+1

And the real difference is in the service and how amazingly well trained the staff is.

Well that makes sense too. I'm a refined older gentleman (well not that old) though that prefers a casino downstairs.


I stayed at Aria Sky Suites last time and wasn't overly whelmed. It's certainly very nice but not for the price, and they do have some lack of understanding of the fine points that places like MO or Four Seasons would never miss. Price to value, I would rather be in a corner suite at Aria than in the Sky Suites, since the amenities in SS really aren't all that great.

I have stayed at the Four Seasons in Vegas and they got the service part right but the rooms were meh. We'll see how it looks with the remodel.

Hey Guys,

I did a fair amount of searching before posting this here and was unable to find any recent information. My apologies if this is has been discussed a ton and feel free to flame the LVL noob.

I booked aria for my GF's birthday in February (her first time in vegas) and I was wondering how the 20 dollar trick (or 50$ trick, etc) is working there these days. From the little bit of info I did find I get the impression it is not working very well, but wanted to ask the pros in here.

Thank you in advance for any relevant info!

I mean it doesn't hurt to try so what we say shouldn't really affect your decision.

Also, it is heavily dependent on time of year. But in general I have also heard that its not working well at the Aria recently.

Yea I agree, thank you. I will likely try it regardless. However if the 20 dollar bill is getting laughed at but the 50 is having a decent success rate, that is very useful information for me.

WRT to time of year I have to assume it isn't supremely busy in late February (after Valentines day but no chance kids are on Spring Break yet) so that should work in my favor at least a little.

Thank you again.

I would just try it with the $20. Its more a factor of job risk.

If the clerk is unwilling to risk his job for $20, hes not going to want to risk it for $50.

That's true.... I am very lazy and hate to walk. Heck, when staying at Aria, I wish the poker room was closer to the elevator entrance.....

Generally, I find these "hotels within hotels" to be not the best value. I was fortunate enough to be invited along when a friend was staying @ the SkyLofts at the MGM. While it was nice....it was definitely not worth the price they charge. Your review of its equivalent in Aria is fairly consistent with my experience.

Cheers,

S

My husband and I are considering a 10 night trip to Vegas this January. Based on comps and offers, the best room choices are between the Rio, Bally's, and Flamingo. We've stayed at the Rio in the past and were pretty happy with the room and service. Any ideas as to the comparison between Rio and Bally's or Flamingo? We do prefer to stay on the main drag of the strip due to transportation options, so that is a factor as well.

I would go with Bally's or Flamingo just based off location as travel costs will really add up over 10 days.

Here's the thing about long trips to Vegas (and 10 days is a long trip)- you might feel really ground down if you're in the maelstrom of the strip the whole time. Whenever I've taken trips that long I've felt better staying off the strip (my preferred choice is Red Rock). It feels more like a real vacation that way, and is much more relaxing. Now I'm not terribly convinced that Rio really IS "off-strip" in the way I described, so the point might be moot. And I always have a car so that's a thing too. If you are car-less you are probably better off just dealing with Bally's or Flamingo.

I actually think since the trip is so long, it's better to try to get a place that has a little kitchen etc...

I know it wasn't on the list..but MGM Signature/Vdara...or Jockey's Club?

I would say go with Bally's or Flamingo due to location. Between the two, I prefer Flamingo due to rooms looking nicer. I only stay in the North tower of Bally's and rooms are big but aren't as stylish as the Flamingo. For dining options, Bally's is way better since it is next to Paris and Planet Hollywood is a close walk too. Plus behind Bally's there is Ellis Island.

If you upgrade, GO rooms at Flamingo are awesome.

Both are close to each other and are pretty equal depending on specific smaller personal preferences. I personally like the poker room at Bally's much more than Flamingo.

I've taken the Deuce from Downtown to the strip, but Is there a bus that goes from M resort over to the strip? I'm sure cab fare would be ridiculous.

