Vegas Vengeance - An APAT Adventure........AKA "You're Gonna Need a Bigger Bar"

[RioRodent]

Taxis £100 (includes approx £25 each way transfers airport/hotel/airport)

A cab from the airport to Harrahs should be no more than $20 plus a couple of bucks for a tip.

Alternatively, if you are prepared to wait, there is a shuttle (Bell Transport?) that services most of the strip hotels for, I think $5-$10. It stops off at several places along the way but other than walking...which isn"t an option, it"s as cheap as possible.

On the other hand, if there are boatloads of us coming in together then splitting a cab between 2-4 works out about the same.

For any group of 3-6, especially for any that have never been before, just book a limo for the airport to hotel transfer.

It will cost about $70 for a minimum 1hr hire, enough time for the driver to give you a tour of the strip, before arriving at your hotel in style.

http://www.lasvegas-limo.com/rates/airport-rates/

[Paulie_D]

Review From ALLVEGASPOKER

Room Quality Rating: 4/5
**Last Update: December 20th, 2010**

Harrah's poker room is one of the few fully enclosed poker venues in all of Las Vegas. The entire room is enclosed, with two glass door entries; one in the back adjacent to the restrooms, and the other (main entrance) is a double door entrance adjacent to the Race and Sports Book. The location of the poker room is one of the best in Vegas with regards to restroom and sports book accompaniments, though parking (self or valet) do require a decent trek through the main casino thoroughfare. The room has large eyelevel windows on one side, which allows for significant railbirding, and large high windows on the north wall that allows for a faux spaciousness that is rather comforting when taking into account the enclosed nature of the room.

The room is quite spread out with a functional and practical floor plan, and includes many minor amenities that poker players in Las Vegas have become accustomed to (side tables, electronic wait list tracking, autoshufflers, tableside food service, Genesis Bravo system complete with table player card tracking, etc).

Aesthetically, the room is apportioned with the sports enthusiast in mind. The room is flush with large television screens on all focal walls, and because the room is a former sports book area, there is one very large projection screen that hangs over the entire room on the south wall. It is flanked by 6 smaller screens. For sports viewing, there is simply no better choice in all of Las Vegas then the Harrah"s poker room.

The overall color palatte of the Harrahs poker room is rather plain, with no major color contrasts or statements being made by the furniture or the wall adornments, with the obvious exception of the east wall. The east wall offers a unique group of artwork done in an Andy Warhol style of pop art mixing unique color contrasts with replication and photography. The art displays various world champions of poker, including Brunson, Ungar, Nguyen, Chan, and Hellmuth. Under these portraits are (rather tacky) glass display cases with collages of poker player photos and corkboard with pins for displaying various promotional flyers.

Though the room is well adorned with regards to technology, amenities, and general room organization, there are certainly some flaws. The chairs are horrendous, both in color and comfort. The tweed like cloth covering the chairs is a horrid umber hue that shows staining and wear like no other. The chairs lack any sort of lumbar support, and are of course not adjustable or swivel. Seat cushions are available and are necessary for any sort of long session.

When this review was first written (early 2009), the felts were a major area of concern. We are happy to report that in May of 2009, the room refelted all tables with a new stain resistant felt. Also, the room has invested in updated the leather arm rails of a few tables that had shown signs of wear. This shows that the room invests in and maintains their room well.

It is evident to any casual Vegas player that this room was a former sports book. Black formica writing counters line the back of the room, leather couches designed for mass sports viewing/seating line the walls, and the 15 televisions on the north and south walls (including the massive projection screen) are all obviously inherited (and appreciated) adornments that make the Harrah"s poker room simply one of the best mid size rooms in Las Vegas.

Overall, the room quality of Harrahs is right in the middle of a 4 or a 5. Once the chairs are updated there is no reason why this mid-level room should not easily score 5 out of 5 with regard to overall room quality. It is a poker venue that has a comfortable atmosphere, good music, outstanding television layout, and good location. All in all, it is a solid poker room on almost all room quality levels.

