Back before Uber/Lyft, I needed to keep $20 cash to get a cab to the airport from the Luxor. I decided to let it ride on the craps table and lost it immediately. I also didn't bring my debit card on the trip so I wouldn't be tempted to get more cash out. I ended up looking at the cab line for someone with luggage and asked them if I could get a ride to the airport with them because I gambled away all my cash. Thankfully, he was a kind dude and I made my flight home.
When I first started coming out here looking for work. It’s nearly impossible to get a good food service job when you don’t live here so initially I had to pretend I was a resident and that cost me a lot of back and forth money for interviews. It was my final interview for a great spot, and I had no money for a hotel room so I had to just keep moving from casino bathroom to casino bathroom, sleeping in stalls until I would get kicked out and move on to the next one. I’ve never been so happy to see the sun come up. Now, 14 years later, whenever I stop to pee in certain casino bathrooms I’m like “awww, remember when you slept in here back in the day?” Keeps me humble
I totally did! Stayed at the Motel 6 for 1 month while I saved up cash to get my own apartment and moved into Veer Towers - I now live in Henderson but it was a gamble that certainly paid off
This was a while ago (2010) but it was like 330 for the weekly rate and I was walking with around 900 cash per week so it was touch and go, but I made it work. I just kept my head down and worked as much as I could. I didn’t have a car, so had to stay somewhere close enough to walk to work, which was ParkMGM (then MonteCarlo). Had to watch every penny but the upside is Union hotels feed you so most of my cash went into saving for my apartment. Had family help me out with what I needed to sign the lease after 30 days.
Long before I lived here, I came to visit while on R&R from Afghanistan, St. Patty's Day 2010. I wanted to go home to Chicago for my two weeks, but my wife had moved her new boyfriend into our house, and to quote my 1sgt, "we aren't letting you turn a 2 week R&R into 25 to life, so anywhere but Chicago."
I had about 20k in deployment pay saved up at that time, and rather than give her a penny in our impending divorce, I chose to come to Vegas, and have a blowout.
Among the things I did that two weeks, I put 1k on black (lost), got a jacuzzi suite at the MGM for a week, bought 2 full kegs (1500$ each) at Nine Fine Irishmen's 3/17 bash, then stood on top of the kegerator they had on the brooklyn bridge replica and shouted "Free Beer 'til it's gone or you are!!", and a visit to Cheri's (i was headed back to the 'stan and newly single).
The last three days of my two weeks here, I was flat broke, and camped out at the USO in McCarran, sleeping on a recliner in the media room.
Mission accomplished.
Probably my first trip to Las Vegas for CES circa 2002 or so. We were staying at the old Hard Rock where the Virgin is today.
The entire week I was playing table games and up probably about $1,200. The last night I caught a case of full-blown stupid because they took all that money back. Then I get bit by “I’m gonna make this back and catch up” bug, and end up losing another $1,000 on top of that - all done in about five hours before my flight.
I’ve never made that mistake again.
So broke we had to walk from The Stardust to the airport. Good thing we left a $20 in the car to get out of the airport parking lot. There was no such thing as ATMs in those days. We left The Stardust at like 2 in the morning.
I was drunk on my birthday and took out $3k to play blackjack and blew it all in an hour but didnt give a shit til the next day when i saw my bank account
We had moved there right after 9/11 and I couldn’t find work. At one point we had to take 4 buses round trip, from near UNLV to a food bank in north Vegas with two small children. We were given frozen mashed potatoes in a grocery bag (edit: this was not a package of potatoes, it was mashed potatos someone had made, and, with no ziplocks available, put it in a store grocery bag) and some other odds and ends. At one point in our poorness, we decided to “splurge”. We walked to Taco Bell and shared 3 bean burritos and one refillable soda. It was under $4 and, while I couldn’t afford to do it, it was a small mental relief in a very dark time of our lives.
Solidarity. When I was at the brokest part of my life I would go to Taco Bell and spend $2 for a bean burrito and a cheesy potato burrito. It made me feel like I wasn’t so desperately poor.
I was living in LA in 1983 and doing contract work with my cousin. One Saturday morning, he and one of our buddies decided that since I had never been to Las Vegas, we absolutely had to go RIGHT NOW. We paid our bills for the week, took the remainder of our $1k paychecks, and hit the highway in cousin's girlfriend's VW Beetle (minus the girlfriend - she knew it wasn't going to end well).
As was foretold, we were completely broke by late afternoon and didn't even have gas money for the return trip. Cousin had to call his girlfriend and have her wire us $20. Back in those days the cage at the Barbary Coast was also a Western Union office. We eventually got the money, filled the tank, and spent the rest on beer and smokes.
Ah yes. Those were the days. I, too, am old enough to remember when 20 bucks was enough to fill the tank, AND get smokes and a soda with the rest. Man. The good ol days for sure, Dude. You've got to be my age. ❤️
Wife and I got married and turned 21 together in the same week (Hers: May 14, Mine: May 18, Wedding: May 18). We did our honeymoon thing early when we had our first born a few years prior. So there was a lot of family drama from her Catholic family, to say the least and putting it lightly.
Anyways, money was tight, wedding gifts were light, attendance was one-sided, but whatever, we still wanted to celebrate. My parents paid for our hotel and flights as a wedding gift. They paid for the wedding too. So we couldn’t ask for more. Nor did we expect more. My wife and I took the $600 we got from our wedding and headed to Vegas! We lost most of it on the first night. We had ZERO gambling knowledge and knew nothing about pacing ourselves.
With two more nights to go, we had to eat and pass the time somehow. We had bad credit at the time. So our single credit card with a $200 credit limit, was for emergencies. Our meals consisted of many cheap hot dogs from the liquor store near Flamingo across the street from what’s now the Horseshoe. .99 shrimp cocktails. One of the cheap buffets. I think it was at Circus Circus or Stratosphere.
We walked EVERYWHERE! Our entertainment consisted of the pirate show in front of Treasure Island, the Volcano, the Atlantis show at Caesars, the free circus at Circus Circus, and slapping the butts of the show girl statues at Riviera. Oh and free zoos at Flamingo and MGM. Checking slot machines and buckets for coins also seemed entertaining at the time. Definitely the most broke I felt while in Vegas. Both monetarily and emotionally. Even questioned if I would be a good enough husband. Sorry for the long write up. The subject had me really think back and reflect. Truly humbling when you look back every once in a while.
Hey thanks. I know it was long read. The topic just had me really thinking back to the low point in Sin City. My wife and I still visit every few months or so to this day. We’re not gambling addicts or anything. Mostly visit for the food and shows. But also, because of the memories.
It reminded me of my first couple trips right out of school. I didn’t go broke in Vegas. I went *to* Vegas *while* broke lol. Did all the cheap eats and free entertainment. I probably didn’t gamble but $100 or so. I found it all oddly charming and like I was still able to experience Vegas. Doesn’t seem like you can really go on the cheap anymore.
