LVH: The FORMER Las Vegas Hilton

So this isn't anything new, but most, including myself, still refer to the LVH - Las Vegas Hotel - as the Las Vegas Hilton. I guess it's just easier because I know everyone knows what I'm talking about. In an effort to rebrand without changing its initials - I guess it works. Whether people say the right name or not, perhaps it doesn't matter. What I do know is that they have decided to continue the Locals Home Town Hot Spot specials which comes in handy if you are near the Strip and need some discounts.

It's, of course, free. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't even mention it. Sign up for the "new" player's card with the LVH name on it. When it was the Hilton, they would stick a Home Town Hot Spot sticker on your player's card. Even now, the website says that they have a sticker but in my most recent experiences, there was no sticker and you simply whipped out your card with your local ID and it was good.

What are the perks?

1. You receive 25% off room rates. NOW - be careful. I've booked both ways before. To book with the discount, you must call the hotel and they will transfer you to Casino Marketing to complete a reservation. Casino Marketing is open during certain hours as well. I will warn you though that many times, I've gotten a better rate simply booking on the LVH site booking calendar. When you ask Casino Marketing why that is, they say that 25% comes off of a non-special price and that sometimes even with the discount that you will still get a higher price through them. So make sure you check both places before booking. A discount doesn't always mean cheaper.

2. 25% off LVH restaurants including Benihana. The other restaurants, including the Sports Book Deli - it's all good. 25% off straight up. As with most discounts, you can't use it in conjunction with specials such as Happy Hours. For the buffet, the discount is applicable Sunday-Thursday - Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. It is also valid for Sunday Brunch.

3. 20% off select Spa services. I have never used their Spa so I can't say specifically which services are eligible for the discount.

4. A discount off of LVH retail stores. The percentage off depends on your card level. It ranges from 5-15% off.

Ferraro's for Locals = 50% Off

Ferraro's sits across the street from the Hard Rock Casino and Hotel on Paradise and Harmon. While I have never dined at this restaurant personally, looking it up on Yelp, it has received very good reviews. While Ferraro's has $9.95 Lunch specials and two Happy Hours each day for additional discounts on food, their regular menu should be classified as Fine Dining with its prices. This is why the advertised locals discount is pretty substantial.

Individuals with a Nevada ID receive 50% off of their food. The promotion goes through September 30th. The dinner menu is offered daily from 4pm-11pm in the dining room and 11pm-2am in the lounge or patio.

Go here to check out what's on their menus.

Anyone who has gone to Ferraro's, drop me a note here on your experience!

New Summerlin Pkwy Ramp Opens

Over the past few months I've watched this awesome structure go up piece by piece as I travel from the Northwest part of the Las Vegas valley and into, what I call, "town". I didn't exactly bother to read up on what the monstrous ramp/bridge structure was for, I just kept myself guessing the entire time. I knew that it connected the US-95 Freeway to Summerlin Parkway, but was it for Northbound exiting to Summerlin or for Summerlin exiting Southbound US-95?

As you know, when something good comes along, privileges first get taken away and then you reap the rewards. For months during construction, drivers were constantly getting shifted around from one lane to another and finally it was always a merge from four lanes down to one. Then, when you were traveling Northbound late night, you would have heavy duty bright bright bright lights right in your face as you attempt to merge and navigate like real life Mario Kart.

Well, I'm happy to say now that it's over with...at least for the Summerlin Flyover as they call it. You see, an HOV lane was made to help reward carpoolers during peak hours but the problem was, when you had to exit Summerlin Parkway, it was a mad dash to cut right across multiple lanes to make the exit. AND - if there was bumper to bumper stalled traffic, you needed a succession of good samaritans to let you by which may require a few prayers. Everyone else isn't too happy that you were able to fly along in the HOV lane anyways, let alone be extra accommodating when you needed to get ALL THE WAY over to exit Summerlin Parkway.

So, the Nevada DOT thought, let's build a flyover bridge! This is what the whole chaos of construction has been about. It's finally done and it looks pretty darn cool. I haven't driven on it myself yet but I look forward to trying it out. Now, while traveling on the left HOV lane, you have a left handed exit onto Summerlin Parkway.

The rules of use are as follows: Monday-Friday, 6am to 10am and 2pm to 7pm - you must be carpooling. For those single travelers out there, give it a go any other time!

Cosmopolitan Gives Locals Freebies

I've talked about the perks of being local before and the major reason why I pretty much have a Players Card from every Vegas gaming establishment. It's for perks and why not get them if they are free? Yes, the casinos want to play Big Brother and track your every move, but hey, for a reasonable trade off, I guess it's OK.

The latest email that I got from the Cosmopolitan Casino players club called Identity is about a free Zappos.com gift card. Now, I've gotten another email like this before and I simply missed the deadline to claim my gift card. Well, opportunity knocks again and I just got another email this past week about receiving, at the very minimum, a $15 Zappos.com gift card just for showing up on property. Even if you have zero players points, you still get the $15. Now, as Cosmo would have it, you have already amassed a lot of points and continue to, well, for that, Cosmo is rewarding you with a higher valued Zappos.com gift card. Fair enough.

What makes being a local Las Vegan convenient is that when these perks come up to lure us into the casinos, we can do it relatively easily. Sometimes, believe it or not, the casinos do take a risk and offer incentives that at the most basic level will give you something even if you don't play. Hey, if they got you to enter the building, they figure that they have some opportunity to get something out of you. From there on, it's up to you and how you want to control yourself.