Competition Rating: 3/5
The Harrah's poker room is a very mixed bag with regards to competition. The room has gone through many subtle changes in the 5 years since its opening in 2004. First starting out as a predominantly locals room, then transitioning to an almost exclusively tourist room, then going back to being a locals room, to today, where it is a very strong mixture of both locals and tourists. The current room changes greatly throughout the day and the evenings. The morning tends to be a locals crowd, with a few out of towner early risers mixed in. The early afternoon through late afternoon tends to be a 50/50 mixture of locals and tourists, and then at night, the room is mainly out of towners with a few locals mixed in.

This room's competition level is not easy to assess. Having played 1/2NLHE, 2/5NLHE, 3/6LHE, 1/2NLO (No Limit Omaha), and even 4/8 Dealer's Choice mixed game, I have seen all levels of competition come out to play at Harrahs. It is best to break down the levels of competition to the three very different shifts: Early Morning, Afternoon, and Evening/Grave.

The early morning players (affectionately referred to as "The Breakfast Club") are often very weak tight in their play, and extremely predictable. This leads to a game with little variance, and the opportunity to win many small pots with multiple bluffs and even a big pot or two due to outright marriage to overpairs. Though I find this to be a very profitable time to play, it is also strongly recommended that an iPod is brought, as the table conversation can often be a little overwhelming, to say the least.

The Afternoon crowd is more middle of the road. Often it is a few local regulars with a few daytime tourists looking for a casual game and a chance to watch some sports. These games will have slightly higher variance then the morning games, but are still soft and beatable. The players are not drunk, yet, and the daytime sun means high turnover in the games. Players come and go frequently during the afternoon, and the tournament tends to pluck from the cash games daily.

The Evening/Grave crowd is definitely the most action driven. Located adjacent to Venetian, O'Sheas, and Flamingo, not to mention the loud Carnival Court (outdoor music venue), the Harrah"s poker room welcomes some very drunk and loose Vegas tourists and partiers at night. This game is often the juiciest of the three shifts, but of course lends itself to very high variance and some extremely big pots (for a 1/2NLHE game).

Overall, the competition level at Harrah"s is deserving of a 2 in the morning, a 3 in the afternoon, and a 5 at night. The games are good at any hour at Harrah"s, so long as you can adjust your game to the different crowds that populate the room during the different shifts.

Dealer Rating: 3
The Harrah"s dealing staff are all proficient in mechanical skill and can control their games well. Though there are a few that could use some minor refresher courses in proper chip handling, the staff for the most part is a well trained group.

Because Harrah's has had a continuously operating room since 2004, some of their dealers are a little old fashioned with regards to how they handle their games and how they handle their players. Though the vast majority are welcoming and friendly, a few do not seem to be on the same page with regard to rules enforcement and the proper way to communicate said rules to their patrons.

Overall, the dealing staff at Harrah's are professional, mechanically sound, and possess strong game control. Some dealers such as Brenda, Mike, Jasper, Jason, and Eric (amongst many others), stand out as being solid representatives of proper dealing procedures and attitudes. With only a few very minor exceptions, the dealing staff at Harrah"s is truly a selling point of the room as a whole.

Cocktail Rating: 3/5
The cocktail service at Harrah"s is another item that really varies greatly by shift. One of the hardest working servers I have ever seen works at Harrah"s (Linda). The speed of service offered by Linda is truly something that all other Las Vegas cocktail waitresses should work to exemplify. Aside from Linda, there are many other girls/women that service the room on all shifts and all seem to do their jobs quickly and generally with a smile. In the case of Harrahs, speed and drink quality significantly trump the attitudes and youthful aspects, which this reviewer has no real problem with.

An impressive aspect with regards to drink availability is the fact that Red Bull is available. This is one of the few rooms left that serve true Red Bull (regular and sugar free) in the can, free of charge.