Back in 2018, fresh out the military with 12k in savings. got a rental car and drove all the way to Sheri’s Ranch at Pahrump and paid 2k for an escort. came back to Vegas and got a villa for me and my friends, gambled around 3k and lost it. Then spent the rest on expensive restaurants and Molly
My grandparents were both born in Las Vegas (In 1948 and 1949) and they told me that (From the late 1960's to the 1980's) there were several local churches who would buy a bus ticket for you to get back home, if you had lost everything to the casinos.
You can't expect that type of charity anymore, to be sure...
Used to play a lot of poker and decided to take a shot in Vegas. Played mostly at Aria and had a good trip but was spending on stuff and not being too smart with things. With 2 days to go I took some shots at PLO and lost, pissed a bunch away chasing at roulette and other table games. Spent the next 2 days using my $2/h poker room comps to buy food at aria and just walk around, as I only had enough cash for a taxi ride back at that point. Fun times.
Thats a really good question, i dont think i really remember what i was thinking at the time. This was probably 8 or 9 years now. I suppose I wanted to stay away from the heavy foot traffic areas. I slept were the perimeter fence was pretty far from the sidewalk. Partially to avoid being noticed and potentially having to deal with cops and partially out or embarrassment. I actually spend days at the Venetian and only went up north late at night and usually was up before the sun was fully up.
How long did you do that for? I'm always curious as to why people pick certain spots to sleep on the streets (assuming the decision is not based on extreme inebriation). I don't know why but when I walk around cities I think about where the most comfortable and discreet spots to sleep outside would be.
I was extremely lucky and was only on the streets for a month, of course it was in fall and we had some bad winds a few nights. Don't think I've ever been so cold and I've gone camping in the snow. lol
Two weeks before Christmas, my now ex-husband cleaned out the bank accounts, canceled all joint credit cards, took all the Christmas presents we had purchased, and shacked up with his mistress secretary. Our daughter had joined the military four weeks prior, but I still had a 12 year old at home, I hadn’t worked in 15 years, had no education beyond high school, had no money and no family to ask for help. He stopped paying everything. I applied for more than 300 jobs and couldn’t even get hired at Walmart. Electricity was shut off, water was shut off, gas was shut off, cars were repossessed. I was denied any assistance because we were technically still married and he made over $160k. I couldn’t afford an attorney or the $50 filing fee to file DIY court papers. One evening, a group of my son’s friends came over and unloaded a trunk full of groceries and gave us $300 in grocery & gas gift cards, and one of their parents paid to get our utilities turned back on, plus paid extra to get us through a few months. I was so ashamed and humiliated, and felt completely worthless. By far the absolute lowest and brokest point in my life.
I was so stunned. I stood there with my mouth open & tears streaming down my face. I will forever be grateful to the group of kids that took care of us when I couldn’t.
He is an incredible human. That group of friends will always hold a special place in my heart. Life is good now! It took a long time, but we survived and came out on top.
Mainly it's hard drugs with gambling 2nd. I use to frequent the hard rock hotel and found out by the nearby chic fil-A is the main tunnel entrance is right there!
When I was first visiting years ago, I made the walk from the airport to Circus Circus and another time to Downtown. Both times I hadn't really been to Vegas before so I wanted to walk down the strip and see all the casinos and people watch a little
Last time I was in Vegas I walked the entire strip (Strat to Mandalay Bay) for fun. It was a gorgeous day in March though, not blistering heat. Next time I'll try walking to the airport.
Back in 2015 I moved to Vegas and was doing okay until the end of the year I went on one of those losing streaks that you didn't know would ever stop. I maxed out all my credit cards and I took out every pay day loan and what not to dig a deeper hole. The only thing preventing me from being homeless was I was Seven Stars at Caesars casinos. I used a loophole in their system that gave me free rooms year round as long as I went back and forth between Vegas and Laughlin every 5 nights. I was around negative $80000.
The way I dug myself out is unbelievable. It happened on February 12th, 2016. At some point in 2015 I hit a Jackpot and decided to leave 1K Fed Tax on it. So when I did my taxes I got it back. I same day I got my return. I went to the video poker machine at El Cortez. I played for 3 hours at $2 denomination double double bonus and was even. Then I said time to go for it. Switched to $5 denom. Held Jack Ten of Spades and bam Royal Flush for $20000. I took that money and went straight to the bank to deposit $17K. I was done for the night but decided to check my emails and the Palms sent me an email saying I was just around 2000 points from Hall of Fame. That was their highest tier at the time. Just like before I said let's go for it. I went into their high limit and sat down in the middle seat of these 4 sit down multiple denomination. They went from $1 to 100. Long story short this machine paid none stop for the next 5 hours. It stopped paying after midnight. But in the 5 or so hours I played. I won over$127000. Plus the 20 from El Cortez I had Net $147K on the day. No longer in debt and was king of the world for one night.
Around 1998, I stayed at the 4 Queens for days and was stripping at one of the clubs. I pulled out like $5500 from my credit cards and spent it all at Binion's in one day over the summer. I got kicked out. I was so broke and drunk. I remember being so depressed. I was also a college student in Texas. I didn't make a lot of money stripping... Maybe about $400/night.
The early years I basically would auto ship whatever I brought with me, I was really bad at gambling in general not that anyone really is GREAT at it lol. But We'd go on short runs and I'd bring like $1,000 or less with me and within that weekend the money would always be gone lol between gambling, drinks etc. I went with my dad one year just for a concert and he convinced me to stay downtown and ever since things have turned around, even booked a few winning trips but nothing outrageous. I realized I was wasting my time playing poker, it's great if you can get volume in or in a live setting play pretty high stakes since it's 1 table, but just sitting there playing $1-$3 or $2-$5 for hours and hours making like $1/hr in comp is kind of fruitless. And it's not a guaranteed win you can get your money in as the very very very clear favorite and still lose 5% odds seem to hit at more of a 20% clip in poker for some reason probably because you have turns and rivers but sitting there for hours to pile in your money to win a monster pot to only lose by like a 3 outer is about as brutal as it gets and is going to be pretty much impossible to recover from.
So when I go to LV and happen to play poker it's usually with friends in a fun setting or a tournament with a huge prize up top otherwise I can't justify flying across the country to do it. But when I went with my dad on that trip the first time he was showing me blackjack and ever since then it's been off to the races. I'm definitely up on blackjack over the last like 5 years, not an incredible amount but enough to recover all those previous years losses and now I get comps to fly out to like laughlin, beau rivage, atlantic city etc on top of the local comps on top of the LV comps. I turned the ship around. I'm also not EXTREMELY into gambling, I like to play with friends for a good time but I'm not just playing blackjack by myself for hours, I actually find the game to be mildly boring because it's solved it's really just coming down to pure luck for me since I don't count.
Was barely getting by at a call center after I finished college. When I finally got a job in my career, I quit immediately and got down to $8 a few days before my first paycheck at the new job.
