cage & cashed out and then headed back up to the room to get a good night’s sleep. The beds were very comfortable and we didn’t have any problems with noise during our entire visit, which was nice.
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.
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Soon to Follow: Day 2 of 5…
You serious, Clark?
July 28th, 2014 at 1:13:01 PM
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Please refrain from posting anymore bowling pictures. They make me feel old.
Not, not the automatic scoring. I was a pin boy for duckpins on Charles Street as a teenage Baltimoron.
Not, not the automatic scoring. I was a pin boy for duckpins on Charles Street as a teenage Baltimoron.
Shed not for her
the bitter tear
Nor give the heart
to vain regret
Tis but the casket
that lies here,
The gem that filled it
Sparkles yet
July 28th, 2014 at 5:58:39 PM
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Quote: blount2000
Thanks or posting Blount! I really enjoy your travelogues.
Your picture really makes the new observation wheel look gigantic. It appears to tower over the Bellagio.
The weather really seemed to cave in between the clear sky shot from the room at 2:20 and the GSR parking lot shot less than four hours later.
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication - Leonardo da Vinci
July 28th, 2014 at 7:28:33 PM
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Great post.
July 28th, 2014 at 8:07:57 PM
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Quote: BuzzardPlease refrain from posting anymore bowling pictures. They make me feel old.
Not, not the automatic scoring. I was a pin boy for duckpins on Charles Street as a teenage Baltimoron.
I'm glad I could help bring back some good memories from the past, Buzz. :)
Quote: AyecarumbaThanks or posting Blount! I really enjoy your travelogues.
Your picture really makes the new observation wheel look gigantic. It appears to tower over the Bellagio.
The weather really seemed to cave in between the clear sky shot from the room at 2:20 and the GSR parking lot shot less than four hours later.
Thanks! Yeah, the weather was kind of sketchy every day we were there. It seemed like it would be nice and sunny in the mornings, and then things would take a turn for the stormy in the afternoons. Maybe that is normal for Reno during the summer months?
Quote: speedycrapGreat post.
Thanks, I appreciate that!
You serious, Clark?
July 28th, 2014 at 8:08:29 PM
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DAY 2 OF 5 - FRIDAY, JULY 18TH
I’m an early riser, so I woke up around 5:45am on Friday and quietly sneaked out of the room to go downstairs for my “morning tradition” of enjoying a caramel macchiato from Starbucks while slow-playing some machines. I strolled around the casino for about 5 minutes waiting for Starbucks to open at 6am, and then purchased my coffee once they opened up ($5).
While sipping on my coffee, I played some of my Dragon Orb penny machines for a spell but they were not very kind to me and quickly absorbed $20 of my bankroll. I moved on to a Lucky Lemmings penny machine and hit a nice bonus round for 755 credits.
I then got on a nickel JoB video poker machine, and proceeded to have a nice streak of luck. I hit three 4-of-a-kinds and two full-houses in a 20 minute period. I know this is all small-potatoes for the folks who play real VP, but it was a treat for someone like me who is just starting out playing video poker.
I went back up to the room around 7:45am to rouse the troops and get ready for our scheduled activities for the day. Our itinerary for Friday included a scenic drive around Lake Tahoe, as well as a gondola ride up to Heavenly Ski resort. It also included a zip-line ride once at the top of Heavenly.
We got the car and left the hotel around 9:15am. Our first stop was to get a nice breakfast at the Squeeze-In Restaurant on Foothill Road. We arrived at the restaurant around 9:30am and there was a short 10-minute wait to be seated.
This was our first time to eat at the Squeeze-In, and we were very pleased with the food and the service. My daughter ordered a couple big ol’ pancakes, my wife chose one of their gluten-free omelets, and I went with the biscuits & gravy (with an over-indulgent two eggs on the side). What can I say, traveling makes me hungry! Total for the meal came to $34.
Once we were finished with breakfast, we continued on up the mountain for our scenic drive around Lake Tahoe. The views on the drive were spectacular, and it was neat seeing everything in the summer time. All of our previous visits have been in the winter when there was snow everywhere, so it was interesting to see the differences in the seasons.
There was a bit of construction in various places on the California side of the lake, and we didn’t make it around to the Heavenly Ski Resort until almost 2pm. We parked the car and walked to the booth to purchase gondola and zip-line tickets.
In the process of speaking with the clerk about buying the tickets, she informed us that there was a good possibility that the gondola and zip-line were going to be shut down soon due to lightning from a storm which was heading into the area. This was quite disappointing to hear since the gondola ride to the top of the mountain is one of our favorite activities when in Tahoe. The clerk suggested it would be better to come back early on Sunday morning since that was the best weather day in the near forecast.
We decided to embrace the change of plans to Sunday, and went back to the parking garage and got the car so we could drive over to Zephyr Cove. In order to do the gondola early on Sunday, we needed to try to reschedule a lake cruise we already had planned for Sunday morning.
We drove to Zephyr Cove and my wife dropped me off so I could walk over to the cruise’s ticket booth to speak with someone about trying to reschedule. We had already purchased tickets for the 11am cruise on Sunday, but they were happy to shift our tickets to the 2:30pm cruise when I explained about our issues with the gondola and the weather.
With those logistical matters settled, my wife picked me back up in the car and we continued our scenic drive up the Nevada side of the lake and eventually made our way back down the mountain. We got back to the hotel around 4pm and all three of us rested for a while to recuperate from the long time spent in the car that day.
After resting up, my daughter said she would like some Pizza Hut so around 5:30pm we drove over to the one on Prater Way in Sparks. My wife was not hungry, so my daughter and I shared a medium pepperoni pizza which was very tasty and hit the spot ($9).
During the meal at Pizza Hut, we all discussed and agreed on how rough and jerky the ride was in the VW Jetta the rental car company had given us. The car had a very peppy engine, but both the accelerator and the brakes were VERY touchy, and this made for an unpleasant ride. My wife suggested calling Enterprise to see if they would let us exchange the car, so I gave them a call. I was on hold for about 10 minutes, but when somebody finally answered the phone they took care of the situation right away. They took my contract number, and told me I could just come back and exchange the car for another one at my leisure. So I told them I’d like to exchange it immediately if possible, and they said to come on.
We drove the short distance back to the airport, and they were ready for us and had a nice white Chrysler 200 to swap for the Jetta. It took less than 5 minutes and we were back on our way!
After picking up the new car (which drove MUCH more smoothly), my wife wasn’t feeling too great and asked if we could drop her off back at the hotel before we embarked upon the next activity on the agenda (which was some mini-golf at the Grand Sierra). We drove back to the hotel and dropped her off and then headed over to the GSR.
My daughter and I played a round of outdoor mini-golf, and although the temps were kind of high there was a nice breeze blowing which made it very pleasant and enjoyable. We both played and scored about the same, but I got lucky and hit a hole-in-one on #17! My daughter later said that the game of mini-golf was one of her favorite activities from the trip, so that was nice. Total cost for the golf was $12.
We turned in our golf clubs and walked back to the car to head back to the hotel. My wife had texted saying she was feeling a little better and was wanting us to please bring her another In-N-Out burger if possible. So after leaving the GSR we picked up a Double-Double and took it back to the hotel for her ($5).
Once everyone was settled in the room for the evening, I headed down to the casino around 9:15pm. I knew I wasn’t going to be down there for very long, so I didn’t get on any table games and just stuck with my machines. The nickel VP machines I liked were all taken, so I went with my penny slots and hit a couple of mini-jackpots on a Vibrant 7’s machine and had a nice hit on a Hot Roll machine as well.
I called it quits around 10:30pm and went back up to the room. My wife and daughter were already asleep and were frowning a bit at having to wake up to unlatch the door for me to get in. But all was well and everybody enjoyed another good night’s sleep!
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Soon to Follow: Day 3 of 5…
I’m an early riser, so I woke up around 5:45am on Friday and quietly sneaked out of the room to go downstairs for my “morning tradition” of enjoying a caramel macchiato from Starbucks while slow-playing some machines. I strolled around the casino for about 5 minutes waiting for Starbucks to open at 6am, and then purchased my coffee once they opened up ($5).
While sipping on my coffee, I played some of my Dragon Orb penny machines for a spell but they were not very kind to me and quickly absorbed $20 of my bankroll. I moved on to a Lucky Lemmings penny machine and hit a nice bonus round for 755 credits.
