Introduction

This is one in a series of money-saving tips. For more information, please visit my home page.

Las Vegas

welcome sign My wife and I like to go to Las Vegas twice a year, usually spring and fall. Some people spend a lot of money on a vacation. We prefer to spend less and take more vacations. That means we look for the best bargains which usually involves being flexible about our travel dates.


Lodging
We have gotten players cards from all of the major casinos and, even though we're definitely not high-rollers, we regularly receive offers for free rooms for 2 or 3 nights. This makes the lodging free or very cheap. Lacking these offers, you can still stay relatively cheap if you can avoid Friday and Saturday nights when the rates at all the hotels are the highest.


There are also several times during the year when rooms are cheaper. These times include the entire summer, the week of Thanksgiving, and around Christmas. Check the various travel sites for hotels and air/hotel packages. But then cross check the prices with the hotels and airlines as well.


Our favorite place to stay is Harrah's as it is in the center of the strip. Harrah's also owns Caesars Palace, Bally's, Paris, Rio, Imperial Palace, and the Flamingo. We concentrate most of our gambling at these casinos to insure that we get the free room offers.


We also have a Harrah's Total Rewards Visa card which adds more points into our players club account. As a result, we usually have enough points to pay for an additional night beyond the free ones which makes our lodging expense zero.


Airline Tickets

airplane We fly out of Chicago. The cheapest tickets of late have been on Southwest out of Midway airport or U.S. Air/America West out of O'Hare airport, but we have also gotten good prices on United and American occasionally. The key is to be flexible, if possible, with your travel dates.


Southwest isn't listed on the travel sites that many people use. You must go to their web site to check prices. We try to keep the ticket price below $250 each and we were successful virtually all of the time until oil got well over $100 a barrel. Most recently we had to use AirTran out of Milwaukee to keep the price below $300.


Airport Parking
When we fly Southwest out of Midway we always drive there and park the car at a nearby facility called "Park Ride & Fly". Their current rates, which are obviously subject to change, are $9.75 per day.


When you enter their lot they follow you in a bus to whatever parking space you choose and then take your luggage out of your car and load it on the bus. Then they drive you to the terminal door and take your luggage off the bus. On-airport parking rates are $14 per day for the remote lots so this is over $4 a day cheaper and the service is absolutely fantastic.


When you get back from your trip you just give them a call and they'll be there shortly to pick you up outside the terminal door, drive you back to your car, and transfer your luggage. They even have some indoor parking spaces for $2 extra per day.


The facility is completely fenced in, well-lit, and seems totally secure. Park Ride & Fly has locations in many cities around the country.


Getting Around Las Vegas
Sometimes we rent a car. The cheapest is usually Payless. As is being done at other airports, you now exit the terminal and catch a free shuttle that takes you to a rental facility outside of the airport where all of the car rental company's rental counters are located. This is a lot faster than the old days when you had to wait for your car rental company's bus.


But, the taxes imposed on car rentals is absolutely outrageous and can easily add 35% or more onto the cost. On top of a 7.75% sales tax there is an airport access fee of 10%, a local tax of 2%, a government service fee of 8%, a license recovery fee of 4%, and a $3 per day customer facility charge! I guess that explains the "free" shuttle.


So maybe you'll want to skip the car. You can hop in a cab at the airport for about $15 to the center of the strip or you can go on a shuttle bus that will make multiple stops for about $6 a head. But, if you take a taxi, here is an important point. Tell the driver to NOT take the expressway. Tell him to use the Swensen exit from the airport instead. A trip to Bally's, for example, is $12 (before any tip) using the Swensen exit but $24 if the expressway route is taken. The expressway route is at a higher speed but is many more miles and the cab fare is primarily based on distance. Travel times are about the same using either route.


bus Once you arrive at your hotel you can take advantage of free shuttle buses provided by many of the casinos. Here are some examples:

Gold Coast (off strip) has a free shuttle for its guests to the strip and its sister property, the Orleans.

Green Valley Ranch (off strip) has a free shuttle to/from the airport and to/from Mandalay Bay.

Harrah's - Bally's - Caesars Palace - Rio: Starting at 10:00am, the shuttles leave approximately every 30 minutes from each location.

Sams Town (off-strip) has shuttles between their casino and Harrah's, Tropicana, Downtown, Riviera, and Bill's Gamblin' Hall (previously known as Barbary Coast).


There are also a few free monorails and trams. One runs between the Excalibur and Mandalay Bay. It also stops at the Luxor on the way to the Excalibur but not on the way back to Mandalay Bay. Another runs between the Mirage and the TI.


Public transportation consists of a double-decker bus called the "Deuce" that runs from just South of the airport, along the strip all the way to downtown. You can buy a single ride for $2.00 or a 24 hour pass for $5 on the bus. Time between buses runs from 7 to 17 minutes depending on the time of day and the day of the week.


There is also a monorail that runs between the MGM and the Sahara with stops at Bally's, the Flamingo, Harrah's/Imperial Palace, the Convention Center and the Las Vegas Hilton. It costs $5 per trip but a number of multi-ride passes are also available.


Free Entertainment
Bellagio - A huge water, music and light show occurs frequently in the large pond in front of the Bellagio.