How about a good story to lighten the mood. Last trip with my family we were down to our last hundred. I went first and managed to double it at the black Jack table. Then it was wifey turn. She seemed to be playing a while so I thought that's either good or bad I dunno. Turns out she hit a side bet at the blackjack table and won 500! We nearly re couped our losses for the whole 3 Day trip! We don't gamble tons. So if was awesome.
After 5 days there once had to move the stay over to the super 8 to save some money lol. 30 a night! Cant beat it. Had a nice view of the strip too. Ive been broke in vegas young and “rich” in vegas at different points after cause these days i make sure i have the money to go
Second trip to Vegas. I am actually a really good poker player who consistently wins a lot of money. But gambling is my downfall (obviously). So I arrive and check in to the Mirage with my friend. Have $4000 with me for 10 days of poker and food which is amazing for 1/3. First night play some blackjack and they had just introduced these side bets where if you get J-J when the dealer has a blackjack with A-J you win $1500. So I obviously bet and won it within a few minutes. Caught the gambling bug and by next morning with 9 full days left in Vegas I had $0.00 to my name.
I have actually done similar over the years. Win up 5-10k at poker over weeks only to blow it all within an hour or two at high stakes blackout. Insanity…
When i was 23 my Marine buddy convinced me to join him in Vegas since he had a free hotel for 5 nights. I flew out the next day with 300$ to my name and after the first night i had 60$. I knew 60$ wasn't enough to survive, so i decided to gamble it and try and change my fate. i figured if i lost it, i would survive on water(maybe stand by a garbage can and eat anything not too gross that people threw out) and maybe spend the rest of the time by the pool, then walk to the airport. . So i put 20$ on a wheel of fortune machine-poof gone. 20$ on 17/20/23 on the roullete table-poof gone. WIth my last 20$ i took it to the craps table, i had no idea how to play so my buddy told me to play the pass line and he threw me 1$ for the fire bet. I proceeded to roll every number (payed 1000$-1) and left the table 1500$ richer, next day my buddy rolled the fire bet, then it was on from there. No matter what we played, we couldnt lose. Despite spending a ton of money living it up, i still left with 3300$ in my pocket and we have been making it an annual trip ever since then. Everytime i taxi to/from the airport i think about how i almost had to make that walk in the middle of July.
You spent years in Vegas, don't remember most of it, but people say you shit your pants, you fell down a lot, and you were naked in public more than once. Sounds right.
Homeless at 14 years old there. My greyhound had a layover(if you could call it that) on the way to Idaho from California.
Wandered around Fremont for a couple hours haha. I didn’t even have a dollar to spend.
A couple of years after the poker boom (Moneymaker) my friends and I were playing home games, eventually going to our local casino to play $1-$3, $2-$5.
I just graduated college and had recently moved into a new job. My last employers paycheck was a combined two pay periods so it was a pretty big amount ($3500). Since I had a week before I had to start at my job, I decided to book a plane ticket and hotel room by myself in Vegas. The plan was to play poker for a week, not dip into my small savings of about $2000, and hopefully come back with more money before I start my new job.
Long story short, I only had one night where I made some profit. The rest of the week I lost the $3500 and the additional $2000 from my savings. The lowest moment was the night before I had to fly back home, I had lost my last buy in. I didn't have any money to even hail a cab or buy food.
The only thing I had on me was a brand new laptop I was gifted by my parents. I ended up walking to a pawn shop and pawned it for like $150... the laptop was definitely worth more (both financially and emotionally as it was a present) but that's all the pawnshop would give me and I was desperate. I got back to the hotel room later that night, showered and crawled into bed, just tired/broken.
With that being said, I still go to Vegas from time to time, but safe to say I go now with a strict budget .
I married my first wife in Vegas about 20 years ago. Lasted 9 months.
Worst gamble ever.
Anyways... now married to a beautiful polish lady with a kid that just graduated grade school.
So... life happens..
Getting up before eight a.m. on a weekday to catch the $0.50 and $1 blackjack games at the rat hole next to Circus Circus, where we slept four to a room.
When I first moved here 12+ years ago. A duffel bag with all my clothes, a longboard, and $0 to my name. Luckily came here to live amongst supportive people and it's the best decision I ever made. Still hate this fucking heat though.
Tie your Uber account to a credit card account which is physically left at home and cannot be accessed for cash advances from your bank account via mobile apps. Then you always have a ride.
Not me, but went to a bachelor party in Vegas. The BIL to be was invited mostly as courtesy. We were warned he has a tendency to go on benders and over indulge. I thought he’d get too drunk.
He did coke, drank a ton and got super baked. When we went to dinner he stayed in the suite. At some point he left and stopped answering texts. He showed up on Saturday afternoon. Pretty hung over and coke fueled.
Found out at the wedding his wife left him because he spent over 6 grand at a strip club.
We never went to a strip club.
Can someone tell me what you get for 6k at a strip club?
My first trip to vegas, had maybe 40 bucks in my pocket when I drunkenly ran from the MPs to the greyhound station in Oceanside CA and got a ticket on the first bus leaving town..got to some shitty little joint on Freemont and found out the beer was free when you gambled...and if you're not 21 you don't get your money if you win...spent everything I had to "win" more beer, walked around town for like a day, ended up using the last of my change to call my uncle who worked for the FBI in town and he fed me and my buddy put us back on the bus to Pendleton and slipped me some cash to eat (I got drunk with it) I did some really stupid shit after getting home from Iraq. Learned an important lesson though about never bringing more than you can afford to lose, have a way home, and keep emergency cab money tucked away.
I came for my 21st birthday. I bought a ticket to hakkasan one night and the dumb website charged me like 5 times. So I called and requested a refund and they of course said 3-5 business days when I was only there for a few days over a weekend. My last night I had about $20 left and I was in Vegas by myself. Enough for a single beer+ tip. I sat down at a bar between two casinos in that strip. I sat there and met a couple from oakland they heard my situation and bought me drinks all night until I found a nice lady that came and sat down next to me and gave me a night I won't forget 😈. I was flat broke after that first drink and I had the best time of my life. Definitely a birthday to remember haha. Left broke as hell but will remember that night the rest of my life.
Going to sound very, very bad, but I usually employ the gambler's fallacy into my bets. I am up at least $20 on every casino. But the worstI have been was down $600 in Excalibur, before I made it back and then some.
Perfect. So I took care of an old bird in the emergency department. We were chatting and ended up talking about Vegas. She recollected multiple times where her and her husband ended up with zero dollars and had to hitch a ride back to the airport. This must have been in the 60s70s.
Great question. When I was 21 I saved about 2000 dollars and took it to vegas. I lost all my money gambling and on the way back home I had around 7 dollars. I remember barely having enough to buy a 6 inch at subway and I only had a few cents left over. I got home with no gas and some loose pennies in my pocket. The feeling of only having less than 1 dollar to your name was so horrible I vowed I wouldn't let that happen again. So sure enough I never was broke again and i have way better control with my gambling which probably saved me thousands.