I then got on a nickel JoB video poker machine, and proceeded to have a nice streak of luck. I hit three 4-of-a-kinds and two full-houses in a 20 minute period. I know this is all small-potatoes for the folks who play real VP, but it was a treat for someone like me who is just starting out playing video poker.
I went back up to the room around 7:45am to rouse the troops and get ready for our scheduled activities for the day. Our itinerary for Friday included a scenic drive around Lake Tahoe, as well as a gondola ride up to Heavenly Ski resort. It also included a zip-line ride once at the top of Heavenly.
We got the car and left the hotel around 9:15am. Our first stop was to get a nice breakfast at the Squeeze-In Restaurant on Foothill Road. We arrived at the restaurant around 9:30am and there was a short 10-minute wait to be seated.
This was our first time to eat at the Squeeze-In, and we were very pleased with the food and the service. My daughter ordered a couple big ol’ pancakes, my wife chose one of their gluten-free omelets, and I went with the biscuits & gravy (with an over-indulgent two eggs on the side). What can I say, traveling makes me hungry! Total for the meal came to $34.
Once we were finished with breakfast, we continued on up the mountain for our scenic drive around Lake Tahoe. The views on the drive were spectacular, and it was neat seeing everything in the summer time. All of our previous visits have been in the winter when there was snow everywhere, so it was interesting to see the differences in the seasons.
There was a bit of construction in various places on the California side of the lake, and we didn’t make it around to the Heavenly Ski Resort until almost 2pm. We parked the car and walked to the booth to purchase gondola and zip-line tickets.
In the process of speaking with the clerk about buying the tickets, she informed us that there was a good possibility that the gondola and zip-line were going to be shut down soon due to lightning from a storm which was heading into the area. This was quite disappointing to hear since the gondola ride to the top of the mountain is one of our favorite activities when in Tahoe. The clerk suggested it would be better to come back early on Sunday morning since that was the best weather day in the near forecast.
We decided to embrace the change of plans to Sunday, and went back to the parking garage and got the car so we could drive over to Zephyr Cove. In order to do the gondola early on Sunday, we needed to try to reschedule a lake cruise we already had planned for Sunday morning.
We drove to Zephyr Cove and my wife dropped me off so I could walk over to the cruise’s ticket booth to speak with someone about trying to reschedule. We had already purchased tickets for the 11am cruise on Sunday, but they were happy to shift our tickets to the 2:30pm cruise when I explained about our issues with the gondola and the weather.
With those logistical matters settled, my wife picked me back up in the car and we continued our scenic drive up the Nevada side of the lake and eventually made our way back down the mountain. We got back to the hotel around 4pm and all three of us rested for a while to recuperate from the long time spent in the car that day.
After resting up, my daughter said she would like some Pizza Hut so around 5:30pm we drove over to the one on Prater Way in Sparks. My wife was not hungry, so my daughter and I shared a medium pepperoni pizza which was very tasty and hit the spot ($9).
During the meal at Pizza Hut, we all discussed and agreed on how rough and jerky the ride was in the VW Jetta the rental car company had given us. The car had a very peppy engine, but both the accelerator and the brakes were VERY touchy, and this made for an unpleasant ride. My wife suggested calling Enterprise to see if they would let us exchange the car, so I gave them a call. I was on hold for about 10 minutes, but when somebody finally answered the phone they took care of the situation right away. They took my contract number, and told me I could just come back and exchange the car for another one at my leisure. So I told them I’d like to exchange it immediately if possible, and they said to come on.
We drove the short distance back to the airport, and they were ready for us and had a nice white Chrysler 200 to swap for the Jetta. It took less than 5 minutes and we were back on our way!
After picking up the new car (which drove MUCH more smoothly), my wife wasn’t feeling too great and asked if we could drop her off back at the hotel before we embarked upon the next activity on the agenda (which was some mini-golf at the Grand Sierra). We drove back to the hotel and dropped her off and then headed over to the GSR.
My daughter and I played a round of outdoor mini-golf, and although the temps were kind of high there was a nice breeze blowing which made it very pleasant and enjoyable. We both played and scored about the same, but I got lucky and hit a hole-in-one on #17! My daughter later said that the game of mini-golf was one of her favorite activities from the trip, so that was nice. Total cost for the golf was $12.
We turned in our golf clubs and walked back to the car to head back to the hotel. My wife had texted saying she was feeling a little better and was wanting us to please bring her another In-N-Out burger if possible. So after leaving the GSR we picked up a Double-Double and took it back to the hotel for her ($5).
Once everyone was settled in the room for the evening, I headed down to the casino around 9:15pm. I knew I wasn’t going to be down there for very long, so I didn’t get on any table games and just stuck with my machines. The nickel VP machines I liked were all taken, so I went with my penny slots and hit a couple of mini-jackpots on a Vibrant 7’s machine and had a nice hit on a Hot Roll machine as well.
I called it quits around 10:30pm and went back up to the room. My wife and daughter were already asleep and were frowning a bit at having to wake up to unlatch the door for me to get in. But all was well and everybody enjoyed another good night’s sleep!
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Soon to Follow: Day 3 of 5…
You serious, Clark?
July 29th, 2014 at 9:24:26 AM
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DAY 3 OF 5 - SATURDAY, JULY 19TH
I woke up around 5:30am on Saturday morning and proceeded down to the casino to enjoy some quiet slow-play and some hot coffee. This morning (and each morning thereafter) my caramel macchiato from Starbucks was free since I worked up a small comp balance each day and then applied it to my coffee purchase the following day.
I had a nice little hit on my Stacked Lions, as well as hitting 4-of-a-kind and a full-house on the nickel video poker machine. The casino at Silver Legacy was usually fairly empty early in the mornings, so I was pleased to find my favorite machines available each time.
I headed back to the room around 7:30am and woke everyone up so we could get ready for breakfast and the activities for the day which were to follow.
For breakfast, we decided to try one of the restaurants located in the Silver Legacy. We went downstairs and were seated in the Café Central Restaurant around 8:30am. Café Central had a lot of different items on the menu, and I ended up choosing an “All-American Breakfast”, my wife chose scrambled eggs & bacon, and my daughter went with a Belgian waffle. Each of our breakfast items tasted very good, and the service at Café Central was speedy and attentive. Total cost for the breakfast came to $30.
We finished up with breakfast around 9:15am, and then went directly to the car so we could travel to our first activity of the day which was a trail ride at a local horse ranch. We had arranged for a 1½ hour ride at Verdi Trails Ranch which is located about 10 miles west of Reno on I-80. Our ride was scheduled to begin at 10am, but we arrived a little early and were able to watch them preparing the horses for the ride. There were a couple other people who had signed up for the ride who were a little late getting there, but we started not long after the appointed time of 10am.
The trail ride was extremely fun and we really enjoyed it. The horses were very gentle, and there were some beautiful views and several wildlife sightings (deer and jackrabbit) during the ride. Our ride lasted from around 10:15am to 11:45am, and that seemed to be the just the right amount of time. By the time the ride came to an end, it was starting to get mighty hot for both us and the horses and it was the perfect time to stop. We will certainly look forward to enjoying this ride again next time we are here. Total cost of the ride was $135 for all three of us.
After finishing the trail ride, we headed back to the hotel to cool off and rest for a while. We spent an hour or so recuperating, and then decided to walk downstairs to stroll around the property for a while. As some of you know, the three properties of Silver Legacy, Eldorado, and Circus-Circus are all connected and you don’t have to go outside to traverse between them. We walked around and checked out the various restaurants, gift shops, etc., of each one. While strolling through Circus-Circus, my daughter wanted to play some of the games at their midway, so we eased down to peruse the available games. We had a great time playing some skee-ball, tried some video games, did the ring-toss, etc. My daughter won two stuffed fish at a ping-pong ball tossing game and she was quite proud of them.
We finished our “property exploration” around 2:30pm and decided it was time for some lunch. We retrieved the car and drove over to a restaurant called Burger Me over on Sharlands Avenue. This place has been featured on the Food Network, and is also known for its gluten-free menu offerings. I had a bacon cheeseburger (with garlic fries), my wife had a cheeseburger on a gluten-free bun, and my daughter enjoyed a cheeseburger slider. The burgers were delicious and we would definitely eat here again! Total cost of $29.
