I have to set this up for you all....We needed a vacation!
Sharon gets offers from Harrahs from time to time for trips to their properties, some at reduced airline rates (aka, 2 people for $199, 6 days laughlin, NV) and some everything included free, it runs the gammit. Well, a few months ago, we called about an offer for July, and where put on a waiting list (the trip was already booked to capicity, Tunica I beleive was the destination). We never got a call July trip passes. We sign up for a Reno trip, and low and behold they call, we go!
This was a totally paid for trip by Harrahs, including Rt air on southwest out of baltimore (my airport of choice lately).
Well I have been to Reno twice before, with disapointing results. My first trip was thanksgiving week about 20yrs ago, expecting it like a little Las Vegas ....wrong. My second trip was about 6 months before my divorce, so you getthe idea how that one went. The one bright spot was Daisy showing up and taking me around and seeing more of Reno, (she does know Reno pretty darn well)! So not a lot of happiness for me in Reno. I left for Reno, feeling like I was wasting vacation time, and just had all around low expectations. Reno is not Las Vegas, not even close! It was hard getting excited about this in almost every way.

Wednesday evening we drive down to the boat harbored near Baltimore to spend the night. We have a early flight on southwest to Reno. It looked like a direct flight, but no, supprise, stop in Saltlake without a change of plane.

Thursday morning came quickly, and we where off to the airport, and a "B" boarding spot. We sit togeather with a window & center seat. both flights where fine. Reno airport is on the small side, we get our bags and wait for the shuttle (I hate waiting for shuttles) (Sharon on the other hand seems to love them) This is a part where those vows "to love honer and cherrish, till death do you part" becomes a little strained! LOL BTW, the weather in Reno is wonderful! 80 degrees sunny, 11% humidity! BEAUTIFUL!!!!
Shuttle driver comes, he's way to high energy for me. I do not know what Harrahs is feeding this guy, but he needs to go easy on the sugar and caffine! We check in, get our room, No safe! We have to get a darn hotel saftey deposit box, what a PITA! Room is small, but clean.
It's "Hot August Nights" in Reno, a big car show and parades. Lots of parades, parades every stinking day of our trip sometimes more then one in a day. when they are not parading, they are showing the cars right on Virgina st., Our hotel location is on that street. Our room faces that street, loud card early in the morning, and late at night. The 6 blocks of our street are closed to traffic the whole trip 27/7. Bald people with pony tails, and the guys with wife beater T's. Not my scene, but, live and let live! Better this week then next week anyway. We left before gay pride week. I'm sure that they had more parades planned for that too! LOL I think RENO loves a parade! Come to think of it, maybe the gay pride week might have been more fun. All the gay people I know, are a lot of fun to party with, but then can be said about most of my friends! LOL (the fun to party with part) LOL Anyway before I offend everyone, I think I'll move on.,,,,
We play at Harrahs, then move out on the street, musice is coming from everywhere and it's a almost carnival like experiance. All sorts of tents with stuff to buy, food, car parts, and just stuff in general, sun glasses mood rings, hoola hoops, stuff! We check out the Eldorado, Silver Legacy (wonder where the gold and platnium legacy are?), Circus Circus, then back to Harrahs with a pawn shop walk through, nothing I'd pay those prices for. We have dinner at the Eldorado, Brew Brothers. Food was good as well as the porter beer. Early night, bed by midnight. Not a whole lot of love from the machines anywhere.

