It’s been a relatively quiet month as I’ve been traveling out of town for much of the month, but there have been some updates to this site. I plan on adding at least 15 more pages of information, and I hope that some of you share your trip reports here this month as well. Our traffic is increasing, so thank you to forum and blog commentors who have provided a link to our site. Also thank you to those who comment on our posts to increase the reader’s information in understanding the complicated, but often-times entertaining, Harrah’s Total Rewards system.

Trip Report by John M: Jon M wrote a fabulous, and long, trip report from Las Vegas. Read it, and submit your own!

Cash in the Mailbox: We added a section on Harrah’s Las Vegas properties’ Cash in the Mailbox reward.

Harrah’s in the News: There’s quite a bit of news on Harrah’s nationwide and even worldwide:

Caesars Raises Betting Limits to $50,000 Per Hand: Caesars Palace says it is raising its betting limits to accomodate the biggest gamblers in the world. Starting Monday, the casino will allow players to bet up to $50,000 per hand at blackjack, and the same amount on line bets at craps. Editor’s Note: Of course, their house edge on blackjack is still crap, but hey, now the whales can lose even more per hand!

Richardson family gamble on Rank: Last month Rank rebuffed an approach from Caesars Palace owner, Harrah’s Entertainment, to exchange part of the Las Vegas giant’s London Clubs International in return for a stake of around 28pc in Rank. Editor’s Note: Even with the pending (and still happening?) private buy-out of HET, it looks like they’re trying to expand further into the London market.

Experts say area prime for casino: The fact that casino giants like MGM Mirage and Harrah’s Entertainment want to build opulent resorts in rural Kansas doesn’t surprise gaming insiders.

Now is the time to get a great deal on a Vegas hotel room: With the holiday season in full swing, now is the best time to lock in a low nightly room rate in Las Vegas. We recently checked every casino in town, looking for the best leads on lodging for December. The rates listed here were available either by calling in, consulting casino Web sites, or using third-party reservations facilities.

Found more news? Have an opinion on current news? Post a comment below!

Popularity: 17%

Posted: December 10th, 2007 under News.
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Some recent news on Harrah’s Entertainment:

Forbes has an article regarding the recent third quarter profits that Harrah’s earned, but the lawsuit against them may cause problems for the private Harrah’s buyout in 2008. From the article:

The analyst believes that while Harrah’s performance in Las Vegas and Atlantic City were strong, that success was not matched this quarter in other regions. Harrah’s is currently in the midst of an ugly dispute that could endanger its buyout deal, which was arranged last December and approved by shareholders in April.

CNN.com’s Money section announces that Harrah’s had to adjust the price of their due-in-2024 senior notes due to the recent, and surprising, profit in the third quarter. From the article:

Harrah’s Operating Company, Inc., a subsidiary of Harrah’s Entertainment, Inc. , announced that the conversion price under its outstanding $375 million Floating Rate Contingent Convertible Senior Notes due 2024 has been adjusted to $65.24 from $65.54, subject to further adjustment as provided for in the governing indenture. The adjustment has been made pursuant to the terms of the indenture as a result of the cash dividend of $0.40 per share of Harrah’s Entertainment common stock that was declared on October 29, 2007, and which will be payable November 21, 2006 to Harrah’s Entertainment stockholders of record as of the close of business on November 8, 2007.

According to paparazzi magazine InsiderEdition, OJ Simpson is banned from many casinos, including Harrahs. He returned to Las Vegas with lawyers in tow over his recent arrest and indictment. From the article:

Simpson is banned from several of the top Las Vegas hotels, including the Palms, the MGM Grand, and Harrahs. George Maloof, owner of the Palms, said that OJ was not welcome because of the drama and disturbance that his presence caused. INSIDE EDITION has heard that OJ is staying at another hotel under an assumed name while in Las Vegas to attend the trial.

Signs on San Diego announces that Harrah’s CEO Gary Loveman has bought 2.4% of the Boston Celtics basketball team. From the article:

Harrah’s spokeswoman Jacqueline Peterson said the team’s games have been removed from the company’s sports books, which Nevada gambling regulators require for casino licensees with stakes in pro sports teams. Loveman’s personal investment comes at the same time as Harrah’s is in a partnership with AEG to build a $500 million arena a block off the Strip, possibly to house an NBA team.

Do you have more news on Harrah’s? Please let us know by leaving a comment.

