Vegas, Baby, Vegas!
[ 28 June 2007 ]
“Hi Gala,
Ever been to Las Vegas? I have just been told by my work that they’re going to be sending me there for a conference in September (lucky me!). I figure I’ll take a couple of days of annual leave to take a look around and shop (as I’d have to pay for my own accommodation/food for those couple of days and the short notice doesn’t leave much saving time, I won’t be able to make it longer). Any tips on must-dos, best places to shop (particularly those with most bang for your buck) and on good, relatively cheap, places to stay?”
Unfortunately, I have not been to Vegas. However, I am sure that some of the resident iCiNG geniuses have! Does anyone have any advice?
Super-love & cupcakes,
Gala 
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Go on the roller coaster at New York New York and scream your head off.
Play penny slot machines and drink your face off.
Go to a burlesque show.
Walk around old Vegas at night.
As for accomidation, I have no idea what’s cheap – I went there for a wedding and my room was paid for, I stayed at the Golden Nugget. Shopping I also unfortunately don’t know. But go on that roller coaster!
yes the new york new york rollercoaster is a must.
we stayed in the motel 6 there.
the most fun we did was wander the strip at night with all the lights and people, and just go in and out of everywhere.
but i’d recommend hunting around online for things you really want to see because there is sooo much.
Yay – lucky you and me! My husband’s lovely LOVELY mum has just told us she is going to take us to Vegas in October. I’m soooo excited – just like you!
I was thinking of a Burlesque show – Dita if she is there.
We’re staying at the Mandalay Bay – but that’s only because it’s Mother-in-Law’s treat – if it wasn’t we wouldn’t be going at all.
As you are going before me please post something when you get back about all the fun things you found.
I really hope you have a FAB FAB time.
Sarah x
I actually used to live there – its such a different experience than visiting!
I’d suggest wandering the Strip, but if you venture a couple of miles in either direction, you get into the shops the normal people go to, if you are interested in that, too. =]
An old acquaintance used to go to vegas with her husband. While he gambled, she’d go to the pawnshops and buy other people’s desperation diamonds. Personally I find it double-karmic-hideousness, but it’s the only vegas shopping tip I have! Hope you have a fantastic time, you lucky thing.
weee i live in Vegas!
for shopping, Caesar’s Palace has the Forum Shops and then there’s the Fashion Show Mall next door to the T.I. (Treasure Island). also, the ex-Aladdin/Planet Hollywood has a really cool mall (with a Sephora!!) UNFORTUNATELY a lot of these places have a LOT of high priced stores but if you go around Labor Day (the first Monday of September) you can make all the Labor Day sales which are ALWAYS nice :) IF NOT, that’s fine because there is an outlet mall on both opposite ends of the Strip.
PS: be safe and dress lightly. it’s still pretty warm at the end of September.
Go see Siegfried & Roy’s white tigers at the mirage, they’re gorg.
Also, go see Bonnie & Clyde’s get-away car, the one that was shot like 4234344 times. I didn’t get to see it last time I was there because it was at some carnival somewhere, so if it’s there when you go..go see it!
I tried to visit all the places hunter s. thompson went in Fear and Loathing, it was pretty sweet
I went about a year and a half ago for MAGIC (the trade show, not an actual magic show, heh). Vegas is a big smelly dirty ugly city… but it’s a lot of fun if you go knowing what to expect. Penny slots are fun, the New York New York rollercoast is SO much fun; we went and saw The Thunder from Down Under (Australian male “dancers” SO funny). Go check out the restaurants and malls, get a drink to-go, and wander the strip.
Definitely, definitely, definitely go see Zumanity! It is a Cirque Du Soleil show…but with a burlesque, cabaret twist! It is the most incredible, sexy, wonderful, tantilizing, and amazing shows you could see. It’s also the least expensive of all the Cirque shows in Vegas :)
Have a great time, and be safe!
xo
Eveleena
I just got back from there 4 days ago. The buffets are excellent there as I’m sure you’ve heard. My favorite so far has been Le Village Buffet in the Paris hotel but the Village Seafood Buffet at the Rio is also really good. It’s nice to just walk around the hotels because there are the nice shops and sometimes free entertainment. Of course there’s also gambling if that floats your boat but I’m not old enough. It’s beautiful at night and cooler so I find that I have the best experience taking pictures of the Strip then. I love the Venetian hotel the best because it’s gorgeous inside and out and the free Bellagio water show outside (every 15 minutes after dark) is fun to watch too. If you want to watch a show be prepared to spend some money but I recommend Cirque Du Soleil. They have their LOVE Beatles show right now at The Mirage.
