 Rex's Las Vegas Lists
30 Must Follow Rules For Any Las Vegas Casino Gambler - Part 1
February 17th, 2010
Top 15: Las Vegas Spots Not Found on a Tourist Map
January 27th, 2010
Top 10: Epic Las Vegas Heists
January 12th, 2010
Top 10: Best Looking Las Vegas Cocktail Waitresses
January 4th, 2010
Top 10 Best Las Vegas Gaming Pits
December 8th, 2009
17 Things First Time Visitors Must Do in Las Vegas
November 23rd, 2009
15 Ways To Get Kicked Out of a Las Vegas Casino
November 9th, 2009
 Rex's Las Vegas Blog
The Blind Leading the Blind
March 6th, 2010
This is exactly why I don't read fiction.
The truth is so much more bizarre.
On Thursday, President O'Drama signed the "Travel Promotion Act" into law.
This particular act is designed to convince people from other countries to vacation in the Unites Sates. The act will be funded by a $10 fee on all tourists to the U.S.
That's right, we will begin luring people to our great nation by charging them more money before they even set foot on our soil.
So far, so bad.
That's nowhere near the worst part, however.
Read more ...
Life in the Slow Lane
March 4th, 2010
Earlier tonight, I engaged in a bit of ghetto gambling.
This was not the "play at the Western" version of ghetto gambling, instead, it was the cheap person version. Ghetto gambling is gaming that has all the fun of gambling, without any of the risk or reward. My own personal rendition of ghetto gambling involves taking only $20 to a local casino (usually the Sahara or Stratosphere) without an ATM card or even a wallet.
Then, I play along these lines:
I start out with $20, and I begin playing at a $3 or $5 table. I play a few hands until I double up or lose 50%. Unfortunately, I do not tip during these minor sessions unless I go on a big streak, and even then it's no more than a couple of bucks.
If I double up, I pocket $20, and then proceed to play with "free" money at whatever low-limit game I feel like playing. The worst I can do is break-even on the session.
If I get dinged for 50% early, I go to the $1 BJ tables or nickel Video Poker machines. If I manage to double up at these tables or machines, I go back to a "higher" limit ($3-$5) BJ table and repeat the process. If I lose it all ... I stop playing.
At times, I have been able to make a single $20 bill last two hours while ghetto gambling, while getting the occasional free drink in the process.
Read more ...
Wackjack
March 2nd, 2010
"NASCAR Weekend" just wrapped up in Las Vegas, and following a new personal tradition, I spent a good part of the weekend at the Sahara.
Frankly, I've always found the Sahara's NASCAR theme to be somewhat unusual. It just doesn't seem to "fit" for some reason.
The Sahara is a desert-themed hotel with a rich and storied history (the Beatles stayed here during their first visit to Vegas), and I never really figured out how stock cars found their way into this paradigm. On any given day, you can stand outside and watch a race car roller coaster loop past the iconic neon camels. It's a very odd paring. Kind of like putting a gigantic poster of two Mormons facing the sinful Vegas Strip. As if that could happen.
Anyway, since the Sahara is ground zero for racing fans in Vegas, this is obviously one of the best places in town to spend a racing weekend ... second only to the track itself.
After walking to the casino and scoping out a prime Blackjack table on Saturday, I became slightly disillusioned with how the Sahara was conducting itself. While both $3 and $5 "real" Blackjack tables are standard offerings at the casino (which is part of why the property is endearing for me), the Sahara had converted at least half of their five dollar games to 6:5.
Given the loyal crowds, this seemed very opportunistic.
Look, I understand the laws of supply and demand, and I understand what most people consider to be "good business decisions". Americans think "capitalism" is synonymous with "greed", and they think that good capitalists need to "capitalize" on every customer.
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Sweaty Palms
March 1st, 2010
Here we go again.
It's like Deja vu.
This was how Planet Hollywood's demise began.
For those who may be unaware, keep in mind that Texas Pacific Group is also known as "Harrah's".
Texas Pacific Group, one of the private equity owners of Harrah's Entertainment in Las Vegas, is accumulating debt in the Palms resort, according to a story published Wednesday by Debtwire, a publication of the Financial Times.
Citing unnamed sources, the publication said TPG had acquired a piece of the Palms' $380 million bank debt. It also said Palms' EBITDA – a commonly-used profit indicator – fell to $12 million this year amid the recession from about $70 million two years ago.
The Palms is restructuring its debt and the Maloof family, which owns the Palms, is in the process of selling its beer distribution business in New Mexico for $100 million, the publication said.
The Palms loans are privately-held but can be traded among investors.
Palms owner George Maloof declined comment on the story and declined to discuss his resort's financing other than to say the business was on solid ground.
I certainly hope George is right.
While not as polarizing as say, Imperial Palace , The Palms is another one of those properties which people tend to have a strange relationship with. In a way, it's Hard Rock West ... with a twist.
Read more ...
Shooting Las Vegas
February 26th, 2010
"Why do you take so many pictures of the Stratosphere?"
"Why do you take so many unflattering pictures of Las Vegas?"
In the last few months, I've been hit with variations of these two questions on a routine basis.
For some reason, there has been a burgeoning interest in my photographic habits.
Why? I do not know. I think some of the questions are rhetorical critiques, but perhaps there is a legitimate question or two buried within the hundred or so queries over the past few months.
The reason I don't respond to individual emails is because I don't respond to anything unless I make an effort to put some thought into it. I've never sent an email that says "LOL. Thanks." This is why I'm a bad Twitterer. I'm not brief. I don't cut-and-paste responses either. If I don't have the time to formulate a thoughtful, complete response, I don't respond at all. It is for this reason, I usually address common questions publicly. I just can't do it one-by-one.