Friday, Harrahs Buffet breakfast, (your going to hear the word buffet a lot this trip, ugh) and then plans call for a trip to Tahoe, we are told there is a bus trip. We ask and are told it leaves from the airport????? What? So rental car next option, No, Hertz is out of cars? What? We reserve one for Saturday and continue on with our day. To cheer me up and to stop the bleeding from my wallet, Sharon suggests playing some Let it Ride. 3 hrs of that game and I'm still seeing red! red chips that is going the way of the casino! Time for dinner, yup, Harrahs Buffet! Mmmm. We venture over to the sleazy side of town the Cal Neva, (right across the street from Harrahs). This is my kinda place, it's kinda clean, it's kinda friendly (just don't touch me), and it's kinda happening place. It's full of life or put another way, it seems that they have more then their fare share of slightly off center people. Was that PC? Anyway, I get some breaks here and leave with some of their money. something I haven't been able to do anywhere else in Reno. Cocktail service is good too, i'd like to add! Maybe too good and thats why some of the patrons are acting a little off center! I don't know! Now folks, here is where it gets kinda sad, my win did not come from VP, nor did it come from a table game......It came from slots, PENNY SLOTS at that, some new goldfish game. As I hide my face in shame. Skill games where not working,,. so I put it all on chance! Now in my own defence, it's $4 a button push, so it ain't really pennies is it? Anyway, I had no problem cashing out almost $400. Back to Harrahs and some super pay VP and some spin poker, and well, I played them all!
Bed about 2:30 am. I think. It was a blurr at that point.

Saturday morning, Breakfast, you guessed it Harrahs Buffet! Kilbassie I never thought as a breakfast meat, but Harrahs does! LOL We have time to kill before we pick up the rental car. I look left, then right, I don't know anyone but Sharon in the casino, so I sit down at (incert "gasp" here) a penny Hoot loot machine. I walk away about an hour later with net a profit of $2!
We pick up the car and head for Tahoe or so I thought. Sharon reminds me I suggested Virginia City before we left home in PA, so I say ok, but now not really wanting to go. We arrive, pay $5 to park and a golf cart ride up the hill to B street??? We go in a few shops walk a long way until I say I've had enough of the junk shops and the people. We do visit the police museum before we go. $5PP and it was an enjoyable visit. Oddly enough, Reading PA (a very close city) has a prominate spot in a display. we walk down the hill and leave Virginia city in the dust, followed by a Nevada state trooper on motorcycle. Through silver city, and Carson (Sharons employer has a big place there, we had to drive by) She didn't want to stop in! Thank you lord! On to Tahoe, park at Harveys, check out Harveys and Harrahs. Lunch at ???? No, we had Fat Burger, and man was it good, in fact better then I remember! did anyone know that FatBurger charges a dollar for a slice of cheese? OUCH! Darn good cheese, but a dollar, come on now!
We loose enough and back to reno or so I thought. Sharon has me stop at a few places for pictures of the Lake. This is truly a beautiful place. For me to notice speaks volumes. We travel around the Nevada side of Tahoe to incline village, there is a state park sandy something, and I pay $12 to park the car. Sharon protests a little and the park person is telling us to go and park up the road at the boat ramp for such a short visit. I decline, I pay the twelve bucks with a smile. We walk around, Sharon gets her feet wet in the cold water of Lake tahoe, and I am just amazed by the clear water. Like a post card! We walk around the boardwalk stopping to take pictures at out looks. A storm is brewing and we need to circle the wagons and head out of the park before it hits, it looks ugly! When we leave the park, I stop at the gate and let the park person know the visit was worth every penny of that twelve dollars! And after all, I am learning the value of those pennies!LOL
The storm comes and goes, we are treated to a double rainbow on our decent from the mountains. I don't think I could have scripted a better day! Back on rt395 we veer off at the Peppermill. The Fortunes are playing at the lounge and we got bar seats with some decent VP. It's 25 cent VP, but it's 25 quarters to play, full load. We bang away at these for more then an hour, and I don't think either of us got hurt. Sharon snapped some neat pictures from inside the casino. The neon is kinda over the top inside the place, and it's kinda old school with the mirrors on the ceiling, but we both agreed, if we had more time we would go back.
We get back to Harrahs, only for find ourselves fighting traffic for over an hour because of yet another parade. It's cruise night, or what ever. Return Mazda 3 rental car, and play a little bartop VP, by the beer pong tables. Oh, you should see the group this "brings to the table" for Harrahs. Frat boys gone LOUD! All the while Harrahs party pit DJ, yes they have a night time DJ for the beer pong, while the party pit dealers take turns to dance like, rr,a, mmm sluts on the stage. OK, That wasn't fair! This is, They really can't dance, they do however have really short skirts on with belly peircings, and halter style tops. Did I mention not in any particular shape for that kind of dancing? Harrahs has put VP machines at the foot of the stage (basicly lining the stage) The seats went empty the whole time. Nuff said!
After taking my lumps at VP, we wondered over to my new Favorite penny slot. It's called "U-Spin", and the version Harrahs had was not a penny machine it was a 2 cent machine! Now I know what you all are thinking "Whoa there big fella, those are high steaks yur play'n fur now! I do not know/remember what the full load was on this machine, but rest assured, I played max, just like I always do. I slipped my c-note into the machine with confidence! I have never been on a slot machine that played like this. I was hitting so much and often that I seriously expected someone to come up from behind and say the machine is malfunctioning and close it down . At one point I had it almost up to a thousand dollars ( I quit at $800), all that in a time span of 45 min.
Between that and some VP hits I was up for the day at bed time, around 3am.

