My Stay at Planet Hollywood

Took a bit of a break, but will try to post a bit more.  I'm working on it.

I stayed at Planet Hollywood July 2-5, on the first leg of my trip out to the Desert Paradise.
I got in the cab at McCarran Airport, told the driver my route (you have to do this in Vegas, or they will screw you.)  The driver, who was hopped up on caffeine it seems (or at least I hope it was caffeine) was nice enough to offer to take me to the best strip club and the best massage parlor in town.  When you are a single guy in your forties riding a cab in Vegas, this is quite common. No thanks dude.  He then proceeded to tell me the various troubles he has undergone lately, I don't know if this is a way to get a better tip or if he was just talkative or if he thought I'd care.  I really didn't, but he got overtipped anyway, as he got me to the hotel quickly and with minimal hassle.  I pretty much overtip everywhere.  It's an east coast thing, I'm told.

Check in at Planet Hollywood was quick, although there was a woman there who didn't seem to understand that there was a line, and she was expected to get in it.  She had a lot of bags, so apparently she thought this should let her bypass.  Um, no, deary.

The rooms at PH are themed, every one is tied to a movie in some lame-o but kind of cool way.  I was in the Good Will Hunting room, perhaps the desk guy heard my Boston accent and thought I'd be more comfortable there.  They had Robin Williams' shirt hanging up there.  Thankfully, it was under a thick plate of glass.  Otherwise the room itself was a standard king.  I took a picture, didn't come out great.

The bathroom, however, was pretty cool.  Stand-up shower stall, toilet was in a tiny little water closet, and I had a big-assed bathtub.  Under a picture of Matt Damon.  I have no idea if looking up at Matt Damon is supposed to enhance your bathing experience, but there it is.  Actually it was pretty cool having a tub there, even though I never actually found the time to use it.  As always in Vegas, there just isn't enough time.

I'll post a bit about the casino, restaurants and bars later, but I suppose I should mention the pool two.  I wonder how all the architects and designers and everyone else who built a big, beautiful multi-million dollar hotel could have come up with the design for such a crappy pool area.  There are actually two pools at PH, with a large lounging area between them.  And boy do those pools suck.  They are way too small and are so completely surrounded by the cabanas that you can barely get to them without stepping on some big spender.  I assume smart people designed this place, but boy did they screw up here.  Let me say it plain - the lounging area is OK, the pools suck, and I think if you pay big money for a cabana or a day lounger you will really, really feel ripped off.  There, you are warned.  Also, although there was a bar at the pool, there was no cocktail service.  What?  Yeah, no cocktail service at the pool, at least when I was there in the afternoon.  Maybe they didn't want me lingering.


BTW, I'm way to cheap to pay extra for a nice view, but I was kind of high up, so here's the view from room 2494.  Not terribly exciting, but it worked for me.

Overall, it's a very nice place, and aside from the crappy pool, I had no complaints about the room or the service.  Check out was quick, bill was accurate, and the guys who hailed the cabs were nice and quick. 

Would I stay there again?  Maybe, if the price were right, but I wouldn't go out of my way to get there again.

Anyway, thanks for reading, fell free to ask any questions, and stop by again sometime.  I promise I will post some more of my semi-salacious details as my booze soaked memory allows.

And have a good day.

Bags are Packed!!!

Getting on the plane in a little while, hopefully the thunderstorms in the midwest won't slow me down.

Because I'm way too cheap to pay a resort fee or pay for my internet at the hotel, you will have to wait until I get home for all of the salacious details of my trip.  If you are truly interested (and I can't believe you would be), you can stalk me on twitter - @seanbeh3

Wish me some luck. 

And, as always, thanks for reading.

I Want to See What's Up at the D

In downtown Las Vegas there is a hotel and casino that used to be Fitzgerald's, now it's "The D."  Kind of a lousy name for a hotel/casino, but apparently it's now a "resort".  As in "The D Resort".  Still a lousy name.

I liked the old place just fine, it had a fake/creepy Irish theme and a nice balcony bar upstairs that looked out on the Fremont Street Experience.  It was a fun enough place, good dealers at least.  I stayed there once years ago, the rooms were fine enough in a Howard Johnson-type way.

Last year, Fitzgeralds was bought out by the guys that own the Golden Gate.  I haven't been there since, but these guys did a great job fixing up the old Golden Gate, so I'm optimistic here.  They built the Long Bar, supposedly the longest bar in Nevada (and who am I to argue), which looks like a pretty cool place to hang out in the pictures.  I'm also excited about Sigma Derby and "vintage" gaming on the second floor (Vegaschatter.com  tell you what sigma derby is).  If nothing else, the news coming out of the place makes me damn curious.

Oh, and Vegaschatter also reports that The D is hiring 100 party pit dancers.  Which also makes me curious.

But I think I'll still call the place the Fitz.

Places I'll go in Vegas, part 6

A bit more than a day to go, a long flight, and I'll be in Fabulous Las Vegas, NV.  So today I thought I would make a quick post in my amazingly unpopular series, Places I'll go in Vegas.  

I will take some time during the day and head off the strip to visit the Palms, the Rio, and the Gold Coast.  Why, you probably didn't ask?  Because I have never been there.

The three casinos are clustered a little ways off the strip.  Way too far to walk, but there is a free shuttle bus that leaves from Bally's.  I honestly don't know much about them.  I know the Palms is a classy, upscale joint for the hipsters, I know that Rio has a popular nightclub for the over 40 crowd, and I know that Gold Coast is part of the Boyd group, meaning it's a decent low-roller place.  I've also heard that the buffet at Gold Caost is cheap and pretty good, so maybe I'll do that too.

Oh, and I've heard that the cocktail waitresess at the Rio wear very skimpy outfits.  I will investigate this rumor thoroughly.

So, once again, as a free service to all my stalkers, here is my itinerary thus far:

1. Holsteins at the Cosmopolitan
2. The Mob Museum downtown
3. Margaritaville at the Flamingo
4. Public House at the Venetian
5. Canevale at the Palazzo
6. Rio/Gold Coast/Palms

Well, once again, thanks for reading.  And wish me some luck, eh?