Our stomachs full (and still somewhat tired from the trail ride), we drove back to the hotel to catch a little nap in preparation for the evening’s activities. On the way to the Silver Legacy, my wife dropped me off for a moment in front of Harrah’s so I could run inside and put a reward credit on my player's card so the existing points would not expire. We got to the hotel around 5pm and although I was debating between the nap and going down to the casino for a little while, the nap won out.
Feeling refreshed, we left the Silver Legacy around 7pm and headed over to the Grand Sierra Resort. We had tickets for their 8pm show called Masters of Magic. We arrived at the GSR around 7:15pm and were seated in the showroom around 7:30pm.
I had purchased the tickets online in advance, and we had a nice soft booth that was fairly centered and located about 5 rows from the front. I always prefer a booth versus sitting sideways at a table for shows like this. The magic show was very entertaining and all three of us loved it. Total cost of $69.
Following the magic show at GSR, my daughter was hungry so we stopped by McDonald’s on Oddie Blvd and picked her up a cheeseburger and a sprite and took it back to the hotel.
We got back to the room around 10:15pm, and I immediately headed down to the casino to enjoy a short run of gambling. It was fairly crowded and I wasn’t able to get on my nickel VP machines, but I did have a decent hit on my Stacked Lions as well as having a very nice 20 roll streak before the 7-out on the craps bonus game on a Hot Roll penny machine!
I made my way back to the room around 11:15pm, and my wife & daughter were both still awake reading their Kindles. So I was able to avoid the “death-stare” I received the night before when I woke them up to unlatch the door.
We once again enjoyed a nice quiet night of sleep with no problems or concerns.
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Soon to Follow: Day 4 of 5…
I woke up around 5:30am on Saturday morning and proceeded down to the casino to enjoy some quiet slow-play and some hot coffee. This morning (and each morning thereafter) my caramel macchiato from Starbucks was free since I worked up a small comp balance each day and then applied it to my coffee purchase the following day.
I had a nice little hit on my Stacked Lions, as well as hitting 4-of-a-kind and a full-house on the nickel video poker machine. The casino at Silver Legacy was usually fairly empty early in the mornings, so I was pleased to find my favorite machines available each time.
I headed back to the room around 7:30am and woke everyone up so we could get ready for breakfast and the activities for the day which were to follow.
For breakfast, we decided to try one of the restaurants located in the Silver Legacy. We went downstairs and were seated in the Café Central Restaurant around 8:30am. Café Central had a lot of different items on the menu, and I ended up choosing an “All-American Breakfast”, my wife chose scrambled eggs & bacon, and my daughter went with a Belgian waffle. Each of our breakfast items tasted very good, and the service at Café Central was speedy and attentive. Total cost for the breakfast came to $30.
We finished up with breakfast around 9:15am, and then went directly to the car so we could travel to our first activity of the day which was a trail ride at a local horse ranch. We had arranged for a 1½ hour ride at Verdi Trails Ranch which is located about 10 miles west of Reno on I-80. Our ride was scheduled to begin at 10am, but we arrived a little early and were able to watch them preparing the horses for the ride. There were a couple other people who had signed up for the ride who were a little late getting there, but we started not long after the appointed time of 10am.
The trail ride was extremely fun and we really enjoyed it. The horses were very gentle, and there were some beautiful views and several wildlife sightings (deer and jackrabbit) during the ride. Our ride lasted from around 10:15am to 11:45am, and that seemed to be the just the right amount of time. By the time the ride came to an end, it was starting to get mighty hot for both us and the horses and it was the perfect time to stop. We will certainly look forward to enjoying this ride again next time we are here. Total cost of the ride was $135 for all three of us.
After finishing the trail ride, we headed back to the hotel to cool off and rest for a while. We spent an hour or so recuperating, and then decided to walk downstairs to stroll around the property for a while. As some of you know, the three properties of Silver Legacy, Eldorado, and Circus-Circus are all connected and you don’t have to go outside to traverse between them. We walked around and checked out the various restaurants, gift shops, etc., of each one. While strolling through Circus-Circus, my daughter wanted to play some of the games at their midway, so we eased down to peruse the available games. We had a great time playing some skee-ball, tried some video games, did the ring-toss, etc. My daughter won two stuffed fish at a ping-pong ball tossing game and she was quite proud of them.
We finished our “property exploration” around 2:30pm and decided it was time for some lunch. We retrieved the car and drove over to a restaurant called Burger Me over on Sharlands Avenue. This place has been featured on the Food Network, and is also known for its gluten-free menu offerings. I had a bacon cheeseburger (with garlic fries), my wife had a cheeseburger on a gluten-free bun, and my daughter enjoyed a cheeseburger slider. The burgers were delicious and we would definitely eat here again! Total cost of $29.
Our stomachs full (and still somewhat tired from the trail ride), we drove back to the hotel to catch a little nap in preparation for the evening’s activities. On the way to the Silver Legacy, my wife dropped me off for a moment in front of Harrah’s so I could run inside and put a reward credit on my player's card so the existing points would not expire. We got to the hotel around 5pm and although I was debating between the nap and going down to the casino for a little while, the nap won out.
Feeling refreshed, we left the Silver Legacy around 7pm and headed over to the Grand Sierra Resort. We had tickets for their 8pm show called Masters of Magic. We arrived at the GSR around 7:15pm and were seated in the showroom around 7:30pm.
I had purchased the tickets online in advance, and we had a nice soft booth that was fairly centered and located about 5 rows from the front. I always prefer a booth versus sitting sideways at a table for shows like this. The magic show was very entertaining and all three of us loved it. Total cost of $69.
Following the magic show at GSR, my daughter was hungry so we stopped by McDonald’s on Oddie Blvd and picked her up a cheeseburger and a sprite and took it back to the hotel.
We got back to the room around 10:15pm, and I immediately headed down to the casino to enjoy a short run of gambling. It was fairly crowded and I wasn’t able to get on my nickel VP machines, but I did have a decent hit on my Stacked Lions as well as having a very nice 20 roll streak before the 7-out on the craps bonus game on a Hot Roll penny machine!
I made my way back to the room around 11:15pm, and my wife & daughter were both still awake reading their Kindles. So I was able to avoid the “death-stare” I received the night before when I woke them up to unlatch the door.
We once again enjoyed a nice quiet night of sleep with no problems or concerns.
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Soon to Follow: Day 4 of 5…
You serious, Clark?
July 29th, 2014 at 9:42:56 AM
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Great post again. But I have a question. Total cost of a meal. Does it include the tips?? And by how much? I am trying ti figure out the true cost of a meal please.
July 29th, 2014 at 9:59:46 AM
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Quote: speedycrapGreat post again. But I have a question. Total cost of a meal. Does it include the tips?? And by how much? I am trying ti figure out the true cost of a meal please.
Thanks again! The total cost of the meals include tax and tip (which for me is between 18-20%).
My wife and I typically only order water (with lemon) for our restaurant meals, which adds up to some decent savings when drinks can run $2.50+ each.
I haven't gotten my daughter fully trained yet on the water thing, so she usually gets a Dr. Pepper with her meal. For now anyway.
:)
You serious, Clark?
July 29th, 2014 at 3:13:27 PM
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DAY 4 OF 5 - SUNDAY, JULY 20TH
Always the early-riser, I was down at the casino enjoying my comped caramel macchiato at 6am. As usual I slow-played my favorite VP and penny machines, hitting three full-houses and a small win on the Stacked Dragons. And as before, the casino was quiet and sparsely populated at this hour which is one reason why I like my early morning coffee/slow play tradition when in Reno and Vegas.
I eased back up to the room around 7:15am to wake folks up and get ready for the day. We had a busy day planned for Sunday which included a second attempt at the gondola ride up to Heavenly Resort, as well as a boat cruise on Lake Tahoe in the afternoon. We decided to skip a big breakfast at a restaurant and just picked up something small through the McDonald’s drive-through on the way up to Lake Tahoe.
The drive up the mountain was once again scenic and pleasant, and this time we went straight down the Nevada side of the lake in order to get to Heavenly as soon as possible. We wanted to be at the gondola ticket booth before they opened at 10am, and my wife dropped me off on the street in front of Heavenly around 9:25am while she and my daughter went to park the car.