They have a free shuttle that picks up at the Fashion Show Mall outside the Forever 21 store a couple times per day.

maps.google.com will plan city bus trips in any major city, including Las Vegas. AFAIK the city buses don't go as far south as the M, only as far as the South Point, but the M has shuttle service.

Anyone know is red rock also has a shuttle?

Is m resort's shuttle only for those staying in the hotel, or anyone?

From what I understand (I called and asked a couple months ago) the one to and from the Fashion Show Mall will take anyone, but they say the one from M Resort to the airport is for guests only.

Last time I was there Red Rock did have a shuttle to go to the strip.

I stayed at Aria a few months ago and the $20 trick worked on the second try. When I checked in I went to a woman and tried the trick and she didn't even look, she just said no. I went to my room and forgot about my food comp and went back down. I purposefully went to a younger "cool" looking guy and tried the $20 trick and he jumped on the phone and made two calls and got me into a corner suite overlooking the Vdara pool.

This was the first time I've ever done the trick because in the past I always got a poker rate. I'm not saying it's accurate, but the only thing I can take away from it is that look for a guy who is younger and "cool" looking.

I will be back at Aria next month and will be trying the trick again.

when using the poker rate at aria, can you still try the $20 trick or does it come back to bite you in the a when you check out and they realise you had a bigger room than you were supposed to have?

also, are there any rooms that are worth asking for at check-in when using the poker rate? i've heard to ask foor rooms >25th floor and close to the elevator...

Personally I wouldn't try it. The poker rate is applied at the end of your trip and is good only for a standard room. Before you check out the poker room has to verify that you played enough hours to qualify for the rate. If they see that you were in an upgraded room they might say you have to pay the full price. You also have to call the poker room ahead of time because they set aside a limited number of rooms for the poker rate.

This happened to me at The Venetian a few years ago, but it was a total mistake on the upgraded room. The poker room manager would not give me the credit and I had to pay the full price for the upgraded room. I was severely pissed, especially since that was my fourth week long trip to the Venetian within 6 months. Every one of those trips I averaged over 12 hours of poker every day, but she wouldn't do anything. Needless to say, I will never stay there again.

It's plain as day in their rules (right there on the website) that you can only get a poker rate in the regular room at Venetian. You have no real right to be pissed at them for it.

Actually Eco, that is incorrect. Coming up on 3 years ago they did not have that disclaimer on their website in regards to the poker rate. My first three trips of that year I was able to stay in an upgraded room and on the concierge level at Palazzo (free breakfast + free happy hour drinks and snacks) while still getting the poker rate. I then booked my 4th trip, after checking the poker rate disclaimer as I always did, but this time it was 6 weeks in advance. I then took my trip in June, played 12+ hours a day etc etc. At checkout is when they told me it no longer qualified. I had to take it up with the poker manager once I got back home. She told me that they had changed the rules on the poker rate after I booked my trip. I understood and respected that, but I booked my trip under the old rules, which she acknowledged, but she wouldn't do anything about it.

This is where I said then and now, that this is complete bullsh*t, which it is and was. I respect that they can change their rules whenever they want, but I booked under the old rules and that should have been honored. Legally I had a case against them, but it wasn't even worth fighting over. I am more of a principals based person, so I now will never stay their again.

The rules prior to the new ones were a dollar limit of $400/$500 a night, did the suite price exceed that?

You are correct, it was $400 for weekdays and $500 for weekends. My suite did not go over those numbers on that trip nor on the previous 3 trips. She acknowledged that I booked my trip under the old rules, but wouldn't honor it. I don't know what her reasons were, maybe internal politics, but it's pretty dumb IMO. In less than 6 months I stayed there 4 times for a week at a time, and in all played over 350 hours of poker at 2/5 and 5/10.

They were my favorite place to stay/play on the strip, but hey life goes on. I like Aria/Vdara now and have stayed there my last 3 trips. The only thing that place is missing is Illi coffee at their coffee shops. lol