With the sale of the Treasure Island from MGM now final, the TI is undergoing some changes. Hopefully with the new management the changes will be for the good. For now the Sirens's show is still the same. I did prefer the old pirate battle better. The club's, shows, and restaurants will all be under review to see where improvemsnts can be made.

The casino at TI is large with good vareity of slots and table games. Sometimes I have some good luck there. Which is always good. The rates now are down for the summer so take advantage of the new TI and have fun and exciting summer!

TI Direct Advantage Offer - Book Early and Save up to 30%! Promo Code: DIRECTTI (15% for advanced bookings between 7-30 days, 20% for advanced bookings between 31-60 days, 25% for advanced bookings between 61-90 days, 30% for advanced bookings more than 90 days)

Room Remodel

Back from my latest Vegas vacation. I was there over the July 4th weekend, staying at the Mirage Hotel. I did not take any photos this time. The Mirage is currently in the process of renovating their rooms. I was in a tower deluxe room on the 26th floor. But the room had not been renovated yet. One of the secure features of the tower deluxe rooms is your room key is needed for the elevator to operate. The room was very nice, but in need of some repair and upgrade. The Mirage was trying to have all the rooms done by August. Not sure if they will make it by then.

Of course it was very hot. But that is what you expect in the middle of summer. Just stay out of the sun and it is not too bad. Cool drinks and air conditioning work quite well to make you forget the scorching heat.

This was my first time staying at the Mirage, been in the casino many times. Never had awesome luck at the casino, but I do like the variety of slots and many table games. Did have some good luck on this trip. The "White Lilly" and dollar version of "Deal or No Deal" were fun to play and did hit for some modest gains. Always much more enjoyable playing the slots when you get to play the bonus games. I prefer the new dollar version of "Deal or No Deal" to the penny and nickle slots. The bonus circular is much more like the tv show. The "White Lilly" is a penny slot. I had good luck with frequent hits for thousands of credits and the bonus spins a few times. On one spin I hit for 32,400 credits!! That is the best one spin I have had on a penny slot!!

I also had some luck on another penny slot called " Lil Ladybug". Had some hits there for thousands of credits. But only made the bonus circular once. Did well at Caesars Palace on the dollar slots and at MGM on their dollar slots. But with all this good luck I still came home a loser. But I had more than half the money I took in my pocket. Being there for six days, I think it was not too bad.

I had my usual meals at the Bellagio and Mirage buffets. My two favorite buffets. I had a few meal at the "Caribe Cafe", the Mirage 24 hour coffee shop. The food was good, I really liked the soups for a rapid light meal. Service was good, never seemed too busy. A new restaurant, the "BLT Burger" at the Mirage opened July 1. Burgers, fries and shakes are the main dishes here. But I tried the chili, was very good. and the chocolate milkshake was very good. It cost about $15 for the burger, fries and drink. It was very busy at dinner and night. It was a good place and fun atmosphere for a casual meal.

With the price of gas, I think paying $6 for the airport shuttle bus is the way too go. The taxis will charge at minimum three times that for a strip hotel. And depending on the traffic and driver, can be more. You might take a few more minutes to arrive at your hotel, but your saving money and not wasting it as soon as you arrive.

As always, it was a fun vacation, and always alert to go back!! Good luck too everyone!!!!

You better be active in searching for your late spring and summer air fares. With the additional costs for fuel, extra luggage and even some seats. Yes, USAIR is going to attempt to collect fees for some window and aisle seats on many of it's flights. The prices are changing daily, but I am not finding anymore low fares, at minimum from Pittsburgh. I find the fares on the air line websites are generally better or about the same as the discount travel sites. But bargains and deals are often not widely publicized, you have to keep looking.

Hopefully the hotel rooms in Las Vegas will be lower this summer to help lower the travel costs. I have found many decent room rates alalert for the summer months. Many at the Flamingo, Harrah's, Las Vegas Hilton, Imperial Palace, Luxor, and Monte Carlo. You can also find decent rates at the MGM, Mirage, and Ballys. The high end places like Caesars and Bellagio still holding out for the big spenders. So, just like managing your gambling bankroll, you need to manage your travel expenses. Save that money on travel for more fun in Vegas!!!

If your a slot club member, check with the hotels to see what offers and money saving deals you have available. Saving you money on your room, shopping, restaurants and shows. Take advantage of what you can, you earned it with your time and money!!

For me, making separate reservations for air fare and hotel is the minimum expensive way. I usually make my reservations on the USAIR website. For the hotel, I check all the offers I receive and in the mail and online and go where I have the best deal. For others, it may be best to make a combo hotel and flight discount together. Just keep looking, generally a decent offer is there to be found!!

Yes, they do have genuine pink flamingos at the Flamingo Hotel. The gardens are at the back of the hotel by the swimming pools. They also have a couple patio areas where you can sit outside with a nice beverage to relax and enjoy the gardens. It is much more peaceful and quiet there. Nice place to take a break from the busy casino or strip. Nice to walk acircular in the shade from the palm trees on the hot summer days. There are other types of birds to watch,and the koi fish swimming in the water. Doing the afternoon they also have a parrot show, which you can get your photo taken with. Or visit the statue of the infamous Bugsy Siegel and the the plaque about him starting the hotel. So if you need a place away from everything, halt here for a nice relaxing break!!!