Sunday, Breakfast at Harrahs Buffet, & More parades, we walk down to the Siena casino, that has recently declared bankruptsy, but I wanted to revisit. My last trip here with Daisy it was a favorite. It's a shell of it's former self, it's just a slot parlor now, and a sad one at that. We leave and check out the clear water in the Truckee river and watch the beginning of yet another parade of cars and local celebs. Up the street and over a couple of blocks to the Sands. Another dump. On our way however we are on a course that puts us square to meet a crazy intoxicated man at the corner. He is screaming about nonsence and as we get closer he starts ranting about holes under Circus Circus and that is where all the mone is going. This guy is in his own world, and he's swearing and as we approch the corner he lets out the F word, and he lifts his hat and says "oh excuse my language mam" shuts up for 2 seconds and continuse on his walk loud as ever and swearing up a storm again in his own little world. If that guy would have asked me for a dollar, I would have given him five. The Sands is owned by Treibbles now and it's full name is "Terribles Sands Regency" Spelled DUMP. 99cent budweizers and rail drinks will do that to a property.
We walk back and stop at another pawn shop, this one has a lot of guns for sale. Still asking way too much for me to buy anything here. Harrahs for awhile, and then one last visit to Cal Neva across the street. some slots here and then back to Harrahs for dinner.
Tonight we have an early dinner planned at the Harrahs steak house located in the lovely basement of the hotel. Sharon had the cowboy cut rib eye med rare, I had the snails and the king crab. Sharons meal was far better then mine. I screwed up by ordering seafood in a steak house! Dumb dumb dumb! Well I made it all better with a double of 150yr old Grande Marina. Which was much better then any chocolate truffle sharon had! I left the place very happy!
Now to say goodbye to all my new favorite machines, Got Aces with the kicker on a dollar machine at the end of the night, to pull me into striking distance of a totally free trip, but it wasn't enough and luck just couldn't hold out for me.
Bed at midnight. Sharon said I could stay and play if I wanted, but I was beat.
Monday, up too freaking early, the parade people arn't even awake yet! LOL Pack, and check out Harrahs' paid for everything (almost). and then the shuttle to the airport. Southwest home through saltlake again. Baltimore 25 min early. drive home was nice.

Closing thoughts.....
Harrahs picked up everything except the rental car. I think I could have worked that too, I just wasn't thinking. $56 Harrahs I thought would be more Rah Rah Rah, about this trip, maybe even lay it on thick about playing more at Harrahs or something like that. I had one voice message on the phone saying if there was anything I needed to call my host, which I was informed her name on the message. I didn't even know I had a host in Reno, and we still have never met!

Reno was fun, it was truly a happy experiance and on the way home in the car, I asked Sharon if she would do Reno again with Harrahs, if another offer would come our way. She said yes she would. I know I would love to go back again.

