Casino Reviews

The Aquarius Casino Hotel Laughlin sold to Golden Entertainment is the latest news for the Laughlin Nevada casino market. We just got an email from the hotel advising of the change. We are slot members at the Aquarius Casino Hotel and are on their email distribution list. The hotel was sold to the Golden Entertainment group.  There was not much other news. Further, we have lots of questions. What is the impact on various comps we usually receive?

They offer free rooms and free play. Will this change, will they tighten up the slots? Will the continue with various upgrades that the Aquarius has been working on? The Aquarius Casino Hotel Laughlin sold to Golden Entertainment in June 2017.

Aquarius Casino Hotel Laughlin sold to Golden Entertainment

We included a copy of the email sent to us for your information. More to come on this deal and the impact on gamers and players in the future.

From the desk of the General Manager
Sean Hammond

As you know, our goal at Aquarius Casino Resort has always been to deliver the most entertaining experience possible. We consistently seek out new ways to make your time with us memorable. Consequently, whether it’s an upcoming event or tournament, or an improvement in our amenities, we look forward to sharing exciting news with you.

Our parent company, American Casino & Entertainment Properties, LLC is being sold to another renowned gaming organization, Golden Entertainment, Inc. Our team is excited about the opportunity to grow with Golden Entertainment. Especially because we know we’ll be able to provide the same level of superior service you’ve grown accustomed to. Your winning experience here at Aquarius is priority. You know from your history with us how sincere we are about that.

Golden Entertainment

I also wanted to give you a quick overview of Golden Entertainment. Golden Entertainment will operate over 15,800 slot machines, 114 table games. Also more than 5,100 hotel rooms across eight casino properties (currently, the four casinos they operate include three in Pahrump, Nevada: Pahrump Nugget, Gold Town and Lakeside, and one in Flintstone, Maryland called Rocky Gap). Golden Entertainment is also the largest tavern operator in Nevada. They have 55 locations that include PT’s Pub, PT’s Gold, PT’s Brewing, PT’s Ranch, Sean Patrick’s, Sierra Gold, and SG Bar.

The purchase of ACEP was announced on June 12th.  The management of Golden Entertainment maintains a long history of gaming experience in the Las Vegas region. They have an outstanding reputation for creating successful, well-run properties. We expect a smooth transition.

I will keep you updated as things progress. I am also proud to be able to share this news with you.I look forward to seeing you at the Aquarius!

Sean Hammond
General Manager

For more information about the Aquarius Casino Hotel in Laughlin, click here.

Trying to negotiate hotel room prices in Las Vegas NV can be a challenge. However if you are persistent, have a flexible schedule and willing to try various properties, lower prices are possible. Many people go to Las Vegas on package deals which includes the hotel as well air fare. thousands more drive to Las Vegas every year and book hotel rooms directly. They have a lot more flexibility in terms of timing. When the hotel is hosting a conference or nearing a high occupancy, it can be difficult to book at reasonable rates. Changing the date or trying a different property sometimes works. Visitors can save hundreds of dollars on their trip by moving to a different property or staying during the week vs. the weekend.

Negotiate Hotel Room Prices in Las Vegas NV

We recently made a reservation at the Bellagio for $87 per night. It appears the hotel is a little low on business during mid April and we were able to get pretty decent room rates. The week prior to our stay and the week after have rates that are more than double what we are paying.

There is a conference one week and a major sporting event scheduled. Rates jump when lots of people are in town for these events. Call your slot host or just talk to the reservations clerks to find out what is going on. If you are flexible with your dates, tourists can find pretty decent rates and top line hotels such as the Bellagio.

Conversely by moving off the strip to places like the Rio, which is the picture shown as part of this post can also help you obtain great rates for your stay in Las Vegas.