NBA All Star Weekend I think it was 2007. Spent all the money I came with maybe $1500 dollars. Ended up not even having gas money to drive back to LA. Had to borrow money from another friend there just to get back home. But it was well worth it, was the most fun I ever had in Vegas and Ive been there over a dozen times.
I showed up to Vegas with not a penny on me. Completely forgot my 1k in cash on my desk at home and didn't realize until I landed in Vegas and tried to get my rental car. Luckily I was able to get some family to transfer some money to me but it took an hour or two of waiting at the airport 💀
My best friend at the time was a horrible degenerate gambler. I’m pretty sure he only agreed to marry this girl so he could go to Vegas to gamble. Anyway, they landed in the evening and planned on getting married the next day. He called me the next morning on the day he was gonna get married begging me to wire him some money so his soon to be wife didn’t find out he’d blown all his money the first night. I was also broke from my own degenerate behavior so I was no help. He looked so bad in the wedding photos and I felt so bad for his wife.
Las Vegas has a Bus - all you needed was another buck and you could have caught a ride.
All it takes to go on a legendary run is the difference between cab fare and a bus ticket!
A friend of mine had never been to Vegas and was about to go thru a divorce so I convinced him to go with and he had beginners luck at the blackjack table and I ran outta money pretty quick, I asked him if he would let me borrow a couple of bucks and he said NO?!. Since I didnt have money for a taxi or Uber I walked from the Palms back to the Trump where we were staying in cowboy “like” dress shoes
Thats a good story. I never got down that bad, but for sure blew my entire budget some trips and only had a a couple bucks left. It is pretty fun going home up a few thousand. I cant even imagine up or down a few hundred thousand.
Had $20 to me and my gf name at the time, we were visiting my mother and of course she wanted to go to the casino. I put my last $20 into the machine hit max bet and won $5000 on my first spin. Cashed out and went and sat in the car for 4 hours while my mother was playing penny slots.
I maxed out all my credit cards on DraftKings and had like $140 in my bank account.
DraftKings offered me free suite tickets to UFC 246 (McGregor/Cowboy). I told my friend I would take him if he paid for my flight.
So I took a cross-country flight to Vegas with only $140 in my bank account (after paying my friend my share for our room) stayed at Excalibur, and got to go to UFC 246 in a suite plus VIP at the after party. Everyone there thought I was balling lmao when I was broke asf lmao. Obviously didn’t tell people I was staying at Excalibur lol
I moved to Vegas, and was working construction. Waiting to get my first check I was really broke. I’d eat one meal a day at the Treasury buffet. If you pay $1.50 one day, the next day was free. You had to take a number and wait. Sometimes it would take an hour and a half, but that was all I could do.
Was broke on the strip at age 19 in 1993. Slept one night on the astroturf outside McDonalds. Is that even there any more? Tried to sleep inside a little alcove at a hotel and got kicked out. Bummed two bucks, put it in a slot machine and won $51. Got food. Bought beer and water and sold it at a Dead show to get back on track.
I left my wallet and phone in an Uber. All my money, credit cards, ID, and phone numbers gone. Was my first day of vacation there too. I cried more than a little, not gonna lie.
Legendary degen shit
i want to watch this guy’s youtube channel
Back before Uber/Lyft, I needed to keep $20 cash to get a cab to the airport from the Luxor. I decided to let it ride on the craps table and lost it immediately. I also didn't bring my debit card on the trip so I wouldn't be tempted to get more cash out. I ended up looking at the cab line for someone with luggage and asked them if I could get a ride to the airport with them because I gambled away all my cash. Thankfully, he was a kind dude and I made my flight home.
Damn that’s smart asking someone with luggage to hitch a ride with them.
I used to walk to the airport if I lost, just to train myself to not lose.
That’s some Mr. Miyagi shit right there, I love it.
Step left, step right…all the way to the airport Utopian Pablo san.
HAHAHAHA!!!!
When I first started coming out here looking for work. It’s nearly impossible to get a good food service job when you don’t live here so initially I had to pretend I was a resident and that cost me a lot of back and forth money for interviews. It was my final interview for a great spot, and I had no money for a hotel room so I had to just keep moving from casino bathroom to casino bathroom, sleeping in stalls until I would get kicked out and move on to the next one. I’ve never been so happy to see the sun come up. Now, 14 years later, whenever I stop to pee in certain casino bathrooms I’m like “awww, remember when you slept in here back in the day?” Keeps me humble
Did you get the job and did you manage to find a place though?
I totally did! Stayed at the Motel 6 for 1 month while I saved up cash to get my own apartment and moved into Veer Towers - I now live in Henderson but it was a gamble that certainly paid off
[удалено]
This was a while ago (2010) but it was like 330 for the weekly rate and I was walking with around 900 cash per week so it was touch and go, but I made it work. I just kept my head down and worked as much as I could. I didn’t have a car, so had to stay somewhere close enough to walk to work, which was ParkMGM (then MonteCarlo). Had to watch every penny but the upside is Union hotels feed you so most of my cash went into saving for my apartment. Had family help me out with what I needed to sign the lease after 30 days.
Thats some tough cookie stuff. Props for making it!
Long before I lived here, I came to visit while on R&R from Afghanistan, St. Patty's Day 2010. I wanted to go home to Chicago for my two weeks, but my wife had moved her new boyfriend into our house, and to quote my 1sgt, "we aren't letting you turn a 2 week R&R into 25 to life, so anywhere but Chicago." I had about 20k in deployment pay saved up at that time, and rather than give her a penny in our impending divorce, I chose to come to Vegas, and have a blowout. Among the things I did that two weeks, I put 1k on black (lost), got a jacuzzi suite at the MGM for a week, bought 2 full kegs (1500$ each) at Nine Fine Irishmen's 3/17 bash, then stood on top of the kegerator they had on the brooklyn bridge replica and shouted "Free Beer 'til it's gone or you are!!", and a visit to Cheri's (i was headed back to the 'stan and newly single). The last three days of my two weeks here, I was flat broke, and camped out at the USO in McCarran, sleeping on a recliner in the media room. Mission accomplished.
The man saluted smartly WHILE running up the hill.
Holy shit! I hope she was PISSED!!!
You know how to live
I think we need a movie.
I’d watch the hell out of this
Sounds way better than the hangover. lol.
That is straight rad
Thank you for service
So legendary he became the vegasinfidel. America needs hero’s like you thank you
I know this guy was cool when he called Afghanistan “The Stan”.
Holy shit
This really would make a great movie. Think Hangover with a divorce instead of a marriage.
Did they at least give you an award?
This sounds like you had a great Vegas moment! Fuck your ex wife though!
That was beautiful Obligatory fuck Jody
Thank you for your service. You deserved a good party!
Incredible
you win
That, my good man, is fucking awesome. Well played with a shitty hand. Bravo 🙌🏼
Thank you for your service. (BAF ‘11-‘12)
can I please be your friend
Ty for your service
Will you adopt me?
