Tips for Caesar's Seven Stars Annual Trip
* Updated December 28, 2015
As a benefit of being a Seven Stars member, you get an "annual trip" to any North American Caesar's-owned property, plus airfare and a $500 food credit.
However, it is not easy or convenient to book this. Here are some tips on getting it done fastest:
Hotel Portion
You will probably run into a lot of frustration trying to book this, as hosts love to pass the buck to one another. Call your host, and unless you've been giving them a ton of action lately, they will probably tell you to just call the property you want to visit. Then you'll call your property you want to visit, and they will tell you that you should call your host! This is what computer scientists like me call "an endless loop"!
In reality, it is best to secure the hotel directly with the property you're visiting. Your "home casino" host can also do it, but the process will be slower, they may balk at doing this in the first place, and you will typically get inferior rooms/treatment because your host does not know the other property well.
If you call the casino you're visiting, they will be more excited to have you there, as you are a Seven Stars member (i.e. a big gambler) and they want you there.
Call the casino you're going to visit, ask for the host on duty, and explain that you want to book your Seven Stars trip. Do not let them pass the buck back to your home host. Tell them that you were told it's the destination property's responsibility to arrange this (which it is). Make sure you get an "Executive Casino Host", and not just some scrub.
You will get 4 nights free, plus $500 to spend on food and drinks in their restaurants ONLY. You cannot use the $500 for the spa or anything else. At a few properties like Harrah's New Orleans, you get the $500 in RCs, which is obviously much better. If you get it in RCs, you don't have to spend any of it while on the trip. It's yours to keep. However, most properties will just give you a $500 food-and-beverage credit on your folio. Make sure they have down that they should add the $500 when arranging this on the phone. Get the host's name who is arranging it for you.
Also, try to ask for a suite. They will usually give this to Seven Stars members on their annual trips, unless you're visiting during a holiday or event where they are otherwise booked up.
There are no blackout dates for the Annual Trip. Do not let them deny you the trip just because you want to go over New Year's, or whatever.
Secure the room FIRST, before moving on to the flight stuff.
Booking Your Flight
Caesar's will cover your airfare, up to $600 per person, for two people. You do not get any kind of "change" from the $600, so if you book a cheap flight (like $200), you are just saving Caesar's money. You are only entitled 2 airline tickets on the casino's dime, up to $600 each. If they run over $600, you pay the difference, though often they will forgive small overages (such as under $20). You can book first class, business class, economy plus, etc, so always price these out to see if they will come close to fitting within the $600 budget!
This process is a pain in the ass. DO NOT COUNT ON YOUR HOST TO DO EVERYTHING FOR YOU, as they will not likely do an efficient job with it, and you will get a terrible flight with all kinds of stops (or at a lousy time of day).
1) Research your itinerary on the internet first. Go to kayak.com first, then to southwest.com because they aren't included in kayak's results. You are looking to keep each ticket under $600 (or $1200 for one person). Try to find flights that are nonstop and most convenient for you without breaking over the $600 per person limit. Keep in mind that you can still book flights that cost more than $600, if you agree to pay the difference. If you barely go over, your host might choose to pay for the whole thing rather than force you to cover a difference under $50.
2) Once you have found the flights you want, call Passport at 1-800-984-8004. Select "Total Rewards travel" on their menu. They are open Monday-Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm Pacific time. Have them quickly verify that your flights can be booked through their system. They will almost always say yes. You will need your host to actually book it, though.
3) E-mail your host your itinerary. The host needs to get involved at this point. Make sure to include the dates/times, flight numbers, airlines, and full passenger information, including first/middle/last names, dates of birth, and frequent flier #s. You should also state seating preferences, such as window/aisle/etc, as well as the fact that you don't want a non-reclining seat. Then call your host and ask him/her to e-mail it to Passport. If you don't want to call your host, you can also just wait for him/her to respond to their e-mail, if time isn't of the essence. However, don't wait too long, as airline prices can change (and move you past the $600 mark!)
4) After your host agrees to e-mail passport, wait 24 hours. If you do not hear back from your host (with a forwarded e-mail from Passport, asking you to verify what they are going to book), call your host and ask if he/she has heard from Passport yet.
