Las Vegas Freak

Ladbrokes is the first bookmaker I ever used, way back at the birth of my gambling ‘hobby’. They are one of the biggest bookmakers in the UK, with shops on just about every high street, offering punters a wide variety of events to bet on.

Ladbrokes are also one of the first online casino and poker rooms I ever tried. For this they use the Microgaming software, which is generally considered to be the industry standard and leader.

Overall they are a very safe place to play, you should never have to be worried about funds kept there, and although they are an extremely large company the service they provide is still very efficient.

Payment methods they accept at the current time include: Visa, Mastercard, Maestro, Western Union, Neteller, MoneyBookers, Wire Transfer and Ukash.

Their website and software is available in a wide variety of languages.

Paris Hilton celebrated her 27th birthday last weekend, with a Las Vegas party extravaganza that well and truly lived up to her reputation. She started the night in the Pussycat Dolls lounge in Caesars Las Vegas, taking to the stage to introduce the band wearing a raunchy outfit.

She managed to have a costume change, presumably the high point of her act, to try and keep the crowd interested in her antics, and also did a show swimming around in a massive Martini glass. By the way, for those of you who have seen the pictures and think it may have been worth seeing it probably wasn’t. I’ve watched entertainers in the same ‘glasses’ in Pacha and Ibiza, and the novelty very quickly wears off leaving the observers as bored rigid as those in the glass.

After her ‘perfomance’ she thanked her ‘fans’ and moved on to the Pure night club next door where much drinking would have inevitably have taken place.

Paris is of course no stranger to Las Vegas, often spending time in the city when she isn’t in trouble with the law. Her most recent brush was tame by anyone’s standards - she is being investigated by animal welfare officials in California for having too many pets. According to the state law each household may have only 3 pets, and Paris admitted to having 17. Although she didn’t know where they all were.

Staying with Paris, her recent film, The Hottie and the Nottie, has been voted the worst movie of all time according to users of IMDB, but of course that wouldn’t stop her enjoying herself in Las Vegas. The Paris Hilton saga continues…

MGM Mirage announced today that the Mote Carlo Hotel and Casino has re-opened in time for President’s Day, after the fire last month which closed the hotel. The loss to the company due to the fire that affected the top of the Las Vegas hotel is estimated to be around $100 Million.

Currently around 1,200 of the hotel’s over 3,000 rooms are open, more are due to open on February 22nd, although the last 500 rooms on the upper floors will need to undergo complete renovation and will therefore take longer to open. Most of these were suite, meaning the company will be losing out on it’s high-end residents which could have a knock on effect on the gaming floor.

Some stores and restaurants have opened already, but all will be open by the 22nd along with the increased room capacity. Master Magician Lance Burton will resume his long running Las Vegas show immediately.

Fire workers are blaming the fire on construction workers using a cutting torch on the roof.

Shares in Wynn Resorts Ltd fell on Wednesday as the Chief Executive Steve Wynn warned that Las Vegas would not be immune from a recession. Executives blamed the less than anticipated growth on higher than expected wins from table game player and a reduction in pedestrian traffic due to the closures of the Stardust and New Frontier Casinos in Las Vegas.

Overall profits were healthy however due to the company’s operation in Macau, indicating how much the Chinese market is important now to the large Gaming companies - in fact earnings from Macau were greater than the Las Vegas operation.

These reports will further dampen the mood and feeling of Las Vegas, increasing fears that the city may be facing a hard time in the coming months and years. With less wealthy people now being more budget conscious and not prepared to spend as much as they have recently, and with Las Vegas recently having been announced as the posting the 3rd highest metro foreclosure rate in the US, things may not be so rosy for the big gaming companies, and there may be an added reliance on Macua to produce profits.

Victor Chandler has become one of the top UK facing sportsbooks in recent years and continues to offer great odds and an exceptional service to it’s users. Victor Chandler himself is know as ‘the gentleman bookmaker’ as he believes in fair-play, quick payouts, and never likes to refuse to take a bet.

The site takes wagers on a massive range of sporting events as well as offering poker, casino games, skill games and also betting through the use of a mobile phone. Live results are available for major sports, and they offer a radio station through the site also. However perhaps the best feature is the ability to watch live horse racing after you have placed a bet using their services.

Victor Chandler offer a range of sign-up bonuses across their products including a £100 free bet for new customers. They accept deposits and process withdrawals using credit/debit cards, western union and neteller among others and are very quick to payout winnings when players have profited from their great odds.

The Las Vegas Monorail has been the subject of much mocking since it opened in 2004, however as it has grown it has become a useful mode of transport for getting around Las Vegas. It now runs from the MGM Grand at the South end of The Strip to Sahara at the North, with stations at Bally’s/Paris, Flamingo, Harrahs/Imperial Palace, the Las Vegas Convention Centre and the Las Vegas Hilton.