There was already a line of about 50 people in front of the ticket booth when I got there, and I figured I wasn’t the only one who was trying to avoid the possibility of thunderstorms becoming a problem later in the day. Once the ticket booth opened, I purchased three gondola tickets ($39 each) and two zip-line tickets ($60 each). They assign you a specific time for the zip line, and our schedule time was 12pm noon. The cost of the zip-line tickets is way too high in my opinion, but it was something my daughter really wanted to do.
We have taken the gondola ride on every trip we’ve made to Reno and it never gets old to us. The views of the lake are spectacular and it is always one of the highlights of our trip. The gondola stops at an observation deck near the top of the mountain, and then you get back on at your leisure and it takes you the rest of the way up to the top. Once at the top, there are many activities (zip line, rope courses, etc.) and all to choose from.
Unfortunately, we ultimately were not able to do the zip-line as planned. We had been up at the top of the mountain for about 45 minutes when they announced the zip line was closing due to another thunderstorm in the area. And although we had an absolutely great time on the gondola ride, observation deck, etc., my daughter was pretty disappointed that we couldn’t do the zip-line. My wallet however, was not disappointed in the $120 refund they gave me on the tickets since it was a weather-related cancellation. ;)
We got down from the gondola around 11:30am, and proceeded to get some lunch at a pizza place in Heavenly Village called Base Camp Pizza Company. My daughter and I shared a medium pepperoni, and my wife got an individual pepperoni with a gluten-free crust. Although not cheap, my daughter and I agreed that this was the best pizza we had on this trip (total cost $41 for all). I think the only pizza I may like more than this one is the pizza at NYP in the New-York-New-York property in Las Vegas.
Since we had an hour or so to kill before our 2:30pm boat cruise, we retrieved the car ($12 parking) and decided to ride around and explore a bit of South Lake Tahoe. We took a side street and ended up finding a nice public park with a cove on the lake. The water was quite cool to the touch, so we elected not to do any wading or anything.
We eventually left the public park and started making our way over to Zephyr Cove for our cruise to Emerald Bay on the MS Dixie II paddlewheel boat. Parking was hard to find ($8) but we eventually found a spot. I went to the ticket booth where I had rescheduled our cruise on Friday and picked up our tickets. Total cost $147 for three tickets.
By the time the boat started boarding around 2:15pm, the skies had turned very dark and threatening and we could hear thunder off in the distance. Because of this, we chose some seats on the inside portion of the boat with plans to just walk up to the open upper levels when we wanted a better view.
To make a long story short, the weather was very unkind to us on our paddleboat cruise. We had to spend most of the cruise inside the boat because it was raining like crazy and the wind was blowing extremely hard. We did get a few spells where the rain stopped for a while, but overall it was kind of a hot mess. We did still enjoy the cruise (especially the narration & history), but it would have been best experienced on a nice sunny day. Maybe next time!
Once we had departed the boat, we got the car around 4:45pm and proceeded to head back towards Reno. There must have been some terrible rain on the mountain during our cruise because we passed several instances of road crews scraping dirt and debris off of the winding mountain roads.
We got back to the hotel around 6:15pm, and my daughter wanted us to walk back over to Circus-Circus so she could play the midway games a little more before we started the official packing in anticipation of going home the following day. So she and I walked over to the midway and she once again enjoyed playing several of their games. She won another stuffed fish on the ping-pong ball game which she said she was going to give to her brother. She really wanted to win a HUGE stuffed Pikachu on the ring-toss game, but it wasn’t meant to be. I don’t think we could have taken it on the plane anyway.
We also enjoyed a free show on the Circus-Circus stage which consisted of a man & bird doing various tricks. He was very good and had all of the kids laughing.
After playing on the midway for a while, we went back to Silver Legacy and then walked to the McDonald’s right across the street from the hotel. We picked up cheeseburgers and chicken nuggets once again, and then took them back over to the Starbucks area in the Silver Legacy to eat.
We got back upstairs to the room around 8:30pm and started on the preliminary packing/cleaning. We got everything about 80% done with intentions to finish in the morning. We didn’t have to check out until noon, so we had plenty of time to complete the packing the following day.
I went downstairs to enjoy my final night of gambling at the casino. I found another $5 Pai Gow Poker table, and turned $100 into $120 while consuming a few white russians and taking in the atmosphere. To finish out my evening, I got lucky and had two nice hits on a Stacked Dragon and a Stacked Lion machine. You can see how low my credits had gotten before each hit, and it was a nice way to end the evening in the casino.
I went back up to the room around 10:30pm and hit the sack, enjoying a final night of good sleep there at the Silver Legacy!
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Soon to Follow: Day 5 of 5…
Always the early-riser, I was down at the casino enjoying my comped caramel macchiato at 6am. As usual I slow-played my favorite VP and penny machines, hitting three full-houses and a small win on the Stacked Dragons. And as before, the casino was quiet and sparsely populated at this hour which is one reason why I like my early morning coffee/slow play tradition when in Reno and Vegas.
I eased back up to the room around 7:15am to wake folks up and get ready for the day. We had a busy day planned for Sunday which included a second attempt at the gondola ride up to Heavenly Resort, as well as a boat cruise on Lake Tahoe in the afternoon. We decided to skip a big breakfast at a restaurant and just picked up something small through the McDonald’s drive-through on the way up to Lake Tahoe.
The drive up the mountain was once again scenic and pleasant, and this time we went straight down the Nevada side of the lake in order to get to Heavenly as soon as possible. We wanted to be at the gondola ticket booth before they opened at 10am, and my wife dropped me off on the street in front of Heavenly around 9:25am while she and my daughter went to park the car.
There was already a line of about 50 people in front of the ticket booth when I got there, and I figured I wasn’t the only one who was trying to avoid the possibility of thunderstorms becoming a problem later in the day. Once the ticket booth opened, I purchased three gondola tickets ($39 each) and two zip-line tickets ($60 each). They assign you a specific time for the zip line, and our schedule time was 12pm noon. The cost of the zip-line tickets is way too high in my opinion, but it was something my daughter really wanted to do.
We have taken the gondola ride on every trip we’ve made to Reno and it never gets old to us. The views of the lake are spectacular and it is always one of the highlights of our trip. The gondola stops at an observation deck near the top of the mountain, and then you get back on at your leisure and it takes you the rest of the way up to the top. Once at the top, there are many activities (zip line, rope courses, etc.) and all to choose from.
Unfortunately, we ultimately were not able to do the zip-line as planned. We had been up at the top of the mountain for about 45 minutes when they announced the zip line was closing due to another thunderstorm in the area. And although we had an absolutely great time on the gondola ride, observation deck, etc., my daughter was pretty disappointed that we couldn’t do the zip-line. My wallet however, was not disappointed in the $120 refund they gave me on the tickets since it was a weather-related cancellation. ;)
We got down from the gondola around 11:30am, and proceeded to get some lunch at a pizza place in Heavenly Village called Base Camp Pizza Company. My daughter and I shared a medium pepperoni, and my wife got an individual pepperoni with a gluten-free crust. Although not cheap, my daughter and I agreed that this was the best pizza we had on this trip (total cost $41 for all). I think the only pizza I may like more than this one is the pizza at NYP in the New-York-New-York property in Las Vegas.
Since we had an hour or so to kill before our 2:30pm boat cruise, we retrieved the car ($12 parking) and decided to ride around and explore a bit of South Lake Tahoe. We took a side street and ended up finding a nice public park with a cove on the lake. The water was quite cool to the touch, so we elected not to do any wading or anything.
We eventually left the public park and started making our way over to Zephyr Cove for our cruise to Emerald Bay on the MS Dixie II paddlewheel boat. Parking was hard to find ($8) but we eventually found a spot. I went to the ticket booth where I had rescheduled our cruise on Friday and picked up our tickets. Total cost $147 for three tickets.
By the time the boat started boarding around 2:15pm, the skies had turned very dark and threatening and we could hear thunder off in the distance. Because of this, we chose some seats on the inside portion of the boat with plans to just walk up to the open upper levels when we wanted a better view.
