Vegas Reminds Me Why I Hate Vegas
Nov. 30th, 2022 09:51 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
canyonwalkerThe past few days in Las Vegas are reminding me why I hate Las Vegas. Actually, pretty much every time I visit Las Vegas reminds me why I hate the place! Yes, the new casinos can be very pretty....
...But other than the superficial looks there's nothing worth it here anymore.
I used to like Las Vegas for the gambling. Gambling was the main product the casinos offered, and they were competitive to attract customers. The games were good. In games like Blackjack and Craps, if you knew what you were doing you could play with a small house edge.
Today the games suck. The casinos have changed the rules in ways that are massively hostile to players. Blackjack pays 6:5 instead of 3:2, more than tripling the house edge, unless you play at least $100 minimums. New "easier" craps more than triples the house edge on the basic bet. Roulette now has triple zero instead of double or even single. (Sense a pattern? Games are literally 3x the con they used to be.)
While the games have gone downhill, food has gone upscale... and not altogether in a good way. All the food in casinos is way overpriced. It's not just the fancy, high end restaurants that are spendy; ordinary eats are priced like airport food or stadium food. Think $20 for 2 slices of pizza and a Coke. And the fancy places? Many of them aren't worth the $100, $200, $300, or more per person they work out to be.
But now that overpriced food is the product. Years ago you'd walk into a casino and you'd have to go through a maze of games to get to the food. Today you walk into a casino and you're in a way overpriced shopping mall/food court... with gambling hidden at the back.
It bewilders me that so many people still treat Las Vegas as something magical. Yesterday I one of the people walking beside me was on the phone with his family narrating his experience at the craps table the night before, going throw-by-throw and remarking things like, "She made point on a 4. You should always pass the dice after point on a 4!" as if that statement made any sense or bore any significance.
So many people consider Las Vegas a bucket list destination. Okay, yeah, see it once, but understand it's a just another tourist trap now. Come and see it once, but plan to hold tightly to your money and get out fast.
...But other than the superficial looks there's nothing worth it here anymore.
I used to like Las Vegas for the gambling. Gambling was the main product the casinos offered, and they were competitive to attract customers. The games were good. In games like Blackjack and Craps, if you knew what you were doing you could play with a small house edge.
Today the games suck. The casinos have changed the rules in ways that are massively hostile to players. Blackjack pays 6:5 instead of 3:2, more than tripling the house edge, unless you play at least $100 minimums. New "easier" craps more than triples the house edge on the basic bet. Roulette now has triple zero instead of double or even single. (Sense a pattern? Games are literally 3x the con they used to be.)
While the games have gone downhill, food has gone upscale... and not altogether in a good way. All the food in casinos is way overpriced. It's not just the fancy, high end restaurants that are spendy; ordinary eats are priced like airport food or stadium food. Think $20 for 2 slices of pizza and a Coke. And the fancy places? Many of them aren't worth the $100, $200, $300, or more per person they work out to be.
But now that overpriced food is the product. Years ago you'd walk into a casino and you'd have to go through a maze of games to get to the food. Today you walk into a casino and you're in a way overpriced shopping mall/food court... with gambling hidden at the back.
It bewilders me that so many people still treat Las Vegas as something magical. Yesterday I one of the people walking beside me was on the phone with his family narrating his experience at the craps table the night before, going throw-by-throw and remarking things like, "She made point on a 4. You should always pass the dice after point on a 4!" as if that statement made any sense or bore any significance.
So many people consider Las Vegas a bucket list destination. Okay, yeah, see it once, but understand it's a just another tourist trap now. Come and see it once, but plan to hold tightly to your money and get out fast.
no subject
Date: 2022-12-01 12:12 pm (UTC)My understanding of Vegas (which I know is out of date) was that it's a pretty decent place to see some awesome shows and eat some good food, because all those are cheap in pursuit of keeping you around to gamble. I regret that I never got to try out that version of Vegas.
(the one time I visited a casino --one of the largest in North America, they were hosting a show I wanted to see-- I found it a thoroughly unpleasant place, overstimulating and painful and toxic, even to someone who enjoys excess of colours, lights, and sound. Not my scene!)
~Sor
no subject
Date: 2022-12-01 02:44 pm (UTC)