Las Vegas thread and MSE guide 2009 part 2

sho_me_da_money

Ok peeps ive done it. And i've paid more than wanted but went for the following:

MGM Grand - 15th Nov - 21st Nov

Promotion inclusions:
* $35 Beverage credit
* $25 Spa credit
* 2 complimentary admissions to Studio 54 or Tabu
* 15% off retail

Treasure Island - 22nd Nov - 25th Nov

Exclusive 15%-30% web only discount!

15% Discount
•Exclusive 15% discount for advanced bookings between 30 -60 days prior to check in date

20% Discount
•Exclusive 20% discount for advanced bookings between 61-90 days prior to check in date

30% Discount
•Exclusive 30% web only discount for advanced bookings more than 91 days prior to check in date

MGM Signature - Nov 26th & Nov 27th

* $50 golf credit
* $50 resort credit
* $25 Grand Spa credit
* 2 complimentary admission to Studio 54 or Tabu
* Complimentary bottle of wine after arrival

Total - $1,249.48

Think i've done a gooden? And are these hotels far apart from each other?

Now it's time to find some cheap flights - any tips or deals you know of? (leaving Manchester)

Thanks for all the help

ferf1223

October , November

Signature and MGM are next to each other.

Treasure Island is mid-strip - the north end of mid-strip, but mid-strip. Think you did right leaving Signature for last as it's likely to be the nicest room by far.

Derp - totally forgot about TI being sold...so anyone who saw that, ignore me.

And assuming the bookings are refundable, you can always have a further poke around and see what other things might pop up.

sho_me_da_money

ferf1223 wrote: »

Signature and MGM are next to each other.

Treasure Island is mid-strip - the north end of mid-strip, but mid-strip. Think you did right leaving Signature for last as it's likely to be the nicest room by far.

Derp - totally forgot about TI being sold...so anyone who saw that, ignore me.

And assuming the bookings are refundable, you can always have a further poke around and see what other things might pop up.

Cheers dude!

I think we won't over complicate this as it's our first time in LV. How much will it cost to travel from MGM to mid-strip?

And please guys, if you spot any flight deals from Manchester to LV (departing 15th and returning 28th) that would be a help greatly!

ferf1223

October , November

For those who gamble at HET properties and are staying at one of their hotels...may be worth charging stuff to your room and then paying for it (or part of it) with Total Rewards credits before you check out instead of paying at the point of purchase.

I had $44 in comps to use (4400 reward credits)...knowing this I'd charged $40 of my massage to the room and we had some internet charges so I thought I'd kill off my balance and let my hubby cover the rest from his account. Went down to the desk the day before check-out to sort it out and the lady printed my account folio thing - total was $81.97 (no tax on internet or the massage). She took my card, handed it back to me, said 'you have no balance on your room account and $12 in comps'.

I said 'Sorry, I don't understand'. Because I'm thinking, well I DO have charges on my room at least, I KNOW I do...

And she said 'I've cleared your room charges and you still have 1200 reward credits'.

And I said...'oh. thank you'

I still have no idea. Somehow $32 in reward credits cleared $82 in charges. I now assume there's some discretion on the part of the people at the desk. We've never bothered with asking about a host, and I'd thought that they had minimal power anymore at HET properties anyway.

But in any event, if you're going to gamble, and you're going to pay for something at an HET hotel anyway, appears it may be worth charging it to the room. Of course it's not worth doing this for things you wouldn't pay for anyway - not worth going out on a limb with expectations something will be taken off your bill.

ferf1223

October , November

sho_me_da_money wrote: »

Cheers dude!

I think we won't over complicate this as it's our first time in LV. How much will it cost to travel from MGM to mid-strip?

And please guys, if you spot any flight deals from Manchester to LV (departing 15th and returning 28th) that would be a help greatly!

Everyone thinks I'm a guy.

Taxi fare probably about $10 - maybe a bit more with tip, depending on traffic.

luci

September

How did the massage go ferf? I know you were a bit nervous about it.

ratkarth

just a quick warning to people re fx card
since coming back my mum is having a difficult time converting dollars remaining on the card back into sterling, they seem to want to charge her extra for this,
working things out in terms of charges they charged her while abroad too my abbey zero card and cash was much better in terms of exchange rate. And prob without the card just using cash and tc would be better given the charges she faced and now will face

ferf1223

October , November

oh! It was wonderful!!

I had been beaten and bruised by the nice guys at the place at the Hawaiian Marketplace earlier in the trip (they can be so brutal, and I just never say anything) so I was actually kind of looking forward to something not quite as harsh.

I didn't feel overly comfortable hanging out in the waiting area in my robe but that's just a personal thing...it was very nice and soothing and comfortable and I was offered juice or water while I waited. The spa facilities looked nice, but I've never been in one so I have nothing to compare it to. But the woman who did my massage (Kristin) was great...she asked if I'd had a massage before and when I said no she talked me through what was going to happen, etc. She put me totally at ease and I wasn't remotely uncomfortable from that point forward. I was expecting it to be a lot more gentle than the Hawaiian Marketplace guys based on what you'd said, and it was, but not so much so that I felt like it wasn't worthwhile.

It was great - I will absolutely do this once a trip going forward.

ratkarth

sho_me_da_money wrote: »

Ok peeps ive done it. And i've paid more than wanted but went for the following:

MGM Grand - 15th Nov - 21st Nov

Promotion inclusions:
* $35 Beverage credit
* $25 Spa credit
* 2 complimentary admissions to Studio 54 or Tabu
* 15% off retail

Treasure Island - 22nd Nov - 25th Nov

Exclusive 15%-30% web only discount!

15% Discount
•Exclusive 15% discount for advanced bookings between 30 -60 days prior to check in date

20% Discount
•Exclusive 20% discount for advanced bookings between 61-90 days prior to check in date

30% Discount
•Exclusive 30% web only discount for advanced bookings more than 91 days prior to check in date

MGM Signature - Nov 26th & Nov 27th

* $50 golf credit
* $50 resort credit
* $25 Grand Spa credit
* 2 complimentary admission to Studio 54 or Tabu
* Complimentary bottle of wine after arrival

Total - $1,249.48

Think i've done a gooden? And are these hotels far apart from each other?

Now it's time to find some cheap flights - any tips or deals you know of? (leaving Manchester)

Thanks for all the help

careful moving around so much we over did it during our holls and lost a lot of time as a result in packing and transport check in ques etc

ferf1223

October , November

ratkarth wrote: »

just a quick warning to people re fx card
since coming back my mum is having a difficult time converting dollars remaining on the card back into sterling, they seem to want to charge her extra for this,
working things out in terms of charges they charged her while abroad too my abbey zero card and cash was much better in terms of exchange rate. And prob without the card just using cash and tc would be better given the charges she faced and now will face

Well, the working out better thing is probably down to the rate that she bought at, yes? So it could have gone the other way, unless I misunderstood?

Regarding converting back, their website says:

You can either withdraw any excess funds in £ from a UK ATM which accepts MasterCard or we can buy-back any excess currency and wire the £ to your UK Bank account. It only costs $2.00 or 1.50 Euros (depending which card you are using) to withdraw your cash from any UK ATM which accepts MasterCard.

Have they tried withdrawing from a cashpoint? Of course I suppose they would get the current MasterCard rate and not necessarily what they paid?