How to see all the Las Vegas shows (for free)

(Originally posted on March 16, 2008)

My little secret

If you're a regular reader of my blog, you know I've reviewed a few shows that I've seen over the recent months. Real Estate has been so busy that I haven't been writing on anything except work. I wanted to share with you how I get to see so many shows.

If you drive anywhere around Vegas, you see the billboards for all the shows. You see them at the airport, in the airport, on the Strip, in the hotels, on TV, on the radio -- they're everywhere. It's really fantastic that we have every major entertainer at our fingertips. The hard part is affording the tickets to see all of them. So here's my little secret on how to see almost every show on the Strip, for FREE.

There's a service here, for locals, that offers free seats to shows for the same day. In other words, you'll get an email that says tickets are available, you log on to the website, choose how many tickets you want and go to the show. That's it.

Okay, I hear you saying, "Yeah, it's for junk nobody wants to pay for, I bet." Well, I'll let you judge for yourself. I joined the service in January (I paid a small fee for the year) and you can go to unlimited shows. Here's what we've seen in the last three months:

Blue Man Group, Bobby Slayton (comedian), Defending the Caveman, Larry G. Jones (the Man of 1002 Voices), 3 Redneck Tenors, Boz Scaggs, Sarah Silverman, Roseanne Barr (opening night), Las Vegas Tenors, Carrot Top, Barry Manilow and Ronn Lucas. The last 4 shows were all this week!

Because I wasn't near my computer at the time the email went out, I've missed tickets for Bette Midler, Zumanity and so much more. In these last three months, we have seen thousands of dollars of entertainment, in excellent seats. So what's the catch? There is none.

Before I tell you the name of the service, I have a favor to ask, because there's no reason you shouldn't join. When you sign up, they will ask who referred you. Please say MARK KARTEN. I get an extra month's subscription when you use my name, and once you're a member, you can do the same.

Alright, the service is www.HouseSeats.com and here's how it works. There are three membership levels. The first cost $39 and you get two tickets to all shows offered for 60 days (I don't suggest this level.) The second cost $89 and gets you two tickets to all shows for an entire year. This is unbelievable - because if you go to one show, you've already earned your entire membership fee (read the list above again to see what I've seen in the last three months). The last option is $169 and gets you 4 tickets to each show.

I've seen a dozen shows already, and could see a show every night. It's difficult, though, when you have to work in the morning. I can't say enough about the service, the seats and the choices. If you enjoy live entertainment and really want to appreciate Las Vegas for the entertainment town that it is, I guarantee you this is the best $89 you'll ever spend. Enjoy, and drop me a note if you've become a member!