Green Valley Ranch: Hotel
I don't think I'll do a formal review of the property, but here is a brief rundown:
Cost: Comped. Initial receipt showed full room rate and full resort fees. About had a heartattack at check-in.
Room: 2 double bed normal room. It's an odd vegas hotel in that there's really no tower. In fact, my room was one floor below the casino level.
Pros:
-Big TV, with enough channels to actually spend time in the room. Coming from AC where ESPN and/or USA are not offered, that was a big plus.
-BEAUTIFUL property. The grounds are just as nice as most upscale strip properties
-full-pay VP and 10X odds on craps.
-Between the casino itself and the adjoining shopping area, there are plenty of good restaurant options. That didn't stop me from limiting my dining to Panda Express and Fatburger, though.
-The theater was very nice and reasonably priced. $8.50 to see Hangover 3 at a late matinee yesterday. Decent movie, too. Better than the second one, not that that's saying a whole lot.
-There is a Mississippi Stud table at this Las Vegas casino. I didn't think that happened anymore!
-It seems like Stations properties all have 2 or 3 (but not 4) of the following: theater, bowling alley, bingo hall, poker room. I thought the theater/bingo/poker combo here was a good blend.
-(edit) I never heard another guest from within my room. This was easily the quietest hotel I've ever stayed in.
Cons:
-cheap beds. I'm used to hotel beds either being too lofty (like a pillowtop) or too stiff. This bed was...mushy. Like it had been a regular discount mattress in a past life, and had just given up hope.
-Irregular shower temperature control. Twice (in 4 days) I had to turn the shower all the way to hot to make it warm enough to use. On one of those occasions, it then warmed through the shower to the point where I had to keep turning the temp down to avoid scalding. This was probably unsafe for use by children.
-Weak selection of slots. I don't really play, but I was trying to kill several hours yesterday by watching and there were very few unique games. Maybe that's because so much of the floor is taken up by full-pay VP machines.
-Layout. The casino is on floor 2. The hotel lobby is on floor G (2 floors down). Getting from the lobby to my east-wing room involved either walking on the pool deck outside or going from G to 2, then back down to 1 on the elevators in the east wing.
-Layout. The hotel valet/check-in and the closest parking garage to the hotel are on opposite sides of the building. It was almost a mile's drive to get from the check-in lane to the "215" parking garage.
Miscellaneous:
-I think Teddy's review mentioned that nothing was walkable from the property. I disagree. I wouldn't want to walk it in August, but there's a Target, Walgreens, and CVS about a mile south on Green Valley. I made that walk on Friday evening without incident. I suppose the distance limits the number of items that can be comfortably carried back to the room, but this was a pleasant walk through a good neighborhood.
Bottomline: There were some issues and annoyances on my stay. I'd return, but I wouldn't pay to stay at GVR if I could stay at a second-tier Stations property for free (which is usually my situation - not sure how/why GVR was comped on this holiday weekend...).
Hopefully this playing session will be enough to score me a comp invite up front.
Quote: rdw4potus
-The theater was very nice and reasonably priced. $8.50 to see Hangover 3 at a late matinee yesterday... I made that walk on Friday evening without incident. I suppose the distance limits the number of items that can be comfortably carried back to the room, but this was a pleasant walk through a good neighborhood.
.
These are two things it would never even occur
to me to do in Vegas. See a movie? WTH? Why
would I waste 2 hours IN VEGAS at a movie theatre?
Walking? I can walk at home. Again, I never have
enough time when I'm in Vegas, why would I spend
10 seconds of it walking if I didn't have to. People
have different priorities, I guess.
Quote: EvenBobThese are two things it would never even occur
to me to do in Vegas. See a movie? WTH? Why
would I waste 2 hours IN VEGAS at a movie theatre?
Walking? I can walk at home. Again, I never have
enough time when I'm in Vegas, why would I spend
10 seconds of it walking if I didn't have to. People
have different priorities, I guess.
About the movie - funds were low, man! $8.50 was a cheap price to pay to keep from gambling for 150 minutes!
About the walk - 5 hour flight in a frigid plane + stiff back = 2 mile walk at dusk in the perfect Vegas weather.
Also, and I'll edit my original post, I thought of you on Monday when I realized that I'd never heard another guest at all from inside my room. Not even a little bit. Quietest hotel I've ever been in. You might've been able to get by with only 2 sets of ear protection:-)
Quote: rdw4potusAbout the movie - funds were low, man! $8.50 was a cheap price to pay to keep from gambling for 150 minutes!