There are plans to extend the monorail to run to McCarran International Airport - company executives are currently trying to obtain the half billion dollars needed for this.

The monorail runs from 7am to 2am Monday to Thursday, and 7am to 3am Friday to Sunday, 365 days of the year. Trains run approximately every 4-12 minutes, although usually every 5-6 minutes in peak time, and you can travel the entire route from the MGM Grand to the Sahara in less than 15 minutes.

Tickets for the monorail are as follows: Single Ride - $5, Two Ride (can be shared) - $9, Unlimited 1 Day Pass - $9, Unlimited 3 Day Pass - $40. Surely it would just be better to buy three 1 Day passes? There are also specials for Nevada residents, as well as a 6 ride ‘Party Pack’, although I’m sure you can get better parties in Las Vegas than on the monorail. Tickets can be bought at vending machines at each of the stations and also online.

A quick round-up of news and events happening in Las Vegas in the last week or so:

First off, I read an article on the Boston Globe about trouble outside the Clark County Marriage Bureau between workers from the various wedding chapels in the city. This is actually an on-going issue, as I remember reading a piece in a newspaper over here in England a couple of years ago. It was quite an explosive read talking about death threats and the suchlike.

The Boston Globe’s article briefly mentions this, but also talks about the hassle people suffer when leaving the Marriage Bureau, from handbillers trying to persuade the couple’s to use the services they are promoting. It has led to scuffles and even more serious incidents between these workers.

Now this is hardly news that handbillers are hassling people, it happens in most major and even smaller tourist areas, and of course the strip itself is plagued by the ‘Strippers to you’ workers, but I think the major issue here is that obviously a wedding is supposed to be a special day, and that these activities are doing nothing to help it be so.

If you hadn’t heard, Cher announced she was leaving retirement to start a residency at Caesars Palace Las Vegas. I have already written a post on this here.

There have been heated debates over plans to draw water from rural Nevada(CNN). This is an issue which affects Las Vegas probably more so than any other country in the Western world, due to the desert climate coupled with the massive growth in both the resident population and visitor numbers.

Finally, MGM Mirage announced that it expects 4th Quarter profits to be lower than previously stated. This is due mainly to the costs involved in opening new resorts.

Cher has announced that she will be coming out of her retirement after 3 years, to take up a residency at Caesars Palace Las Vegas. Her performance will take part in the 4,300 seater Colosseum Theatre, with 18 dancers and aerialists as well as of course fabulous costumes, video and special effects.

The run will last for 200 shows over 30 months and alternates with performances from Elton John and Bette Midler, starting from May 6th for a month followed by a return in August. Ticket prices will range from $95 to $250 for the 4 time a week show.

Cher herself has been quoted as saying: “I started in Vegas at Caesars so I’ve come full circle,” the 61-year-old said. “I’m back, and I plan to give my fans the best experience yet.”

This is great news for Las Vegas, as yet another superstar performer graces the city surely to appear on the massive advertising billboards and screens after Celine Dion’s residency finished back in December.

As regular readers of this blog will probably know, poker, blackjack and craps are my games of choice, although recently I’ve started to set aside some time to play online slots. The great thing about slots is the chance to hit a massive jackpot at any time without relying on a prolonged good run needed for most other games.

The biggest benefit of online slots as opposed to those in a real casino is that you will always be able to get your game of choice. No more fighting with old ladies to try and get your favourite game! There is a massive choice of online casinos to play at, most with a very wide choice of slots games. Also most online casinos offer sign up bonuses which are much easier to clear when playing slots than other games, and if they identify you as a slot player then you can expect to receive further regular promotions.

If you haven’t played slots before no need to worry, they are quite easy, but just to get some experience you can start on penny slots which as the name suggests start from as low as a penny to play. They will give you a chance to see how the games work before you think about moving up to higher stakes, where of course the rewards increase.

If you are ready to dive right in at the higher stakes then be sure to check out online casinos who have progressive slot machines. These are the ones where the jackpot increases continuously offering sometimes ridiculous amounts to be won on just one spin of the reels, just like Megabucks in Las Vegas.

Former Miss Nevada beauty queen, Katie Rees’ has been arrested and jailed, on charges relating to traffic offenses and resisting a police officer charge. The 23 year old is being held at the Clark County jail awaiting a court appearance this Friday, after being stopped whilst driving at around 3 am on Wednesday.

Miss Rees allegedly became aggressive towards a police office kicking out and throwing an elbow, although it is believed there were no injuries. She has been charged with speeding, driving with a suspended license, driving a vehicle with suspended license plates and failing to produce proof of insurance in addition to resisting a police office.

The former Miss Nevada 2007 was stripped of her title after racy photo’s of her were published, including simulated oral sex and a lesbian kiss with a friend while in a club in Florida. Miss USA co-owner Donald Trump stripped her of her crown after this, unlike the pardon he issued Miss USA 2006 Tara Connor after allegations of her using cocaine.