Booked and Booked

YYZ -> LAS = $500, which is $100 less than it was last week for my dates
Bellagio for 4 nights = $400, which is split with a buddy, so $200 for moi.

Seriously, $90/night + taxes for the Bellagio? I guess it's the new IP... oh wait, the IP was being offered up for free.

Dear Harrah's, I'm now glad your moron phone reservation staff wouldn't budge on my buddy's price for the 2nd room at Paris. You lost $600 and 4 loyal Vegas customers(at least 2 of which try to make it out a couple times a year, and are likely adding Atlantic City to the routine, as well as living only a few hours from your sole Canadian location) to the competition across the road, where we were willing to pay $200 more just to NOT stay at your hotel. I know it's not big money for you, but now I'll happily point people to your competition, and I find the slots and craps tables pretty hard to resist as I walk past them on the way to/from my hotel room. Vegas is hurting, and you can't train your outsourced staff to say "why yes sir, I can knock a measly $70 off the price of your second room for 4 nights if it means you'll stay with us."

Enough of that, I'm happy with the change. I wish the flight was a bit cheaper, but I figured it was good enough.

Now the details need to be worked out. Dinner at Delmonico is now a tradition for Thursday night for me and my travelling companions. Eyeing Joël Robuchon as well - I've never eaten at a Michelin 3-star restaurant before. Hurtling over Bootleg Canyon will also happen again if anyone's interested in coming along. And my usual posse seems to want to see a show again, but there's so little that interests me that time of year that I may once again find myself at a poker table during their entertainment. Unless I can convince them that the ballet is a worthwhile arts pursuit... shouldn't be difficult.

And of course, there's the blogger scramble on Friday, the tourney at Caesar's on Saturday, drinking at the Geisha bar on whenever... craps, poker, poker, craps, slots, and the usual shenanigans.

You are going, right?