I took a little trip to Laughlin over the weekend. The last time I was there, there were 3 or 4 casinos. I think there are 12 now. Across the river in Arizona has grown substantially also. I really cant see why anyone would want to move to Jean, Primm, Pahrump, or Mesquite, although they do it everyday, even with the inflated cost of living. But if I had to live in an overpriced market in Nevada outside of Las Vegas, it would probably be Laughlin. I only explored 3 casinos, and drove through Bullhead City. I'll go back and explore some more some day. Lena Prima was playing there 3 nights and I wanted to explore Laughlin, so that was my incentive for this trip, on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

To me, Laughlin is really weak in the resort catagory. If you are used to the strip in Las Vegas, then go to Downtown Las Vegas, you will notice some changes. You might think that food quality goes down a notch, cleanliness goes down a couple of notches, and room quality goes down a few notches, and shows take a big dive. When you go to Laughlin, it drops proportionally again. Yes, they have casinos, food, rooms, and some shows. The quality tanks to a level that I would not be comfortable with. I don't know if I would like the weather. It's usually about 10 degrees hotter in the summer than Las Vegas and 10 degrees cooler in the winter, plus it's much windier. Like Las Vegas, the traffic can get horrible in prime times. I noticed a lot of amputees. I spoke with one who said he lost his arm in a construction accident in Las Vegas, got his payoff, and moved here. He said many of the amputees I see were in the same situation but the cost of living is so high now that they aren't moving here anymore.

On the bright side, Laughlin does have a residential area away from the casinos. There is a city across the river with Home Depot, Lowe's, Walmart, and other stores to get supplies. Much of the casino staff is friendly. Most of them speak good english. There aren't as many loose kids running around as in Las Vegas. There aren't many nightclubs, so there are less 20 something and 30 something party animals.

I left Las Vegas via I-15 S, went east on 164 to Searchlight, and 95S to 163, then east to Laughlin. It took about 2 hours to get there. Check in was smooth at The Edgewater resort. I got a room in an older tower on the 4th floor. The room had a balcony which would have been nice except it was 44 degrees outside with a 44 mph gusty wind. The lone 15 inch TV would have been nearly impossible to watch from the bed without squinting. The top of the bed was barely 18 inches off of the floor level. I kept meaning to check to see if it had box springs or was just a matress on a frame. The airconditioner/heater was a work in progress, with wires and panels hanging down. At least it worked. The bathroom had a few interesting features. Instead of a coffee maker, there was a water heater, styrofoam cups, and instant coffee packs. For soap by the sink and bathtub, there were those big liquid soap dispensers like you see in some public restrooms. Push the lever in with your hand and get one squirt. The shower head was so low that I had to squat to spray anything chest high and above. The shower had instant hot water and very high pressure, so I liked that part of it. The room was mostly clean and it was adequate for my purposes. The hotel had a high speed wireless internet system. I tried it and I was very surprised how fast it was. I didn't know WiFi was that fast. The tower I was in was 6 stories high and had two oil driven elevators that were in very poor condition. One would stop about 8 inches higher than it was supposed to and would slam down when the doors opened. And if there were more than 4 people in it, it would lock up when the doors closed. I learned that the hard way. The other elevator was slow, most of the lights didn't work, the buttons on the panel were replaced with various household buttons. At $100 for a Fri, Sat, and Sun, I guess it was okay.

The casino was old but slightly modern for Laughlin standards. It had about 50% ticket out machines. The VP paytables were not that impressive. None of the machines I played were new. I did see some newer video slots, such as Deal Or No Deal. My video poker luck was not good, so I focused on a bank of 5 cent Deuces Wild progressive machines. There were 6 of them. They were very old with no ticket out, no touch screen, played kinda slow and were tucked into a corner. The progressive was at $650, so that was my incentive to play. I never hit the progressive although it did give me lots and lots of playing time. I played a couple of hours and went to the steakhouse in this resort called the Hickory Pit. I had a craving for a prime rib, so I gave it a try here. The meal started off great. They had a relish tray and bread basket that would make any Las Vegas steakhouse jealous. As in the old Vegas tradition, they had attentive beverage service. I had a pretty good homemade clam chowder before my steak. The prime rib was just barely okay. I've had much worse and much better. It cost about $28, plus beverage, plus tip, and that brings it up to a not so much bang for the buck meal. After dinner, I cleaned up and went to the Lena Prima show. It was a sold out show and one of the best perfromances I have seen her do. I played a few more hours and hit the itty bitty bed for the evening.

