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I’m having Vegas withdrawals

By Catherine Toth Fox • May 9, 2013 • #CatTravels

vegas

What is it about local people and Las Vegas?

We can’t seem to get enough of Sin City.

My grandparents used to go several times a year. I have friends who book weekend jaunts every year. And it seems like every public school is holding their reunions there.

Even though I’m not much of a gambler, I find myself daydreaming about Vegas. I browse the menus of restaurants I haven’t tried and check the Megabucks progressive slots online regularly.

You’d think, since I’m there at least once every two years, I wouldn’t find anything new or interesting to do. And that might be true for most U.S. cities — but not Vegas.

As Elaine Glusac wrote in Thursday’s New York Times: “From a tourism perspective, Las Vegas is ever the chameleon. New restaurants, shows, clubs and hotels are constantly reinventing Sin City with the aim of getting repeaters back to the tables. Big construction projects continue, and there are currently two competing Ferris wheels under construction on the Strip.”

So true. And so Vegas.

She mentions new restaurants I want to try — L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, for example — and a strange hour-long Yoga Among the Dolphins at the Mirage Las Vegas.

It’s really true — even if you’re not a gambler, there are still lots of things to do — The Neon Museum, anyone? — and see.

So I’m throwing it out there: what it is about Vegas that we love — or maybe hate to love? You have an addiction like mine?

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About the Author

Catherine Toth Fox

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14 Comments

  • Reply Annoddah Dave May 9, 2013 at 10:03 pm

    CAT: For me it is Fuud! and plenty of it!

  • Reply matt May 9, 2013 at 10:36 pm

    especially since it’s a short flight from the Bay Area, I used to go a couple of times a year. I haven’t been in a couple of years now and I don’t really miss it. the restaurants are the main reason I’d go back there now, but, for some reason, the non-vegas incarnations of the name restaurants are more appealing to me. i’d rather go to Bouchon in yountville than in Vegas. it seems more real to me that way.
    I have nothing against gambling. used to do a fair amount of it, as a matter of fact. as a science and math guy, I realize that I’m usually going to take the worst of it when gambling in vegas, but I also am able to make ev calculations for myself and I’ve realized that the recent trends in gambling are only about fleecing the weekender. Casinos used to be content with giving the gamblers a good amount of play for their money. they knew that the few percentage points of edge that they had was enough, as long as they kept the gamblers coming back. Now, with the rule changes that they’ve made, they have stated, tacitly, but in no uncertain terms, that they want you to come in, play as little as possible, and lose your money as quickly as possible. single deck 21 with 25 percent penetration? naturals that pay 6-5 instead of 3-2? continuous shuffle machines (granted, these don’t remove edge, but they remove most of the possibilities of playing +ev)…these rules changes and others like it whittle away at the players’ ev until we might as well play the big wheel (notoriously the worst table game in the casino). similarly, small changes in the pay table on video poker changes the game from not too bad or even beatable to a sucker’s play. something as small as making 2 pair the minimum hand for making your money back (instead of jacks or better) can change a 9-6 machine from over 100 percent payback (with the right big hand or jackpot payout) to pretty freakin’ horrible.
    vegas had the edge on the huge majority of gamblers and was a small small small dog to a handful of sharps, but they got greedy and wanted the whole pie.

  • Reply M May 10, 2013 at 6:20 am

    Hello Cat,
    I don’t think about Vegas, I think about Japan. If I can, I try to go Japan once a year and this year is no exception, we are heading to Japan next month for 2 weeks. You mention the fuud in Vegas and that’s all I can think about when going to Japan, the fuud. The yen is going up too, it’s 101 today…..

  • Reply M May 10, 2013 at 6:26 am

    I think I haven’t been to Vegas in more than 5 years and I don’t miss it, I don’t gamble. As a matter of fact, I been to Japan more times than I been to Vegas.

  • Reply 808pooh May 10, 2013 at 7:58 am

    I think its the spontaneous things to do in vegas at all times of the day/nigh…also while there you tend to bump into people you haven’t seen awhile even though you probably live on the same on island as they do. It’s great there as a getaway but somehow once we land back here in honolulu we are glad to be back at home!

  • Reply rayboyjr May 10, 2013 at 9:34 am

    Hey Cat … me love gamble … me love Vegas … me loser … me throw money away … me idiot …

    … something about Vegas throws all common cents away …

  • Reply Kenneth May 10, 2013 at 5:23 pm

    I don’t find gambling fun at all, so I go to Vegas for the buffets, and the shooting ranges off the strip (where you can rent a machine gun!) Shooting a machine gun isn’t your thing? Try it once to see for yourself! It is cheaper than gambling and more fun in my opinion!

  • Reply David Jackson May 10, 2013 at 7:13 pm

    I go to see the shows, some are quite amazing. Take Shania Twain for example, glad she is back on stage. Of course Cirque de Soleil is always fun. Too bad Montecore got a case of the munchies because the Tiger show was cool. A day trip to the canyon is worth it especially with a stop at the Hoover dam. Vegas is better in early Spring and late Fall if you ask me.

  • Reply Pomai May 11, 2013 at 1:43 am

    @ David, seen the Viva Las Elvis Cirque du Soleil show at the new Aria a couple years ago, and it was AMAZING. Turned out being amazing and way better than I personally expected; this coming from someone who’s never been an Elvis fan, per se.

    One thing I don’t get is that so many people don’t venture outside downtown or the strip. You MUST do Hoover Dam, at least! While there, do walk across the new Pat Tillman bridge overlooking the dam. BREATHTAKING!

    Vegas definitely has some of the greatest buffet deals around. MGM Grand and Rio are just a few of many that are absolutely INSANE, as far as quality and shear size of selection. Most of them are under $25 per person,thanks to the casinos funding/your wallet indirectly/directly funding them.

  • Reply Pomai May 11, 2013 at 2:10 am

    Oh, forgot to add that someone left a comment on my blog yesterday using the euphemism “Las Wages”. Love it!

    Similar to “Whole Paycheck” (Whole Foods).

  • Reply turkfontaine May 11, 2013 at 6:10 am

    i love to be up and about in the casinos at sunrise. by Vegas standards, it’s quiet. the bells and buzzes of the machines seem distant. all the addicted gamblers are there. some have been up all night, some have stopped in on their way to work. i get a seat at the Baccarat Bar in the Mirage, order a Bloody Mary and watch the day begin and listen to the noise level rise. then i go have breakfast.

  • Reply Andy Konopka May 12, 2013 at 10:49 am

    Just a quick 2 POMAI…haven’t u heard the oldie…”LOST WAGES” ?

  • Reply bumper May 13, 2013 at 9:10 pm

    Not a Vegas fan at all. I guess I’m no fun because it all just seems so fake to me. I save my money and travel to the real Venice, NYC, and New Orleans instead.

  • Reply masashirai May 14, 2013 at 7:30 pm

    Dear Cat;

    If you like Las vegas and hope for some deals…..come join some of us on FACEBOOK game apps called myVegas casinos. You can earn points good for comps. Good luck and hope to see you as one of my friends there….I’m at level 71; my brother at level 81 and my co-worker is 102. Jind your stride and level up fairly quickly.

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About Me

About Me
Born and raised on O‘ahu, Hawaiʻi, Catherine Toth Fox has been chronicling her adventures in her blog, The Cat Dish, for more than a decade. She worked as a newspaper reporter in Hawai‘i for 10 years and continues to freelance—in between teaching journalism, hitting the surf and eating everything in sight—for national and local print and online publications. She’s currently the editor of HAWAIʻI Magazine.

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