Access Vegas Insider Vibe March 16, 2020

Update: Wynn/Encore has since announced they will close for two weeks. As noted in this issue, Supporting Members can reference our Private Facebook Group for breaking updates, or use your “Your Guy In Vegas” feature.

Note: This closure was announced on the heels of the shutdown of the schools, and I believe was influenced by that issue as much as anything.

Hello From Las Vegas – No exclamation point after the “Vegas” this week. I had a huge pile of “need to know” savings, latest tips (Vegas is always changing) and similar for our Supporting Members. However, this week, the “need to know” is one singular topic: The virus and Las Vegas.

So ya… if you haven’t pulled the trigger and become a Supporting Member yet because “you have the internet”, enjoy spending hours researching questionable information. Instead of info from our paid staff which has a combined many decades of being true Las Vegas insiders.

Should I Stay Or Should I Go Now – Las Vegas is not shut down. This weekend, plenty of people are enjoying casinos, walking The Strip, getting their pic taken in front of the Las Vegas sign. Don’t take my word for it. Look for yourself: Earthcam Las Vegas Cam. (Note: Remember time zones and such. If you go to look at 7 AM our time, don’t expect to see anybody out there!)

Buffets and selected restaurants have GENERALLY been closed. This isn’t the end of the world. In fact, many restaurants which are staying open are the kind on our comprehensive list of researched Las Vegas Food and Beverage Specials (sorted by South Strip, Mid-Strip, North Strip, Fremont, and other areas). Just a reminder that we put the phone number with the outlet for a reason! While my staff checks and updates this info at least monthly, call ahead. Restaurants sometimes do make abrupt changes and don’t notify us.

Our tap water was, is, and will be safe to drink. (Our water district assured us of this, and the reality is that their day-to-day J-O-B is to treat the water so it has no virus or pathogen or other matter in it which will make you ill!) In fact, not long ago, we reminded our Supporting Members how they can always get free water in a casino. And no, it does not involve gambling and having a waitress bring it to you, nor sticking your empty glass under the tap in the bathroom. Note: While that water is safe, bathroom tap water is often warm or hot. Not exactly what you want to gulp down on a hot Vegas day.

Shows are closed. With tours, it varies. The Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, Red Rock, Zion, Death Valley, Valley of Fire, and all of the natural wonders in this area certainly are open. And, there is no shortage of CHEAP rental cars right now. This might be a fantastic time to plan a trip, use the serious money you save on hotel and airfare, and see all the “Not on Strip or Fremont” stuff you’ve always said you’d check out “one of these days”. Well, there is no time like the present!

By the way, a contributor and friend to what we do happens to be our area’s top tour guide. His name is Mark Anthony. He has some time on his hands due to the slowdown. While he does many 1-4 day bus tours around our region, he also regularly does private tours. Just you and your friends/spouse/group and him.

Whether it is three of you in a rental car, or a small van or bus, he’s your guy and you can probably get a good price on everything from top-to-bottom. No matter if checking out how awesome a private tour of anything from Fremont Street and historic downtown to Grand Canyon would be, click on over to The Vegas Tourist and hit him up!

ALSO, if you are planning to hit Hoover Dam, our exclusive Special Report 09 – How To Have The Best Time On Your Visit To Hoover Dam is a must.

Casinos are working as hard as they possibly can to provide a safe experience. Wiping down everything from slot machines to the front desk counters frequently. Casino chips are actually being WASHED! Seriously. Funny side note: 20 years ago, I used to low roller at the Gold Spike Casino downtown. (It is no longer a casino, but a bar aimed at Millennials). Their chips were FILTHY. One night, I came home with a bunch of them in my pocket, and actually tossed them in dishwasher. (By themselves!)

Speaking of, dealers are being mandated to wash up really good both right before and just after they have been dealing. AND, the hotels/casinos have made strict rules about employees staying home if they are not well.

Latest is that Wynn/Encore is shutting off every other slot machine to help people keep this “social distance” everyone is talking about. Speaking of…

Yes, MGM Resorts is laying off people by the truckload. No return date set. Health care coverage ending in a set amount of time. The whole nine yards. Wynn noted that they will pay full-time employees that otherwise are “laid off” until they return. As of this writing, no other casinos have made statements regarding such. So, if wanting to go to hotels where staffing is a concern, perhaps MGM Resorts properties might not be the best pick.

