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Riviera Room Rants

They initially put my friend and I into a smoking room despite my reservation "requesting" non-smoking. It must have been on a smoking floor, because the corridor smelled worse than the (bearable) room. However, the electronic safe was inoperable (unplugged, internal wires hanging, turned 90 degrees in the closet and difficult to access) and the Riv quickly found us another room, this time non-smoking as well. Guess they didn't want the liability of not being able to store stuff securely. Both rooms had 2 beds; I don't understand why the bathrooms in both had only one washcloth. We had to ask for extra, which were delivered quickly at least. The friend I was with doesn't want to stay at the Riv if TAM is there next year. She figures that the conference room was probably closer to the Hilton than our Riv tower anyway.
 
Krash said:
Good luck with that. The nonsmoking rooms reek of smoke. You see, I speak from experience on this subject.
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The smoking rooms reeked too. I registered for non-smoking and at 1600 Thur there were none. I'm glad I didn't bother switching in the morning as they offered.

[Start of long story]
BUT.... I got to switch rooms anyway, Sat night at 1 in the morning. Yes, 1am.

"Couple in the next room, bound to win a prize.
They've been going at it all night long.
I'm trying to get some sleep but
these hotel walls are cheap..."

Only it wasn't sex, it was a drunken F-U screaming contest.

After the second call to security resulted in a second casual stroll up to the room by security (it's been going on since before 11pm and it's now after 12am) to knock on their door tell them to be quiet I was ready to call 911 on my cell phone. Had this guy started beating on this woman, she would have been in bad shape.

Both calls to security had very long response times which was my biggest concern. My second biggest concern was the guy would figure out it was me who called and break down the lovely connecting door between our rooms.

Of course the second security visit had no effect either. These guys were probably registering 2.0 or greater blood alcohols. I saw the guy trying to use his key card earlier and he was obviously impaired.

So my third call went to the manager and I told him I was going to call 911. I really did expect this guy to start hitting this woman. The manager tried to claim the police couldn't respond "because it was private property". Right, I call about an assault and the police are going to go away because the hotel manager tells them to.

But once the manager realized I had already called security twice, I was alone, and there was a connecting door, he gave me another room. It smelled like cigarettes too but it was bigger. By that time I was too tired to worry what happened to the two drunken idiots.

Then only the elevator noise was an issue. But I got attenuated to that after a while.[/end of long story]


There was one other thing. It's common for hotels to tell you to put towels you want exchanged on the floor and the maids hang up any used ones you left on the counter for you to re-use. But I came back to find they had folded up my used washcloth (still damp) and put it on the towel shelf.

So tell me, had I left it there and checked out, how would the maid know it was used? She wasn't likely to be leaving notes about which towels were used had someone else cleaned the room next.

That grossed me out because I thought any of the towels could have been used and put away. The bath towels seemed OK, but I put every washcloth and hand towel on the floor.


Overall the Riviera was an average hotel. Circus Circus and the Flamingo were the same when we stayed there. The Luxor was a tad better. And the Mandalay Bay was 5 star. We had $100 rooms there but I imagine those deals are few and far between.
 
In a sense, I suppose that puts the party ejection in a whole new light, but yeah, about the towels...

EW.
 
Gilmar said:
They initially put my friend and I into a smoking room despite my reservation "requesting" non-smoking. It must have been on a smoking floor, because the corridor smelled worse than the (bearable) room. However, the electronic safe was inoperable (unplugged, internal wires hanging, turned 90 degrees in the closet and difficult to access) and the Riv quickly found us another room, this time non-smoking as well. ...
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The halls on floor 51 and 61 reeked of smoke as well, despite no smoking signs all over. And the safe in 6107 had been drilled open, no locks left.

But when I was leaving Las Vegas, I saw a billboard for a movement to "Ban Smoking in Public Places in Vegas". I couldn't believe it!!!!
 
Geek Goddess said:
I protest that it was not clearly marked out on the reservation forms that you could get rooms with Skepdudes in them. I demand a refund and apology from someone.
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Next TAM, I'd be pleased to upgrade to a room with a skepchick or two.

This year, my room was located directly above Kristofer's Steak House, so from 4PM on my room reeked of beef drippings and sizzling midwestern prime rib. That, and the cigarette smoke. (The steak aroma was not necessarily a bad thing, but it was potent.)
 
I seem to have gotten lucky on room location.

Except it was on the otherside of the hotel, but since they charged for the gym. The long walk was good exercise.

Sorry, the pay for the gym thing really annoyed me. It was petty.
 
richorman said:
...

Little did I know that they put me in what I can only call the "Punishment Suite," something that they reserve for customers that annoy them. First of all, to call it a "suite" is a gross exageration. It was just a really big room with the same stuff you would find in a normal room. Then there was the buzzing sound. It was like I was on top of a huge and broken power transformer that buzzed at 50db (at least) continuously. All I can say is that the night in the Punishment Suite was not very restful, but at least they put me in a regular non-smoking room the next day--sans buzzing.
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Did that buzzing sound anything like the elevator going up and down? ;)
 
AZAtheist said:
Rant a little on the positive side? Wasn't that a great view from the "Top of the Riv"?. What a clear night!

Heading for breakfast at TAM 5!
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I did have nice views in both rooms, and the heat worked, and after 20 minutes you could turn it off for the rest of the night.
 
phyz said:
I switched rooms, so now someone else will have my old room with no heat.

As I mentioned elsewhere (and others have echoed here), TAM isn't about the rooms.

But I did want one with heat.
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Phyz is being polite...I was in a nearby room...my Richter scale snoring caused quite a few to change rooms.

glenn:s2:
 
glennmr78 said:
Phyz is being polite...I was in a nearby room...my Richter scale snoring caused quite a few to change rooms.

glenn:s2:
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Glenn, I will match your snore volume any day of the week! I don't think the wallpaper in my room was detached until after I slept there a few hours.
 
phyz said:
1. The color of the tap water. See, the tap water should be colorless. Mine has a bit of an orange hue. No turbidity; just a bit of rust, methinks.

2. After fussing with the thermostat, I was able to get it to tell me it was blowing hot air into the room. Did so all night. It promised at temp of 72F. I bumped it up to 75F. After churning all night, it delivered 66F (19C). Perhaps it's just not powerful enough to handle the cold snap blowing through.
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1. Agreed! We purchased bottled water.
2. I specifically requested a room with a broken heater so Mrs. Gulliamo would be forced to snuggle up to me!
 
skeptigirl said:
The smoking rooms reeked too. I registered for non-smoking and at 1600 Thur there were none.
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Ok, to make matters worse for skeptigirl we sat together for most of Saturday and at other times during TAM. And besides my being sick, every once is a while I snuck out for a smoke. I didn’t smoke much, but as she rightfully pointed out, because she could smell what I had done, I shouldn’t have been smoking at all. She was so right. She is, after all, a nurse practitioner. I am much sicker now then I was at TAM. I should have listened. I will recover in a few days, however. The doctor seems confident of that prognosis.

So really, I am here, cap in hand, saying sorry to skeptigirl for putting up with me. She could have moved. But then, I wouldn’t have enjoyed her company and her comments, which really meant something to me… We go way back at SFN.

Sorry for the short hijacking of this thread…
 
I found their floors remarkably comfortable to sleep on. The carpets were just the right balance of firmness and cushion.

No, I'm not kidding.
 
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