So, for the first time, I will try to provide at least some insight into my Vegas photography "style".
When news crews are in Washington, D.C., they often film their reporters standing in front of the White House or the Capitol Building. This even extends to political cartoons. They will typically sketch a government landmark somewhere in the backdrop. This is the primary visual clue to the reader that the setting of the cartoon is in Washington.
When crews are reporting from Los Angeles, they typically have the Hollywood sign visible in the background. New York reporters will get a Times Square or a Manhattan skyline shot. Every city has a designated spot where crews congregate to report generic geographically-based stories. It's their way of saying "Look, we're really here!".
In Las Vegas, that spot is the "Welcome to Las Vegas Sign". Every time something happens in Vegas, crews from all over the country trip all over themselves to jockey for location shots in front of the sign. If there are any weather abnormalities, they go to the sign ... if they talk about tourism numbers, they go to the sign ... hell, sometimes they go to the sign for no obvious reason at all. It's a default location when there is nowhere else to go.
Read more ...
Oops! They Did It Again
February 26th, 2010
Either stupidity knows no bounds, or this thing is being intentionally run into the ground.
According to the Las Vegas Advisor link:
"Monorail Fares Up: The bankrupt Las Vegas Monorail has raised its fares once more, increasing the cost of the unlimited-ride one-day pass to $14 (from $13) and adding $2 to the cost of the three-day pass, which is now $30. The single-ride fare remains the same, at $5."
Honestly, I no longer think this is simply incompetence.
From inception to execution, they have done everything wrong.
Terrible route, terrible station locations, abominal fares, the abolition of discounted rides, the closure of customer service booths -- I've never seen a single group of people put their dick in the light socket quite as many times as the executives at the Las Vegas Monorail Company.
You can pick any one of the individual missteps above and point to them as simple "mistakes" on the part of the company, but taken together, they just don't make sense.
Read more ...
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March 12th, 2007 The Hard Rock to Expand
NEW YORK — (PRESS RELEASE) — DLJ Merchant Banking Partners (“DLJMB”), a private equity investment affiliate of Credit Suisse, and Morgans Hotel Group Co. (Nasdaq: MHGC) (“MHG”) today announced a large-scale expansion and renovation project for the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.
The expansion project will include the addition of approximately 950 guest rooms, including an all-suite 15-story tower with upgraded amenities, approximately 60,000 square feet of meeting and convention space, and approximately 35,000 square feet of casino space. In addition, the project includes the expansion of the Hard Rock’s award-winning pool, several prominent new food and beverage outlets, a new and larger “Joint” live entertainment venue, 30,000 square feet of new retail space, as well as a new spa and health club. As part of the project, the Hard Rock’s existing suites and common areas will be renovated to revitalize the property and bring it up to MHG’s best-in-class brand standard. The project, which is scheduled to begin this year, is expected to be fully completed by mid-2009.
Klai Juba Architects is leading the architectural planning of the expansion. The firm, which led the expansion and upgrade of the property in 1999, has also led other highly successful projects in Las Vegas including the Four Seasons Hotel, Sky Las Vegas, and Mandalay Bay.
“These capital improvements will unlock the value that we’ve seen in the Hard Rock investment from the beginning,” said Steven Rattner, a Managing Director and the Global Head of DLJMB. “DLJ takes an active interest creating value in its portfolio. In this case, we plan to leverage DLJ’s successful track record in the gaming industry.”
“With the acquisition of the Hard Rock now officially closed, we are pleased to move forward with our transformation of this legendary Las Vegas property,” said Ed Scheetz, President and Chief Executive Officer of MHG. “The expansion project we are announcing today will increase the size and scale of the Hard Rock and take the property to a new level of sophistication. MHG has been extraordinarily successful in renovating and redeveloping hotels as it has done in the past with Delano, Mondrian, and Hudson. The Hard Rock represents yet another opportunity for MHG to transform and stylize a property to attract the same hip clientele who appreciate the authentic and unique experience we are known for. As each phase of this project is completed, we will be enhancing the Hard Rock’s well-established reputation as one of the most popular destinations in Las Vegas, and we are more excited than ever about its potential.”
The expansion, which is expected to begin during the fall of this year and be fully completed during mid-2009, will add approximately 550 guest rooms in a new tower to be constructed on the existing property site, and will use 8 acres of the adjacent 23-acre land parcel to build a new all-suite VIP tower with an additional 400 suites. The project will also include the expansion of the Hard Rock’s casino and pool, as well as the addition of a new spa and health club and several new restaurants and bars, and a new nightclub. MHG and DLJMB are currently evaluating several options for the remainder of the 23-acre land parcel.
Renovations to the existing property will begin immediately, with upgrades to existing suites, restaurants and bars, retail shops, and common areas, and a new ultra lounge and poker room. These renovations are scheduled to be completed by the first quarter of 2008, with certain elements to be completed earlier.
Upon completion, the Hard Rock will have approximately 1500 fully modern, state-of-the-art rooms and all of the services and amenities of the larger, impersonal casino hotels, while preserving an intimate and exclusive environment with unique advantages such as its world-class pool and comfortable boutique feel. As previously announced, DLJMB agreed to fund 100% of the equity capital required to expand the Hard Rock property, up to a total of an additional $150 million. MHG will have the option to fund the expansion project proportionate to its equity interest in the joint venture. A credit agreement provides for a loan of up to an additional $600 million for the Hard Rock renovation and expansion.
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