The aforementioned cocktail waitress Linda primarily works on Swing shift, and is one of the fastest ladies you will ever see deliver cocktails. She takes and delivers orders so fast that before you even take a sip of the first, she is asking you if you are ready for another one. Bonnie is another one that is simply lightening fast and never leaves a drink order hanging out to dry.

The physical attractiveness of the Harrah"s cocktail waitresses is hard to judge, as the girls vary greatly by shift. The property is a long term union property that employs many older women to serve drinks. The uniforms are also quiet conservative, including long pants and vests (shorts are also seen depending on the girl/woman).

Overall, the cocktail service at Harrah's is definitely a selling point of the room. Though the women are generally older and not the necessarily the friendliest, they are extremely quick and efficient in taking orders and delivering the drinks fairly quickly. The room staff is more than happy to call them or find them in the casino should there by a longer than average delay.

Management Rating: 3/5
The management of the Harrah"s poker room is just slightly above average. The room is well managed with regards to game and tournament handling, table balancing, and technology. 10 out of 12 tables are equipped with autoshufflers, and all tables have the Genesis Bravo system that tracks players' comps and hours at the table. Tableside foodservice is available for all players, and can be paid for with earned comps.

The management personnel are generally all business, and the attitudes of the floor and supervisorial staff reflect a business minded approach to the customers and the room's general organization. As of December 2010, the former room supervisor stepped down, and the room is currently without a lead supervisor. As the Harrah"s poker room"s manager is based out of the Flamingo, the room is neglected by direct management, and instead relies on a lead supervisor which is more limited in his powers to run the room.

Though the room rakes at the Harrah"s Company standard of 10%/$5 max plus $1 jackpot on $10, it is also part of the Total Rewards system which awards players with $1 per hour comps applied directly to their card. Harrah"s poker room management has decided to award tournament players with the same $1 per hour that cash game players get. This is one of the only room in Vegas where tournament play earns hourly comps equal to that of cash game play.

Since the departure of Leo in December of 2009, the room is at the point of transition as of this review. New management has done away with several promotions. It will take time to see how well the room does under the new regime.

Comps Rating: 4/5
The Harrah's poker room comp system utilizes the Total Rewards card in conjunction with the Genesis Bravo system. This keeps accurate records of all play time in both tournaments as well as in cash games. Players earn $1 per hour in comps on their Total Rewards card for cash games. Players also receive comps for tournament play, which depends on the total buy in amount.

In April of 2009, Harrah"s was the first Las Vegas property to start awarding Total Rewards Tier Credits in addition to the $1 per hour (100 Reward Credits). Playing 1/2NLHE and 2/4 or 3/6LHE, players at Harrah"s earn 28 Tier Credits per hour of play. Playing 2/5 or 4/8LHE, players earn $2 per hour and 56 Tier Credits per hour. 4/8 and 2/5 also offer a $4 max rake.

Total Reward credits can be used at any Harrah"s property for food/beverage as well as in the gift shop or applied directly to your hotel room bill.

In addition to the $1 per hour rewards, the room offers a plethora of special promotions for players:

The Breakfast Club promotion runs Sunday-Thursday from 8AM to 12PM. Players who play for at least 1 hour in any live game earn a certificate for a $10/Hour bonus on their next session's buy in (max $30). The certificates expire the calendar day after they are earned.

High Hand Jackpots: Harrah"s high hand jackpots award players with $75 for quads, $150 for straight flushes, and $599 for all Royal Flushes.

As of December 2010, Harrah"s poker room has done away with several promotions, due to the change of management. As of this writing, the Breakfast Club and the high hand jackpots are the only promotions running.

[PHIL_TC]

[X] Goodbye life savings

[RioRodent]

Review From ALLVEGASPOKER

Room Quality Rating: 4/5
**Last Update: December 20th, 2010**

Harrah's poker room is one of the few fully enclosed poker venues in all of Las Vegas. The entire room is enclosed, with two glass door entries; one in the back adjacent to the restrooms, and the other (main entrance) is a double door entrance adjacent to the Race and Sports Book. The location of the poker room is one of the best in Vegas with regards to restroom and sports book accompaniments, though parking (self or valet) do require a decent trek through the main casino thoroughfare.