To make a long story short, the weather was very unkind to us on our paddleboat cruise. We had to spend most of the cruise inside the boat because it was raining like crazy and the wind was blowing extremely hard. We did get a few spells where the rain stopped for a while, but overall it was kind of a hot mess. We did still enjoy the cruise (especially the narration & history), but it would have been best experienced on a nice sunny day. Maybe next time!
Once we had departed the boat, we got the car around 4:45pm and proceeded to head back towards Reno. There must have been some terrible rain on the mountain during our cruise because we passed several instances of road crews scraping dirt and debris off of the winding mountain roads.
We got back to the hotel around 6:15pm, and my daughter wanted us to walk back over to Circus-Circus so she could play the midway games a little more before we started the official packing in anticipation of going home the following day. So she and I walked over to the midway and she once again enjoyed playing several of their games. She won another stuffed fish on the ping-pong ball game which she said she was going to give to her brother. She really wanted to win a HUGE stuffed Pikachu on the ring-toss game, but it wasn’t meant to be. I don’t think we could have taken it on the plane anyway.
We also enjoyed a free show on the Circus-Circus stage which consisted of a man & bird doing various tricks. He was very good and had all of the kids laughing.
After playing on the midway for a while, we went back to Silver Legacy and then walked to the McDonald’s right across the street from the hotel. We picked up cheeseburgers and chicken nuggets once again, and then took them back over to the Starbucks area in the Silver Legacy to eat.
We got back upstairs to the room around 8:30pm and started on the preliminary packing/cleaning. We got everything about 80% done with intentions to finish in the morning. We didn’t have to check out until noon, so we had plenty of time to complete the packing the following day.
I went downstairs to enjoy my final night of gambling at the casino. I found another $5 Pai Gow Poker table, and turned $100 into $120 while consuming a few white russians and taking in the atmosphere. To finish out my evening, I got lucky and had two nice hits on a Stacked Dragon and a Stacked Lion machine. You can see how low my credits had gotten before each hit, and it was a nice way to end the evening in the casino.
I went back up to the room around 10:30pm and hit the sack, enjoying a final night of good sleep there at the Silver Legacy!
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Soon to Follow: Day 5 of 5…
You serious, Clark?
July 29th, 2014 at 4:47:11 PM
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Love the Tahoe photos. My wife and I spent our honeymoon there and try to spend our anniversary there every year. It's November 1st which is also my birthday. That's handy for never forgetting. But that time of year is between seasons. The summer is over so the lake is pretty much closed and the ski lift doesn't open until Thanksgiving. We have the town mostly to ourselves. The cruise runs once a day and we always take it. The casinos are empty. It's real easy to find an empty BJ table. I love it there that time of year. And it always snows!
I've always been able to get our room comped for the entire week. The restaurants are empty. It starts to get busy on Friday with the people from California coming out for the weekend. We leave Saturday and come back to Texas which only has two seasons. It's nice to get away there for a week. It's absolutely my favorite place that I've ever been to. We plan to be there again this November. We haven't been since 2012 when she started having a string of surgeries. But she's able to travel so it is something we both need. Your report has been most enjoyable! Thank you.
I've always been able to get our room comped for the entire week. The restaurants are empty. It starts to get busy on Friday with the people from California coming out for the weekend. We leave Saturday and come back to Texas which only has two seasons. It's nice to get away there for a week. It's absolutely my favorite place that I've ever been to. We plan to be there again this November. We haven't been since 2012 when she started having a string of surgeries. But she's able to travel so it is something we both need. Your report has been most enjoyable! Thank you.
Stupid is a choice
July 29th, 2014 at 4:48:00 PM
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What surprises me is, the pics of Lake Tahoe give me the impression that the lake is pretty much full, despite a serious drought having hit all of California (it's really serious in the south, but the north is well below normal as well, as was the Sierra snowpack). The last time I was actually up at Tahoe, during a drought, the edge of the water was nowhere near any of the docks.
July 29th, 2014 at 5:38:25 PM
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If you look at some of the trees, the needles are brown, even though they are evergreens. I suspect the lack of rain is taking a toll on them, even though they are located next to a huge lake.Quote: ThatDonGuyWhat surprises me is, the pics of Lake Tahoe give me the impression that the lake is pretty much full, despite a serious drought having hit all of California (it's really serious in the south, but the north is well below normal as well, as was the Sierra snowpack). The last time I was actually up at Tahoe, during a drought, the edge of the water was nowhere near any of the docks.
What was the boat captain/tour company thinking regarding going out with a storm rolling in? Didn't anyone watch, "The Perfect Storm"? hehe
Was there any remnants of "Bill's" casino at Lake Tahoe? There was a mystery safe found in a wall there, that was supposed to be opened by Oprah Winfrey's company on TV. Speculation of evidence of a murder, or mob secrets was bandied about, but I suspect nothing as found.... at least that's what they want us to believe....
Thank again for the report Blount. Too bad about the big Pikachu. I suspect it has been luring players there since 1992...
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication - Leonardo da Vinci
July 29th, 2014 at 6:34:30 PM
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Quote: texasplumrLove the Tahoe photos. My wife and I spent our honeymoon there and try to spend our anniversary there every year. It's November 1st which is also my birthday. That's handy for never forgetting. But that time of year is between seasons. The summer is over so the lake is pretty much closed and the ski lift doesn't open until Thanksgiving. We have the town mostly to ourselves. The cruise runs once a day and we always take it. The casinos are empty. It's real easy to find an empty BJ table. I love it there that time of year. And it always snows!
I've always been able to get our room comped for the entire week. The restaurants are empty. It starts to get busy on Friday with the people from California coming out for the weekend. We leave Saturday and come back to Texas which only has two seasons. It's nice to get away there for a week. It's absolutely my favorite place that I've ever been to. We plan to be there again this November. We haven't been since 2012 when she started having a string of surgeries. But she's able to travel so it is something we both need. Your report has been most enjoyable! Thank you.
My wife and I love Tahoe as well. We went there for the first time in 1996 when she won a trip to Reno/Tahoe in a radio contest (part of the prize was seeing the country singer Collin Raye in concert, which was also nice). We liked the area so much that we've been coming back ever since!
I'm glad you enjoyed the report!
You serious, Clark?
July 29th, 2014 at 6:34:38 PM
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Quote: ThatDonGuyWhat surprises me is, the pics of Lake Tahoe give me the impression that the lake is pretty much full, despite a serious drought having hit all of California (it's really serious in the south, but the north is well below normal as well, as was the Sierra snowpack). The last time I was actually up at Tahoe, during a drought, the edge of the water was nowhere near any of the docks.
When we were hanging out at that public park with the cove, I wondered if the sandy area we were standing on was typically underwater. In my pictures you can see some rocks up closer to the grass, and I wonder if maybe that is where the normal water line is?
You serious, Clark?
July 29th, 2014 at 6:34:43 PM
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Quote: AyecarumbaIf you look at some of the trees, the needles are brown, even though they are evergreens. I suspect the lack of rain is taking a toll on them, even though they are located next to a huge lake.
What was the boat captain/tour company thinking regarding going out with a storm rolling in? Didn't anyone watch, "The Perfect Storm"? hehe
Was there any remnants of "Bill's" casino at Lake Tahoe? There was a mystery safe found in a wall there, that was supposed to be opened by Oprah Winfrey's company on TV. Speculation of evidence of a murder, or mob secrets was bandied about, but I suspect nothing as found.... at least that's what they want us to believe....
Thank again for the report Blount. Too bad about the big Pikachu. I suspect it has been luring players there since 1992...
I wondered myself if they were going to possibly cancel the cruise since the weather was moving in before the boat left the pier. It is a 2-hour cruise, and I guess we were all hoping that it would be a "passing storm" that would move out before the ride was over. Didn't turn out that way though. It was still raining on us as we ran to the car after the cruise was over.
Yeah, that ring toss game with the big Pikachu was drawing a real crowd of players (but no winners). After the first bucket of rings (in a moment of moral weakness) I even cheated a little bit and stepped to the side and googled "how to win carnival ring toss game" on my phone. The sources said to keep aiming at the same single bottle in one of the closest two rows and try to gently toss it on there.
Four more buckets of rings later (with no results) made me think that the answer to "how to win the ring toss game" should be: "Yeeaaah, you can't." :)
Even though she was sad, my daughter kept the right attitude. When we got back to the room my wife asked how much it would cost to just buy one, and my daughter said: "I don't want to BUY it, I want to WIN it!".
