Tag: rio las vegas

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Casino Impossible

May 21, 2012 at 3:01 PM | by | Comments (11)

We've become addicted to the "Impossible" fix 'em up line of shows on TV over the past few months. From Restaurant Impossible to Bar Rescue and now Hotel Impossible our DVR is on overload.

When we were in our sweet, smelly, dirty Rio Masquerade Suite we felt so icky that we wanted to call Hotel Impossible to clean things up immediately. Then we saw episodes with dead bugs and inches of dust and realized that, while the room wasn't clean, it could be a lot worse.

This got us to thinking that if there was a Casino Impossible what casino they would start filming at? It's easy to say start with the oldest casino and work to newest, but the oldest casino in Vegas, downtown's Golden Gate, is currently undergoing massive renovations already so that wouldn't work.

However, you can stay downtown and fix up the casino at Binion's where half of the casino looks sad and unused. The staff seemed courteous and most of the casino looked fine, but the empty parts could use some help.

We would definitely bring Casino (or Hotel) Impossible to Planet Hollywood to shore up their bad housekeeping staff. Numerous days with gum wrappers left untouched around our hotel room need to be corrected.

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Coffee In Your Rio Room Will Wake You Up, But Maybe Not Until Checkout

Where: 3700 W Flamingo Rd [map], 89103
April 19, 2012 at 6:27 PM | by | Comments (13)

For many, caffeine makes the world day go round and when it comes to grabbing a jolt, Las Vegas brews plenty of options. From food court lattes and swanky frappuccinos to simply great breakfast coffee. Often, those hotel Starbucks lines at 8 a.m. are longer than the security lines at McCarran, making it difficult to get a quick start to the day.

The Starbucks at the Rio is no exception as we recently spied a line 10-15 deep even in the afternoon and at night. The good news is that hotel guests can skip the line and make sexy time coffee in the room. The even better news is that the guestroom coffee maker is a Keurig.

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Here Comes The Richest Prize in Poker History

April 16, 2012 at 2:48 PM | by | Comments (3)

The $1,000,000 entry fee tournament called BIG ONE for ONE DROP that is part of this year's World Series of Poker (WSOP) is set to have the largest prize in tournament poker history.

The $12,266,668 guaranteed to the winner will exceed Jamie Gold’s $12 million winnings at the 2006 WSOP Main Event.

ONE DROP Chair and Cirque du Soleil Founder Guy Laliberté announced last week that 30 players have now committed to participate in the event that is the largest buy-in poker tournament ever conceived. The overall prize pool is projected to exceed $26,000,000. Of course, this is if no one else is added to the event which organizers don't expect.

People with money aren't just playing for more money as BIG ONE for ONE DROP will donate $111,111 for each entry to ONE DROP. The goal of this tournament is to raise enough money for a legacy project that will help a country access clean water. With the commitment from 30 players already, more than $3.33 million is slated to go to ONE DROP.

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Want Two Beds? There's A Charge For That

March 12, 2012 at 12:15 PM | by | Comments (8)

So, let's get this straight. There's fees for late check outs and early check ins. Fees to guarantee you get the room you thought you were reserving all along. Resort fee fees. (And, higher ones to boot.) Fees for chairs at the pool. And, at one (very short-lived) time, there were even fees to stay in a non-smoking room.

Now, VegasChatter fan Devon C. has noticed another Sin City hotel charge that could have you shacking up more than you wanted on your next Vegas vacation:

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Chippendale's Latest Reality Star Host is the Once and Future Bachelor Jake Pavelka

February 8, 2012 at 6:24 PM | by | Comments (0)

Not Pictured: Jake Pavelka

Here we go again! Chippendale's has found another sucker reality show celeb to do a guest-hosting stint for the male revue at Rio Las Vegas -- Jake Pavelka of "The Bachelor." (Crickets.)

Pavelka will be hosting the show for a month, but if it's anything like the appearance of Ronnie from the Jersey Shore, he won't be doing much except saying hi at the beginning of the show, picking out girls to come up on stage for one of the skits and fist-pumping with the naked men at the end. Ok, maybe that last bit was just for Ronnie.

So he won't be stripping, but judging by Google Images, he seems pretty comfy with his shirt off. The odds of you seeing some Bachelor skin are pretty good. But whatever Jake ends up doing, he's real excited to do it. Here's what Pavelka told The Hollywood Reporter:

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Changes In Store For The WSOP

February 2, 2012 at 2:01 PM | by | Comment (1)

What a great time to release the schedule for the World Series of Poker (WSOP). Good thing there's nothing else happening that gamblers are doing this week. Regardless, we have the info and we're going to share it!