The next morning was kinda lazy. Nothing happening in the casino. I got my car and drove down to end of the alleged strip, and pulled into Harrahs. Harrahs is nice. It looks rather new and has a southwestern decor. I walked around a while. I put a $20 into a bonus poker machine and the first hand dealt me 4 kings. I cashed out and ran. From there, I drove to the Golden Nugget. It was pretty nice. It was very old though with low ceilings, and mostly coin out games. I did pretty good there playing hit and run on video poker. I had breakfast in their coffee shop, Harlow's. It was okay enough that I didn't walk out, and bad enough that I wont be back. I played a little more and left. It was really too cold and windy for me to be out in this weather, even driving to the casinos. I went back to the Edgewater and took a nap. I got up about 4pm and went back to the Hickory Pit and had a porterhouse steak. It was much better than the prime rib. I played a little more VP, then went to my room to brush my teeth. On my way down to the showroom, I hit the elevator down button and I could hear women partying in the elevator a floor or two above me. When the door finally opened up, there were 6 women about 45-55 years old and drunk as a skunk. I waved them off and said I'd catch the next elevator. They grabbed me, pulled me in, and started hugging on me, making suggestive comments. Well, the elevator doors closed, the elevator stuck, and things got out of hand. Details aren't suitable here. Resistance was surprisingly futile. It would have been violent and ugly if I had fought them off. So I made sure my wallet didn't disappear and said Happy New Year JMT. I went back to my room, cleaned up again and went back downstairs with very mixed emotions. I'm glad that I was going to see Lena's show and catch some good clean entertainment. After the show, I hit that deuces wild progressive machine again. I played until 6am on $20 and cashed out $60. I had breakfast at the Edgewater coffee shop. It was forgettable and I went to bed about 7am.

I got up about 4pm and got ready to go out. It was still cold and windy. In search of a good steak, I went back to the Golden Nugget and hit a steakhouse I remember from Texas called Salt Grass. It's a chain restaurant that is much better than Outback and it is usually predictable with Shiner Bock bread and Certified Angus Beef steaks. I had a pretty good NY steak. Back to the Edgewater and out of the cold and wind. I chased that progressive and saw Lena again. I was missing Las Vegas, but I threw one more $10 bill into the deuces machine. That $10 kept playing over 4 hours. When it finally died out, the progressive was over $750. Even though it was a short pay machine, I got a lot of practice, built up some points, I'll see what happens. I left that machine, checked out and hit the road to come home to Las Vegas. It's pretty kewl say, "I'm coming home to Las Vegas."

Driving into towards Las Vegas, I could see the glow of the lights over the horizon from very far out. Strangely, I could not see the light beam from the Luxor until I was 38 miles from town. I remember a girl in Laughlin saying that they could see the beam when it was new, but they seemed to have turned the power down, and they can't see it any more.

The room had the usual notices that they don't want to change sheets or towels. So I left the Do Not Disturb sign up the entire stay. If they aren't gonna change towels or sheets, what are they gonna do? Fold the end of the toilet paper into a point?

Does anyone remember which casino used to be Del Webb's? I think it is the Golden Nugget now. I just don't remember what it was called back then.

Ah Joe, another great trip report!
You had me laughing a couple of times. So you made some new friends....how nice! LOL

Laughlin, never really did anything for me, so I never went back. Your report reminded me why. Lena was worth it, but I don't need to take a drive out there, just to visit Laughlin.
Lee-PA

JMT - Thanks for an entertaining TR - glad you had fun. Now I'm really curious to know what happened in that elevator!

It definately was a great report Joe, however; it did not provide any incentive for me to visit Laughlin - why do that when we have Las Vegas?? Mike poses a good question - what happened in the elevator and did they have video cameras as some in Vegas do??

Wendell, I saw nothing there that would make me reccomend it to you. Perhaps you might enjoy taking the jetboat tour down to the London Bridge on day trip. It would be more scenic than a tour bus. If the weather is nice, it would be a pleasant change of pace to catch the boats from casino to casino. I've heard that there is one casino about 10 miles away where you can buy fireworks and they have a place where you can fire them off.

