Editor’s note: I, like many of you, love reading various Vegas trip reports. So, when a fellow obsessive planner wants to share their massive TR, complete with all the planning idiosyncrasies, I’m all for it. Below is part one of a multi-part TR from our friend @Snickers99Poker. Every day for the next week we’ll release another portion. Enjoy!
I should explain a few things before we get underway. This report is extremely long! I used to post these on another website, a little at a time but that website is pretty much abandoned. So I asked Vegas Fanboy if he wanted to post it. The report goes from the very beginning of the planning, through the trip, and ends with a little post-game wrap up.
I build the reports after I get home. Most of the time when I’m actually in Las Vegas, I write down what happened that day when I get back to my room. But sometimes I forget or am too tired. I did have to piece some things together from my tweets and from my texts back home. So everything might not be in exact order, but everything is included.
In my reports, I usually call women ‘chicks’. It’s a habit from writing all these reports over the years. I’m not using it as a derogatory term. Sometimes it seems right to use ‘woman’, sometimes it seems right to use ‘girl’ (even though I’m sure the person I’m referring to wouldn’t like it), depending on the actual person. So I just kinda settled on ‘chick’.
In the words of Vegas Fanboy…here we go!
Las Vegas Trip – June 2016
Sunday, December 27th (2015):
Another year, another trip to Las Vegas during the WSOP. But this could be my last one for a while as I’m being laid off at the end of April. I figure that in June of 2017 I could still be unemployed or have a new job but not enough vacation or money to go on a trip. Also, I’ll be turning 50 at the end of February and was planning on celebrating in Las Vegas. So this year we’re blowing it all out…staying in a really nice room, maybe gamble at a slightly higher level, maybe drink more. I was going to blow it out anyway because I’m turning 50 but losing my job just adds to the ‘do it now’ vibe.
I’m getting a pretty good severance package in early May and I should get my usual end-of-year bonus sometime in July. My plan is to take off May (not look for a job, etc.) and go to Vegas sometime in June. I might start applying for jobs in May but tell employers that I’m not available until I get back from Las Vegas or tell them I’m available but need that week off.
First thing then is to look for a nice room. I always wanted to stay at the Aria but to make sure I’m not missing anything, I take a Saturday afternoon and check out all the rooms at most of the hotels. I just use the dates of June fourth through June tenth as an example so I can get an idea of the prices and styles of rooms.
It was pretty interesting to see the differences in the rooms and their price at various hotels. I started at the lowest priced rooms and worked my way up. First off, I’m not spending more than around $2.1k or so. I know…that’s a lot of money for six nights. But we’re blowing it out, remember? So once a particular hotel’s prices got to that point, I stopped checking. No point in me finding out some kickass suite ends up being $8,000.
Anyway, the differences. For example, the first suite I came across at Harrah’s is 680 sq. ft., which is on the small size for a suite. Looks like ‘normal’ rooms average around 400 sq. ft. at the hotels I checked so 680 isn’t huge. The cost would be around $2,100. Meanwhile, the ones I’m looking at and serious considering at Aria are between 920 and 1,000 sq. ft. and the most expensive is around $2,300. So for an extra $200, I can stay in a huge Strip view suite in a hotel that’s about 1000x better than Harrah’s with a lot more amenities INCLUDING free airport transportation to and from the airport in a luxury car (some pages say a limo). No brainer. Some of the suites around town that are just under $2k seem nice but like I said, I’ve been wanting to stay at Aria.
Along with that change…staying at an expensive place rather than trying to find the cheapest…I’m going to try to get my girlfriend to go with me. I’m unsure about this because I do like being there alone. But two people cost the same as one in the hotel and I have enough Southwest points that we’d both be able to fly ‘free’. She is not a gambler but I bet she would like relaxing in a suite, going to the pool, and maybe the spa. But she’s not sure she wants to go.
