The Worst Las Vegas Experience Ever?
Is this the worst hotel review ever?
I get plenty of hotel reviews from readers every day and as with anything on any given day the best could seem like the worst and the worst can seem like the very best. Some people love the Imperial Palace while others cannot believe the place still offers a place to sleep. I have people complain about the luxury of the Bellagio and the darkness of the corridors of Binion's downtown. Other readers love Circus Circus and would never stay anywhere but the Four Queens.
Reader Caddy shares her experience at the Flamingo Hotel and it makes me wonder just how many people have had experiences similar to these at Las Vegas hotels. Read her review of the Flamingo Hotel and leave a comment, have you had it this bad?
I have stayed at the Flamingo more times than I would like to admit. My children love the pool area and I like the proximity to everything on the strip. I last stayed there in August of 2008, I did have a problem with my rooms and I also opted to have my room changed. In defense of the Flamingo, I switch rooms like most people shower, it's part of the job description. I am not sure if this particular visit had me moving because of a bad odor in the room, a crusty carpet or a view of the Imperial Palace parking lot. I took a picture of a broken vent in the shower only because I take pictures of most things in Las Vegas.
Readers have submitted quite a few reviews of the Flamingo Hotel, so take a look and tell me what you think. Is it as bad as Caddy suggests or do you have a better story?
I am a fan of the Flamingo Hotel because it is convenient in the Summer months and the rates are very good for the Las Vegas visitor who does not have deep pockets.
What is your opinion?
Photograph © 2009 Zeke Quezada, licensed to About.com, Inc
my vacaion plans were as follows : 4 days in Vegas on the strip …. 1 week touring Utah’s National Parks and another 4 days on Freemont St … I stayed at Harrah’s …. arrived at 12:30 pm and was informed that my room would be ready in 1 hour …so after lunch and a brief try at luck I returned to check in only to be informed that now the wait was 4 more hours …. needless to say I wasn’t pleased and voiced my displeasure to the manager who in all fairness did seem to care about my situation … returned 4 hours later and was informed that my room still wasn’t ready and that I could have a different room – 2 queens instead of 1 king – I’ll never return to this establishment again …. for any reason …. they didn’t offer any reason as to why the room wasn’t ready and they didn’t offer anything to me for my inconvience
I stayed at the Plaza …. and outside of no hair dryer for my wife’s use …. all was fine until I got the final bill …. I was charged an additional $15 a day for a view of the strip which consisted of a dramatic view of their parking garage … you can’t see much from the 13 floor …. I called when I returned home to Massachusetts and was told that the fee was for an upgrade that I made when I checked in …. I never was asked if this was what I wanted and I never gave my consent either …. it took 4 months, countless phone calls and numerous Faxes to get my money back
Wow! I cannot believe we both stayed in the same hotel. My husband and I just got back from Las Vegas last Monday where we stayed at the Flamingo for 7 nights. I couldn’t have asked for a nicer place. The room was spotless, the staff were friendly and the service was the best. It was my first time there, my husband’s second. I sure will go back.
My husband and I stayed at the Flamingo in September 2008, and after waiting about 2 hours in the check in line, we were told that our room was not ready. We went on the Strip for dinner and then went back to get our room key and were told that the original room that was assigned to us was still unavailable. We were “upgraded”.
If the room we were given was an “upgrade” I really hate to see what the other rooms were. The ventilation in the bathroom was not working, the toilet seat was broken, carpets had hair on them and two of the hand towels had rust stains ( I think ) on them!
We will NEVER stay at that place again, whether the room rates are reasonable or not!
In the past the Flamingo was just an ok hotel – great location and the only reason for staying there.
Our last visit I paid extra to have their NEW GO Room. It was nothing but one problem after another – TV not working, phone not working – not especially a clean bathroom and just generally a lousy room. I am a Diamond member and they could have cared less – no matter who is who. No explanations – no apologies – no concern. I got the impression “they really do not care”
Will never stay there again and will not gamble there again… too many hotels in Vegas that treat you a lot better.
