VegasChatter

Check-In
There was hardly a line when we checked in on Friday at 3pm and check-in was fairly smooth. We asked for an upgrade as usual and we were told that a Strip View was an extra $30 a night and the Petite Suite was an extra $160 a night. We decided to stick with our original room type. As the front desk clerk click-clacked away on her computer we had a good look at the pool scene behind the check-in desk. This is Vegas so the usual repertoire of too-small bikinis, gold chains and large tattoos were on full display. We made a mental note to skip sunbathing here.

Room Reaction
The rooms were just redone last fall either as last ditch attempt by former parent company MGM Mirage to spice the place up or as an effort to make the place pretty for prospective buyers. Now, the place belongs to new owner Phil Ruffin but the rooms are still looking good.

Nothing too fanciful here, just modern furnishings and fixtures and a view of the Trump Tower out the back of the hotel. However, the walls were pretty thin as we could hear nearly everything in the hallway and in the rooms next door. Plus, we could hear a bit of the freeway noise as our room overlooked the freeway on-ramps.

While we dreaded going to bed amidst all this noise, surprisingly it quieted down each night we went to sleep. And yes, we actually went to sleep--we didn't just black out this time.

Amenity Madness
The amenities here were sparse. Our room had a flat-screen TV, an iPod docking station and some paltry bath toiletries from the Wet spa. In the closet we did find a hairdryer and an iron with an ironing board.

Internet Connect
Internet service was available wirelessly at TI on a tiered pay structure starting at $7.99 for a few hours of access. $12.99 got you the standard 24-hour access.

Casino Floor
The TI casino is so-so and rather small but you can find all your usual Vegas tables and slots here. On the plus side, we spent some time in the sports book here because it was small and free of boisterous drunk dudes.

The dining options are decent--Canter's Deli, Isla Mexican restaurant, Pho Vietnamese noodle shop, Social House Sushi, Kahunaville, Pizzeria Francesco's and The Coffee Shop. Another big plus is the Starbucks across from Kahunaville. As for shopping, there's not much except the Christian Audigier store, a watch shop that is closing, the Everything $10 store, the Sirens Cove Shoppe and a few other smaller stores.

Aside from the Sirens show out front which always causes both a pedestrian and vehicle traffic jam, TI is home to the Cirque Du Soleil show, Mystere. We didn't hit it up but it's another plus for the property.

Bottom Line
The rooms were nice but not so nice that they merited a rate of $189 a night which is what we paid on Friday. For Saturday, we forked over $209. These are hefty room rates especially for a smaller casino with so-so options inside. Really, Social House is probably the biggest asset to the place's image. (And that's not even sticking around any more.)

Then again, the self-parking was free and easily accessible as was getting to the Wynn, Encore, Venetian, Palazzo, Mirage and Fashion Show Mall. And out of all of those other hotels, TI had the lowest rate. So it was a "deal." Not the kind we like but cheaper than the others in that area.