Overall positive experience at Caesars Palace, but...

Overall positive experience at Caesars Palace, but a bumpy check-in process prevents me from awarding five stars (and the customer service rep (Ralph) we spoke to is who saved this review from three stars. Upon arrival we attempted to use the self check-in kiosk. Despite arriving after check-in time (4:00 PM), the kiosk told us our room was not yet ready and that it would e-mail us when it was. We were exhausted from a long drive up from San Diego, so we checked our luggage with the bell desk and went to find something to eat. Two hours elapsed and still no e-mail notifying us our room is ready; it's 6:30 PM at this point, and that's absolutely ridiculous. Moreover, it seems as though many, many other people were experiencing the same problem based on conversations we were overhearing, and a line had formed at the customer service desk in the check-in/registration area.

After waiting in line for another 20 minutes, we finally got to talk to a customer service rep, Ralph. Ralph was sympathetic, apologized for the inconvenience, and explained that the self check-in kiosk was inflexible and wouldn't just re-assign us to another room itself. Ralph got us a great room overlooking the Bellagio fountains that was in line with our original reservation (non-smoking king in the Augustus tower) but that he said was better than the room the kiosk had assigned (and that STILL wasn't ready).

I would recommend that if you attempt check-in via self-service kiosk and it tells you your room is not available yet, to proceed immediately to customer service and request a similar room. I would also suggest to Caesars Palace management that they need to revisit the self-service kiosk idea and have their vendors refine the kiosks' capabilities and, in particular, increase the kiosks' flexibility to re-assign rooms as well as increase transparency (such as providing an estimate as to when the room might be ready, and advising that if a room is needed sooner to visit the customer service desk).

Otherwise, the room itself was in great shape. The shower in our king bedroom in the Augustus Tower has a major design flaw in which water easily leaks despite the glass door being closed, soaking the floor and anything sitting on the floor (such as the clothes you just shed before getting into the shower). Each morning we had to use some of the spare towels to wipe up the water. It's a major slipping hazard that guests should be aware of!

I'm not a fan of the "touch anything and we'll charge you" minifridge that precludes personal use (unless you want to pay $75/day), but I know that's a problem at other hotels on the Strip as well (personally experienced that at the ARIA a few years ago). Not saying it's right or okay (I don't think it is, especially not for the prices you pay for on-Strip accommodation), but just the way it is and something to be aware of (don't expect to be chilling your own bottles of water).

Room service brought up an excellent chocolate torte that my wife and I split as dessert on our anniversary; just the right portion size for two people, and they managed to get it to us in half an hour in the early evening. Room service staff and everyone else we interacted with was universally friendly and helpful, which we appreciated greatly.

The Caesars Total Rewards card is not worth signing up for if you're just an occasional visitor to the Las Vegas Strip; I barely put a dent in the point requirement to edge up to the next tier during the course of a three-night stay, some gambling, and three meals in-house. Had a similar experience with MGM's card a few years back during our stay at the ARIA, so this is probably a universal phenomenon.