I can see movies at home, I'm in Vegas to play. There's
not enough hours in the day. But I never gamble, so
maybe for you there aren't enough movie theatres..
Quote: EvenBobI can see movies at home, I'm in Vegas to play. There's
not enough hours in the day. But I never gamble, so
maybe for you there aren't enough movie theatres..
Hmmm...well, the BJ and Craps rules in Vegas are worse than they are at home, so I usually go to Vegas for warmth and to see friends.
You never gamble? I thought your trip report was all about roulette conditions in Vegas. Did you not play roulette when you were in town?
Quote: rdw4potusAbout the movie - funds were low, man! $8.50 was a cheap price to pay to keep from gambling for 150 minutes!
I've seen movies in Vegas. I think it's a nice respite from the casino, and like RD points out, the expected loss is not too
high AND it is known ! I saw INCEPTION and the latest BATMAN over the past couple of years.
Quote: EvenBobThese are two things it would never even occur
to me to do in Vegas. See a movie? WTH? Why
would I waste 2 hours IN VEGAS at a movie theatre?
Walking? I can walk at home. Again, I never have
enough time when I'm in Vegas, why would I spend
10 seconds of it walking if I didn't have to. People
have different priorities, I guess.
But I thought Vegas sucked these days, Bob?
Quote: rdw4potusDid you not play roulette when you were in town?
Roulette isn't gambling for me. Its the only
game in the casino I see. That and bac.
Quote: rdw4potusIt seems like Stations properties all have 2 or 3 (but not 4) of the following: theater, bowling alley, bingo hall, poker room. I thought the theater/bingo/poker combo here was a good blend.
Doesn't Texas Station have all four? Then again, if I had to choose between Texas and GVR, it's no contest, of course.
Quote: EvenBobRoulette isn't gambling for me. Its the only
game in the casino I see. That and bac.
I just assumed that you had some kind of AP play unrelated to Roulette or bac that you preferred not to talk about. Are you +EV at roulette?
R: Most people wouldn't make that walk since you have to go over the freeway. Traffic can be annoying for pedestrians. That said, there is a lot of stuff down there for "regular people" (like a Smith's and some banks) that doesn't exist in the "District" pedestrian mall.
Quote: teddysI can't believe they opened a bingo hall in the space where Ovation used to be.
R: Most people wouldn't make that walk since you have to go over the freeway. Traffic can be annoying for pedestrians. That said, there is a lot of stuff down there for "regular people" (like a Smith's and some banks) that doesn't exist in the "District" pedestrian mall.
Yeah, it's a pretty funny bingo hall. I didn't play, but it definitely felt like it was oddly central and emphasized.
There's definitely a Walgreens (open 24 hours) north across 215. And a CVS near there as well. But I actually walked to the shopping area south of GVR at Green Valley and Horizon Ridge. It was a very easy walk. I think Paseo Verde and Horizon Ridge were the only remotely major intersections in the whole walk.
Quote: PokeraddictRed Rock has all four.
I guess several Stations do. It's the poker rooms that tripped me up the most. I can't picture where many of them are, but apparently most of the properties do have poker rooms: http://stationcasinospoker.com/
If they're silly enough to comp my stay in October, I think Red Rock is next on my list. I'm a little worried about how my smallish play at GVR will affect my future offers.
Quote: teddysI can't believe they opened a bingo hall in the space where Ovation used to be.
Wasn't that a showroom in which they held concerts? Is bingo really that popular there?
Quote: RaleighCrapsI was impressed with the property, and will take my wife back out there for some casino time when we hit Vegas again, end of July.
Hopefully this playing session will be enough to score me a comp invite up front.
Did you make it over to GVR in July? Still pretty nice?
Quote: IAchance5Did you make it over to GVR in July? Still pretty nice?
I have been busy and grew too lazy to write up a trip report. Now my memory is suffering :-(
We went to GVR around 6:30 AM on a Friday, if I remember correctly. We wanted to get on the craps table early in the morning, hopefully by ourselves.
My wife went off to play slots, while I settled into the only open craps table. I am brain dead at the moment, but IIRC, it was a $5 game.
I can no longer recall the specifics of the craps game. But the Cliff Notes version goes like this, I was up double my buy in, played too long, lost it all.
