Winter Getaway w/ +1 to the 702 - TR 2/4 - 2/11

I just went through literally the coldest stretch of my life as here in North Dakota we had wind chill “feels like” levels -50 to -70 F for a few days. absolutely insane. should be no surprise that my mind is looking ahead to my upcoming trip to the desert in a couple weeks for a respite from the winter misery.

This is my 9th trip to Vegas since 2018, and first since this one last summer. This time will be a totally different experience as instead of running away for 3-4 days solo, I will be going with my wife for a full week (Sunday to Sunday). I've been talking about it at the conclusion of every previous trip and it's finally going to happen. we just had our 15th anniversary and in conjunction with my upcoming 40th birthday, Vegas is where I want to go.

I am worried that I bit off more than I can chew as she doesn't want me to gamble at all, and filling the time with other stuff that is enjoyable and doesn't cost my retirement isn't easy. additionally, after our flight was booked I realized that this is Super Bowl Week (happening in Vegas of course). things require a little more planning ahead of time. don't worry though, I plan on playing poker in the evenings or whenever I can and I'm now realizing that with an influx of sport tourists in town, this could be a prime opportunity for (soft) poker.

last couple times I stayed at Red Rock, which was heaven. unfortunately I learned that my generous comps were a 1-year teaser and even my loyal play last year provided zero offers this time (best they quoted me was like 3 midweek nights for $900, wtf).

we will be staying South-Strip MGM for most of our time here, including a little bouncing between Mandalay Bay, Luxor, and MGM Grand. speaking of Grand we will be driving to Arizona on Friday and for obvious availability reasons we are spending the Saturday night before the Super Bowl at my sister and BiL’s house in NW LV.

I've got tickets to a show nearly every night and we will be inside T-Mobile Arena for a Knights game. got a few dinner reservations; neither of us are huge steak fans and we don't care for rich people food so it probably won't seem very fancy or impressive. but will still be great just as long as I impress the wife without emptying our bank account. not afraid to venture off-Strip for some dining opportunities.

no pools unfortunately but we are excited for the Vegas “winter” weather and have some outdoor activities on the agenda.

January sucks but is quite busy for us (I'll share some boring personal crap in my next post) so we are very much looking forward to this extended getaway. this will be a unique TR for me. I've been making plans for months. I am excited to not be lonely, although that will result in significantly lower time at the tables. doesn't look like there have been too many TRs in the forum recently, so I hope this one will be interesting and enjoyable for you to follow.