Valleywag
A veteran CES attendee sent us her tried-and-true tips to having a successful CES 2008 trip:
1. Wash your hands. There is a reason one PR firm constantly told everybody to carry anti-bacterial sanitizer — you shake all those hands, after a while, it gets gross. You can avoid a lot of stomach problems, cold sores and pink eye by either not shaking any hands or being neurotic about washing/cleaning your hands. I am not joking. There was a decline in people getting sick after it was pushed to do this.Get lots more after the jump.
2. When leaving the Las Vegas Convention Center, don't wait in the cab line — walk straight up the cross street it's on and there's a hotel. Never a wait for cabs. It's about two blocks away. Zero line.
3. When in doubt and the cab line is long, step out, wave money and hurry — you more than likely will get a cab, and you'll have just cut in front of everybody so you better hustle. It's snarky, but when you are late for a miserable client who constantly complains and expects you to be super girl, it can be the only way to go.Got your own tips? Let us hear 'em in the comments.
4. It is virtually impossible to get a reservation anywhere, yet the Buccaneer Bay restaurant in Treasure Island is a secret place for amazing food — especially dessert. No, it's not baller status by any means, but if you're starved and can't get a table, you won't be disappointed, more than likely.
5. There is an outstanding tailor in the Aladdin shops area [editor's note: now the Miracle Mile Shops by Planet Hollywood] that does on the spot work while you wait. Great for hemming those sexy black pinstripe pants you found for wearing to the clubs.
6. Paris hotel is the most convenient location on the strip to get to the LVCC because you can go around its side street or back to get to the main drag the LVCC is on. It's also very clean with good service and you don't have to wind through an entire casino to find your room (like with most of the casino hotels) — elevators to rooms are literally just off to the right.
7. Mandalay Bay has the best buffet. I got sick at the Mirage.
8. I do believe that I heard rats or mice in the walls at the Palm last time I stayed — I was gravely ill and bedridden to where things got very quiet and there was definitely something in the walls.
9. If limos are lined up, ask people in the cab line (even if strangers) to share. Most of the limos will match what it'd cost for cab, or close to — and if you divide it up between 10 people, it's actually very cheap.
10. The back side of the LVCC is always good for grabbing shuttles — less traffic. Granted you'll have to walk a little further but you at least won't have to wait in that dreaded line.
11. Only the cheesy people brag about attending the parties, unless there is a banging band playing. It is still tech, it's still nerdy.
12. No, the cute PR girls do not want to date you. They are just hawking you for clients.
Comments
Not to sound motherly, but take it from a 20-plus-year CES vet: 1. Eat a good breakfast before hitting the convention center to avoid burning out by midday. Lunch, where you can find it, is usually awful, assuming you have the time to stop and eat. If you have to buy it yourself food is horrifically expensive and not much better. 2. Wear comfortable shoes. This sounds obvious, but you'd be surprised how many novices underestimate how well their feet will hold up after a long day of walking and standing. Black sneakers look the best with business garb. 3. If you want the PR flacks to take you seriously, dress well (business casual at the least) and don't stuff your pockets with giveaway trinkets or sneak more than one goodie bag. Don't beg for review products--take a business card and follow up the week after the show. Don't shove printouts of your web pages or copies of your publication in PR peoples' hands; again, take a card and follow up when things are less hectic. 4. I don't care how good the band or comedian is, if a PR person invites you to a party, don't go if it's primarily a dealer event. You'll be shuttled to the back of the room and made to feel second class. 5. If you're going to try and crash a party to which you've not been formally invited, make sure it's a large enough event to get lost in and wear your badge in an inconvenient location (i.e. below eye level). 6. Keep in mind that everything on the strip looks about 50 percent closer than it really is; walking from, say, the MGM to the Mirage will take a lot longer than you might think.
The best money I spend every time I am in Vegas on business happens just outside of the airport. Get a limo (sedan, not stretch) from the airport to the hotel, tip well and get the drivers card. Tell him/her that you're going to call. Need a ride somewhere? Just call the driver a few minutes before and you'll be greeted like a rockstar with walk-on privileges. Works great when you're with clients.
First off, Buccaneer Bay at TI is no longer there. Its the Social House--and yes it is better than a lot of other places to eat in Vegas. Expensive, but worth its weight in gold.
Second, Learn to TIP. I say this in caps because it still means the same thing that most people forgot what it meant in the first place--To Insure Promptness. Be cheap with your Bellman = slow moving bellman. Meaning, longer to get your crap product moving to where you want it. Give a dollar to Valet = he might remember who you are and the next time you might be sitting on that bench just a little longer. Bottom line.. you want good service don't be a cheapskate about it because you won't get away with it for too long.
Speaking of service, center bars have plenty of it. "They" stick out like a sore thumb with own agenda in mind. Their manager is usually close by playing slots or video poker "They" know who you are with your tucked-in embroidered polo shirt with cell phone holder and tassled brown shoes. Your their target market for the next few days.
Tip 1) Get tips from someone living in the present tense - Aladdin hotel long gone, replaced by Planet Hollywood.
I went to CES and stayed at the Paris when it had just opened and I could have sworn the Aladin was either demolished by then or about to be.. (i think it was demo'd) it definitely wasn't open. So kinda odd that this tipster would mention the two one right after another.
JIMMYG's advice is golden. I didn't wear nice shoes my first year. You should have seen the blisters. I also decided I should try and walk along Paradise to get to the Hilton. That sign is big... so it looks WAY closer than it really is. Big mistake.
@transparency: Good catch, though the reference was to the "Aladdin shops area" -- they're now called the "Miracle Mile Shops," and yes, they're near what's now Planet Hollywood.
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