I decided to get a player card after I had been there for a couple of hours, and they were very agreeable to getting me the card, AND gave me credit for all of my play up to that point. Apparently, they had been tracking my play as an uncarded player, so they were able to give me credit. That was very nice of them.
The dealers were personable and very nice. They quickly caught on to the 4 or 5 ways I generally bet, and would remind me if I was missing a number. They were appreciative of the times I made dealer bets, and did not act like they were entitled to them. I like playing craps at GVR.
GVR has a shuttle that goes to the Wynn. You have to be a guest of the hotel to use the shuttle. The shuttle goes to the Wynn 4x a day I think. 30 minutes before departure, you go to the bellhop desk and request a boarding pass. First come, first served. When the passes are handed out, everyone else is SOL. We had ridden to GVR with a local player, and since we wanted to stay at GVR a while longer, I asked the floor if I could get 2 seats on the shuttle back to Wynn (and we would walk from Wynn to Paris). The brought in a host, who reviewed my play, gave me his card, and said it was all arranged. We could take the shuttle back. The host also indicated I could have a room comp'd for any future trips, just give him a call.
I then settled in for about an hour of $.25 JoB play, on a $100 bill. We then decided to hit the buffet, but since I had been too dumb to ask for a buffet comp when I was at the craps tables, and I could not find any hosts, we ended up paying the buffet fee. Finding a host at GVR can be a bit of a problem, but this was my fault. I should have been thinking ahead a bit more. Buffet was EXCELLENT! Very good food and a good selection.
We then walked out to the pool area. It is also very nice. It is supposed to be hotel guests only, but no one challenged us for room keys, so we were able to look around and then head back inside. Here is where things get a bit uncomfortable. The lady at the bell desk seemed a bit annoyed when I gave her the host card and said he had arranged 2 shuttle seats for us. My wife would say she was rude, I just say she was curt. My guess is it is a power struggle between the hotel operations and the casino operations, and the hotel operations doesn't appreciate the casino calling in requests like a shuttle ride. I may be way off the mark, but I suspect not.
In any event, she said the next shuttle was not for a couple of hours, and we should come back 30 minutes before the time. So we had 1.5 hours to kill.
We went back up to the casino, and I decided to see if there were any promotions to go with my new player card. There was supposed to have been $10 in Free Slot Play put on the card. I checked in with them twice but I never did get the Free Slot Play to work. I did get a few entries into their sweepstakes drawings, but no check has arrived in my mail yet, so I guess I did not win any prizes.
We arrived back at the bell desk 40 minutes before the shuttle departure. I picked up a shuttle schedule from the same annoyed lady (who was still curt), and this schedule indicated there SHOULD have been a shuttle about the time we were there originally. Not sure if it was full, or perhaps they skipped one run, or perhaps she was just exercising her control by not letting us board the first one. Who knows. In any event, she would not give me a pass. I was TOO EARLY. She was right, I was 10 minutes too early. I also think for as highly as GVR rates itself, that was being a bit petty. We sat in a very nice lobby, people watching, and chatting. With 2 minutes to go, I saw another gal go up to the desk and get 2 passes for the shuttle, so I sauntered up and picked up passes #3 and #4. Clerk was still ANNOYED.
I would love to know why she was like that. I don't take too much to heart, and everyone has a bad day, but she could easily have turned me off to GVR. Now it is not going to change their numbers if I am, or am not, a future guest. But she really couldn't have known that. All she knew was the casino host had arranged transport. I suppose that she could have reasoned that if I was that important to the host, a limo would have been arranged, so perhaps she rightfully pegged me as a minor annoyance, and treated me the same. LOL
GVR is supposed to have a very nice spa. We did not get a chance to look at any of that. The hotel staff does try and put on that stuffed shirt air. I was not really a guest, so I cannot comment as to whether or not they really come through, or just pretend. But everything else about the place is very nice. Not sure I would be happy paying $200 / night for a room there, but it does seem as nice as anything I have been in on the strip.
Quote: IAchance5Thanks for all the info Raleigh, sorry to hear about that crappy hotel attendant...BTW, was it the lunch or dinner buffet that was really good?
We did the lunch buffet.
1. Largest non smoking area I've ever seen in a casino. It's a full section, probably about 75-100 machines. Good mix of machines, including full pay poker. Of course many of the fun gimmicky slots aren't there due to the size limitation, but if you are a poker or keno player and you don't smoke, you'll love this section.