Hope this helped!
Here in NZ, Cirque du Soleil comes to town once per year for about a 6-week run. The thought of knowing that there will be a show on, no matter when you’re in the city, simply boggles the mind
I went in May this year. It was awesome. Bring plenty of moisturiser and don’t forget your face and hands.
New York New York is a pretty good cheap hotel (3 stars price for a 3.5 star hotel) to book due to it’s locality. It’s next to MGM Grand and has a stop near the door for the strip trolley. You will have to walk from the Monte Carlo (which is barely two mins walk) to catch the Deuce bus which is great when you get a day pass (it goes up and down the strip). It also has a tram system that takes you through/past Excalibur/Luxor/Mandalay Bay.
Zumanity is at NYNY as well. Go to the Half Price ticket booth just outside the Coke bottle for cheap tickets at about 10:30am. But if you desperately want to go to something, book 1 month to 2 weeks ahead. The earlier the better. They can sell out very early. We went to La Reve at the Wynn (which is totally gorgeous and super classy). It was really good (a much cosier version of Cirque’s O).
The best buffet (out of 3) we went to was the MGM Grand Buffet – don’t forget to leave room for dessert…it’s absolutely divine (the Mandalay Bay buffet had really good seafood – read crab legs).
For free shows: go to the Treasure Island show (it only runs every 1.5 hours in the evenings – and you should get there 20 mins early), the Mirage Volcano (every hour) and the Bellagio Fountains (every 15 mins till midnight).
If you can make it – the Fremont St Experience is pretty cool from what I’ve heard. You’ll need to take 2-3 buses to get there though.
I love the decadence of Las Vegas – where else is a whole city dedicated to such neon lights? I saw Siegfried & Roy when I was little with my folks & it left such an impression me. There’s a lot of outlet malls if you have access to a car & don’t normally have the chance to go outlet shopping, you might find some good deals.
Oops, also! Wikitravel = your friend :] http://wikitravel.org/en/Las_vegas
I love Las Vegas!
But beware…it’s very hot and dry. You will get shocked when you touch doors and stuff. XD.
I stayed for three days a few years ago. I love going into the random hotels on the strip. The buffets are the cheapest places to eat (I liked Circus circus’s. I hated Bally’s). My favorite place to shop was at the Aladdin. It’s really strange though…at night, the insides are very bright (like it would be at daytime) and dark during the day. Ahhh! Have fun!
I too will be going to North America in November, and I’m planning a side trip to Vegas.
Is it still pretty hot in November?
Also, could anyone tell me approximately what date the Lake Tahoe ski season opens? I was thinking of dropping by for a day or two, if it’s open when I’m there, but I spent about an hour and a half searching for the opening dates to no avail. :(
i was thinking about this last night and i agree the circus circus buffet stood out as a good memory!
Isn’t the zappos outlet there? That is where I would go.
Be prepared to sleep all day and walk around all night.
Don’t gamble. There are so many other things to do in the casinos and they are all pretty cheap because they’re only there to attract people in so that they’ll end up spending money gambling and earning the casinos lots of money. So beat them, go to their shows and admire their fancy fake landmarks and scenery, but don’t gamble.
When I went it was with my parents and we stayed in the Holiday Inn Boardwalk which knowing my parents was probably very cheap. It also had Vegas’ only 24-hour buffet…great for breakfast and dinner and cheap with no queue to get seated. I think it might have closed down though…
They have an aquarium in Mandalay Bay.
JELLYFISHES!
A couple of people have mentioned safety. Any dos and do-nots?
safety wise i would get a bag that zips closed so no unwanted fingers can get in there. a small bag that fits snuggly under your arm is good. carry only what you really need. and if you think something dogdy is going on, get inside as most places have video cameras.
because i was 15 when i went there this is probably excusable but i got a really tiny purse with a long strap that i could wear across my body, and just chucked the money i needed in it. i wore a singlet then my purse then my top. i happily wandered around by myself without any trouble. noone could grab my purse, but i could easily access it.
I was there in October, I think, and it was still dang hot out. Always cool inside though.
And Ritalin – the Tahoe ski season completely depends on the show pack. Prime skiing seems to be more like January-February. But this year we got crap snow so there wasn’t much going on in November that I recall. Tahoe is gorgeous so I would say plan on going even if you can’t ski just yet, there is other stuff to do and you might get lucky and get some snow anyways. But there will probably never be a posted opening date for ski season until it starts snowing.