Day 8 : Friday
Hotel: Checkout Atlantis Check in-Peppermill.
Everything was picked up - and we took a taxi to the Pepp. Little did we know that we left 2 really nice jackets hanging up inside of the room.
Check in for Peppermill was a quick 5 minutes at 12 noon. I met somebody at 3:30 who told me they waited 45 minutes, so your mileage may vary. While their VP inventory is strong , it doesn't really match up against Atlantis, yet it's a classier hotel because of Tuscany.
For the last 2 years, the Peppermill Slot club unfairly backed me out of all offers. Fortunately, my ex ATL host is now their slot host supervisor, and he lets me in RFB as long as I skip the bigger comp bucks Tuscany and go for the old tower. The rooms in the original tower have been upgraded ( new beds, lcd tv, Jacuzzi, sauna ) and they are almost as nice as Tuscany. The old tower is closer to gaming. If you play $25K a day, upgrade to Tuscany, for $15K like me - go for the cheaper rooms with the better food comps. Our room was in a good hotel isle. To the left was the front desk elevator, and to the right was the mid-casino elevator. Pepp security. your joking right !
Food: CHI - new upscale Chinese restaurant where the steakhouse use to be. Food is good ( not great ) , Service excellent, but Price is too high. Will not be going back unless comped. The PEPP coffee shop near check in , has always been one of my favorites.
VP: Peppermill is the house of NSUD. The first day went poorly
$1 NSUD progressive ( rf=4700) -$500
50C NSUD stand alone -$300
10C spin poker with nsud ( rf) +$400
10C 15play 9/7 triple double +$200
$1 12/4 DB deuces ( 1 machine near fish bar ) -$400
$1 9/6 DDB progressive ( with RF=5400) -$400
25c stp JACKS -$200
Day 9 : Saturday
Hotel: Peppermill
Food: Did Oceano for some great sea food and fabulous home made key lime pie.
Exercise: Walk to and around Atlantis. I stopped at Atlantis lost and found where they returned our 2 really nice jackets that we left in the closet on Friday. I felt like a winner walking back, as last time we left a coat at the Eldo, it was gone.
Bar: Whenever the Rodeo is in town they have great C&W bands playing at the Cabaret ( pit). Many of their other bars have some good plays, but the "pit" is my favorite with 50C 9/6 Jacks progressives and NSUD. This is the only casino I know of , where you can watch the lounge band from the TV inside your room. Tuscany has some decent VP in their Terrace lounge which has live bands Fri/Sat nights.
VP: 25C big split jacks ( only fp at 25C and up ) +$200
50C 9/6 DDB Aces&Faces -$400
Assorted slots ( Pepp has some nice ones ) -$200
5C NSUD Spin poker deluxe -$200
$1 9/5 DDB progressive ( RF=4800 but 4ACES+kick=$2700) $EVEN
$50 16/11 Double Deuces -$200
25C spin poker NSUD +$200
$1 NSUD -$400
Well at this point , Peppermill is beating me .. finally right ?..NOT
50C NSUD triple play +$2000 ( RF)!!! When I hit the RF I was $1800 down, so this hit brought me to positive again.
5C Airport Deuces 5 play Multistrike ( 99.2%) = $EVEN.
Note that they have better 5MS plays like full pay NSUD, Jacks, SDB, and DBDW but only if you play 100 quarter hands ( $25 a pop ). It was tempting but too much session bankroll was required.
Misc: Peppermillions actually gave me some coupons I could use like $10 credit in coffee shop and $10 match play ( won at craps ). Looked hard, but could not find any 8/5 super aces .
Day 9 : Sunday checkout - No hassle, as promised 0 balance for in-room TV checkout. Took the PEPP free shuttle to the airport which runs every 30 min.
Summary:
* Weather was great ( 20 degrees cooler than Vegas )
* VP selection was terrific - Showed a healthy profit of over $5000
* All places ( Even Pepp) were very generous with comps, Except Eldo which got cheap with me upon checkout.
* Did not really need a rental car ( $250 best price ) cause I only spent $45 in cabs and free shuttles.
* I guess its due to cost cutting but I've noticed this trip, my VP machines had more mechanical problems with stuck , loose, bouncy buttons than usual. Slot personnel have told me they have cut down on routine cleaning and maintenance.
Conclusion:
Well, there goes another memorable trip to paradise. I feel that LV inventories and Reno complement each other. While LV is the more "fun" place , easier and cheaper to get to, and with slightly better comps, Reno has better weather, video poker, and provides a higher level of player service.
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