JQ's Summer Trip Report, GVR/Bally's/Aria

Even though it is hot as "heck" in the Summer in Vegas, and that is particularly true this Summer, the best time for Mrs Q to travel is in July. So, here we are !

GVR:

We flew out on Sat June 19th and it was a pleasant surprise to find no line at all at the taxi line. We started out by staying at GVR for 2 nights. My daughter caught a later flight and met us there. It is definitely a nice place with decent Deuces Wild VP, but even after playing for hours, no quad dueces for me. So the trip started out for me in a small gambling hole.

We usually don't spend much time at the pool, if any. But we checked it out one morning and it was nice to find plenty of lounge chairs and large umbrellas. We did treat ourselves to one round of the $ 17 fancy-pants drinks. Mrs Q got a spicy margarita and my daughter and I both agreed it was too spicy for our tastes.

We would definitely work GVR back into our next vacation plans IF we can get another comp'd room or at least a nice discount.

I took an UBER over to the local Enterprise location and rented a car for a week, using my corporate discount to avoid the post-covid crazy high rental car rates. I'm gonna miss that when I eventually retire. Got a free upgrade, so that was nice. AND, the agent said I could return it at the Strip location at the Westin, which I ended up doing.

BALLY's Week 1:

My younger brother flew in on Sunday, and my older brother flew in with his wife on Monday. I got my older brother a large suite at a deep discount, and we stayed in a regular room but on the same floor in the nicer Jubilee tower. Their room was ~800 sq ft and it had a nice couch, so that became our meeting place for a drink ( or two ) before heading out for dinner. Since my wife and I both used our Diamond discounts, my younger brother made his own arrangements but he's been to Vegas before and got a decent rate.

Tuesday was Hiking Day at Big Falls trail in the Mount Charleston area. I posted a description of that side-trip already here:

https://wizardofvegas.com/forum/las-vegas-attractions/other/36116-trip-report-part-1-big-falls-trail/

but here is one picture:



It doesn't look like I need to worry about them getting over their heads, my brother's wife enjoyed playing Nickel video poker, one line and one nickel at a time. They eventually cashed out up 20 % ( $ 6 out vs $ 5 in ). Last of the High Rollers !

We also did OMEGA-MART at Area 15. That's gonna require a separate post, "there's a lot there to unpack there". But to summarize, it is pretty cool but kind of expensive and I suspect that most forum members here aren't going to be that impressed with it. However, having said that, by all means make a trip out there and walk around for an hour and see the other free art installations.

Another side-trip was to the new location of the Pinball Hall of Fame. Lots more pix here:

https://wizardofvegas.com/forum/las-vegas-attractions/other/36113-pinball-hof-new-site-is-open/3/#post812083



I can't believe they forgot to include the main star of the film on the glass, hahaha.

Another friend from back home also met us out there, and that was a bonus because she loaned me her Player's Club card so I could get in and out of M-Life parking garages for free. Woot.

She is a "foodie", so even though it wouldn't have been my first choice, we ate at Din Tai Fung one evening. It was nice for a change of pace. My wife and daughter also went to the Caesars Bachannal buffet one evening, so my brothers and I ended up at Ocean One Grille in the Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood for $ 7 burgers and $ 3 beers/frozen drinks. I recommend it for an easy and reasonably priced sit-down meal. I ended up eating there twice so far this trip and both times the wait to get in was short.

We also did Nine Fine Irishman at NYNY one evening using a 2 for 1 myVegas reward. While we were waiting for our reservation time, I looked up their VP offerings on VPFREE2.com. That's when I hit a RF on a dollar denom machine. I called my wife and she came over to see the hand-pay. Woot x2 !



ARIA / BALLY's Week 2:

After round one of our "guests" went home by the weekend, another couple from back home flew out and joined us for the start of week 2. They had a late flight, but we picked them up at the airport. They got stuck on the tarmac for what seemed like forever so we waited and waited and waited. But at least we were able to accomplish two things on the same trip: dropping off our "foodie" friend for her flight and picking up our friends. Given this experience, however, if we ever have a similar situation, I don't think my "taxi-service" will still be offered.

We needed to break up our stay at Caesars to re-set the calendar on comp'd rooms. Originally my plan was to drive down and stay at Laughlin, but we ended up paying for an extra night at Bally's to avoid having to pack and unpack and repack and unpack for just one night.

But we did pack up and go to Aria for 3 nights using myVegas rewards, this was our first time staying there. We just had to pay the resort fee, so that felt like a good deal to us. We parked in the garage and it was a long walk to the lobby, and Mrs Q tried the electronic check-in but that didn't work, so back to the lobby to get a regular key. Mildly annoying.

The room was nice, but I didn't expect a high floor on a myVegas freebie, and we didn't get one. So we didn't have much of a view from the 3rd floor but like I said, the price was right. AND, whenever possible, I try to stay at a new place (or do one brand new thing) each trip. The room had his and her sinks in the bathroom, which is a nice touch when traveling.

