My apologies for a delay in approving some of your Comments and answering some of your questions. Brad and I have been out of town for several days and then I have been down with some respiratory problems. But now I am back. (By the way, I do not respond quickly to people who shout at me – that’s what you are doing when you type in all caps!)
I knew there would be controversy if I wrote about Caesars. Here is what you need to remember: No one casino – or group of casinos – fits the needs, goals, or likes of every gambler. A quarter player might not understand why a dollar and higher player likes Caesars. An advantage player might not understand why a recreational player plays at a particular Caesar property. A local player and an out-of-towner have different goals. EVERYONE has varying tastes in food choices. Some players don’t bother checking vpFREE2 to see that there are some “good” games at some Caesars so they make blanket statements about no good games. Maybe these aren’t in a denomination with which you are comfortable or are in a location that is convenient for you, but that does not mean it isn’t a good play for someone else. Each Caesars property, although under the same corporate umbrella and with one players club, has many of its own policies and definitely individual marketing strategies. So what I say about one in Vegas may have nothing to do with one in Biloxi or Atlantic City.
Let me explain – once again – how we choose where and what we play, and that includes Caesars properties. We have one goal in our video poker play – to be playing at an advantage. These days that almost never means for us a game with an EV over 100%. We have to add on extras like slot club benefits, bounce-back mailings, tournaments, drawings, multiple-point days. The lower the game EV the more and better extras we have to have. We can not find a good play at all Caesars properties. In the past we have had to travel to other cities to find one; it is only recently that local properties started showing us some love with excellent offers. How long that will last no one knows. We pick up and drop casinos all the time.
My blog was an informal food report, extra information mainly for people who already play at Caesars Palace. It was not meant as a reason to play there or at any higher denomination than you normally do. Whenever I mention a comp that we receive or like, that is NEVER the basic reason why we play at that particular casino. Comps for us have always been just a wonderful “side effect.” We never count them into our original figuring as to the EV of a certain play and whether that would be a good choice for us, that is, would it be an advantage play.
One additional note about Caesar’s buffet that someone reminded me about: You can pay a fee to bypass the regular line and go through the quicker VIP one. Don’t know the details about this, like how much it is and whether one person can pay it for a whole party or if each person would have to pay extra. Some feel it is an outragous fee for a too-expensive choice in the first place. Others would consider this a small price to save you time so you could enjoy a top-of-the-line culinary treat. Different strokes for different folks, as the old saw goes.
Related to that, someone asked about the “sterling brunch at Caesars.” That highly-regarded but expensive Las Vegas standard is not at Caesars Palace but at Bally’s. We have never eaten there but have heard various opinions, from “Well worth the price” to “Highly overpriced and disappointing.”
I will continue this discussion, addressing more of your questions and concerns, in my next blog entry.
Jean, I wanted to follow-up with you on my recent request for any information you may have regarding Caesars Ent. charging Resort Fees. Today, my husband (Gold member)booked a room for one night March 20 at the Quad($31/nt)and he was told that he will be charged a $10.00 resort fee on top of that.
I have been Diamond level since Total Rewards began and maintained this relationship with Caesars/Harrahs because they refused to charge resort fees (at least not for comped rooms). I fly SouthWest because they refused to charge for checked baggage, I avoid banks that charge hidden or unnecessary fees – call me a “Fee-Fighter” cause I hate being “Fee’d On”.. (sorry)
I’m beginnig to feel a bit “sequestered”. Jean, do you have any advise or info regarding the new resort fees, or how we can fight them?
I know I’m late to the party, but just wanted to state that I used to make a twice-yearly trip to Vegas. My last trip was about four years ago. After I got home, I received a survey requesting my opinion on my trip. I replied that I had read on the internet that Harrah’s (at the time) properties did not pay off, and I was proof of that after spending thousands of dollars there and never hitting a thing. I now take advantage of the cruise offers that I receive from Caesars Windsor and see no reason to visit Vegas.
Have you heard anything about Caesar’s Ent. Properties in Las Vegas adding resort fees starting March 1, 2013?
I MOSTLY TYPE WITH ONE FINGER, NOT A GOOD TYPIST AT ALL.
ALL CAPS MEANS NOTHING EXTRA, SUCH AS YOU THINKING ITS IN ANGER. I HIT CAPS LOCK & I CAN GO & NOT WORRY ABOUT SRARTING SENTENCES WITH A CAP. MAYBE YOU’RE EXAGGERATING ABOUT ANGER ISSUES. TRY ALL CAPS SOMEDAY, MAYBE YOU’LL SEE THE EASE.
