Also, if you don't have a free room offer, feel free to call a host at any
property you have a slot card for. You may be able to get one. I needed
a room (for a friend actually), at the Gold Coast, where I had a lot of
play, called and got a room for 3 nights. If you can't get a freebie, you may
be able to get a discounted "casino rate". Sometimes good players can
call a host and even get 2 rooms - one for you, one for a friend.
Asking for a suite never hurts either. Sometimes you'll be told it is up
to the "suite committee" to decide if your play is good enough, but
requesting at least puts you on the list. In some locations, such as Harrah's New
Orleans, which has a small hotel, suites are hard to get on busy weekends.
If you and your significant other want more room, you can also suggest 2
connecting rooms if a suite isn't available.
Speaking of Harrah's New Orleans, no one seems to be able to figure out
exactly why their offers are suddenly way less generous. It may be that the
"theoretical" on some machines (maybe even reel machines) has been changed.
In addition, some people are reporting they just are getting no offers
for special weekend events by mail (such as gift weekends, tournaments,
giveaways, etc), but if you have played there heavily, hosts may be able to get
you into these events anyway. If you are not getting mail but think you
should, just ask a host about events...can't hurt. There seems to be a lot
of host turnover there (layoffs perhaps?) recently. So if your host is
gone, just ask to speak to any host.
We once arranged with a host to come in the middle of the week, when there
was no event, and a host was able to give us some extra free play, since it
was actually better for the casino to have some good gamblers come
mid-week, rather than on the overbooked, overly busy weekend.
Another thing to ask for is comped food if you a good player. For
example, you get food coupons at one casino, but they are only good on the
weekend and you are there midweek. Ask a host if they can give you a comp, and
maybe you can.
For Harrah's, when asking a host for a food or other comp, always ask if
they are taking it "out of points" or if it is an actual comp. Someone just
told me a horror story about one Harrah's casino. After extremely heavy
play, a host told them "have a great meal at our steakhouse on us, eat
anything you want...." and told them he would make the reservation and arrange
the comp. They ate a great meal, and later found hundreds of dollars worth
of comp points were deducted from their account! They complained and
complained and months later, finally they had 1/2 the points put back!
Similarly Harrah's sometimes takes comp points for limos to the airport,
but sometimes doesn't! Another problem area at Harrah's - being told you
are there "RFB" which normally means all Room/Food/Board (i.e., food) will be
comped. But it turns out you are really only having points taken! Or
you get Food only at casual restaurants, not gourmet.
So at Harrah's the rule is to always double check if a host is "comping"
you for food, limos, or other oddball items - are they taking points or not?
Harrah's isn't the only one to have problems explaining what RFB is - some
hosts at other casinos will say "You have RFB" - but you only get casual
dining or maybe casual and bars and certain restaurants, but not room service
or luxury restaurants. Some hosts say "charge it to your room, and we'll
see at the end of your stay...." which means they may or may not pick up
what you have charged, all depending on how much you play.
If you are dealing with a new host who says "we'll put you in at RFB" -
always find out exactly what they mean - are you getting it comped up front,
or will they cover less than all charges if you play is below a certain
level?
And if you think you are a really good player, you can also try asking your
host, can they comp you RFB? Several times I've asked, and gotten it,
though it was never offered in advance at all.
If you ask and receive an separate comp for a meal and the hosts phones it
into the restaurant for you, so you are not receiving a comp slip, be sure
to ask the host if the whole meal is comped (unlimited) or limited to a
specific amount. I've had this happen at the Venetian - the host calls in a
comp, but I get to a fancy restaurant and find I only have $100 to spend for
2 people - which doesn't get you much food at some of those restaurants.
Now if I am playing a lot there, when I ask for a host I actually suggest
an amount to the host when I mention a specific restaurant, and see what I
get.
Good luck on comp hunting!
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