5) Once you get the e-mail from Passport, go over it carefully and make sure everything is right. Make sure that you are assigned seats, and check where they are on the plane. If you don't like those seats, they can change them. If everything is fine, e-mail your host back and say that it's all fine.
6) Within another 24 hours, you should get a confirmation that it's all booked. Call your host if you don't.
Other useful flight-related info:
Other useful info:
- You can take your round trip through different airports. For example, if you want to fly to Atlantic City, but want to take your own little trip after that to Boston, you can do that without returning to Atlantic City for the flight home. Just find a flight that goes from your home airport to Atlantic City, and a return flight that goes from Boston back to your home. Provided the whole thing stays under $600, and the first flight is a "reasonable distance" from the casino destination (see below), Passport Travel will not object, and will approve this itinerary. They also don't care what dates you fly (as long as your hotel stay falls somewhere in between).
- You are allowed to fly into any airport "within reasonable distance" from your destination Caesars hotel. For the most part, it means under 300 miles, though they might balk if you choose to fly into an airport which seems nonsensical for the trip (for example, if you fly into Jackson, MS when traveling to Harrah's New Orleans, despite a major New Orleans airport being right there.) Examples of reasonable distances would be flying into San Francisco when traveling to Lake Tahoe, Nashville when traveling to Harrah's Cherokee, NYC when traveling to Atlantic City, etc. That is, you don't have to utilize the closest airport. It does not matter which airport you use for the return flight. You could drive 1000 miles or more from the casino and fly back home from there, and Passport will not object!
- If you want to take additional people, you have to pay. However, Passport will book the whole thing and make sure you get seats together (at your request).
- The 30-day advance notice that they warn you about is BS. You can plan your annual trip much closer than 30 days. However, you should do it at least a few weeks in advance in order to keep the airfares under $600.
Other Important General Info
You already earned this trip. You are not required to play. Just relax and make a non-gambling vacation out of it, if you want. Since you will not be at your "home" property, this won't even affect your regular host.
Some properties apply the $500 food and beverage to AFTER TAX, and some remove the tax entirely. Find out which one for sure, so you can best use your $500.
Once your hotel reservation is done, your $500 disappears, too. Make sure you use it, even if you just visit the snack shop at the end and load up on chips, fruit, etc.
Some restaurants associated with the hotel will allow you to use your $500, but do so at 2:1 (meaning you need to spend $2 to get $1 in value). This sucks, and should be avoided, unless you really have no use for the full $500. Just stick to the restaurants in the hotel that give 1:1.
You will get a limo to and from the airport. This is free. They will NOT pay for any portion of a rental car, though. You need to call the property you're visiting to arrange the limo.
You ARE allowed to combine your Seven Stars Annual Cruise with this trip. If you go to a destination where Norwegian Cruises are nearby, consider "tacking on" the cruise to the end of your Seven Stars Annual Trip, and arrange your flight dates accordingly.
Looking for a place to go? Not all Caesar's destinations are created equal! Check out this page: http://www.sevenstarsinsider.com/ ... Go down the left bar and click on the hotels that interest you, and you will get a great description of each property, aimed at Seven Stars members who are considering taking a trip there. Personally, I would recommend destinations with something to do, or ones that are close to other places you want to visit anyway. For example, last year I took my trip to Atlantic City, and then moved on to do a New York/New England trip, flying back from Boston. Don't waste this trip on some garbage like Kansas City (unless you have family there).
You must travel to a different "market" than what is considered your home (or "dominant") property. That is, if your dominant property is Las Vegas, you cannot take this "trip" to Las Vegas, even if you live hundreds of miles away from Vegas.
If don't want to travel to other casinos, don't waste this trip! You can use this for a free flight, even if you don't use the hotel part at all. Let's say you want to visit your mother in New York. Book your annual trip to Atlantic City, go through the above steps to book the flight, except make the filght in and out of JFK (this is allowed). Then after the flight is booked, call Atlantic City a few days before the trip and tell them you can't make it, and to give up your room to someone else. You can still take the flight, as that will already be booked and paid for! (Technically this isn't allowed, but people do it all the time, and Caesars never enforces it.)
New for 2016: You can "trade in" this entire trip for $500 in RCs.