For those who stay downtown all the time, for those who aren't looking for the finest meal all year, for those who aren't looking for top notch shows, for those who only use the room to sleep, and for those want to save a few bucks, it might be an acceptable option. I can only assume the comp system is easier down there.

I guess some people fly all the way to Vegas then want to get away from Vegas for a while. There are 3 or 4 casinos in Mesquite. People fly to Las Vegas and drive there all the time. There are 3 casinos in Primm interconnected by a very slow electric car/monorail type thingy. It's right on the California boarder, and if it stops Californians from driving to Vegas, I'm all for it. There are 2 casinos right across the freeway from each other in Jean about half way between here and Primm. I don't know why, unless it is to catch overflow from Primm.

I guess different people want to do different things. Good for them. If I go back to Laughlin to see Lena in April, I think that I will manage to have a good time. After all, a good time is whatever you make out if it.

The elevator did not have cameras, nor did the hallways in the hotel. The actual elevator story is not suitable for discussion here or at the dinner table.

We have gone to Laughlin several times now in the last ten years. Most often we stay at the "Riverside" as they comp us (even airfare) from PDX...That I like, they also have a non smoking casino and sleeping tower, which they do enforce. It is quite a bit less expensive than (still our fav) Las Vegas and there are several good places to eat (Prime Rib @ Riverside). We don't worry too much about the latest big shows and even while in LV may not go to one each trip. There are less little kids running around and although you may trip over an oxygen tank being pulled along, it is still a easy laid back place to play...We like it...

You should try Laughlin the last weekend in April. The cheapest room will run you about $600 for the three nights Thu-Sat. You get to party with about 80,000 bikers and me. :p

The concerts are great, LT&A running wild and the best chrome show in the west. It's loud, no one sleeps and the party is non-stop for four days & three nights.

Irish, can you get comps in April to join Cajun and a few of his closest friends for a weekend of chrome and hot leather? If that doesn't make your life complete, I don't know what will.

LOL, I wouldn't head for Laughlin that week if the hotels were going to give me a $600 guaranteed win each night.

However, I have enjoyed Laughlin a couple of times. About 10-15 years ago, it made a pleasant stop when my parents and I were driving down to Lake Havasu, and Tater & I also made a trip to see Kenny Rogers a couple of years ago .. that was the only time I actually stayed in Laughlin, and I enjoyed the trip. We had nice rooms at the Flamingo Hilton, enjoyed eating a variety of places I can't remember, and just kicked back and enjoyed the riverwalk and the leisurely pace compared to Las Vegas.

I didn't know they had a Flamingo Hilton. That cold weather must have really raised my CRS level.

You wrote that exactly right; they HAD a Flamingo Hilton, but it's now called the Aquarius Casino Resort.

The Aquarius has changed the casino around quite a bit, too. New carpet, new entrance.....same place, just different, but I didn't get there in time to save my comp points.....they told me, while I was getting my new card, that I had the grand sum of $5 comp cash. !!!!
The Aquarius is owned by the same as the Strat and Arizona Charlies, and will soon be using the same card.
We stay at Harrah's now......they are very kind to us, and we like the rooms.....and the buffet.......chocolate covered strawberries, bananas, and would you believe marshmallows (?) make me a happy camper the one time a visit we allow ourselves at the buffet. We also love the Range at Harrah's. Service and food are wonderful. We'll have to check and see if they still have the Beef Baron at the Aquarius.....I forgot to look in December.

I couldn't guarantee you a $600 win each night either; but I can guarantee you a ride on the Harley, would consider going with an offer like that? And I'd throw in a side trip to the Pioneer Saloon near Jean, NV if you are up for the ride.

Got a sidecar<g>?

U got 15 grand to buy me one<g>?

I refuse to contribute to the deliquency of a major. :p

jmt-fyi-noted lena prima at the colorado belle on april 13-14

Where did you get Colorado Belle? The dates sound about right, but I am showing Edgewater again.

If rooms are $600 per night, it's loud, and no one sleeps, why would they spend that much money on a room?

jmt-thier website,but now that i think about it i don't think the cb has a showroom