Savan Vegas Visa run/ savannakhet

[bubba1]

1) does the hotel provide any visa agent service?

2) what currency is used at the table games?

[BritTim]

My recollection is that bets are denominated in Thai Baht. However, they will be happy to convert any major currency for you.

Savan Vegas was worth considering for visa runs at one time. Since the Lao government seized the complex in 2012 for failure to pay high enough bribes, it has been appallingly run. You cannot use visa agents in Savannakhet. The hotel is inconveniently situated for the Thai consulate, and is grossly overpriced for its current service and quality of the facilities.

The complex is currently for sale. Perhaps, the new suckers owners will bring it back to a condition where it is worth considering. For the time being, even if you want to gamble there, stay somewhere else.

[AgMech Cowboy]

I got my Visa at Savannakhet last year and stayed at the Savan Vegas. Be sure to arrange a car to pick you up from the airport. I was lucky hat there was one old man and his son providing 'taxi' service in an old van or I'd have been stuck at the airport for a while. I took a tuk-tuk to the consulate the next day. Pricey, but not much choice. You might talk to hotel staff for alternative transport the day before. I enjoyed the stay. Don't gamble, though. I think every game is pretty much house favored. I don't remember anyone winning while I was there.

The Visa experience was great.

[Bangkok Barry]

My advice, based on experience. Stay somewhere else. The Avalon Residence is well situated, new and has friendly staff. Savan Vegas is one of the worst hotels I have ever stayed in, anywhere, over 50 years of travel. No redeeming features whatsoever.

[midas]

My advice, based on experience. Stay somewhere else. The Avalon Residence is well situated, new and has friendly staff. Savan Vegas is one of the worst hotels I have ever stayed in, anywhere, over 50 years of travel. No redeeming features whatsoever.

Completely agree. Even when it was being run properly I never understood the point of travelling to another country and then staying in some compound miles from nowhere.

[White Tiger]

1) No visa agent service. You shouldn't need one really. The visa experience at the consulate is good, all works smoothly.

2) Thai Baht in the casino. There are ATMs for Thai currency in the casino.

My wife and I have stayed there 3 times on 3 separate visa trips. The hotel is OK - rooms are clean and comfortable, bathrooms clean too. The breakfast is disappointing - typical Asean style buffet. The main restaurant is also disappointing, not much western food and the Asean style food was not to our tastes. There is a sort of coffee shop or café in one corner of the casino where you can get a pizza and a cold beer - that was OK for me. The hotel advertises a swimming pool but there is none - seems it's been filled in and tiled over. Not much to do at the hotel apart from gamble, but it's OK for a stay of a night or two.

Every time we've stayed we've booked online through a website like Agoda or Expedia etc. We have parked up on the Thai side of the border by the bridge, close to the office of the hotel on the Thai side. Then, showing our reservation we have crossed the border in the hotel's minibus. On the Laos side the hotel minibus has also taken us on the hotel. There was a mix up once when the minibus left without us, but we were told another would be along soon (and one was). We decided to take a taxi anyway because we wanted to and it was only about 200THB so no biggie.

Next time we go we'll probably stay there again. Because it's convenient and we're happy spending time in the casino in the evening. To get to the Thai consulate we used the hotel minibus again. My wife had a chat with reception and the hotel minibus took us there for free, waited for us while we queued and did our stuff at the consulate, then took us back to the hotel. We've also hired the hotel minibus for a day, had a tour out to some temples, got the driver to take us to a French place in town for lunch, had a drive around the town, got the minibus to drive us to other hotels in town so we could check facilities and rooms at out other possible places to stay on a future visit, before going back to the hotel after our day out, and that cost us about 700THB.

Last time we went I paid about THB1500 per night for our room because it was discounted through Agoda. The headline undiscounted price was substantially higher than that. Every time we've gone we've got a good discounted price because of booking online.

Edited May 12, 2016 by White Tiger

[gilo]

If you do decide to stay there then go to their website joinng their VIP club online, which is free, and then book directtly with them and you can get a "Deluxe" room for 1000 Baht per night (except for public holidays). Cheaper than using a hotel booking site. In addition if you like a gamble the VIP club card allows for points accumulation. However at your own risk in terms of how straight up the tables in fact are.

[tails]

Sorry for the hijack... can anyone tell me about the savan vans from bkk? I dont really want a visa agent, just interested in if they are an easy option for transport to and from. Where to go in bkk?

[BritTim]

Sorry for the hijack... can anyone tell me about the savan vans from bkk? I dont really want a visa agent, just interested in if they are an easy option for transport to and from. Where to go in bkk?

The number may or may not still work, but for travel to Savan Vegas from Bangkok, you used to be able to call them on 081 870 5598. Worth a try.

[sapson]

It can be a cheap option, you can go there and join the player club, don't have to show funds or gamble you then get the player card and a deluxe room for 999 baht.

If you use a little charm when you check in, you can then get free buffet meal coupons for two for lunch, dinner and breakfast..............you can get American breakfast cooked to order if you don't mind Laos style slowly slowly.

Also if you are solo or not you can sit at one of the roulette slots and take in the abundant eye candy relax with a cigarette and the waitresses will serve you complimentary beer whilst you pretend to play or watch the live singers all very very easy and chilled.

Rooms are not bad, tv channels good but Wi-Fi none to hopeless in the room.Has on site massage and a pretty good gym and an overpriced Karaoke.

As for the electronic gaming its all rigged these days but you can find an honest tiger dragon even money card game real dealers that's not too bad but a tad boring.

They have a few roulette tables real dealers but almost certainly something very odd about the true randomness..........don't trust them.

Its just a bit far out of the town centre and the transport costs annoying however suited perhaps more to a solo traveller, very friendly place!

[Chao Lao Beach]

That's a shame it has gone down hill about 6 years ago it was great.

[BritTim]

That's a shame it has gone down hill about 6 years ago it was great.

Around the 2010-2011 time frame, it was far superior to anything else around Savannakhet, and the owners had ambitious plans to develop it further. Then, crooked Lao officials saw the opportunity to seize the assets and siphon off profits. The owners could have staved this off with big enough bribes, but I do not think they believed the authorities would follow through.

With the owners and professional management removed, the place went rapidly downhill. There has been no new investment for four years. The Lao government is now looking to sell the facilities off along with a 50-year concession. Amazingly, given the prior history, some organizations have shown interest. If the sale goes through, perhaps it will return to its prior standards (at least until the next asset grab).