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We visit Las Vegas once per year. What a surprise to find out that drivers must now pay for parking at MGM hotels and parking fees at Las Vegas hotels in other areas as well. We were shocked to find out that we had to pay $15 per day for parking. This is in addition to the $35 resort fee that everyone must pay if you are staying at the hotel. Don’t forget the tax that is applied to both of these fees. That is over $50 a day just for driving to Las Vegas and staying in one of the strip hotels.

This is in addition to whatever room rate you are able to negotiate. Your slot card just became worth a lot more. It is important to always use your slot card whenever you are playing. If you are a Pearl member or higher at MGM resort hotels, they will comp you for the parking. All other people get to pay for the parking as mentioned above.

Why are they charging parking fees at Las Vegas hotels?

We stayed at the Bellagio Hotel and were surprised by this parking fee. Apparently the new hockey stadium is being built between the Montecarlo and the New York New York hotel. Patrons attending hockey games will have to pay for parking just like they do in many other cities.

Casino players will also pay for parking unless they have a slot card at Pearl or a higher level. Free in and out privileges are available to these players. You must qualify each year to maintain your level. This can be accomplished by charging food etc to your hotel room along with your play at the slots and table games.

It would have cost us $45 plus tax for the 3 days of parking however we have a Pearly card and were comped for the parking fee. Some hotels further away from the hockey stadium have not yet started charging for parking, however, it is only a matter of time. This is really a huge revenue opportunity for these hotels.

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The Wynn hotel and casino already offers spectacular rooms. Now they have taken service to the next level! For example, instead of trying to figure out the controller to open the drapes just tell the room to open the drapes! Amazon Echo Room Voice Control with Alexa smarts has been added to the Wynn hotel. This feature adds voice control to allow patrons to control their environment!

Apparently this is the first time this type of voice control has been offered. As of the date of preparing this post, not all rooms have voice control. Subsequently the feature is being added to all rooms over the next few months. We cannot wait to try it live!

Wynn Las Vegas to add Amazon Echo Room Voice Control

There will be some kinks to work out, however knowing Steve Wynn’s reputation it will not take long to sort them out. This is one of the best hotels to stay at in Las Vegas. Even their regular rooms are well above the majority of rooms available across the city in other hotels.

Yes they are expensive but they are worth it. Like all other casino properties, if you gamble and use a slot card, the room may be compensated. Always use a slot card when playing and check with your host to see what rates they will offer for these really fantastic rooms.

We will add to this post once we have tried it ourselves. In the mean time readers can leave a comment about their own experiences.

There are 10 Laughlin Casinos and Hotels in the Laughlin Nevada area. We have listed them in alphabetical order later on in this post. They all have their positives and negatives. However for our money the Aquarius and the Golden Nugget are probably the nicest of them all. Some accept pets. Some have accommodations for RV parking. All but the Tropicana and the AVI are located next to the Colorado River. The Tropicana is across the street and within walking distance of the walkway that runs along the river to all of the hotels except for the AVI and Harrahs. Harrahs is located off by itself and really can only be reached by car, although it is in the town of Laughlin and on the river. The AVI is several miles away on Indian property, with a really great beach and pool area on the Colorado River.

Laughlin Casinos and Hotels – List

• Aquarius – smoking, RV parking, on the Colorado River, ok pool
• AVI – smoking, RV parking, on the Colorado River, beach, golf, nice pool
• Colorado Belle – smoking, limited RV parking, on the Colorado River
• Edgewater – smoking, limited RV parking, on the Colorado River
• Golden Nugget – smoking, limited RV parking, on the Colorado River, nice pool
• Harrahs – smoking, on the Colorado River, ok pool
• Laughlin River Lodge – smoking, RV parking, on the Colorado River
• Pioneer – smoking, limited RV parking, on the Colorado River
• Regency – smoking, limited RV parking, on the Colorado River
• Riverside – smoking, RV parking, on the Colorado River, antique car display
• Tropicana – smoking, RV parking

The rates vary a great deal at these hotels. However unless there is some large event taking place, you can usually find rates that we much less than $100 a night. They may even be free if you are using a slot card and call the casino host.