Posted on: February 19, 2024, 01:52h.
Last updated on: February 19, 2024, 04:15h.
Las Vegas is a town built on deception — primarily that your odds of winning a jackpot are good. But some of its deception is less expected, and less acceptable. Here is the Casino.org news department’s official list of the five biggest scams you’ll need to watch out for in Sin City…
1. Free Show Tickets
Avoid all tents or desks with signs promising free things that are supposed to cost $100. These are timeshare salespeople. Timeshares are vacation properties that spread ownership among multiple buyers who agree to use the property at different times.
Ignore our advice and you will find yourself sitting in a presentation room where experts in manipulation proceed to pressure you — for up to five hours if you refuse to cave — to close a deal that is 100% in their best financial interest and 0% in yours.
While timeshares seem like a good way to save money on frequent hotel stays, they’re almost universally considered poor investments because they can’t generate income, for instance via subletting, like real real estate can.
Also, because there are always so many more people looking to sell than buy them, timeshares are only worth a fraction of their initial investment on the resale market.
In addition, life happens, and unforeseen circumstances often prevent timeshare holders from using their timeshare on their agreed-upon weekend(s).
If you’re able to resist the pressure, you’ll get your free tickets. But very few timeshare marks are able to — though nearly all think they can.
2. Casino ATMS
All ATMs located inside Las Vegas Strip casinos now charge $8-$11.99 per transaction for a “convenience fee.”
And that’s just how much you’ll get dinged from one side. You’re also likely to get charged again for the transaction for your bank — and you won’t know how much until the charge shows up on your account!
The vast majority of this fee is pocketed by the casino, which either rents the ATMs or owns them outright. And this consistent revenue stream is one of the reasons you won’t see familiar bank ATMs located inside casinos, like you do at Harry Reid International Airport.
The casino knows you’re not about to leave the building to mount a wild goose chase for an ATM operated by your bank — all to save less than $12.
Your wild goose chase will probably fail anyway. Though Bank of America used to operate three ATMs at T-Mobile Arena and one in the Forum Shops at Caesars, its ATM locator indicates only one of its cash machines left on the Strip — on the fourth floor of M&Ms World.
Likewise, though Wells Fargo used to operate an ATM in the courtyard outside Harrah’s, its ATM locator shows none currently located on the Strip.
There are workarounds, but all involve some degree of hassle that also may not seem worth $12…
You can open and fund a sportsbook account and withdraw from that, usually for free. You can open an online account with a bank or credit union, such as Schwab Bank, that refunds all ATM fees. Or you can buy goods at retail stores with your debit card and request cash back on the transaction. (Ask first, though, to see if there’s a fee.)
Or you can simply remember to bring enough cash for the day, and then stop gambling when it’s gone.
3. Fake Weed Stores
A half dozen stores on the Las Vegas Strip, and another half dozen on Fremont…
Read More: The 5 Biggest Scams in Las Vegas