Well it all started well enough ….
Coming home slightly inebriated after a night out after a Leeds United game over Xmas my better half was watching a Rod Stewart documentary on TV where he was talking about his residency in Vegas.
Wouldn’t it be great to see Rod live in Vegas I mused. Amazingly the response that came back was “yes, but don’t book anything tonight in that state.”
So slightly hung over I was pounding the keyboard the following morning to make sure the dream to go was still alive.
It was we were booked with Virgin before you could say Jack Robinson staying at Encore By Wynn which looked a top notch resort on the strip.
Shortly after booking discovered that Lionel Ritchie was also playing in our hotel whilst we were staying so what the hell tickets booked for both Rod Steward and Lionel Ritchie – what a feeling!
Who would have thought when we booked over xmas that by the time we came to travel there were rumblings about a virus that had started off in China was making its way around the rest of the globe and Italy had already been affected.
We Are On Our Way
Writing this in July it seems such a long time ago and the threat didn’t seem that real so we set off the Manchester Airport on the 12th March staying over at the Radison Blu at the airport (highly recommended when you book a room and parking it doesn’t cost much more than just booking parking and it takes the stress out of getting to the airport the following day)
Setting off on the flight the following morning we still had no real idea how serious the virus was going to become over the next few days so we settled into our Vegas flight. When I say settled it could have had a better start when Mrs K dropped her complimentary bubbles all over my jeans! Very kindly one of the stewards lent me (for ever) a pair of pyjamas from business class (highly recommended and comfy – he actually said “I thought you were going to leave them behind” – it never crossed my mind and I am still wearing them to this day)
A lot happened during that flight in the real world the office where I work was shut as some of the team were exposed to someone who had tested positive (that was the start of home working on 13th March) the situation in Italy was getting critical and unimportant in the grand scheme of things Lionel Ritchie had cancelled all his concerts, so no dancing on the ceiling for us.
Have got to say was spectacularly impressed by the Encore by Wynn everything was top notch including the rooms and service – at that point I couldn’t recommend it highly enough (and Mrs K is still desperate to go back – me not so). I had always had the Bellagio down as the best place to stay on the strip but have got to say it is starting to look a little tired whilst the Wynn has that touch of class and quality that is sometimes in short supply in Vegas!
Saturday we were up and at them ready for a full day enjoying everything Vegas had to offer and have go to say it got off to a great start and had a great time taking in the sights and drinks and the Yard House is highly recommended.
So Saturday was a great start to our hols and although we were supposed to have seen Lionel that night we still had a lot of fun. Sunday got off to a slower start and because the buffet was shut we thought it would be good fun to use our breakfast allowance on a bottomless brunch and what a bottomless brunch is was!
When your server realises the he is going to use a mountain of shoe leather filling our glasses and the sensible thing is to get an ice bucket and leave the bottle you know you are onto a winner.
The Beginning Of The End!
We were planning for a relatively quiet Sunday night but we weren’t ready for what happened next. The phone rang and the message was to tell us that the hotel was closing at noon on Tuesday (it was Sunday evening!). I can tell you that sobered us up and we tried to contact Virgin with no luck (that would become a common theme) and decided we would find out where the local Virgin reps were and go see the in the morning.
We hot footed up to the Tropicana (no free drinks) the following morning and spent the next couple of days going back and forth trying to understand if we were being moved or flown home. No criticism of the ladies working at the Virgin office they were undoubtedly doing their best but we were working to a very specific timeline. We eventually found out on the Tuesday morning that we would be flying out at 11pm that evening, frustratingly to Heathrow not Manchester where our car was!
The deadline for vacating our room was fast approaching and in fact by the time we got back to the room the cleaners were waiting for us. We had been that busy sorting out what was happening with the flight we didn’t know what we were going to do for the next 10 hours until we left. What was clear was the the Wynn wanted us out and wanted us out fast! Wifi was shut down and and opportunity to leave our cases for the day wasn’t an option we were out on our ears. They still had the cheek to charge us for the resort fee for our stay though – that left a bit of a sore taste tbh.
We actually went next door to the Venetian who kindly let us rent a room for the day and also didn’t charge any resort fee whilst we were there. Its little things like that that stick in the memory when people or company’s offer help rather than hindrance when you really need them to step up to the plate.
Reflections
At the time it was extremely stressful but in truth in the grand scheme of things what happened to us was neither here nor there compared to the havoc this virus has caused but it has made me reflect on how brands have treated me as a customer and how that has impacted my view of them.
Firstly Wynn I thought their treatment was harsh and there is a part of me that felt they were shutting because the resort was really quiet rather than for the safety aspect. One thing I noticed at Wynn v other resorts is that it was much quieter and also although they’re really good at putting up signs they were not very good at doing anything practical (no handsanitisier at any of the entrances was a standout v other resorts)
There is also a part of me that felt I was ripped off over the resort fee charge, when hardly any of the things were available. In saying that it is an amazing hotel and Mrs K would go back in a heart beat!
Secondly Vegas is an amazing place with an amazing vibe, but what was really noticeable as the crowds started to thin as it started to shut down is that there are a lot of people in desperate situations. In the UK we no doubt have an issue with Spice whatever they are taking in Vegas is on a different level and the number of people affected is frankly startling. It was a worry what would become of them as the strip shut down.
And finally how did Virgin Holidays fare? Not great and whilst I appreciate that they had a fight for survival our ability to get through to someone get an email acknowledged or any form of meaningful response was really poor. Eventually in mid July we are finally being told we will get a partial refund (and very partial it is to be frank) which might be in our bank by the end of the month.
Comparatively Jet2 reimbursed us for a trip to Nice that was cancelled due to cover-19 within 24 hours.
We spent an awful lot for what ended up being a day and a half holiday in Vegas the rest of the time we spent during the four days we were there was trying to find out what was happening. I appreciate that it wasn’t Virgin’s (or Wynn’s) fault but what they have failed to grasp is that either way going forward I won’t be holidaying with Virgin or staying at the Wynn (but don’t tell Mrs K that!)
It wouldn’t have taken very much from Virgin to come out of this with their reputation enhanced so shortsighted to treat a regular traveller so shabbily.
My heart goes out to all those in resort staff one of whom even called o make sure we got home ok. She also informed me she was being laid off really sad news but with her attitude I would expect a role to be available for her somewhere after the madness has ended.
What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas we went hard but ended up getting sent home!