Why would I ever go to Vegas in July again? Weather was picture perfect!

We really worked on Sharons status for diamond next year, being this was our first vacation this year she is already up over 9K towards the needed 11K. I think we'll make it! LOL

Hertz rental car agent was super! What a pleasent person. In general, we found the employees and just customers and locals to be very nice people. Very friendly, and welcoming.

Buffet, it was quick, it was free, and made to order omlets and carved meat. I was very careful, and we made due. Every night a casino employee would find us on the casino floor and offer us a breakfast comp for the next morning. Another nice touch, we never had to ask for anything.

Harrahs Reno casino, it's smallish and chopped up in 3 parts, not a very nice flow at all.

The sinks in the room are too shallow, more like soup bowls that wash basins! That and the lack of a room safe are the only small complaints we had of the rooms.

When we arrived home, I got the mail and low and behold sharon has another offer for RENO Nov 4 to 8. It's do-able for me, Sharon, we will see! LOL

sounds like a fun trip.i always liked reno and in the early years usually won.c u n vegas for thanksgiving week and maybe reno if you do go early in nov.

DAG,
It all depends on Sharon if we do Reno in November. I'll keep you posted!
Thanks for reading!

I agree the view around the lake can be very nice, especially with good weather. And it looks like the cost of the trip was good with Harrah's picking up the tab.

Congratulations on being a buffet king. Perhaps you can come settle the rankings on the buffets at M vs Bellagio vs Wynn vs P-Ho.

Those party pits don't impress me. Wasn't the Rio the first with the dancers? And Harrah's and/or IP had the impersonators? During my downtown visits, I noticed the Plaza and Golden Gate and several others also have dancers...probably about on scale with beer pong dancers.

I've only been to one hotel in Reno since I moved here and forgot which one it was. It was old and small though. I've never been impressed with Reno's scattered casino locations. I guess it hasn't gotten much better since I last spent serious time there.

I think that the Pawn Stars TV show has ruined pawn deals around here. Almost no bargains are to be found in those stores.

I'm glad that you got a much needed vacation. I think it might have been more exciting than a Vegas trip this time because everything was somewhat new. It was more adventure and less comfort zones.

Thanks for the Reno fix. It sounds so much nicer than Atlantic City.

Lee - Thanks for a great read. Sounds like you had fun. So what was the temperature in Reno? For some reason I thought it was just as hot there as it is in Las Vegas.

Nice trip and congrats on the wins.

Makes me want to go back to Reno and spend more than 5 hours there! LOL

I'm shocked at all the buffets. No coffee shop?

JMT, I', never going to be the buffet king. My friends here know how I feel about buffets, it was not the perfect ideal place to eat for me. But I managed through it.

Those dancers are a joke, and yes I've seen them in the Las Vegas club and those girls are scary!

To be honest, it was just nice spending time somewhere away. I don't recall the last time there was 9 months between trips anywhere. It was nice making some happy memories of Reno. With such low expectations going in, it was easy, to like the place, when everything goes well!

Reno beats AC without a doubt! Even if it was just the pleasent attitude of my fellow gamblers, the employees, the locals, it would have been better on that alone. The gambling treated me nicer too!

Thanks for reading!

Mike, 90 by mid afternoon, but the nights got a little low, in the 60's, the very low 60's. We are having such a rough summer here on the east coast, that 11% humidity felt like heaven!

Thanks for reading!

Senator, long time no see!

The buffets where comped every night, they would find us on the casino floor, and just hand Sharon a comp for it. They never offered the coffee shop, and truth be told I would have ordered the same thing in there, a spinich, mushroom and green onion omelet, and the carved meat of the day. Then we either had a late lunch or dinner. 2 meals a day is plenty for us on vacation, when your just sitting at a machine all day! LOL

Reno is not Vegas. The hotel we stayed in is older, much older. But it worked fine for us this time. Maybe Tahoe would be a better choice next time?????

Forgot my manners......
Thanks for reading!
we could meet in Reno sometime????