Wednesday, January 6th:
Been doing some things in getting ready for Las Vegas. Usually I don’t start until mid-February…I’d start looking at rooms/flights and then the WSOP schedule would come out. I really don’t need to look at the schedule anymore since I stay away from the WSOP. I think I’ve had my fill for now. The big plan all along when I started these trips five or so years ago was to play in the Senior’s event in 2016 as that would be the first year I’d be eligible. But I don’t think I’m going to do that. I’ve come to really hate the Rio. It’s old, dirty, and needs upgrading. If I hear or see anything about the Rio, I just kinda make a face. If you’re going to the WSOP for the first time, then you HAVE to stay there. That’s the best way to fully take in the WSOP experience. Staying on the Strip last year, I think I’ll never stay at Rio unless it’s fully comped or something. Even if I was going to play the Senior’s event, I was planning on staying on the Strip and taking a taxi or Uber or something.
After doing my spreadsheet of hotel rooms, I decided to stay at Aria and narrowed it down to these different room types:
Corner Suite
Corner Suite Strip View
Corner Suite Panoramic
Tower Suite
Tower Suite Strip View
The cheapest of those is $1.8k, the most expensive is $2.3k. I figured I can deal with around $2k. I did some research online, looking at videos people posted on YouTube, etc. And I’d like a Strip view since it’s the 2016 Snickers Las Vegas blow out.
Later, I checked other dates than just the first week in June. Hmm. June 25th to July 1st is actually about $300 cheaper for each room. I don’t care about the WSOP schedule so I’m thinking I should pick this week. And with the rooms being cheaper, I also start looking at the next tier of rooms.
Bad idea. There is a kick ass room…One Bedroom Suite – Strip View. 1,050 sq. ft. Limo airport pick up and drop off. Private entrance to Aria, private elevators to suites, personalized concierge, 10″ tablet that controls lights, curtains, etc., three TVs, 1.5 baths, access to Sky Suites Lounge, panoramic corner view, complimentary laptop or iPad for use during stay, no-wait pass to the buffet, secluded lounge with free food & beverage (this might be the Sky Suites Lounge listed earlier), and so on. Some of those are offered in other rooms I was thinking of. Total price (fees, taxes, resort fee), $2.5 for six nights. Fuck. That’s a lot of money. Probably more than I’ve spent on individual trips in the past. Definitely more than last year. And I still have to have money for food and gambling.
I think and think and think. Read some reviews online. Verify with the reservation department that I get a full refund of my deposit should I cancel (the plan being to constantly check the prices and cancel/rebook if a cheaper price pops up) since the wording on cancellations is a little unclear. Fuck it. I don’t spend money on myself. Let’s do it. Treat myself. Out to the website, book the room, they take around $800 for a deposit (which is roughly 2x what I paid in total for last year for six nights at the Linq). Shit. That’s a lot of money. Especially for someone who knows they’re losing their job.
(Side note…the last time I was unemployed, I won a trip to Mexico. So I was unemployed while lying in a hammock in Mexico. Now I’ll be unemployed while gambling and staying in a suite in Las Vegas.)
I also check flights but I think it’s too early. Almost every year I end up booking right around my birthday in late February. I checked today through Southwest and it’s $440 although I have enough points that I don’t have to spend the cash (although more money for tickets means spending more points and I want to save my points for future trips). I like it to be under $400, so I’ll be watching those prices as well.
With the room booked, I can say it’s 171 days until my trip. Or almost 15 million seconds.
Thursday, January 28th:
I found out the other day that I was wasting a lot of time over the past couple of years. When I would check prices for flights, I would check the first date…fly out x, fly back y. And do that to get the price of each week I was thinking of going. Last week I found out there’s a monthly Southwest calendar that shows you the lowest prices for each day of the month. I always fly the cheapest rate (Wanna Get Away) so all I really needed to do was bring up June and look at the days I would be flying. So that’s what I’m doing this year. They’re still too expensive right now. Usually end of February seems like a good time to book a cheaper flight.