Our friends hadn't been to the Secret Garden at Mirage, so we walked up from Bally's, had lunch, and then went to the Secret Garden.

I posted some pix of that already here:

https://wizardofvegas.com/forum/las-vegas-casinos/mirage/36140-mini-report-pix-of-secret-garden-at-mirage/

but this one is my favorite:



STAY TUNED FOR MORE...........

I suspect they didn't forget the main character on the glass of the Pinball.

His image probably carried a hefty price tag for it's use.

Quote: darkoz

I suspect they didn't forget the main character on the glass of the Pinball.

His image probably carried a hefty price tag for it's use.

Tom is in his spacesuit with the sun visor down on the pinball machine. :)

And nice to see Lt Dan and Forrest re-united in Apollo 13 !

So, speaking of "foodies".....

I am more of an Ellis Island kind of guy. Can't beat the Steak special breakfast for $ 6.99.

BUT we also really like Batista's Hole in the Wall right across from Bally's. Entrees from $ 24 and up, including salad, bread, AND all the White and Red wine you care to drink. Woot x3.

Just call ahead for a reservation, the atmosphere inside is OLD SCHOOL Vegas Italian, much much nicer than you would think from seeing the outside next to the Stage Door Casino / Liquor store next door.

Did not know you were a notorious AP that needed camo

Quote: DeMango

Did not know you were a notorious AP that needed camo

Haha, well not yet. Of course if I were, would I admit it if I wanted to keep a low profile ? Anyway, just fyi, your profile picture didn't turn out too clearly either !

Just adding some pictures as time permits.

We couldn't get this room entirely comp'd for the 4th of July weekend, but it isn't going to bankrupt us either. I think the separate his/her sinks and separate closets is a nice touch. The shower stall is nice and big, and the bed is comfortable.

The view is pretty decent as well. I would look into booking this type of room again for whenever our next trip turns out to be.





Here's the restaurant in the Miracle Mile Shops that I mentioned:

We walked over to the Bellagio parking deck to watch the fireworks last night. We could see several of the buildings where they were launched from, and we had some "elbow room" vs being on a sidewalk on the Strip. I took some videos but didn't get any still pix. I'll see if Mrs Q did.

Here's the view:



I bought this postcard, and even though it doesn't have anything to do with this trip exactly, I thought it was fun because the HARMON tower is in it:

A few more pix:

"I am Groot":



I had some time and a car for one day so I drove down I-15 to see the Seven Magic Mountains art installation. I drove back on Las Vegas Blvd to see what there was to see.

There wasn't too much to see, lots of development of new housing I guess. I stopped back at the Pinball HoF.

So I try to do at least one new thing in Vegas each trip. For this trip, I have multiple "firsts":

1) Stayed at GVR

2) Stayed at ARIA

3) Hiked Big Falls Trail at Mt Charleston

4) Dollar Denom Royal Flush ( I have hit this before but not in Vegas )

5) Omega-Mart in Area 15

6) Visited New Location of Pinball HoF

7) Drove down and saw the Seven Magic Mountains display

8) Saw a Burrow in the Mt Charleston area

Aaaarrrggghhh.

Thanks SOUTHWEST AIRLINES, "there is an 'operational' delay but we can get you to your destination just 7 HOURS LATE". Which is crappy enough but our friends were going to pick us up at the airport.

So, we opted to reschedule our flights to tomorrow. And CZR was gracious enough to extend another night of Comp'd room for us at Planet Hollywood - we were a little anxious about that because we rescheduled our flights before finding a room.

Vegas just does not want you to go home yet. :)
Is this another Las Vegas "first"? Delayed return and extra night on a trip?
Hope you have a good evening and smooth trip home tomorrow.

Quote: Keeneone

Is this another Las Vegas "first"? Delayed return and extra night on a trip?

Unfortunately, NO.

1) A number of years ago, we were staying down in Primm. And on the drive up to the airport, there was an accident on I-15 North that closed the highway. We eventually got off and took Las Vegas Blvd which runs parallel to I-15.

We knew it would be close but we returned the rental car and checked in our baggage and got to the Gate as quickly as we could but we just missed getting on the plane by a few minutes.

And that's how we stayed at Terrible's.

2) This one is a bit embarassing. Even though I try to be very organized, I thought I had booked our flight home and when I was checking everything I confused myself with an itinerary from an earlier trip that year, so I hadn't booked it afterall.

I didn't figure out what happened until we were practically ready to go to the airport. Fortunately in that situation, we still had our hotel room ( I already had an "extra" night because the flight I thought we had was in the evening ) and I was able to book something for the following day with Frequent Flier points.

Nice trip report. Thanks for sharing, looking forward to your trip report to Reno/Lake Tahoe in the future. FYI..the 4th of July Fireworks in Tahoe is considered the top 5 in the USA. But this year was a big dud!

Quote: Keeneone

Vegas just does not want you to go home yet. :)

Well, at least SOUTHWEST airlines doesn't want us to.