Popularity: 18%

Posted: November 10th, 2007 under News.
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The critically acclaimed musical called Hats! by Sibling Theatricals is making a move in January, 2008, to Harrah’s Las Vegas. From the CNN article:

“We are elated to once again present our show in a Harrah’s venue,” said Mitchell Maxwell, President and CEO of Sibling Holdings. “We received fantastic audience response when we opened HATS! at Harrah’s New Orleans in January 2007.”

“Harrah’s Las Vegas is their flagship venue. We’re excited that Harrah’s has partnered with us to present HATS! in Las Vegas. Working together, these two great entertainment companies will ensure that HATS! has a long, healthy run at Harrah’s Las Vegas,” he said.

…

HATS! premiered in Denver in October 2006, opened in January 2007, at Harrah’s New Orleans Casino Hotel and premiered in Chicago at the Royal George Theatre on April 29, 2007, to rave reviews. The Chicago Tribune says HATS! is “a music-and-comedy celebration … .It will make a lot of people feel empowered. It does so with integrity, craft and heart.” The Denver Post says “That’s a real audience emitting real belly laughs and crying real tears. I have never seen an audience so affected in the course of watching theater.” Finally, Variety raves “This is a feel-good show that’s really about feeling good.”

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Here’s an interesting article over at The Hawaii Channel about a reader’s experience at Harrah’s Las Vegas over the 600+ room closure incident:

I immediately called my host and asked what the hell was going on. He said I had to move rooms, but he could find me another room in Harrahs (an upgrade!). My host came up to my room to drop off the new keys and explain. My host said that in the last set of room renovations at Harrah’s, the final renovations were never approved by Clark County, and now everyone had to move out of the rooms in question until they could be inspected and approved. My host said that out of the 2,400 rooms at Harrah’s, 600 of them were being closed, and many people were being moved to other hotels.

Popularity: 20%

Posted: October 25th, 2007 under News.
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Here’s some recent Harrah’s News from recent days. Feel free to leave a comment on any of this news, or to post links to other important news.

In Atlantic City, the Press of Atlantic City just reported that chunks of Caesar’s Palace AC’s garage fell from the ceiling. The garage is temporarily closed while the inspect why a 20 foot by 20 foot piece of drywall collapsed. Minor damage was caused to an SUV, but no one was injured. From the article:

The collapse took place at the arched entranceway to the Coliseum garage, at the top of a ramp leading up from the Atlantic Avenue entrance. The entranceway was closed for several hours while the debris was removed, Parker said.

Visitors felt little impact, as cars could still use the second entrance to the garage further along Missouri Avenue - although the closing did inconvenience a few tourists.

Unable to get to their usual handicapped space, Barbara and Frank Pisauro, of Scranton, Pa., drove around and around trying to find another.

According to the PRNewsWire, Harrah’s will be announcing their third quarter profit/loss results on November 7th at 7am. This will be the second-to-last earnings report before the turn-over to the new owners of the Harrahs Entertainment Group. From the article:

Harrah’s Entertainment, Inc. is the world’s largest provider of branded casino entertainment. Since its beginning in Reno, Nevada nearly 70 years ago, Harrah’s has grown through development of new properties, expansions and acquisitions, and now owns or manages casinos on four continents. The company’s properties operate primarily under the Harrah’s, Caesars and Horseshoe brand names; Harrah’s also owns the London Clubs International family of casinos. Harrah’s Entertainment is focused on building loyalty and value with its customers through a unique combination of great service, excellent products, unsurpassed distribution, operational excellence and technology leadership.

According to BizJournals, Harrah’s is considering a casino in Kansas in Sumner County. Harrah’s previously ran the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation casino north of Topeka, which was recently turned over to the tribe. From the article:

An investment group operating as Sumner Gaming and Resorts LC announced Tuesday it would submit a casino plan to the Sumner County Commission. The casino would be located near Wellington at Interstate 35 and Highway 53.

Details of the proposal weren’t released, but the firm promised “a variety of attractions and amenities” that would draw visitors to the area. Charles Atwood, vice chairman of the board for Harrah’s Entertainment, said in a statement the company would propose a “large-scale Las Vegas-style resort.”

You can read another article at CJOnline.

Don’t forget to subscribe to our spam-free email newsletter to get regular updates on Harrah’s News and any website updates. It’s free!

Popularity: 22%

Posted: October 24th, 2007 under News.
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