We stayed and played at GVR in December '03. Here's our admittedly
subjective report:
We noticed that internet room rates were relatively affordable
($119) and we had always wanted to check out the GVR property. We
called a host and said that we played about $6,000 per day and she
said she could bring us in at casino rate ($99 plus tax)and would
check our play on departure.
We arrived early and found our room ready and VERY NICE. Not as
large as the Venetian, but every bit as nice. The staff were
professional, courteous and went out of their way to make us feel
welcome. It wasn't the down home hospitality of the BC, but it was
what you would expect of a relatively small property that realizes
that happy guests are the key to success. A truly luxurious hotel.
It was a long walk to the casino which was surprising considering
that the hotel has very few rooms. However, the layout is such that
you have to walk past all the banquet areas to get to the casino.
The casino is quite nice, but not spectacular. Much nicer than BC
but certainly not the Bell. Nowhere near as smokey as the BC, but
certainly not smoke-free. I would say that, smokewise, the GVR
casino is similar to the LVH on an average night.
There are two banks that have FPDW for quarters (our preferred
game). One of the banks are slant-tops. The slant-tops were almost
always busy. Even early in the morning. It was easier to find an
open machine at the uprights, but even the uprights were often
busy. One side of the uprights was VERY WARM especially when the
casino was crowded. So warm, in fact, that they were virtually
unplayable for any extended length of time. This was surprising to
me because I am almost always cold in a casino. So, between the
crowded conditions and the temperature, it was often difficult to
find a bank of Deuces where both of us could comfortably play. This
was our only complaint about the GVR experience.
We often played the 50 cent 10/7 DB slant-tops when the Deuces were
crowded but even those machines were sometimes crowded. We actually
ended up playing some 8/5 bonus triple play!
Our stay was in the last month before Stations cut their points in
half for full-pay machines, so that may have had something to do
with the crowds. In addition, all of the FPDW are on Optimum Play
machines that also contain full-pay DB, DDB and LD. We often saw
people playing one of these other games. So it may be that things
have improved since GVR recently added a new bank of 10/6 DDB.
The music in the casino was at the perfect volume - loud enough to
hear but not so loud that you can't carry on a conversation in a
normal tone of voice. We were there the week before Xmas and were
surprised to hear all the Xmas music they were playing.
The cocktail waitresses and restaurant staff was very friendly and
service was good. The buffet was pretty good, but not great.
Fatburgers has very good old-fashioned hamburgers. The Coffee Bean
& Tea Leaf is not as good as Starbucks but is better than the coffee
joints in most casinos. Il Fornaio was very good - it's the same
restaurant (although slightly different menu) than the Il Fornaio in
NY NY. The quality is equal, if not better, than Il Fornaio in NY
NY. The sushi bar was quite good but a bit overpriced. We used our
points to pay. We didn't try Bullshrimp.
The spa area and pool area are terrific. You walk by the pool area
to get to the spa which is located in a separate building. The pool
is not open in December.
We had a car so I don't know anything about GVR's shuttle service.
The car was handy and allowed us to visit Montelago and FH. Both
are relatively close if you have a car.
We played about $20,000 over three days. No Royals, no Deuces and
no Aces in DB. Lost about $1,400. When we checked out, our host
comped one night and we paid for two. This was what we expected
based on what we had read and what our host had said to us over the
phone when we booked the room in the first place. Before checking
out, we asked our host for (and were given) a discretionary comp to
the buffet.
So, I would say that if you are looking for a relaxing and luxurious
stay with good vp, you will not be disappointed. On the other hand,
if our experience is typical, you will get far more comps
elsewhere. That might change when the new hotel section is
completed and they have more rooms to fill. In any event, the
overall experience was so positive that we are thinking of
returning. However, we would only do so if we could get an upfront
room rate that we would be prepared to pay in case it wasn't comped.
- Slowpoke
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