Caesars Forum Shops - There are a couple of fountains with statues that "come alive" every hour starting at 10:00am.

Fremont Street Experience - A canopy covers four blocks of Fremont street in downtown Las Vegas and it is lined with over 12 million lights. Every evening on the hour there is a different light show accompanied by music.

Mirage - A volcano eruption is simulated by sound and lights periodically in the evening outside the Mirage, weather permitting. The eruptions are currently suspended but will resume at the end of 2008.

Sams Town - There is a laser light and water show at 2:00pm, 6:00pm, 8:00pm, and 10:00pm in the Mystic Falls Indoor Park.

TI - At Treasure Island there is a battle between two pirate ships in the waters out front. There's acrobatics, sword fights, and song & dance numbers. Show times are 5:30pm, 7:00pm, 8:30pm and 10:00pm, weather permitting.

Blackjack Pointers

Blackjack, if played well, may give the house an edge of as little as only .2%. That is better than craps and far better than roulette or the slots. But the house rules must be favorable and you have to make the best percentage plays.


Some blackjack games in Vegas now only pay 6 to 5 for a blackjack. Don't play at such a game! It gives too much of an edge to the house. Also, avoid games where the dealer must hit soft seventeen or where you are not allowed to double down on any two cards. You also want to be able to double down after splitting a pair. Surrender is also good for the player, if it is offered. NEVER take insurance! Here are the best percentage plays and the order in which you should evaluate your hand.


Surrender
Ocassionally you may find a casino that allows you to surrender. This is where you give up half your bet after seeing your first two cards. You should do this if you have 16 against a nine, ten or ace or with 15 against a ten. With bad hands like 16 and 15 you can lose less money by surrendering than by playing out the hand.


Splitting Pairs
If you have a pair, ALWAYS split eights and aces. NEVER split fives or tens. Split nines against 2 through 6, 8 or 9. Split sevens against 2 through 7. Split twos, threes, and sixes against 2 through 6. Split fours against 5 or 6. Here's why you play this way.


You split eights against ANY dealer card because 16 is a terrible hand. It's the worst hand you can have. By splitting you give yourself the chance of drawing a two or three giving you a ten or eleven. Now you may have a hand worth doubling down. Or you may draw an ace giving you 19. You hope that one of the two hands you are playing works out this way because your goal is to win at least one of the hands to produce a push. A push is a good result when you start with 16. Some people will not split eights against a dealer's ten. They are giving money to the house. You'll be far worse off if you hit or stand.


You split aces against any dealer card because 2 isn't a very good hand and there is a good chance that one of the aces will get a ten. Again, your goal is really just to push by winning one of the hands.


You should never split fives because 10 is a good hand to either double down or hit. And, although you will see people do it, you should never split tens because 20 is a great hand that will win most of the time as the dealer's average hand is 18.2.


You should split nines against 2-6, 8 or 9 because there is a good chance that one or both hands will end up as a 19 or better. But it is too dangerous to split nines against a dealer ten or ace. When the dealer has a seven, however, you assume his hidden card is a ten giving him a 17. Because 18 beats 17 you should just stand with a pair of nines.


Assuming that you are allowed to double down after splitting a pair, you can split twos, threes, and sixes against a dealer 2 through 6. You do this because you assume that the dealer has a ten hidden giving him a total of 12 to 16, which is a bad hand for him but good for you. You can only safely split fours when the dealer's card is a 5 or 6. The dealer will bust 42% - 43% of the time when showing a 5 or 6. Actually, optimum play also says split twos and threes against a 7 but ignoring this situation makes very little difference and simplifies what you have to remember.


Doubling Down
If you don't have a pair or shouldn't split a pair, the next thing to decide is if you should double down. Double down with 11 against any dealer card except an ace. But, this is a close call. You may double down against an ace if you sense that more small cards than big cards have appeared thus far in the current shoe. Double down with 10 against a dealer 2 through 9. Double down with 9 against a dealer 3 through 6. But don't stop there or you could be helping the house. Double down with A-7 or A-6 against a dealer's 3. Double down with A-7, A-6, A-5 or A-4 against a dealer's 4. Double down with A-7, A-6, A-5, A-4, A-3 or A-2 against a dealer's 5 or 6.


Hit or Stand
Those are all of the hard plays to learn. The rest are easy. ALWAYS take another card if your total is 16 or less and the dealer's card is a seven or higher. NEVER take another card if your total is 13 - 16 and the dealer's card is a 6 or less. ALWAYS take one more card if your total is 12 and the dealers card is a 2 or a 3, but stand with 12 against a 4, 5, or 6. Obviously, always take another card when your total is less than 12. For optimum play, also take another card with A-7 against a dealer's 9, ten, or ace. Dealers will sometimes question this play but it is the right thing to do. And, always take another card with A-6 (or any other "soft" 17).


The most important plays to learn first are those for hit and stand as they come up on almost every hand. Then learn the double down plays and finally tackle the pair splitting plays, which are a bit complicated but worth the effort. If you make all of these plays your chances at the blackjack table will be greatly improved. Here's a game that you can use to practice. Just click the deal button to start the game.