Vegas BlogWorld Trip Day 1
September 19, 2008 Posted by Tyler CruzI arrived in Las Vegas yesterday, and here’s a recap of day 1 in Las Vegas.
I live on an Island in Canada, so we actually had to take two planes to Vegas which was very tiring. Also, the travel agency we booked with sucked, and had our first plane arrive at the Vancouver airport at around 8:30am, and our second flight out wasn’t until 2:00pm so there was a lot of waiting involved.
I took advantage of the free wireless Internet at the airport during the very long wait for my second flight.
The plane ride over was decent, save for the screaming people near the end, how the conveyor belt got stuck, and one woman (probably dunk) singing “Viva Las Vegas”. Here’s a shot getting close to Vegas of the mountainous regions nearby:
We’re staying at the Monte Carlo, and I’m really disappointed in it. It’s a really low quality room, there’s no mini-bar, and it’s just not what I thought Vegas would have. It may also be because our hotel room at the River Rock in Canada was superb so our standards are high now.
Here’s a brief video tour of our hotel room and the view. We’re staying on the 28th floor which is right near the top. It’s funny because John Chow is on the 27th floor but I’m one higher, so that makes me better, right? Although, he’s staying at the fancy Wynn, so I guess I lose.
We took a tour around the Monte Carlo casino and shopping area, which fortunately is a lot better than their hotel, but still nothing too special. It’s not too busy there though which is nice.
Last night we went to dinner at the Italian restaurant there, which is really nice. The food was delicious and pretty cheap. The service was outstanding and Lisa gave the handsome Italian waiter a very handsome tip (40%).
I noticed something quite interesting: in the US in most places, they apparently don’t put sugar in Iced Tea. In Canada we definitely do so that was a bit of a…. surprise.
Today we checked BlogWorld out (show doesn’t start tomorrow but we got our passes and found out where it was) and went to look at some real nice houses for sale in Vegas with John Chow and his wife. I’ll post about that tomorrow and give you a look at John Chow behind the scenes.
Vegas hotels are only designed for sleeping after a night of sinning… no reason to spend money on a nice room…
I agree with the iced tea thing… whenever I’m in the U.S. I always forget and ordered one. Then I’m sitting there thinking, “How many times have I done this? Someone pass the frickin’ sugar!” lol
That’s actually not that bad. Back in January when I went to Vegas for Affiliate Summit West, I booked a hotel at the Imperial Palace.. didn’t really care about quality since I was going alone and it was like $50 a night. Let’s just say you get what you pay for… 😛
yeah honestly to get good hotel in vegas means you gotta be high roller or get booked in way early
Wow, $14.99 a day just for internet. All the hotels I’ve ever stayed in have internet for free, but then again they’re not in vegas.
They don’t want you to stay in your room on the Internet, they want you gambling.
I just stayed at the double tree in Philadelphia last night. It was nice. Was on the 25 floor out of 26 and had an great view of the city. Our windows would open, but only about an inch as there was a stopper installed to stop the window from opening. Luckily someone before us didn’t like that and had taken one of them off so we could open it more. Its awesome to be looking down the side of a building from 25 floors up.
Like you we had to pay for internet, and had the same looking connection as you did. The wire is short as hell. Its crazy how used to wireless i am now though. The internet there only cost $9.95 a day though.
Unfortunately we did not have have a refrigerator either. They did have awesome room service going on though. Items averaged in the $10-$13 range with a few special entres in the $20-$25 area.
and they had some pretty damn fast elevators too.
BTW you order a Sweet Tea if you want sugar in your tea. I know in the south east (ie. florida, georgia) suger is always in tea. I know in the north some don’t know what sweet tea is. Im quite sure how the west does there tea tho.
You took the words out of my mouth. Here in Florida, you have to specify unsweetened tea, otherwise, your getting tea flavored sugar. A lot of places here don’t even have unsweetened tea.
Thanks for the info on the resort, Tyler. I’ll keep that in mind for my next trip out West.
OMG… the Monte Carlo is disappointing, 🙁 So, I have not been inside the Monte Carlo since last year. Do you recall the fire there earlier this year? No joke, there was a fire on the roof on one of the buildings there. However, that should not be cause for the icky décor. They really need to upgrade their décor. Make the most of it and looking forward to your house hunting vid. 🙂
Eesh, Tyler. Sorry but you are really piling on the beef.
I saw the video from John Chow.. and it was a very good room. Tyler, your room looks really simple.. but as you said, you got the cheapest room.. so not very amazed by the quality. I don’t know what it’s consider to be cheap in Las Vegas, anyway.
Why the double bed? You are staying with your girl…c’mon get the king and have some fun already.
The room is very basic, but I like the view. Anyways, have a nice stay in Vegas.
Sorry to hear that your hotel sucks. I’ll make sure not to stay there when I go to Vegas. Nice work in the Cashinator.
Nice trips Tyler..
Hope you get something…
You should have stayed at the New York New York hotel, they offer a few freebies and your more than likely to get a free upgrade. Plus their hotel is one of the nicest.
Tyler,
Internet access at the Wynn was $14.00 a day. I brought an air card so I didn’t have to pay for internet access. If you start to travel more it would be worth paying the monthly fee for an air card.
~Debby
The Monte Carlo is a middle-tier/lower-middle-tier hotel. As with most things, you get what you pay for. Adjust expectations accordingly. It always blows my mind when people stay at the Hampton Inn and expect the Ritz-Carlton. As for internet access, business hotels generally provide it for free. Hotels geared toward the leisure traveller generally charge for the service. It also depends on the specific market.
Is there a reason you used a travel agent? There’s really no need anymore. You can book pretty much any flight (even complicated itineraries) and book any hotel online or over the phone.
Tea: In the US it is generally served unsweetened except in the South where it is commonly served sweetened unless you request otherwise.
That’s a pretty big laptop you’re lugging around. Maybe you should invest in something a little more portable?
I’ve never stayed at the Monte Carlo, but your review is pretty much in line with what I’ve heard through word of mouth. At the same time, so long as the room is reasonably clean and safe, who cares? It’s Vegas. You only go to your room to shower and sleep.
Call me weird, but I almost prefer the unsweetened tea. The “iced tea” that is served up here is more like uncarbonated pop. What’s really refreshing is iced Japanese green tea.
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