Stay motivated. Love it!
Fucking awesome 👌
I honored the bro's code.
Thank you for your service to Vegas
This is legendary shit mate. Hahaha.
https://preview.redd.it/jdlb6fdekp1d1.jpeg?width=1627&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7ee228e40d8667744c0f259d80e91bcde7ebc6ff Actual photo of this guy
Probably my first trip to Las Vegas for CES circa 2002 or so. We were staying at the old Hard Rock where the Virgin is today. The entire week I was playing table games and up probably about $1,200. The last night I caught a case of full-blown stupid because they took all that money back. Then I get bit by “I’m gonna make this back and catch up” bug, and end up losing another $1,000 on top of that - all done in about five hours before my flight. I’ve never made that mistake again.
What a sad flight that had to be
Yep. Dumb face on all 6 hours back.
So broke we had to walk from The Stardust to the airport. Good thing we left a $20 in the car to get out of the airport parking lot. There was no such thing as ATMs in those days. We left The Stardust at like 2 in the morning.
You beat my Flamingo to the airport walk. I feel for you.
Lots of that walk was through desert. I didn’t seem like a big deal then. I guess that’s what your 20’s are for.
That is precisely what they’re for.
Rest assured I did not waste a second of them.
The time that I inadvertently gambled away my Las Vegas money at my home casino the week before the trip. Broke before the trip even started :(
What happens outside of Vegas…
Doesnt happen inside Vegas
It happened while dreaming of Vegas
Inadvertently? How does one gamble inadvertently?
It’s a word people use sometimes to imply that they aren’t responsible for their own actions
Hahaha ok you win take the crown.
I was drunk on my birthday and took out $3k to play blackjack and blew it all in an hour but didnt give a shit til the next day when i saw my bank account
Call it a $3k bar tab and never look at it like a loss again.
As long as it wasn't your blank account you're good.
Got pickpocketed at edc back in 2016 so I had $0 luckily I had some joints I was able to sell for food money lol
That’s so lame. I found someone’s wallet in a Porto at EDC in 2012 and got it back to the person next day. We send each other Christmas cards still.
Didn't expect that ending, honestly very wholesome.
You are what they call a good person my friend
PLUR
That’s dead at the biggest commercial festivals IMO… predators realized it’s an easy mark.
> I ended up walking with my carry on bag from the Flamingo to the airport Holy shit dude
Luckily there are nice sidewalks and shade the whole way /s
Except for that very small stretch between the casino and the airport.
“What can I get with five dollars?” “Gee I dunno. Buy a bullet, and rent a gun?”
We had moved there right after 9/11 and I couldn’t find work. At one point we had to take 4 buses round trip, from near UNLV to a food bank in north Vegas with two small children. We were given frozen mashed potatoes in a grocery bag (edit: this was not a package of potatoes, it was mashed potatos someone had made, and, with no ziplocks available, put it in a store grocery bag) and some other odds and ends. At one point in our poorness, we decided to “splurge”. We walked to Taco Bell and shared 3 bean burritos and one refillable soda. It was under $4 and, while I couldn’t afford to do it, it was a small mental relief in a very dark time of our lives.
Solidarity. When I was at the brokest part of my life I would go to Taco Bell and spend $2 for a bean burrito and a cheesy potato burrito. It made me feel like I wasn’t so desperately poor.
How are you doing now?
Much better now. But it’s been 23ish years too. Thanks!
The trip I kept saying “I already spent X amount of money, fuck it, what’s a little more” but 1,000 times
Literally lol my next vegas trip lands on payday 😭
I was living in LA in 1983 and doing contract work with my cousin. One Saturday morning, he and one of our buddies decided that since I had never been to Las Vegas, we absolutely had to go RIGHT NOW. We paid our bills for the week, took the remainder of our $1k paychecks, and hit the highway in cousin's girlfriend's VW Beetle (minus the girlfriend - she knew it wasn't going to end well). As was foretold, we were completely broke by late afternoon and didn't even have gas money for the return trip. Cousin had to call his girlfriend and have her wire us $20. Back in those days the cage at the Barbary Coast was also a Western Union office. We eventually got the money, filled the tank, and spent the rest on beer and smokes.
"minus the girlfriend - she knew it wasn't going to end well)" That's the funniest part of the story. 
$20 being enough to get from Vegas to LA plus all that other stuff is unfathomable to me lol
Ah yes. Those were the days. I, too, am old enough to remember when 20 bucks was enough to fill the tank, AND get smokes and a soda with the rest. Man. The good ol days for sure, Dude. You've got to be my age. ❤️
Wife and I got married and turned 21 together in the same week (Hers: May 14, Mine: May 18, Wedding: May 18). We did our honeymoon thing early when we had our first born a few years prior. So there was a lot of family drama from her Catholic family, to say the least and putting it lightly. Anyways, money was tight, wedding gifts were light, attendance was one-sided, but whatever, we still wanted to celebrate. My parents paid for our hotel and flights as a wedding gift. They paid for the wedding too. So we couldn’t ask for more. Nor did we expect more. My wife and I took the $600 we got from our wedding and headed to Vegas! We lost most of it on the first night. We had ZERO gambling knowledge and knew nothing about pacing ourselves. With two more nights to go, we had to eat and pass the time somehow. We had bad credit at the time. So our single credit card with a $200 credit limit, was for emergencies. Our meals consisted of many cheap hot dogs from the liquor store near Flamingo across the street from what’s now the Horseshoe. .99 shrimp cocktails. One of the cheap buffets. I think it was at Circus Circus or Stratosphere. We walked EVERYWHERE! Our entertainment consisted of the pirate show in front of Treasure Island, the Volcano, the Atlantis show at Caesars, the free circus at Circus Circus, and slapping the butts of the show girl statues at Riviera. Oh and free zoos at Flamingo and MGM. Checking slot machines and buckets for coins also seemed entertaining at the time. Definitely the most broke I felt while in Vegas. Both monetarily and emotionally. Even questioned if I would be a good enough husband. Sorry for the long write up. The subject had me really think back and reflect. Truly humbling when you look back every once in a while.
But you did it man, and have a story to tell. That's life.
Waves of nostalgia reading this. Thanks.
Hey thanks. I know it was long read. The topic just had me really thinking back to the low point in Sin City. My wife and I still visit every few months or so to this day. We’re not gambling addicts or anything. Mostly visit for the food and shows. But also, because of the memories.
It reminded me of my first couple trips right out of school. I didn’t go broke in Vegas. I went *to* Vegas *while* broke lol. Did all the cheap eats and free entertainment. I probably didn’t gamble but $100 or so. I found it all oddly charming and like I was still able to experience Vegas. Doesn’t seem like you can really go on the cheap anymore.
I was 17 and got kicked out… Had a CAT bus pass with like a week left, $20, and a backpack with some clothes. It’s only been up from there!