On Tuesday we arrived at the airport, were at the gate, and then due to multiple flight delays we were re-routed on some terrible flights, so we re-booked to come home on Wednesday ( today ) with better more convenient flights.

On Wednesday morning, we get a text from SWA saying our last flight to home was CANCELLED about 1 hour before we were going to leave for the airport. That set off a flurry of activity:

- trying to contact SWA to find decent flights for today ( which was not successful ).
- rebooking something for tomorrow
- finding a hotel room again for tonight

Aaaaarrrrgggghhhh ! C'mon, we expect better from SWA, this is NOT Frontier/Spirit/Allegiant.

Quote: JohnnyQ

Aaaaarrrrgggghhhh ! C'mon, we expect better from SWA, this is NOT Frontier/Spirit/Allegiant.

Southwest is a mainline carrier now and has way too many rules to follow. When you fly Spirit or Allegiant they just go and don't worry about those warning lights in the cockpit. They will either get you there or die trying.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/airline-news/2021/07/05/southwest-american-airlines-flights-delayed-airport-lines-summer-travel/7865398002/

Excerpts:

This week, as Southwest officials braced for crowded flights over the holiday weekend, they offered to double pay for flight attendants and other employees who agree to extra work through Wednesday.

"The staffing shortage is across the board. On the pilot side, it's a training backlog," said Casey Murray, president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association. "Southwest came into the summer with very little margin."

and.....

Since June 14, Southwest has averaged more than 1,300 daily flight delays – a staggering 40% of its schedule – according to figures from tracking service Flightaware.com.

Anyone remember this classic episode:

OK, third time's a charm ? ? ?

We were supposed to leave on Tuesday, but here we are on Thursday at McCarran at the Gate at 4:37 am, fingers crossed that SOUTHWEST Airlines has a better day and doesn't cancel either of our flights.

Good luck! Have enjoyed reading your trip report.

They are beginning to line-up, so, so far, so good !

Woot woot. Made it to Midway ( Chicago ). Next flight is NOT cancelled. Hallelujah.

Spoke too soon.

Technically, my next flight is NOT cancelled. But once we boarded, the Pilot said he wanted to fix one of the air conditioning units before departing, so we sat and sat and sat. And then we got off the plane and walked down to another gate.

So hey, here's a thought:

Fly the plane !

I don't think air conditioning is a safety issue, so get everyone home. You have just disrupted 150 people by ~2 hours and ditto for everyone else who is going to fly on the next 4 segments for that aircraft. How many people are going to miss a connection ? TOO MANY ( but not me this time ).

OK, now there's an announcement to march to a different terminal.

(Edit to Remove Adult Language) DARN YOU SWA.



RECAP:

We were supposed to Fly Home on Tuesday.

We opted to book a flight on Wedn rather than spend ~16 hours in the airport.

Wedn flight cancelled.

Thurs flight delayed.

Uh, just in case anyone was worried, we did get home in the late afternoon on Thursday.

I sent a "contact-us" to SWA this morning just pointing out that I have had many great experiences with SWA, but that THIS was NOT one of them. We're talking about a total delay of about 48 HOURS. Crikey !

ps:

Also, for the record:

4) Dollar Denom Royal Flush ( I have hit this before but not in Vegas )

Must have been the Cuervo talking, but I did have a $ 1 RF earlier this year at Bally's.

So:

4) Longest trip to Vegas, 2 weeks and 6 days

Quote: JohnnyQ

I sent a "contact-us" to SWA this morning just pointing out that I have had many great experiences with SWA, but that THIS was NOT one of them. We're talking about a total delay of about 48 HOURS. Crikey !

Can I quote myself ?

Well, WHY NOT.

update:

SWA sent me an e-mail with a small voucher attached for my inconvenience. Mrs Q would have not bothered with it all. But, I don't make $ 200 at work for 20 minutes ( b4 taxes ), so good for me. I was right, SWA was wrong. Neverless, SWA was a bit on the cheap side here, methinks. 'Big-ly".

This resort is a good thing and i can say that there are really a lot of those that we can try to work out on in the long run. That should be easy for us to do since there are some of those which try to work it out in the good measure. You should even be able to see it for the better if you really want it.

Quote: naotoyoshida64

This resort is a good thing and i can say that there are really a lot of those that we can try to work out on in the long run. That should be easy for us to do since there are some of those which try to work it out in the good measure. You should even be able to see it for the better if you really want it.

link to original post

I'm assuming English is not your first language! But this is really not understandable.

Quote: JohnnyQ

update:

SWA sent me an e-mail with a small voucher attached for my inconvenience. Mrs Q would have not bothered with it all. But, I don't make $ 200 at work for 20 minutes ( b4 taxes ), so good for me. I was right, SWA was wrong. Neverless, SWA was a bit on the cheap side here, methinks. 'Big-ly".

I must have missed this the first time around. Thanks for the update, JQ! It's nice that SWA made an effort to compensate you, but yeah, seems like it should have been more.