Joan
My family and I have vacationed in Vegas during the summer for the past 5 years. We stayed at Flamingo every year and never had a complaint. Last year we got a GO ROOM. Rooms were clean, got a refridgerator for medical needs and a baby…this took a few hours but we finally got one. Yes, the wait for the room was way too long. This definetely needs to be improved. One year we had to stay at Tropicana and Imperial because Flamingo didn’t have rooms available for the first 3 days of our vacation. We left Tropicana after only 1 night, it was horrible. We checked into Imperial Palace for 2 days. We had to have maintence screw our balcony door shut because there was a large opening in the bottom of the balcony wall that a 2 year old could have easily fit thru. Then we found these openings in all the stairwells at the end of the halls ways. And the hallway doors to the stairways were ALWAYS left open! We will definetely return to Flamingo this year.
I think it’s a matter of you get what you pay for. We have stayed at Flamingo 3 times and the first 2 were pretty much bad like I have read about here. However, the last time in Dec. was AWESOME.
I will try again. We have been there 3 times and the first 2 were as bad as was written about here. However, last Dec we stayed for 7 days and it was AWESOME! We asked for a room above the Deluxe . It was clean, and I insisted on the strip view. It was large and even had a tv monitor in the mirror in the bathroom. I was hugely impressed. Like I said, if you pay more, you apparently get more. We stayed on the 29th floor I think.
We will stay there as the Garden Buffet has got to be the BEST in Vegas. How can you not love the birds too
Have stayed at the Flamingo for at least 15 years & will go back every year. Of corse we get comped for the whole week, but still great.
Las Vegas is a Sick Place for Sick People .
What kind of Nut takes Children there ?!
I went to Las Vegas for my first time with my boyfriend for Spring break 2009 (the week of St. Patty’s Day). I booked this in December thinki ng it would be great to finally do something for Spring break. In January I called regarding an ad I saw on many different websites regarding a free upgrade. The woman I talked to was very polite and told me that they couldn’t reserve one of the GO rooms until check-in, but to print out the ads and present them. After a delayed flight and the longest ride to a hotel I’ve ever experienced we finally got to the Flamingo. It was 1AM and we sat in line for only about 20 mins 30mins. When we got up to the counter I asked about the free upgrade. She looked at me as though I was an idiot and said I’ve never heard of the hotel doing that and that if I wanted the upgraded room I’d have to pay extra. So I pulled out paper upon paper from different websites stating differently. She excused herself to go talk to the manager. After about another 20 mins she returned looked on the computer and told me they had no available upgrades. So, first you did if I were to pay more and now you don’t?? So after much frustration and exhaustion I sucked it up and went up to our room. I had requested a non-smoking room with a king size bed since I am severely allergic to smoke. As soon as I walked in I smelled cigarettes, saw that the bed looked like someone was just sleeping in it and burn marks all over the carpeting. I tried calling downstairs and got no answer. So I towed all my luggage back down to the front desk and walk straight over to the manager. When I told him he almost seemed genuine, but informed me that there were no non-smoking rooms. I was furious! I took the next room they offered me, and he told me to come back downstairs first thing to get another room. After popping benadryl all night so my throat wouldn’t collapse I got out of bed and marched downstairs yet again. After waiting in line for an hour, I explained my situation to the woman at the front desk. She started saying “I’m sorry, but we have no…” and I stopped her when I broke down into tears explaining my night. This is the only thing that got her to talk to the day manager about getting me another room. They ended up giving us a non-smoking non-upgraded room, and I was so frustrated that I just took it and tried to enjoy the rest of my week there. They gave an extra $60 or $30 room credit for the all the trouble. We got a lovely view of the Imperial Palace Parking garage, and the room was still pretty dirty looking. After getting everything settled and ready for the day we set out. We ended up eating dinner there that night at their buffet. He became violently ill after a couple hours (he did not have any alcohol or anything else to eat afterwards). We rushed over to the hospital only to spent the next 8 hours there. We were also given a hard time when we went to actually use our room credits which set me off all over again. I don’t think this would have happened if I were older, but I not one that will sit back and put up with disgusting service. I have never been so unsatisfied with any vacation I’ve ever taken! I will NEVER stay there again or eat there. I will be returning in January to the Paris after much convincing from my boyfriend.