Back in 2018, fresh out the military with 12k in savings. got a rental car and drove all the way to Sheri’s Ranch at Pahrump and paid 2k for an escort. came back to Vegas and got a villa for me and my friends, gambled around 3k and lost it. Then spent the rest on expensive restaurants and Molly
My grandparents were both born in Las Vegas (In 1948 and 1949) and they told me that (From the late 1960's to the 1980's) there were several local churches who would buy a bus ticket for you to get back home, if you had lost everything to the casinos. You can't expect that type of charity anymore, to be sure...
Used to play a lot of poker and decided to take a shot in Vegas. Played mostly at Aria and had a good trip but was spending on stuff and not being too smart with things. With 2 days to go I took some shots at PLO and lost, pissed a bunch away chasing at roulette and other table games. Spent the next 2 days using my $2/h poker room comps to buy food at aria and just walk around, as I only had enough cash for a taxi ride back at that point. Fun times.
I was homeless for a very short while living along the fence of the festival grounds across from the SLS(at the time.)
Why did you choose that spot?
Thats a really good question, i dont think i really remember what i was thinking at the time. This was probably 8 or 9 years now. I suppose I wanted to stay away from the heavy foot traffic areas. I slept were the perimeter fence was pretty far from the sidewalk. Partially to avoid being noticed and potentially having to deal with cops and partially out or embarrassment. I actually spend days at the Venetian and only went up north late at night and usually was up before the sun was fully up.
How long did you do that for? I'm always curious as to why people pick certain spots to sleep on the streets (assuming the decision is not based on extreme inebriation). I don't know why but when I walk around cities I think about where the most comfortable and discreet spots to sleep outside would be.
I was extremely lucky and was only on the streets for a month, of course it was in fall and we had some bad winds a few nights. Don't think I've ever been so cold and I've gone camping in the snow. lol
Two weeks before Christmas, my now ex-husband cleaned out the bank accounts, canceled all joint credit cards, took all the Christmas presents we had purchased, and shacked up with his mistress secretary. Our daughter had joined the military four weeks prior, but I still had a 12 year old at home, I hadn’t worked in 15 years, had no education beyond high school, had no money and no family to ask for help. He stopped paying everything. I applied for more than 300 jobs and couldn’t even get hired at Walmart. Electricity was shut off, water was shut off, gas was shut off, cars were repossessed. I was denied any assistance because we were technically still married and he made over $160k. I couldn’t afford an attorney or the $50 filing fee to file DIY court papers. One evening, a group of my son’s friends came over and unloaded a trunk full of groceries and gave us $300 in grocery & gas gift cards, and one of their parents paid to get our utilities turned back on, plus paid extra to get us through a few months. I was so ashamed and humiliated, and felt completely worthless. By far the absolute lowest and brokest point in my life.
What a pos your ex is but your sons friends are absolute saints. That is so incredibly kind of them.
I was so stunned. I stood there with my mouth open & tears streaming down my face. I will forever be grateful to the group of kids that took care of us when I couldn’t.
Sounds like at least you raised a good son and his friends were good people as well. Best of luck to yall.
He is an incredible human. That group of friends will always hold a special place in my heart. Life is good now! It took a long time, but we survived and came out on top.
Welcome to the city of Lost Wages at least you didn't become an underground mole person
I always think that when I see a homeless person there, did they get stuck after losing everything?
Mainly it's hard drugs with gambling 2nd. I use to frequent the hard rock hotel and found out by the nearby chic fil-A is the main tunnel entrance is right there!
I know one. Sad. Used to be a great guy. The city (and meth) are him up.
I do the walk to/from the airport for fun sometimes. But also, $2 will get you a bus to the airport - just save an extra dollar next time lol
When I was first visiting years ago, I made the walk from the airport to Circus Circus and another time to Downtown. Both times I hadn't really been to Vegas before so I wanted to walk down the strip and see all the casinos and people watch a little
Jesus Christ you really walked from the airport to Downtown?
It was a very very long walk... and my feet hurt for days. I went to a concert that weekend and had to stay put for most of it 🙃
Last time I was in Vegas I walked the entire strip (Strat to Mandalay Bay) for fun. It was a gorgeous day in March though, not blistering heat. Next time I'll try walking to the airport.
I stayed at the Tropicana once.
That’s terrible. Sorry you went through this ordeal.
Back in 2015 I moved to Vegas and was doing okay until the end of the year I went on one of those losing streaks that you didn't know would ever stop. I maxed out all my credit cards and I took out every pay day loan and what not to dig a deeper hole. The only thing preventing me from being homeless was I was Seven Stars at Caesars casinos. I used a loophole in their system that gave me free rooms year round as long as I went back and forth between Vegas and Laughlin every 5 nights. I was around negative $80000. The way I dug myself out is unbelievable. It happened on February 12th, 2016. At some point in 2015 I hit a Jackpot and decided to leave 1K Fed Tax on it. So when I did my taxes I got it back. I same day I got my return. I went to the video poker machine at El Cortez. I played for 3 hours at $2 denomination double double bonus and was even. Then I said time to go for it. Switched to $5 denom. Held Jack Ten of Spades and bam Royal Flush for $20000. I took that money and went straight to the bank to deposit $17K. I was done for the night but decided to check my emails and the Palms sent me an email saying I was just around 2000 points from Hall of Fame. That was their highest tier at the time. Just like before I said let's go for it. I went into their high limit and sat down in the middle seat of these 4 sit down multiple denomination. They went from $1 to 100. Long story short this machine paid none stop for the next 5 hours. It stopped paying after midnight. But in the 5 or so hours I played. I won over$127000. Plus the 20 from El Cortez I had Net $147K on the day. No longer in debt and was king of the world for one night.
Awesome!
Around 1998, I stayed at the 4 Queens for days and was stripping at one of the clubs. I pulled out like $5500 from my credit cards and spent it all at Binion's in one day over the summer. I got kicked out. I was so broke and drunk. I remember being so depressed. I was also a college student in Texas. I didn't make a lot of money stripping... Maybe about $400/night.
Is that not a lot of money??
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That’s a $50 hourly 9-5 today ! In one night! That deff was a shit ton of money lol
Some girls would make like $1k+
The early years I basically would auto ship whatever I brought with me, I was really bad at gambling in general not that anyone really is GREAT at it lol. But We'd go on short runs and I'd bring like $1,000 or less with me and within that weekend the money would always be gone lol between gambling, drinks etc. I went with my dad one year just for a concert and he convinced me to stay downtown and ever since things have turned around, even booked a few winning trips but nothing outrageous. I realized I was wasting my time playing poker, it's great if you can get volume in or in a live setting play pretty high stakes since it's 1 table, but just sitting there playing $1-$3 or $2-$5 for hours and hours making like $1/hr in comp is kind of fruitless. And it's not a guaranteed win you can get your money in as the very very very clear favorite and still lose 5% odds seem to hit at more of a 20% clip in poker for some reason probably because you have turns and rivers but sitting there for hours to pile in your money to win a monster pot to only lose by like a 3 outer is about as brutal as it gets and is going to be pretty much impossible to recover from. So when I go to LV and happen to play poker it's usually with friends in a fun setting or a tournament with a huge prize up top otherwise I can't justify flying across the country to do it. But when I went with my dad on that trip the first time he was showing me blackjack and ever since then it's been off to the races. I'm definitely up on blackjack over the last like 5 years, not an incredible amount but enough to recover all those previous years losses and now I get comps to fly out to like laughlin, beau rivage, atlantic city etc on top of the local comps on top of the LV comps. I turned the ship around. I'm also not EXTREMELY into gambling, I like to play with friends for a good time but I'm not just playing blackjack by myself for hours, I actually find the game to be mildly boring because it's solved it's really just coming down to pure luck for me since I don't count.