2. Three brand new really good restaurants. Borracha (mexican), Bottaglia (Italian), and Pizza Rock, (also Italian). Borracha is very hip, but a bit pricey for the food. Good food though. Bottaglia is also a bit pricy, their steak was awesome though at 33.00, and you can get a buy one get one free entree if you eat there on Sundays. Pizza rock is also pricey but also very good. (Pro tip, if you like their lasagna, you can get the same one for half the price at their little location in the fast food area of the casino) All the restaurants have been pretty busy since they opened, far more so then China Spice or Terra Verde.
3. High Roller Room and bar. If you are high roller, this is a very nice area to play in. Very nice bar area, and a room with about 40ish machines. Very generous pours at the bar. (On the con side, the room (non bar area) is all too often ignored and you have to remind the pleasant bartenders at the bar that you are in there.
4. Usually plenty of change folks meandering around. Fairly fast service and always friendly.
5. Somebody mentioned in a prior post, why would you see a movie in vegas? Because none of the locals ever do. Theaters are empty, comfortable and easy to get into. You'll get the seat you want.
6. Buffet is a solid B. It's not amazing, and after 20 years they really could reinvent it and make it so much better, but it's still a cut above most of the Station buffets and most of the strip buffets at a reasonable price. Pretty darn good crab legs on Fridays for 28 bucks.
7. Very nice sports book. Again, solid B. Nothing out of this world, but functional with lots of space.
8. I've had 3 casino hosts. One retired, one I ditched within days, and my current one who treats me like a high roller even though I'm not. I did make chairman once, but generally stay at President level. Plenty of comps, never turned me down, although I don't abuse the requests either.
9. Rooms are very nice. Down comforters and down pillows, nice bathrooms. We've stayed dozens of times and never encountered any ac, shower or any other issues.
10. Very nice pool area.
11. Right out the door is the district, a shopping area with boutiques and about a dozen restaurants. Very nice diversion from gambling.
12. A half mile away is a Smiths, Walgrens, and a Whole Foods. Also a Wells Fargo and Bank of America. Wendys as well, but Fatburger in the casino is about 9 million times better.
13. Fiesta casino and Sunset Casino are both about 10 minute drives if you want a change of gambling venues.
14. I can't get Hank's (Their steakhouse) to get my steak right for the life of me. Undercooked every single time in spite of ordering it medium well just to possibly get the steak to show up without it bleeding all over my plate. Luckily the new Hammer steak at Bottiglia is half the price of the Hank's Ribeye and was seasoned and delivered perfectly.
15. Cocktail waitresses everywhere. On average, you'll see one every 15 minutes, if not more often. On rare occasions, when the main server is on break, sometimes the breaker schedule fails and you'll experience delays. It's a rare exception. If it happens, if you remind a change person, they'll track one down pretty quickly for you. Almost all of the servers there are very friendly. Reasonable selection of brands for cocktails.
16. Vast assortment of slots. Pretty much anything you want and plenty of new ones that rotate in all the time. Lots of keno machines, lots of poker machines, lots of goofy machines.
17. Very good slot club.
18. Plenty of parking both outside and underground.
19. Coffee shop is a coffee shop. It's hit or miss. Usually not very busy. Our last resort among all the options there.
20. Easy to get too if you are visiting. Right off the freeway, 10 minutes from Mandalay Bay side of the strip. Straight shot down the 215 freeway.
21. Bingo room, live keno area. (Don't use them myself, but they are there if you like that sort of thing.)
22. Tons of penny machines.
I can't think of anything else at the moment, but if you have any specific questions, I'd be glad to help with them if I can. I'm pretty familiar with Sunset Station and M as well, but GVR is my go to location.
Quote: denstarr
7. Very nice sports book. Again, solid B. Nothing out of this world, but functional with lots of space.
14. I can't get Hank's (Their steakhouse) to get my steak right for the life of me. Undercooked every single time in spite of ordering it medium well just to possibly get the steak to show up without it bleeding all over my plate. Luckily the new Hammer steak at Bottiglia is half the price of the Hank's Ribeye and was seasoned and delivered perfectly.
I found the ticket writers for the horses rude and they have lost my business.
Also I have heard wonderful things about Hanks, but have yet to get there, good to know about the undercooking.