I’ve been checking the Aria suite price too. It did drop like $40, but that’s not enough for me to go through the hassle of canceling/rebooking. Now it’s back up to what I paid. I’ll keep checking.
I read on another site about a guy who stayed in a Sky Suite and he said the concierge emailed him before the trip asking for flight information so Aria can send a car to pick him up at the airport. Since I’m staying the last week in June, I thought maybe they would send me an email earlier in June. Nope. Got it like two weeks ago. I wrote back saying I hadn’t made my flight plans yet. I didn’t tell him that I’ll probably be canceling my reservation and booking at a cheaper price…if it drops.
Tuesday, February 23rd:
Been about a month since an update because nothing is really going on. The flights are still the same price…$440. I think I paid a tad over $400 one year, but all the others have been under $400. I’m not paying $440. Usually it seems I end up booking on my birthday, which is this Saturday. So maybe I’ll have the flight booked by the end of the weekend.
The room rate has dropped. But only by about $60. I know $60 is $60, but it doesn’t seem enough for me to go through the hassle of canceling/rebooking. I think I’ll wait and hope it goes down more. But as I write this, $60 is a lot of money. I mean, that’s one awesome dinner or a couple of so so meals. But I think I’ll still wait. If it goes up, I won’t be crushed that I could have saved $60.
123 days until the trip.
Wednesday, March 9th:
Another quickie…price for room went up and is now more expensive than what I got it for. I check just about every day. I suppose that’s the good news because the flight prices keep going up. June 25th has hold steady at $220 (I really don’t want to pay more than $200 each way). But the return flight is now up to $332. That’s bananas. Considering I’ve paid less than $400 round trip every year except one, I am NOT paying $332 for one flight. $552 total? F that. I might have to cut my trip short by a day which would save me a couple hundred in flight and hotel.
Monday, March 21st:
I was duped. I was ‘forced’ to buy my flight tickets at the higher price. I figured I would just book it now and hope the price drops before June. So I booked the flight. Fly out Saturday, June 25…fly back Friday, July 1.
The next day, I check the prices and the price of the return flight…the one I’m not happy I paid so much for…had dropped like $110. Sweet! I go to change my reservations and, well, this is where I was duped. OK, I wasn’t actually duped. I was being stupid. I was looking at the wrong flight. Not only did my flight back to Pittsburgh not drop in price, it’s now sold out! So no wonder the ticket was so much…I might have bought the last seat.
I check the flights leaving a day earlier and staying a day longer. Both are about $110 cheaper than what I paid. I could save a nice chunk of money by leaving a day earlier…save on the flight and one less night in the expensive Aria Sky Suite. Or I could blow more money by adding a day to my trip.
But here’s the kicker. I’m not actually paying for the flight. I’m using my Southwest points. So the expensive ticket is costing me points, not money. So why am I worried about it? After buying my flight, I should have enough points to pay for next year’s trip. And I might not even go next year. I’m being laid off at the end of April so I don’t know if I’ll have the money or if I have a job, enough vacation days. So after fretting over this, I decided to do nothing. I’ll still check the flight prices, but I’m not going to change my dates.
I’ve been checking the hotel prices and they are fluctuating, but are still not cheaper than what I booked it at. I think this is it…I think my flight and hotel prices have been locked in. Don’t think either one of them will be dropping their prices.
97 days until the trip. Or 8,380,800 seconds according to the date calculator web site.
UPDATE! After I wrote all that, I checked out the Southwest flights again. And now the flight home is $220 when I paid $332 or something. I don’t understand airlines. How did it go from $332 on Friday when I bought it, flight was sold out on Saturday when I checked, and now it’s $220 on Monday? At any rate, changed my reservations to take advantage and saved $110 (or 8,893 points). Now I definitely have enough points for next year and should earn enough points before 2018 to have that flight covered as well. Again, as long as I can actually go.
Following along all this week, as Part Two comes out tomorrow.