Also remember that Caesars comps can be earned and spent around the country. The Atlantic City properties have full-pay video poker, and you can spend the comps in Vegas.
My dear Mrs. Scott,
a few years ago Harrah’s (before it became Caesars) ran a promotion where, if you visited three of six casinos on and off strip, they gave you a $10.00 food coupon. If you visited the other three in the same day you received another coupon worth $20.00 for a total of $30.00 a day free food at any of their restaurants. A person could do this promotion on a daily basis for the couple of months that it ran (they stopped it earlier than was originally posted). My wife and I live in the Kingman Az area and we actually made three extra trips to Las Vegas to partake of that promotion. The Sterling Brunch at Bally’s was $65.00 at that time and I called to see if they would take the coupons. They said yes and we got to try it for free. The lobster tails were very small and almost tateless, but the rest of food was delicious.
I even got to try the caviar, but it was just fishy tasting sand to me. The champagne was very good, but I don’t drink a lot of wine or I would have been slightly inebriated on leaving. We won’t do the brunch again, however, since the seating in the main room is reserved for seven-star and possibly diamond players only.
That’s my frugal story and it remains one of our favorite Vegas tales over our thirty plus years of visiting there. It was great to meet Brad and you at the Queens. (I put Brad first since I met him first) Hope you both enjoy good health from now on. And, as always,may the gambling be great and the royals many!!!
Rich
Concerning the Capital Letters…
I think most people that type only capital letters cannot see the lower case letters as well as the capital ones they are typing, so maybe that’s why they type Capital letters only.
This is NOT meant to be contorversial, just something that is really bothering me about the Cesars’ properties in Vegas and Laughlin. In the calendar year 2012, I put in $411,xxx.xx and recycled more than $2.5 million all over Vegas and Laughlin. I have W2-Gs from almost all other casinos chains…and despite the huge amount of money I placed at Cesars’ not a single win (W2-G)there. I know the saying right place, right time, but at some point, there had to have been a right place and right time in the 115,xxx tier credits(at $10/tier credit for my (only VP) play there) tier credits I earned at this casino chain. Yet NOTHING. I spent less elsewhere and won more. Any thoughts? My profit for 2012 is $11,xxx.xx so I am ahead, but a $10,000 (approx) loss at Cesars has made me vow never to go back despite my 2013 Diamond status.
We have been reading your frugal vegas for years. We are from Florida and very small quarter players on video poker double double bonus is our favorite. We have stayed at many properties and have been coming to vegas for many many years. We have always been comped rooms at rio, ballys, harrahs and flamingo. We stayed at flamingo mainly because of location and the pool. We are 69 and 64 years old. We were just there at the end of Jan comped except weekends. When we booked the room we were going to also book in the summer the rooms still comped on the calendar but thought we would wait. This time we played about double our usual amount and got a lot more points. When we returned home the rooms were no longer comped even the sewer Quad wasn’t comped. I emailed and got a general reply not specific to why the comped rooms were gone. We get comped orleans and we don’t play there much. Guess we will stay there we love Big Als. My question is why did they change our comps so much. Thank you Jean for letting me vent. Keep up the super work.
Running into Dick Butkus, even at his current age, was probably still a painful experience ; )
Jean, on a more serious note, I can only speak for myself (although I am confident that many share my opinion)when I say that I find your blog a “must-read”, even though I rarely make the trek to Vegas. Aside from being well-written, it is interesting, informative and the messages contained have application wherever one chooses to play VP.
Thank YOU! (Not yelling at you; caps are for emphasis)
Great info. Sorry some people shout at you.
Have read your stuff for years.
Keep up the good work, and don’t let those rude people
bother you!
Jean, to the commenter about mailings from Caesars properties in Vegas: Caesars sent messages out about two months ago, stating that they were eliminating all mailings from Vegas (only),and that any offers received would be by email and/or in your “offers” under your account. All other Caesars properties throughout the country still do mailings.
Oh, on the food issue, I,too, am very unhappy about the prices at (Harrah’s). They upped the price of the breakfast buffet up to $19.95 ….outrageous! Also, “The Cafe” is now only open until 2:00 p.m. No open in the evenings. My host says he’s received MANY complaints about these issues.
Yes, Payard is an EXCELLENT place to eat. Ran into Dick Butkus there a while back during breakfast.
You are so right about the various casinos and how their “benefits” change. We recently switched back to MGM in the Detroit area, because they started showing us “love” again. The “love” is free play and generous food credits. We like it, so we play there.
Sorry about the morons that insist on shouting via CAPS..it must be sad being that mad in life. Oh well, please keep up the good work and very glad you are feeling better.
The Sterling Buffet at Bally’s is great!