The
day after Christmas, I was browsing the bargain books table in the
back room of the Gamblers Book Club, and what did I come across but
the 2013 edition of the American Casino Guide. This book is
noteworthy for its rundown of every casino in the country, lots of
articles on gaming by some of the most reputable writers in the
business, but above all for the hundreds if not thousands of dollars
worth of casino coupons tucked into the back. It lists for $18.95,
but because there were only a few days left to use up the coupons, it
was marked down to $5.
I
grabbed a copy and as I was getting ready to drive away, phoned by
poker buddy back at the hotel.
“Dude!”
he said. “Grab me a copy and I'll give you five bucks when you get
here.”
Well, duh. Like he was going to be content to follow me around and watch while I hopped from casino to casino using up these free slot plays and match plays.
We
wound up breaking even on our first two stops, within walking
distance from our home base at the Rio. The Gold Coast, although the
coupon was for a $5 match play, actually gave us a free $5 bet (it's
just how they roll), but neither of us won our blackjack hands. All
right, across the street to the Palms, then, which had a coupon for a
$10 match play. We each pulled out a $20, bet $10 of it on a hand of
blackjack with the match play coupon, lost, looked at each other,
each put out another $10 bet, won, and left even.
“Dude,”
I said, “I don't know how soon this book is going to recover that
$5 for us.”
Pretty
quick, as it turned out. We headed downtown, as the $10 free slot
play at the El Cortez had to be used that night. We each made a
pretty penny on that, then headed to the Las Vegas Club. We each laid
down a $5 match play, and then bang, blackjack, blackjack. We headed
to the Golden Nugget to buy $60 worth of poker chips for $50, sat
around to play our blinds, complained about the maniac who was
shoving $65 into each pot without looking at her cards, cashed out our
chips and left each up another $7 for the night. We went to the
Plaza, won a few bucks on $5 worth of free slot play, decided to sit
down and play a few hands of blackjack before moving on, and left
nicely ahead for the evening.
Our
last stop for the night was Jerry's Nugget, where we each had a free
match play (I got a blackjack, my buddy won on a double down) as well
as a free drink. While we were there my buddy swiped his card in a
kiosk and found out he was getting $20 cash just for showing up a
month or thereabouts since his first visit. Yeah, this book was
definitely going to pay for itself.
We
hit all the other free slot plays and match plays in the book over
the course of the next afternoon and evening, and figured we were
each up probably $125 to $150 from using those coupons. And that was
with only two days before most of them expired!
Also
in the book: Two free tickets to the Riviera Comedy Club. You can
often find two-for-one coupons in the local entertainment guides,
which at $19.95 is quite a bargain, but free tickets? A steal, and I
was particularly excited over this find, as I'd already read that
this week's headliner was Jimmie “J.J.” Walker of Good Times fame. I even got to meet him after the show and get a
signed copy of his new book (at almost nine bucks off the cover
price, too). Meeting Mr. “Dy-No-Mite” himself? Priceless!
While
a lot of the downtown coupons, like those for the El Cortez, had
expired on the 27th, we still had a two-for-one coupon for
the buffet at The Golden Nugget, so we hit that up for breakfast on
our way out of town.
Oh,
we also picked up copies of the 2014 edition, because the book also
includes 15% off at (of course) The Gamblers Book Club. (I bought
another friend a copy of the 2013 as a Christmas present.) It's
already paying for itself: included was a coupon for the El Cortez,
buy one night for $30 and the second night's free. We may even stay
in Laughlin on our way out of town on our next trip, because we can
get two nights there for $39...at two different hotels. Oh, and while
the bulk of the coupons are for Las Vegas, there are also deals for
casinos scattered throughout the country, so you might be able to use
them at casinos on your route when driving to Vegas...or even in the
casino near your home town.
Our
recommendation? Buy the book! Save Money! Make money! Heck,
the free Girls of Golden Gate Calendar alone
should be enough to sway you.
Just
some of the deals you can get in the 2014 edition:
Free Slot Play: Club Fortune,
The D, El Cortez, Golden Nugget, Las Vegas Club, Palms, Plaza,
Silverton
Match
Play: Bighorn, The D, Ellis
Island, Golden Gate, Jerry's Nugget, Las Vegas Club, The Orleans,
Palms, Rampart, Riviera, Silver Nugget
Free
Shows: Riviera Comedy Club, Mac
King Magic Show (with one $9.95 drink per person)
2-for-1
Tickets: X Burlesque, Mike
Hammer Comedy Magic Show, Gordie Brown, The Improv at Harrah's,
Defending the Caveman, The Orleans Showroom, Divas, Recycled
Percussion, Frankie Moreno, Pin Up
Free
Drinks: Clarion Hotel and
Casino, Sam's Town, Santa Fe Station, V Bar
2-for-1
Meals or Buffets: Arizona
Charlie's, Bighorn, Binion's, Boulder Station, Fiesta Henderson,
Fiesta Rancho, Magnolia's (at the 4 Queens), Golden Nugget, Green
Valley Ranch, Haagen Dasz, Johnny Rockets, Nathan's Famous, Palace
Station, Rampart, Red Rock, Silver Sevens, Suncoast, Sunset Station,
Texas Station, Venetian (and the Grand Canal Shoppes)
2-for-1
Admission: National Atomic
Testing Museum, Erotic Heritage Museum, Madame Tussaud's, Roller
Coaster at New York New York, Eiffel Tower Ride at Paris,
Stratosphere Tower
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