My pocketbook is probably relieved that she felt that way. ;)
You serious, Clark?
July 29th, 2014 at 6:38:50 PM
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DAY 5 OF 5 - MONDAY, JULY 21ST
Woke up on this final morning around 6am and went down to the casino for the concluding round of gambling for the trip. I picked up my comped caramel macchiato from Starbucks and enjoyed my last morning of slow-play on my favorite machines. I only hit one full-house on VP, but I had two decent hits on a Double-Triple-Diamond Hot Roll penny machine.
Before going back up to the room, I decided to run a little money through the progressive Wheel of Fortune quarter machine. Although I didn’t win the progressive, I did get to spin the wheel a couple of times and ultimately hit a nice BAR-2x-2x on it. I figured it was good to end the gambling on a positive note, so I cashed out right after this hit and called it quits!
I went back up to the room around 8am to get ready, and then we walked back down for a final breakfast at Café Central there in Silver Legacy. We all enjoyed the same breakfast items as before, except this time my daughter opted for some pancakes instead of the waffle. Like the first time we ate there, everything was very tasty and satisfying.
After breakfast, we went to the room to finish all of the packing and cleaning. Our flight was scheduled to leave Reno at 2:30pm, so we rested for a while and then around noon we checked out of the Silver Legacy and took everything down to load up the car. We filled up the rental car with gas and then started making our way towards the airport to return it.
When leaving downtown, you know I had to take a picture of the Reno sign.
The return of the rental car went very smoothly, and we made our way into the terminal to go through security. The line at security was pretty long, but it moved quickly and we were inside the gate around 1pm.
My daughter and I each enjoyed one last slice of pizza from a restaurant in the Reno airport called Wild Garlic. The pepperoni pizza was very good ($14), and it kept us from being hungry for the rest of the trip home.
The flight from Reno took off on time at 2:30pm and landed in Las Vegas around 3:45pm. It was sad once again to see Vegas from the airplane and be soooo close without being able to go into the city.
The flight from Vegas took off on time at 4:45pm, and it was a nice smooth flight all the way to Nashville. It was dark outside as the plane made its approach into Nashville, but it was good to be back home.
We landed in Nashville about 10 minutes early, and after getting our luggage we took the shuttle to get the car out of long-term parking ($45). We finally made it home a little after midnight and were all very happy to have enjoyed a safe, exciting vacation to Reno-Tahoe!
CLOSING NOTES:
Below is the 2-page “loose itinerary” we used for our trip. Due to the weather (and other things) we were kind of hit-and-miss on sticking with the proposed activities & schedule, but that’s ok. I’ve just always found it beneficial to have a general plan (which can be changed) versus not having any plan at all.
The total cost of this trip came to approximately $3,150 (of which about $150 was my net gambling loss). Cash-wise, the trip was around $1,825 since I used my Southwest Points to purchase the airline tickets. I also used comps to get three of my caramel macchiatos from Starbucks. Every dollar counts!
Anyway, the trip to Reno-Tahoe was a success and we had a great time & will be looking forward to the next time we visit. Maybe it won’t be five years until we go again!
Cheers!!
Woke up on this final morning around 6am and went down to the casino for the concluding round of gambling for the trip. I picked up my comped caramel macchiato from Starbucks and enjoyed my last morning of slow-play on my favorite machines. I only hit one full-house on VP, but I had two decent hits on a Double-Triple-Diamond Hot Roll penny machine.
Before going back up to the room, I decided to run a little money through the progressive Wheel of Fortune quarter machine. Although I didn’t win the progressive, I did get to spin the wheel a couple of times and ultimately hit a nice BAR-2x-2x on it. I figured it was good to end the gambling on a positive note, so I cashed out right after this hit and called it quits!
I went back up to the room around 8am to get ready, and then we walked back down for a final breakfast at Café Central there in Silver Legacy. We all enjoyed the same breakfast items as before, except this time my daughter opted for some pancakes instead of the waffle. Like the first time we ate there, everything was very tasty and satisfying.
After breakfast, we went to the room to finish all of the packing and cleaning. Our flight was scheduled to leave Reno at 2:30pm, so we rested for a while and then around noon we checked out of the Silver Legacy and took everything down to load up the car. We filled up the rental car with gas and then started making our way towards the airport to return it.
When leaving downtown, you know I had to take a picture of the Reno sign.
The return of the rental car went very smoothly, and we made our way into the terminal to go through security. The line at security was pretty long, but it moved quickly and we were inside the gate around 1pm.
My daughter and I each enjoyed one last slice of pizza from a restaurant in the Reno airport called Wild Garlic. The pepperoni pizza was very good ($14), and it kept us from being hungry for the rest of the trip home.
The flight from Reno took off on time at 2:30pm and landed in Las Vegas around 3:45pm. It was sad once again to see Vegas from the airplane and be soooo close without being able to go into the city.
The flight from Vegas took off on time at 4:45pm, and it was a nice smooth flight all the way to Nashville. It was dark outside as the plane made its approach into Nashville, but it was good to be back home.
We landed in Nashville about 10 minutes early, and after getting our luggage we took the shuttle to get the car out of long-term parking ($45). We finally made it home a little after midnight and were all very happy to have enjoyed a safe, exciting vacation to Reno-Tahoe!
CLOSING NOTES:
Below is the 2-page “loose itinerary” we used for our trip. Due to the weather (and other things) we were kind of hit-and-miss on sticking with the proposed activities & schedule, but that’s ok. I’ve just always found it beneficial to have a general plan (which can be changed) versus not having any plan at all.
The total cost of this trip came to approximately $3,150 (of which about $150 was my net gambling loss). Cash-wise, the trip was around $1,825 since I used my Southwest Points to purchase the airline tickets. I also used comps to get three of my caramel macchiatos from Starbucks. Every dollar counts!
Anyway, the trip to Reno-Tahoe was a success and we had a great time & will be looking forward to the next time we visit. Maybe it won’t be five years until we go again!
Cheers!!
You serious, Clark?
July 29th, 2014 at 7:17:13 PM
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Thanks for the post. $14 for a pep pizza? Holly molly.
July 29th, 2014 at 7:32:27 PM
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Wife and I went to south Lake Tahoe last year for my 30th bday. She loved it and always asks to go back. The heavenly gondola was very nice and we also ate at base camp pizza. We liked the pizza as well. Funny that we did a boat cruise out of zephyr cove also and it rained about 80% of the trip! Anyway I enjoyed your trip report as always. Can't wait for the next one in 6 months
July 30th, 2014 at 6:31:03 AM
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Quote: speedycrapThanks for the post. $14 for a pep pizza? Holly molly.
Yep, and not even for a whole pizza. $14 for two slices and a shared drink. I guess they know they have a captive audience at the airport!
You serious, Clark?
July 30th, 2014 at 6:31:06 AM
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Quote: BeardgoatWife and I went to south Lake Tahoe last year for my 30th bday. She loved it and always asks to go back. The heavenly gondola was very nice and we also ate at base camp pizza. We liked the pizza as well. Funny that we did a boat cruise out of zephyr cove also and it rained about 80% of the trip! Anyway I enjoyed your trip report as always. Can't wait for the next one in 6 months
Sounds like our pizza and lake cruise experiences in Tahoe were very similar. I don't think it has ever rained on our trips before, so maybe we have just been lucky in the past. Of course the prior trips were all in the winter so I guess the snow was taking the place of the rain. I like the snow though.
Glad you enjoyed the report! I have a great time putting the trip reports together, and I'm already looking forward to my next trip to Vegas at the end of the year!
You serious, Clark?
July 30th, 2014 at 7:21:24 AM
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Very nice trip report - never been to Reno - need to put it on to-do list.
Do they have craps tables in the casinos?
Do they have craps tables in the casinos?
July 30th, 2014 at 8:54:22 AM
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Quote: NostronVery nice trip report - never been to Reno - need to put it on to-do list.
Thanks, I'm glad you liked the report! Reno/Tahoe can definitely be a lot of fun.
Quote:Do they have craps tables in the casinos?
They sure do. Although I didn't get to play any craps this time, they had tables with $5 minimums available (which is the level I prefer to play at).
You serious, Clark?