Obviously, whether you want to travel (or not) is a personal decision. I’m not a doctor. Although, a group of home health care professionals did decide to keep their convention dates about a week ago: Conventioneers say healthy habits keep them from fearing coronavirus

If you are sitting at home with 20 cases of water, prepared for the end of the world, no worries. I understand. Everyone is handling this differently. For you, I’d suggest staying home. You would be going around too worried to have fun. Someone sneezes due to allergies (it is very much “springtime” here, temps in the 60’sF most of the time) and you’ll be running away to keep from getting sick. I get it.

If you are someone who has checked with your doctor or nurses line regarding any current health issues, and if you feel that this is basically a flu and you should just wash often and go about your life, Las Vegas is a bargain like we have not seen in a long time. Check your comps. Check how few airline points they want to fly you here (or how low the fares are). If you can live without seeing a show or eating at a buffet, you’ll have a great time and have a fair amount of elbow room.

Yes, there are still resort fees. As discussed last issue, we’re been fighting against fees very strongly, including being vocal in the media. However, our Supporting Members can usually save more than a couple nights resort fees from the tips and help of the paid expert staff that membership dues support.

AND, because many people are re-evaluating travel plans, we’ve EXTENDED both our guarantee and 2020 coupon code for the time being:

1. IF you don’t visit during the next 12 months (a Supporting Membership is for one full year), we will comp you the following 12 months. And, twice monthly, you’ll be soaking up expert advice/tips for your next trip. Must know stuff!

2. The coupon code ACCESS2020 will STILL save you 20% off the full year membership. (At this point, your membership would be valid until March 2021).

Joining is easy at Members.AccessVegas.com  Coupon code — once you’ve read enough of the info and see a Join button — is ACCESS2020

Also, I’ve just scratched the surface. I’m sure that many have questions specifically pertaining to future Vegas travel, trips people are thinking about (either right away or in a couple weeks or even a couple of months as this issue might be around for a while).

Don’t forget about your “Your Guy In Vegas” benefit. We promise to personally answer questions you have, go back and forth with you to really understand your needs, and make sure your next visit is as perfect as possible. (Supporting Members only, please. Our paid staff is only equipped to handle so many requests).

Hope you are enjoying this issue!

Ted Newkirk
Founder/Managing Editor
AccessVegas.com

Sports are cancelled for now, but they will be back. Of interest was that the state of Michigan just made the necessary moves to offer sports betting.

Watch carefully over the next year or so as Derek Stevens (owner of The D, Golden Gate, Circa, and Circa Sports book) becomes the nationwide king of sports betting.

Even though he’s an avid sports bettor himself, it raised a few eyebrows when he decided to take his properties sports book business in-house. The “smaller players” in the hotel game, as well as a fair number of the big corporations, have companies like William Hill operate their sports books. Why? If nothing else, RISK.

Can a sports book win a million bucks on a weekend? Sure. But, if the “public” (majority of bettors) get on a certain side of certain games, and they are not able to “balance the books” with enough wagers on the other side, they can take a bath as well. Does it balance out in the long-run (if they are doing it right)? Yes. However, many of you in states just legalizing it are seeing your governments — who at first thought it would be a cash cow — realize profits on sports betting are comparatively low.

So what is Derek up to? Simple:

Year-over-year, he actually won’t make zillions of dollars off of this.

HOWEVER…

He’s going to get GAMBLERS to come to his properties.

Don’t be surprised if he has a “bad beat for the house” weekend and gets in front of as much media as possible and says “Ya… the bettors took us for almost $2 Million this weekend”.

Are you kidding me? That is old school. Why? Blackjack used to be “the” game to play because everyone thought is was beatable. Everybody wants to beat the house.

If Circa Sports becomes know as the brand that can be beaten (even if they do win the vast majority of weekends), players will gravitate to them.

This is no different than the huge money wagers Derek placed on Michigan State during March Madness. Who cares if he lost $350k (or whatever it was… right up around there). He got as much, if not more, back in publicity.

Plus, he’s doing Vegas right. Full-Pay blackjack even on the lower limit tables, good drink service, a 24/7 Coney Dog joint that won’t break the bank. Word is he may even be bringing back the world-famous Golden Gate Shrimp Cocktail at Circa when it opens! Although, we’ll forgive him if he can’t offer it at 99 cents, or even $1.99.

Still… I can almost taste that zesty, tangy cocktail sauce they make from the decades-old recipe, that he acquired when he bought Golden Gate!

Founder/Managing Editor
AccessVegas.com