Quote: denstarrThought I'd give you a far more detailed and in depth review of GVR, as I have visited the property hundreds of times since it opened.
1. Largest non smoking area I've ever seen in a casino. It's a full section, probably about 75-100 machines. Good mix of machines, including full pay poker. Of course many of the fun gimmicky slots aren't there due to the size limitation, but if you are a poker or keno player and you don't smoke, you'll love this section.
2. Three brand new really good restaurants. Borracha (mexican), Bottaglia (Italian), and Pizza Rock, (also Italian). Borracha is very hip, but a bit pricey for the food. Good food though. Bottaglia is also a bit pricy, their steak was awesome though at 33.00, and you can get a buy one get one free entree if you eat there on Sundays. Pizza rock is also pricey but also very good. (Pro tip, if you like their lasagna, you can get the same one for half the price at their little location in the fast food area of the casino) All the restaurants have been pretty busy since they opened, far more so then China Spice or Terra Verde.
3. High Roller Room and bar. If you are high roller, this is a very nice area to play in. Very nice bar area, and a room with about 40ish machines. Very generous pours at the bar. (On the con side, the room (non bar area) is all too often ignored and you have to remind the pleasant bartenders at the bar that you are in there.
4. Usually plenty of change folks meandering around. Fairly fast service and always friendly.
5. Somebody mentioned in a prior post, why would you see a movie in vegas? Because none of the locals ever do. Theaters are empty, comfortable and easy to get into. You'll get the seat you want.
6. Buffet is a solid B. It's not amazing, and after 20 years they really could reinvent it and make it so much better, but it's still a cut above most of the Station buffets and most of the strip buffets at a reasonable price. Pretty darn good crab legs on Fridays for 28 bucks.
7. Very nice sports book. Again, solid B. Nothing out of this world, but functional with lots of space.
8. I've had 3 casino hosts. One retired, one I ditched within days, and my current one who treats me like a high roller even though I'm not. I did make chairman once, but generally stay at President level. Plenty of comps, never turned me down, although I don't abuse the requests either.
9. Rooms are very nice. Down comforters and down pillows, nice bathrooms. We've stayed dozens of times and never encountered any ac, shower or any other issues.
10. Very nice pool area.
11. Right out the door is the district, a shopping area with boutiques and about a dozen restaurants. Very nice diversion from gambling.
12. A half mile away is a Smiths, Walgrens, and a Whole Foods. Also a Wells Fargo and Bank of America. Wendys as well, but Fatburger in the casino is about 9 million times better.
13. Fiesta casino and Sunset Casino are both about 10 minute drives if you want a change of gambling venues.
14. I can't get Hank's (Their steakhouse) to get my steak right for the life of me. Undercooked every single time in spite of ordering it medium well just to possibly get the steak to show up without it bleeding all over my plate. Luckily the new Hammer steak at Bottiglia is half the price of the Hank's Ribeye and was seasoned and delivered perfectly.
15. Cocktail waitresses everywhere. On average, you'll see one every 15 minutes, if not more often. On rare occasions, when the main server is on break, sometimes the breaker schedule fails and you'll experience delays. It's a rare exception. If it happens, if you remind a change person, they'll track one down pretty quickly for you. Almost all of the servers there are very friendly. Reasonable selection of brands for cocktails.
16. Vast assortment of slots. Pretty much anything you want and plenty of new ones that rotate in all the time. Lots of keno machines, lots of poker machines, lots of goofy machines.
17. Very good slot club.
18. Plenty of parking both outside and underground.
19. Coffee shop is a coffee shop. It's hit or miss. Usually not very busy. Our last resort among all the options there.
20. Easy to get too if you are visiting. Right off the freeway, 10 minutes from Mandalay Bay side of the strip. Straight shot down the 215 freeway.
21. Bingo room, live keno area. (Don't use them myself, but they are there if you like that sort of thing.)
22. Tons of penny machines.
I can't think of anything else at the moment, but if you have any specific questions, I'd be glad to help with them if I can. I'm pretty familiar with Sunset Station and M as well, but GVR is my go to location.
Terrific report!
I would add two positive points.
GVR and most Stations' properties have very good video poker. In fact, one of the few operators that still offesr FPDW.
Food courts are food courts, but GVR does have Fatburger for fresh cooked hamburgers. I'll grab one and head to the sportsbook. Even though it is an independent restaurant chain, you can still redeem points at the food court location.