July 30th, 2014 at 9:53:55 AM
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Sounds like you had a great trip! I've stayed many times at the Silver Legacy and have always been pleased. A few observations:
1. Nickel slots are fun but once you transition to video poker, you may never look back. Even with a poor pay schedule (like the 8/5 JOB you were playing), you're still getting an over 97% return. Contrast this with the 90% or less you get on nickel slots--you get to play three times longer on the same bankroll. Plus, the money goes in much more slowly on VP. In fact, if you graduate to quarters, you're probably putting in roughly the same amount per hour as you are on a multi-line nickel video slot. And at quarters, you can find all sorts of games that return 99% or better, including some at the Silver Legacy that return over 100%! If you're comfortable with JOB, 9/6 is available in quarters all over town. Here's another thing to consider: your expected loss at .25 9/6 JOB is smaller than your expected loss at .05 8/5 JOB for the same amount of money played! Plus, you start earning decent comps when you play at that level. SL is good in that regard.
2. From your mention of comped Starbucks, it seems like you were playing with a player's card, but if you weren't, you should have been. Even if you play for minimal stakes, you get mailers offering significant room discounts. I routinely get mailers offering me $39-49 on weekdays and $59 on weekends. (The amount you paid for your stay seems awfully high for Reno.)
3. If you like craps but are a low-roller, check out the Cal-Neva down the street. They used to have a $1 game where the "chips" were Ike silver dollars. I think the game is $3 now, but that's still cheeeep. Plus, you get to play with an "interesting" crowd...
4. It is a sin to eat at the airport in Reno when there are so many terrific dining options available in town. Grab a candy bar when your stomach is growling and you can get an entire pizza for that $14 later. (Of course, if you have a teenager in tow...)
5. Here's a hidden food surprise. The Nugget downtown is a little hole-in-the-wall joint, not to be confused with John Ascuaga's Nugget in Sparks. They have a little lunch-counter grill in back that makes awesome breakfasts and, 24 hours a day, Reno's best burger--the Awful-Awful. Trust me on this one.
1. Nickel slots are fun but once you transition to video poker, you may never look back. Even with a poor pay schedule (like the 8/5 JOB you were playing), you're still getting an over 97% return. Contrast this with the 90% or less you get on nickel slots--you get to play three times longer on the same bankroll. Plus, the money goes in much more slowly on VP. In fact, if you graduate to quarters, you're probably putting in roughly the same amount per hour as you are on a multi-line nickel video slot. And at quarters, you can find all sorts of games that return 99% or better, including some at the Silver Legacy that return over 100%! If you're comfortable with JOB, 9/6 is available in quarters all over town. Here's another thing to consider: your expected loss at .25 9/6 JOB is smaller than your expected loss at .05 8/5 JOB for the same amount of money played! Plus, you start earning decent comps when you play at that level. SL is good in that regard.
2. From your mention of comped Starbucks, it seems like you were playing with a player's card, but if you weren't, you should have been. Even if you play for minimal stakes, you get mailers offering significant room discounts. I routinely get mailers offering me $39-49 on weekdays and $59 on weekends. (The amount you paid for your stay seems awfully high for Reno.)
3. If you like craps but are a low-roller, check out the Cal-Neva down the street. They used to have a $1 game where the "chips" were Ike silver dollars. I think the game is $3 now, but that's still cheeeep. Plus, you get to play with an "interesting" crowd...
4. It is a sin to eat at the airport in Reno when there are so many terrific dining options available in town. Grab a candy bar when your stomach is growling and you can get an entire pizza for that $14 later. (Of course, if you have a teenager in tow...)
5. Here's a hidden food surprise. The Nugget downtown is a little hole-in-the-wall joint, not to be confused with John Ascuaga's Nugget in Sparks. They have a little lunch-counter grill in back that makes awesome breakfasts and, 24 hours a day, Reno's best burger--the Awful-Awful. Trust me on this one.
July 30th, 2014 at 10:03:47 AM
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Quote: speedycrapThanks for the post. $14 for a pep pizza? Holly molly.
Is that high? The place in Vegas that we get pizza from is Grimaldis and it is $18 for a large pepperoni pizza.
At my age, a "Life In Prison" sentence is not much of a deterrent.
July 30th, 2014 at 10:32:16 AM
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$14 for 2 slices and a pop. that is HIGHHHHHHHHHHHQuote: DRichIs that high? The place in Vegas that we get pizza from is Grimaldis and it is $18 for a large pepperoni pizza.
July 30th, 2014 at 10:35:01 AM
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Quote: speedycrap$14 for 2 slices and a pop. that is HIGHHHHHHHHHHH
Definitely high if it was only two slices.
At my age, a "Life In Prison" sentence is not much of a deterrent.
July 30th, 2014 at 10:53:12 AM
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Good report Blount!
While reading it, I was trying to figure out how old your daughter was. Struggling with the blurry face. Lol
And it looks like you're starting to move to the "dark side" of VP...lol
To add to what eaglesnest said though, I did notice a couple of things. You often played a 8/5 JoB progressive this trip. Progressives can be tempting, but when there is a non-progressive game higher by one "notch", e.g. 9/5 vs. 8/5, the royal progressive needs to be a bit more than 150% of the base value (about $300 for nickels) to make up for the lower pay on the full house.
Also I looked back at some of your older trips today, and it seems like you play on the Strip a lot. For your stakes, bonus poker is almost always the better game to play there. The only time JoB is better is when JoB is two "notches" ahead of bonus poker (e.g. 9/6 JoB vs. 8/5 bonus or 8/5 JoB vs. 6/5 Bonus).
6/5 bonus is much easier to find on the strip for nickels than 8/5 JoB. The strategies are nearly identical. In downtown, VPFree2.com says Plaza has 9/6 JoB for nickels. Downtown and off-strip is often much more generous in terms of VP paytables for nickel and quarter players.
While reading it, I was trying to figure out how old your daughter was. Struggling with the blurry face. Lol
And it looks like you're starting to move to the "dark side" of VP...lol
To add to what eaglesnest said though, I did notice a couple of things. You often played a 8/5 JoB progressive this trip. Progressives can be tempting, but when there is a non-progressive game higher by one "notch", e.g. 9/5 vs. 8/5, the royal progressive needs to be a bit more than 150% of the base value (about $300 for nickels) to make up for the lower pay on the full house.
Also I looked back at some of your older trips today, and it seems like you play on the Strip a lot. For your stakes, bonus poker is almost always the better game to play there. The only time JoB is better is when JoB is two "notches" ahead of bonus poker (e.g. 9/6 JoB vs. 8/5 bonus or 8/5 JoB vs. 6/5 Bonus).
6/5 bonus is much easier to find on the strip for nickels than 8/5 JoB. The strategies are nearly identical. In downtown, VPFree2.com says Plaza has 9/6 JoB for nickels. Downtown and off-strip is often much more generous in terms of VP paytables for nickel and quarter players.
July 30th, 2014 at 1:47:25 PM
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Quote: EaglesnestSounds like you had a great trip! I've stayed many times at the Silver Legacy and have always been pleased. A few observations:
1. Nickel slots are fun but once you transition to video poker, you may never look back. Even with a poor pay schedule (like the 8/5 JOB you were playing), you're still getting an over 97% return. Contrast this with the 90% or less you get on nickel slots--you get to play three times longer on the same bankroll. Plus, the money goes in much more slowly on VP. In fact, if you graduate to quarters, you're probably putting in roughly the same amount per hour as you are on a multi-line nickel video slot. And at quarters, you can find all sorts of games that return 99% or better, including some at the Silver Legacy that return over 100%! If you're comfortable with JOB, 9/6 is available in quarters all over town. Here's another thing to consider: your expected loss at .25 9/6 JOB is smaller than your expected loss at .05 8/5 JOB for the same amount of money played! Plus, you start earning decent comps when you play at that level. SL is good in that regard.
2. From your mention of comped Starbucks, it seems like you were playing with a player's card, but if you weren't, you should have been. Even if you play for minimal stakes, you get mailers offering significant room discounts. I routinely get mailers offering me $39-49 on weekdays and $59 on weekends. (The amount you paid for your stay seems awfully high for Reno.)
3. If you like craps but are a low-roller, check out the Cal-Neva down the street. They used to have a $1 game where the "chips" were Ike silver dollars. I think the game is $3 now, but that's still cheeeep. Plus, you get to play with an "interesting" crowd...