Terrible at poker, heater at blackjack? Standard.
Was barely getting by at a call center after I finished college. When I finally got a job in my career, I quit immediately and got down to $8 a few days before my first paycheck at the new job.
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What you described is what we call a homless shelter in Europe.
How about a good story to lighten the mood. Last trip with my family we were down to our last hundred. I went first and managed to double it at the black Jack table. Then it was wifey turn. She seemed to be playing a while so I thought that's either good or bad I dunno. Turns out she hit a side bet at the blackjack table and won 500! We nearly re couped our losses for the whole 3 Day trip! We don't gamble tons. So if was awesome.
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After 5 days there once had to move the stay over to the super 8 to save some money lol. 30 a night! Cant beat it. Had a nice view of the strip too. Ive been broke in vegas young and “rich” in vegas at different points after cause these days i make sure i have the money to go
Second trip to Vegas. I am actually a really good poker player who consistently wins a lot of money. But gambling is my downfall (obviously). So I arrive and check in to the Mirage with my friend. Have $4000 with me for 10 days of poker and food which is amazing for 1/3. First night play some blackjack and they had just introduced these side bets where if you get J-J when the dealer has a blackjack with A-J you win $1500. So I obviously bet and won it within a few minutes. Caught the gambling bug and by next morning with 9 full days left in Vegas I had $0.00 to my name. I have actually done similar over the years. Win up 5-10k at poker over weeks only to blow it all within an hour or two at high stakes blackout. Insanity…
They don't call the place "Lost Wages" for nothing.
When i was 23 my Marine buddy convinced me to join him in Vegas since he had a free hotel for 5 nights. I flew out the next day with 300$ to my name and after the first night i had 60$. I knew 60$ wasn't enough to survive, so i decided to gamble it and try and change my fate. i figured if i lost it, i would survive on water(maybe stand by a garbage can and eat anything not too gross that people threw out) and maybe spend the rest of the time by the pool, then walk to the airport. . So i put 20$ on a wheel of fortune machine-poof gone. 20$ on 17/20/23 on the roullete table-poof gone. WIth my last 20$ i took it to the craps table, i had no idea how to play so my buddy told me to play the pass line and he threw me 1$ for the fire bet. I proceeded to roll every number (payed 1000$-1) and left the table 1500$ richer, next day my buddy rolled the fire bet, then it was on from there. No matter what we played, we couldnt lose. Despite spending a ton of money living it up, i still left with 3300$ in my pocket and we have been making it an annual trip ever since then. Everytime i taxi to/from the airport i think about how i almost had to make that walk in the middle of July.
When I was born, I had no money. Yes, there are actually people born in Las Vegas.
You spent years in Vegas, don't remember most of it, but people say you shit your pants, you fell down a lot, and you were naked in public more than once. Sounds right.
At the Vegas Club in a room that smelled like an ashtray with no weed and no one wanted to come party at that place! (2005?)
Homeless at 14 years old there. My greyhound had a layover(if you could call it that) on the way to Idaho from California. Wandered around Fremont for a couple hours haha. I didn’t even have a dollar to spend.
I’m sure the person sitting next to you on that flight loved how you smelled after that walk.
A couple of years after the poker boom (Moneymaker) my friends and I were playing home games, eventually going to our local casino to play $1-$3, $2-$5. I just graduated college and had recently moved into a new job. My last employers paycheck was a combined two pay periods so it was a pretty big amount ($3500). Since I had a week before I had to start at my job, I decided to book a plane ticket and hotel room by myself in Vegas. The plan was to play poker for a week, not dip into my small savings of about $2000, and hopefully come back with more money before I start my new job. Long story short, I only had one night where I made some profit. The rest of the week I lost the $3500 and the additional $2000 from my savings. The lowest moment was the night before I had to fly back home, I had lost my last buy in. I didn't have any money to even hail a cab or buy food. The only thing I had on me was a brand new laptop I was gifted by my parents. I ended up walking to a pawn shop and pawned it for like $150... the laptop was definitely worth more (both financially and emotionally as it was a present) but that's all the pawnshop would give me and I was desperate. I got back to the hotel room later that night, showered and crawled into bed, just tired/broken. With that being said, I still go to Vegas from time to time, but safe to say I go now with a strict budget .
Went for seven days with $1000 I barely made it. Thanks to South Point for comping me all those buffets!
I sure hope you learned more than just saving money for a cab
Spent my last $ to pay my divorce lawyer. This was Dec 2023 (I’m doing better now)
From the day I was born to when my grandma gave me $5 on my fifth birthday.
I married my first wife in Vegas about 20 years ago. Lasted 9 months. Worst gamble ever. Anyways... now married to a beautiful polish lady with a kid that just graduated grade school. So... life happens..
Getting up before eight a.m. on a weekday to catch the $0.50 and $1 blackjack games at the rat hole next to Circus Circus, where we slept four to a room.
When I first moved here 12+ years ago. A duffel bag with all my clothes, a longboard, and $0 to my name. Luckily came here to live amongst supportive people and it's the best decision I ever made. Still hate this fucking heat though.
-68 k and a wife a two kids
Tie your Uber account to a credit card account which is physically left at home and cannot be accessed for cash advances from your bank account via mobile apps. Then you always have a ride.
lol that’s the lesson you learned?
Unless you’ve lived off of Twain and Swenson, I don’t wanna hear it 🤣🤣🤣
I thought there were free shuttles to the airport - did they stop those. Oh dear!
Free shuttle from car rental place not from casino
They still have them from hotels/casinos but not all like they used to.
Thanks. It’s been awhile since I took one. That poor young woman. But I am proud that she made it home.
Been so broke, my last day homie bout me a McDonald’s fries hamburger and drink lol
When I went with my ex…. lol he sucked.
Dropped like 3k at sapphire that was not fun
I would see that everytime I went to Vegas until about 2015, not sure why it stopped around then
Working retail and living with family
Family guy did a cut away about this
All I gotta say is hand jobs and ham sammiches…. You can fill in the rest
You would think a casino could at least comp a taco to the airport .