The 2012 WSOP will take place, once again, at the Rio. The schedule will feature 61 WSOP bracelet events from May 27 through July 16. Things change a little with the removal of the "November Nine". The final nine players will advance to the final table that will, once again, be delayed, but this year will return on October 28. The champion will be crowned at the final final table on October 30 in the Penn & Teller Theater.

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Fiery Flames, Live Music, And Lion Dances, Oh My: Year of the Dragon Roars Onto The Strip

January 18, 2012 at 3:03 PM | by | Comments (3)

The botanical displays of Bellagio and Palazzo are known for being picture perfect, but both hotels have really outdone themselves for the Year of the Dragon. This Chinese New Year, the Palazzo doesn't just feature a 128-foot, 8,000-pound dragon. It features a 128-foot, 8,000-pound fire-breathing dragon that took more than a year to make.

See the mythical creature (pictured above) come to life (shown below) every day at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. from January 23 to February 5.

When you do stop by, Palazzo says it's lucky to walk around the dragon three times, clockwise. Even more so (for them) if something from one of the nearby shops catches your eye.

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Vegas. New Year's Eve. $40 or Less. Yep, You Read That Right.

December 23, 2011 at 5:41 PM | by | Comment (1)

A hundred, maybe two, to get into the club. A thousand, or two (if you're lucky), to get a table in said club. Then there's the drinks. And, let us not forget about our special Ed Hardy club gear just for Vegas. Oh, and there's the room, too. Which if you don't have by now, well, how comfy is your car?

Celebrating New Year's Eve can get extremely pricey, but you can do it on the cheap, too. If you don't mind being a bit off-Strip, there's still lots of fun and booze to be had even if it is on a budget.

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(New) Restaurant Roundup: Steak, Beer, Meatballs, and Dim Sum

December 21, 2011 at 7:25 PM | by | Comments (2)

Oscar. A man with a vision. And, a martini.

Warning: If you aren't hungry now, you might be by the end of reading this.

Not only have we been busy dishing on new restaurants on The Strip, off The Strip, and way off The Strip, we've been wrapping our napkins around the buffet of options open for Christmas. As if that wasn't enough to keep us stuffed for the remainder of the year, there are still five more restaurants just open or preparing to before 2011 ends.

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McFadden's May Be Closed, But You Can Still Sing The Blues (Or Whatever Else) At Rio

Where: 3700 West Flamingo Road [map], 89109
December 9, 2011 at 6:36 PM | by | Comments (0)

If you haven't heard yet, the Irish haven't been quite so lucky in Vegas lately.

Earlier this year, we learned that The Linq would mean the end to O'Sheas as we know it. Then, we discovered that the new Fitz wouldn't be known as the Fitz. And, just a few days ago, the drunken smilin' stopped over at McFadden's after the bar shut its doors for good on Sunday.

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Is Caesars' Customer Service Too Good?

November 21, 2011 at 1:53 PM | by | Comments (2)

There's a lot to be said about good customer service. Frankly, it means a lot, especially to this VegasChatter member. Treat me well and I'm yours. I'm easy like that. While I'm finicky about a lot of things, customer service usually isn't one of them. However -- time for a soapbox -- I think Caesars Entertainment may be going too far trying to check in on my recent visits.

I'm used to receiving an email when I stay at a hotel for a night, but not for every visit that I make to that property. I'm sympathetic to the fact that casinos have day trippers and overnight customers, but the surveys should reflect each trip.

I have worked in marketing much of my life in some way and even studied marketing in college and have a degree in it, too. There is a point of diminishing returns in all marketing campaigns and Caesars Entertainment may be reaching that point.

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If They Erect It Will You Come?

November 17, 2011 at 7:49 PM | by | Comments (0)

Sapphire wants to get you wet again.

When at first you don't succeed, build your own.

Sapphire Gentleman's Club tried to jump into the Vegas pool scene a few years back by keeping the ladies of the night poolside at the Rio as glistening advertisements of what awaited guests up in the club. Well, that didn't go well to put it mildly. But, Sapphire hasn't given up the dream of keeping things drenched. Now, it wants to build it's own pool. And, Vegas is totes ok with that. At least, for now, as reported by the Las Vegas Sun:

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