Lol at LVMicheal"s poker room reviews... the most important feature in any his reviews is distance from the parking garage to the poker room.

Can anyone guess why he feels it"s so important?
(Clue: He"s American.)

[Paulie_D]

Can anyone guess why he feels it"s so important?
(Clue: He"s American.)

Two other clues....he"s a local who drives everywhere...and he"s fat.

Great bloke though!

[samuel_9]

[X] Goodbye life savings

You no what they say .You cant take it with when you GO.. SO you may as well enjoy it while you can.

[cuzza23]

Hi guys,

Im heading to vegas for the 1st time next friday and to say im excited is an understatement. Im staying at the MGM Grand for a week.

Poker is the main reason for the trip and was wondering if anyone had any tips on what poker rooms are the best,( looking to probs play $1/$2 and the odd value tourney).

Also iv read alot of review on bars,  alot seem to be either to posh or over expensive for a group of scottish lads so can anyone recomend any bars were the drink is cheap and the crack is good.

Any advice would be greatfull....... cheers

[pables]

If you like a drink, just sit at the bandits with dollars you"ll soon fall off!

[RioRodent]

Hi guys,

Im heading to vegas for the 1st time next friday and to say im excited is an understatement. Im staying at the MGM Grand for a week.

Poker is the main reason for the trip and was wondering if anyone had any tips on what poker rooms are the best,( looking to probs play $1/$2 and the odd value tourney).

Also iv read alot of review on bars,  alot seem to be either to posh or over expensive for a group of scottish lads so can anyone recomend any bars were the drink is cheap and the crack is good.

Any advice would be greatfull....... cheers

The $1/$2 NL in the MGM is as good as anywhere, also usually good games next door at Planet Hollywood, both really good later when people have had a few beers.

Decent value tournaments at Aria, Ceasars and Venetian.

In the MGM, the small bar next to the sportsbook do a "Big Boy" - a large (probably about a litre) draft beer, which is a reasonable price... but if you hang on to your "glass" the refills are really cheap. [Note: This was last June]

[gallowgate]

+1 on MGM for $1/2 when people hve been drinking.

Nine fine irishmen over the road in NewYork NewYork has $5 pints during happy hour and live music later.Carnival court at Harrahs can get lively for a group of lads but its outside so weather dependent.O"sheas has $1 beers all day I think,maybe $2 can"t remember.

[AceOnTheRiver]

+1 on MGM for $1/2 when people hve been drinking.

+2

I have only been to Vegas once an the $1/$2 game at the MGM was a highlight

[duke3016]

My sister is coming round later on and we are booking our flights, will confirm later, but nearly definately Virgin out of Manc on the 17th

[duke3016]

Flights booked for myself the wee man , Noreen (sister) and Caroline (niece)

12:30  Thu  17  November Manchester  MAN  (Ringway) to Las Vegas  LAS  (McCarran)

17:25  Thu  24  November Las Vegas  LAS  (McCarran) to Manchester  MAN  (Ringway)

[Curlarge]

Flights booked for myself the wee man , Noreen (sister) and Caroline (niece)

12:30  Thu  17  November Manchester  MAN  (Ringway) to Las Vegas  LAS  (McCarran)

17:25  Thu  24  November Las Vegas  LAS  (McCarran) to Manchester  MAN  (Ringway)

I"ll have a beer waitin" for y"all

[SirPercival]

Flights booked for myself the wee man , Noreen (sister) and Caroline (niece)

12:30  Thu  17  November Manchester  MAN  (Ringway) to Las Vegas  LAS  (McCarran)

17:25  Thu  24  November Las Vegas  LAS  (McCarran) to Manchester  MAN  (Ringway)

If you don"t mind me asking Ger, how much did you pay per person for these?