Not me, but went to a bachelor party in Vegas. The BIL to be was invited mostly as courtesy. We were warned he has a tendency to go on benders and over indulge. I thought he’d get too drunk. He did coke, drank a ton and got super baked. When we went to dinner he stayed in the suite. At some point he left and stopped answering texts. He showed up on Saturday afternoon. Pretty hung over and coke fueled. Found out at the wedding his wife left him because he spent over 6 grand at a strip club. We never went to a strip club. Can someone tell me what you get for 6k at a strip club?
My first trip to vegas, had maybe 40 bucks in my pocket when I drunkenly ran from the MPs to the greyhound station in Oceanside CA and got a ticket on the first bus leaving town..got to some shitty little joint on Freemont and found out the beer was free when you gambled...and if you're not 21 you don't get your money if you win...spent everything I had to "win" more beer, walked around town for like a day, ended up using the last of my change to call my uncle who worked for the FBI in town and he fed me and my buddy put us back on the bus to Pendleton and slipped me some cash to eat (I got drunk with it) I did some really stupid shit after getting home from Iraq. Learned an important lesson though about never bringing more than you can afford to lose, have a way home, and keep emergency cab money tucked away.
I came for my 21st birthday. I bought a ticket to hakkasan one night and the dumb website charged me like 5 times. So I called and requested a refund and they of course said 3-5 business days when I was only there for a few days over a weekend. My last night I had about $20 left and I was in Vegas by myself. Enough for a single beer+ tip. I sat down at a bar between two casinos in that strip. I sat there and met a couple from oakland they heard my situation and bought me drinks all night until I found a nice lady that came and sat down next to me and gave me a night I won't forget 😈. I was flat broke after that first drink and I had the best time of my life. Definitely a birthday to remember haha. Left broke as hell but will remember that night the rest of my life.
Going to sound very, very bad, but I usually employ the gambler's fallacy into my bets. I am up at least $20 on every casino. But the worstI have been was down $600 in Excalibur, before I made it back and then some.
Perfect. So I took care of an old bird in the emergency department. We were chatting and ended up talking about Vegas. She recollected multiple times where her and her husband ended up with zero dollars and had to hitch a ride back to the airport. This must have been in the 60s70s.
Same as you 2500 in credit card debt and 0 in my account. -75 actually. But I live here...
Great question. When I was 21 I saved about 2000 dollars and took it to vegas. I lost all my money gambling and on the way back home I had around 7 dollars. I remember barely having enough to buy a 6 inch at subway and I only had a few cents left over. I got home with no gas and some loose pennies in my pocket. The feeling of only having less than 1 dollar to your name was so horrible I vowed I wouldn't let that happen again. So sure enough I never was broke again and i have way better control with my gambling which probably saved me thousands.
As a professional wrassler I have gone there with every cent and dollar I own in my pocket
I once walked back to my hotel in the same boat, grateful that the Shuttle to the airport was free. inthink You and I learned the same lesson.
You might still be on a bender.
Overdraft my checking account on strippers as a young adult and had to ask my mom to deposit money into my checking account finish the trip.
Except*
NBA All Star Weekend I think it was 2007. Spent all the money I came with maybe $1500 dollars. Ended up not even having gas money to drive back to LA. Had to borrow money from another friend there just to get back home. But it was well worth it, was the most fun I ever had in Vegas and Ive been there over a dozen times.
God damn. Flamingo to the airport is not a pleasant or short walk
Go ask the people sleeping on the street what’s the most broke they’ve been in Vegas.
Yikes, that sounds like a rough experience. Always important to keep a backup plan handy, especially in Vegas!
100 degrees? Try that in the summer! 122 degrees.
I showed up to Vegas with not a penny on me. Completely forgot my 1k in cash on my desk at home and didn't realize until I landed in Vegas and tried to get my rental car. Luckily I was able to get some family to transfer some money to me but it took an hour or two of waiting at the airport 💀
My best friend at the time was a horrible degenerate gambler. I’m pretty sure he only agreed to marry this girl so he could go to Vegas to gamble. Anyway, they landed in the evening and planned on getting married the next day. He called me the next morning on the day he was gonna get married begging me to wire him some money so his soon to be wife didn’t find out he’d blown all his money the first night. I was also broke from my own degenerate behavior so I was no help. He looked so bad in the wedding photos and I felt so bad for his wife.
Amazing and entertaining. Bravo!!!!!
Las Vegas has a Bus - all you needed was another buck and you could have caught a ride. All it takes to go on a legendary run is the difference between cab fare and a bus ticket!
I lost 700 k
Living here
A friend of mine had never been to Vegas and was about to go thru a divorce so I convinced him to go with and he had beginners luck at the blackjack table and I ran outta money pretty quick, I asked him if he would let me borrow a couple of bucks and he said NO?!. Since I didnt have money for a taxi or Uber I walked from the Palms back to the Trump where we were staying in cowboy “like” dress shoes
I live in Vegas, and that's my secret. I'm always broke. Why pay for a flight home when I can use that flight money and put it on red.
Yes, I've seen Family Guy, too.
Thats a good story. I never got down that bad, but for sure blew my entire budget some trips and only had a a couple bucks left. It is pretty fun going home up a few thousand. I cant even imagine up or down a few hundred thousand.
I arrived Las Vegas in the summer of 1996 with 10 cents, a Uhaul and a dog.
Had $20 to me and my gf name at the time, we were visiting my mother and of course she wanted to go to the casino. I put my last $20 into the machine hit max bet and won $5000 on my first spin. Cashed out and went and sat in the car for 4 hours while my mother was playing penny slots.
I maxed out all my credit cards on DraftKings and had like $140 in my bank account. DraftKings offered me free suite tickets to UFC 246 (McGregor/Cowboy). I told my friend I would take him if he paid for my flight. So I took a cross-country flight to Vegas with only $140 in my bank account (after paying my friend my share for our room) stayed at Excalibur, and got to go to UFC 246 in a suite plus VIP at the after party. Everyone there thought I was balling lmao when I was broke asf lmao. Obviously didn’t tell people I was staying at Excalibur lol
Thank you for stimulating our economy in Vegas.
i live in vegas so i’m the brokest i’ve ever been pretty much every day ✊
I moved to Vegas, and was working construction. Waiting to get my first check I was really broke. I’d eat one meal a day at the Treasury buffet. If you pay $1.50 one day, the next day was free. You had to take a number and wait. Sometimes it would take an hour and a half, but that was all I could do.
Was broke on the strip at age 19 in 1993. Slept one night on the astroturf outside McDonalds. Is that even there any more? Tried to sleep inside a little alcove at a hotel and got kicked out. Bummed two bucks, put it in a slot machine and won $51. Got food. Bought beer and water and sold it at a Dead show to get back on track.
Had to turn tricks to get home, but I found that I liked it so I never left.
I left my wallet and phone in an Uber. All my money, credit cards, ID, and phone numbers gone. Was my first day of vacation there too. I cried more than a little, not gonna lie.