New slot club system at the Rio, mainly because of the Harrah

V, if my math is right, that's about $22,000 throughput to earn a free room for a $1 vp player. That really seems high. But maybe my math is wrong<G>

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John
Moderator Dining Forum
john@talkvegas.com

John: You're right

What was Rio's point system before? I haven't paid any attention since I stayed there some years back. Of course they didn't comp me back then either <g>.

V, Since the Rio did not have any decent vp, I played tables. So, I'm not real certain as to thier old system. I do remember that you needed around 8500 points for a free room and a comp lunch at the coffee shop was around 1600 pts. But I don't know how much throughput was needed to earn a point.
Caesars gives you 1 pt for every $25 through and you need 200 pts a day for a free room I believe. If I'm right, you need $5000 throughput at Caesars compared to $22,000 at the Rio. Maybe somone with better math skills can check on my figures.

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John
Moderator Dining Forum
john@talkvegas.com

Interesting post on the Rio. I'm looking for similar info on NYNY where I hope to be staying for a few days in September. Anybody familiar with their comp system? Thanks

There has been very little info posted on NY NY. It would be interesting of anyone had some experience there regarding their comp policies. I like the casino now that the crowds have diminished and the restaurant/bar offerings are pretty good. I hope someone has the info you asked for.

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John
Moderator Dining Forum
john@talkvegas.com

diogenes33: Good news...from the reports on NYNY, it looks like they are generous and easy with the comps. As of the last report, $15 = 1 point for quarter slots or VP and $10 = 1 point on dollar slots. I've read conflicting reports on how many points = a room comp.

You'd be wise to call NYNY and ask to speak to a casino host before your trip. Since they are are supposed to be comping easily because of all the Strip hotel competition, you may want to hook up with a host ahead of time, and the host can fill you in on how many points will get you a free room. Be sure you charge any food to your room, as it looks like food comps are easy to get there too.

Good luck on your trip, and please let us know how you make out at NYNY.

Thanks for the info Veronica. I'm curious about your advice to call a host ahead of time. Couldn't a host fill me in when I'm there? I was thinking of playing awhile, $1 VP, which should let them know I'm willing to give them some action. Would calling ahead somehow get me a step up on things...even if they have nothing to judge me with? I don't doubt your advice...I just think it's interesting.

diogenes33: Well, it's not crucial, but it won't hurt to call ahead. I've done this before, on the advice of a Las Vegas veteran, and when you arrive and introduce yourself to that host, there is some familiarity already for both you and the host which tends to make things a lot friendlier--so maybe it does put you a step up on things, especially if in your phone call you hit it off with the host over the phone versus getting stuck with someone not that friendly or helpful when you arrive in LV.

Like I said, it's not necessary, though, so when you get to LV you can certainly connect with a host at that time and skip a pre-trip call.

Diogenes33, Let me add to V's info. If you call a host ahead of time, you want to tell the host how often you travel to Las vegas each year and that you are a $1 slot or vp player. Don't BS on these points, tell the truth because the host will make a notation of what you told him/her and if they find out later that you didn't tell them the truth, that will hurt you.
Now, you can bs them a little. Tell them that you have been a long time customer of whatever property you want to pick. Just make sure you pick one that is not owned by the same company. For instance, don't tell the Flamingo that you are a long time customer of the Las Vegas Hilton. They can check that out. But if you tell NY NY you are a long time customer of the Rio for instance, they have no way of verifying that. Tell them that the properties customer services and comps have declined steadily over the years and that you now feel unappreciated and you are looking for a new place to stay. This will put you on the host's list of possible new customers that they want to target. That will help you. A good property to say you were a long time customer of is the Rio. All the properties know that the Rio's comps have been getting worse and they are losing a lot of customers. Since the Rio is only affiliated with Harrahs, no other property can verify how much you have stayed there.
The host's job is to get new customers and take care of their existing ones.
Good luck.

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John
Moderator Dining Forum
john@talkvegas.com

Last Nov. I called a host at NY,NY and asked if I could be comped to two nights there in Dec. They said "No Problem" and they even gave me the view I asked for. Their cash back is the best on the strip, .25 and $1. play. We went to the slot club booth and were comped a meal to Greenbergs deli. My daughter and her friend were in town staying at our comped room at the Stardust so we asked our host if we could get a dinner comp for 4 at their nice Italian resturant. She said "Sure, how much would you like it to be."
We had looked at the menu and thought $75.00 would be enough since we were all drinking tea or soft drinks. She said, "Oh, let me make it for $120. in case you change your minds on drinks and dessert." I couldn't believe how nice she was.
But I rarely recieve invatations or free room offers in the mail, unlike the Mirage, Harrahs, Stardust etc.
Gale