4. It is a sin to eat at the airport in Reno when there are so many terrific dining options available in town. Grab a candy bar when your stomach is growling and you can get an entire pizza for that $14 later. (Of course, if you have a teenager in tow...)
5. Here's a hidden food surprise. The Nugget downtown is a little hole-in-the-wall joint, not to be confused with John Ascuaga's Nugget in Sparks. They have a little lunch-counter grill in back that makes awesome breakfasts and, 24 hours a day, Reno's best burger--the Awful-Awful. Trust me on this one.
I did have a great trip, and thanks for all of the good advice!
I was indeed using my player's card, and the comps seemed to add up fairly quickly on it. It sounds like perhaps Silver Legacy is a place that is generous with their comps. Some of the machines had touch screens where you could easily check the comp (and free play) balance. I received a total of around $10 in free play during my stay which was awarded when I would swipe my card at the kiosk.
There was a show I remember seeing on the Food Network (or maybe Travel Channel) about the Awful-Awful burger in Reno. I'll definitely have to put in on my list for next time we visit.
Playing video poker was really enjoyable and I spent at least half of my 'gambling time' playing it. On past trips I did not spend even 5% of my time on VP (just an occasional $10 at a bar-top game from time to time). And as I get more comfortable with the game, I'll also plan to start taking a look at the quarter machines with the better pay schedules than the nickel machines!
You serious, Clark?
July 30th, 2014 at 1:47:29 PM
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Quote: tringlomaneGood report Blount!
While reading it, I was trying to figure out how old your daughter was. Struggling with the blurry face. Lol
And it looks like you're starting to move to the "dark side" of VP...lol
To add to what eaglesnest said though, I did notice a couple of things. You often played a 8/5 JoB progressive this trip. Progressives can be tempting, but when there is a non-progressive game higher by one "notch", e.g. 9/5 vs. 8/5, the royal progressive needs to be a bit more than 150% of the base value (about $300 for nickels) to make up for the lower pay on the full house.
Also I looked back at some of your older trips today, and it seems like you play on the Strip a lot. For your stakes, bonus poker is almost always the better game to play there. The only time JoB is better is when JoB is two "notches" ahead of bonus poker (e.g. 9/6 JoB vs. 8/5 bonus or 8/5 JoB vs. 6/5 Bonus).
6/5 bonus is much easier to find on the strip for nickels than 8/5 JoB. The strategies are nearly identical. In downtown, VPFree2.com says Plaza has 9/6 JoB for nickels. Downtown and off-strip is often much more generous in terms of VP paytables for nickel and quarter players.
My daughter is in her VERY early teens, and l'm lucky that she is still in the stage of life where she truly enjoys things like bowling & playing mini-golf with her father. I fear those times will soon be coming to an end, and playing the ring-toss game at the carnival with me will probably be the last thing she wants to do.
I know from the ages of 13 to 19, my son thought ol' Dad didn't have the sense to pour water out of a boot with the instructions printed on the heel. After he got in his 20's though he came to realize that while it may seem like you know everything when you are a teenager, it just SEEMS that way. I was the same way with my father so I guess I can't complain too much about it!
Thanks to you (and eaglesnest) for the advice on the video poker. I realized shortly after I got there that while I had spent some decent time beforehand practicing the online JoB strategy, I didn't spend anywhere near enough time studying the types of games and paytables that were available for JoB (or other games either).
Yep, on our Vegas trips we typically do most of our gambling on the Strip with an occasional trip downtown and maybe some play at the Gold Coast. And since it sounds like bonus poker may be the better way to go for someone like me, I'll definitely do some better research & planning in anticipation of my winter Vegas trip!
You serious, Clark?
July 30th, 2014 at 2:18:30 PM
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Great reports! Enjoyed reading them!
Oh my! I would have killed myself in that situation.
Quote: blount2000
our connecting flight on both the trip out there and on the trip home was in… you guessed it: Las Vegas!! It was kind of tough for me to see Vegas and be so close to it without being able to actually go out and enjoy it.
Oh my! I would have killed myself in that situation.
winning streaks come and go, losing streak never ends.
July 30th, 2014 at 2:48:42 PM
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Quote: blount2000
Thanks to you (and eaglesnest) for the advice on the video poker. I realized shortly after I got there that while I had spent some decent time beforehand practicing the online JoB strategy, I didn't spend anywhere near enough time studying the types of games and paytables that were available for JoB (or other games either).
Yep, on our Vegas trips we typically do most of our gambling on the Strip with an occasional trip downtown and maybe some play at the Gold Coast. And since it sounds like bonus poker may be the better way to go for someone like me, I'll definitely do some better research & planning in anticipation of my winter Vegas trip!
FYI, here's some info re Bonus vs. JOB. First of all, 8/5 Bonus returns 99.17% while 9/6 JOB returns 99.54%. So you'll lose almost twice as much money playing BP, all other things being equal. That said, many people consider the excitement value of the bonus quads to be worth it. This drove VP manufacturers to create games where the quads pay even more, such as Double Bonus (you don't get that extra payout on quads for free, of course; two pair pays even money). The good news is that you can learn the same strategy for both BP and JOB; there are a couple of very tiny differences not worth bothering about.
Now, here is one reason why BP is often the low-roller choice. Not only is the game very widely available, even on that video poker desert, the Las Vegas Strip, but it also seems to be less hurtful to the nickel player. If you play JOB for nickels, you are usually forced to play 8/5 or even worse. In JOB (and BP), the full house, flush, and straight all come up just about once every 90 hands. If you get paid one bet less (like 8 instead of 9 for a full house), then once every 90 hands, you are losing one extra bet--this equates to a 1.1% loss. So if your JOB is 8/5 instead of 9/6, this means you're losing an additional 2.2% over and above the inherent 9/6 house edge of 0.46%. HOWEVER, the downgrade for nickel Bonus Poker is usually "milder"--you often see 7/5, which is a reduction for the full house only. This puts 7/5 Bonus at 98.07%, whereas 8/5 JOB is only 97.34%. 6/5 Bonus is 96.97%, which is still better than 7/5 or 6/5 JOB.
ALL THAT SAID, you can still find 9/6 JOB for nickel denominations in both Reno and Vegas. In Vegas, there's the Plaza downtown, the Eastside Cannery and the Skyline in Vegas, and (surprisingly) the Westgate (used to be LV Hilton), among others. The Palms has 50-plays (and you don't have to play all fifty lines) in denoms as low as .01. In Reno, they're all over the place, at the Peppermill, the Atlantis, and the Nugget, among other places. Even the Silver Legacy has the game in 50-plays and 100-plays (and you can play as little as a single hand if you so desire). So you have no reason to play short-pay JOB in Reno (slap!).
The difference can be considerable even at low stakes. Let's say you play a modest 400 hands/hour; that's $100/hr coin-in. If you're playing 9/6 JOB, your cost per hour is 46 cents; if you're playing 8/5, that cost is $2.66 per hour. Which would you rather be paying? (And you'll be getting free drinks either way; I personally consider losing at the rate of 46 cents an hour while getting a beer (or three) to be an advantage play.)
You also have the opportunity to learn other, more interesting (IMHO) games, such as Deuces Wild and Double/Double Double Bonus, and play them for nickels as well. Those games are still around, particularly in Vegas.
July 30th, 2014 at 4:14:12 PM
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My son had the same attitude as a teen. He's now 41 and we are the best of friends. About 20 years ago our relationship changed dramatically when he got married. All of the sudden I'm a genius and I understood what escrow is! My granddaughter will start college next month. He realized why I did some of the tings I did when he was growing up after she was born. We went from what seemed like adversaries to allies while she was growing up. He has been very fortunate just like I was with him. She's brilliant and will go far, just like him.
Kids are a gift. I never wanted children and he was an "accident". But a fortunate accident I came to find out. I took pleasure reading about you and your daughters friendship. It's so nice to see. A lot of situations don't turn out quite like that.
Thanks again for the report!
Kids are a gift. I never wanted children and he was an "accident". But a fortunate accident I came to find out. I took pleasure reading about you and your daughters friendship. It's so nice to see. A lot of situations don't turn out quite like that.
Thanks again for the report!
Stupid is a choice
