What to do in Las Vegas

[KtIceRN]

DH and I are going to Vegas on the 9th of January. It''s kinda short notice and I don''t have too much time to plan... so I thought I would ask my fellow PSers what are the must do''s, the things to see and the good places to eat.

We are thinking about going to see a show as well....any suggestions??

Thanks, I look forward to hearing all of your suggestions.

 

[Sundial]

Don''t miss the Beatles LOVE Cirque du Soleil show at the Mirage if you can get tickets. It is fantastic! Have a fun trip.

 

[jcrow]

must see graff at wynne hotel. (https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/graff-eyecandy.36784/)
and ceaser shoppes good too.

 

[CrookedRock]

Ohh... I lived there last year, and I miss it terribly! I have a million suggestions... I am on my way out to my first day at a new job, so I will write more later... Tell me what you are into... Trendy, yummy, classy, fun?

 

[aljdewey]

Hey, KT......I''ve been a few times now and have a ton of suggestions. Will fill you in tomorrow at the GTG.

 

[Dee*Jay]

If you have time to fit in a little bling check out Fred Leighton in Bellagio. LOVE that place!!!

 

[Mara]

where will you guys be staying??

for food, must try some steak there, like at delmonicos or smith and wollensky. you can get ressies online at opentable.com typically. also we like olives at bellagio, and cirque at bellagio, along with aureole at mandalay bay for yummy food stuffs. most of the 5 star places in vegas are going to be quite good, just depends on what type of food you like. i am not a buffet fan so we never eat at those while out there, so no help there.

for shows, we LOVED seeing O...if you can get tickets. i''d try calling because even though they sell out a fair amount of time before, sometimes they release blocks of seats up to one or two weeks before the show. we got lucky by calling 2 weeks before and they just had opened a block of primo seats so we scored. also i wasn''t thinking i''d be a fan but we saw Blue Man Group last year there and it was great. i thought oh i dont'' really want to see this but i was so glad we went. also if mamma mia is still playing there, we saw it in SF and LOVED it. if you like Abba, def try to check this one out.

check out the venetian inside shopping mall, kind of fun, also fred leighton as someone else mentioned is a must see as well. shopping at caesars and bellagio should also be definitely checked out, even if you just window shop..!!

have fun...!! and drink lots of water, it''s so dry out there this time of year and it''s actually quite cold because it''s the desert, so if it''s windy, it feels even chillier than the temperature says. so bring layers!

 

[Haven]

Simon Kitchen and Bar is FABULOUS, it''s in the Hard Rock hotel. Mara recommended Olives, very delish.

Last time we were there we stayed at the MGM Signature hotel, which is connected to the MGM Grand but pretty far off, and non-gaming. It was wonderful, I highly recommend it.

I''m not much of a Vegas girl, myself, so I spend most of my time scoping out delicious restaurants and yummy jewelry!

 

[Gypsy]

Alex's restaurant at the Montecarlo hotel. Chef's tasting menu plus wine flight! Best night we had in Vegas. Request the venision on the tasting menu it was TDF!

We stayed that THE Hotel at Mandalay Bay and cannot recommend it enough. It's a little off strip but not at all inconvenient if you have a car. I loved our rooms, and the service was fantastic.

 

[EricaR]

I''m not a huge Cirque du Soleil fan, but I love Penn and Teller. If you have the right sense of humor and want a laugh they are fantastic.

 

[CrookedRock]

Ok... I''m back, although I see that you have not been... Where are ya? LOL
Anyway. I agree that Simon at the HardRock is a fabulous restaurant (I go to his one in Telluride too) I think Stack in the Mirage might be a little better, and it is on the strip. Fabulous apps and people watching are gret at the Nine in the Palms. If you are into comedy go to the Comedy Stop at the Trop. SO much fun and only $20 and it includes one drink! They do 2 seatings and the first is non smoking. I love that show bc it is 3 new people each week, it never got old! The Rio has an amazing Italian place that was stared down in Fort Lauderdale it''s called Cafe Martorano. The buffett at Planet Hollywood is amazing! The Martini''s at Red Square in Mandalay are to die for, and you can''t go wrong having a drink at The Foundation Room at the top Of Mandalay. It''s the best view of the strip in town! Have a great time out there, and if you have any questions I''ll check back!

Happy New Year!

 

[designchica]

I recommend seeing the Circque du Soleil show "O". I''ve seen a few others but that was my favorite. Try to get seats towards the back. I''ve sat in the last row and the front row and it was a better show further away (you can see more of what is going on rather than focus on a few details).

Shopping at Ceasar''s Forum is a must.

If you like this sort of thing, the Mandalay Bay has a coral reef with sharks and other things. You can even pet some stingray.

There is a fabulous restaurant in the downtown area off the Strip called Andre''s. They also have on the strip but the one off the strip is nicer. I highly recommend it!

 

[FrekeChild]

We just got back from our third trip out there, we were there from Dec 18-Dec 21. You didn't say how long you'd be there or what kind of budget you've got. My BF and I are students so we have to take on Vegas the cheap way. We've been to Vegas 3 times and I'll just list what we did each time-the best I can remember anyway...

First:
We stayed at some random hotel off the strip the first time, because all of the hotels were booked (Cinco de Mayo) and it was a last minute trip and we drove too (from NM). We saw TOOL at the Hard Rock Hotel and then drove to Circus Circus to meet his sister, explored that a bit. The next day we went to Mandalay Bay (I liked the aquarium a lot), checked out Excalibur, The Luxor, The Bellagio, MGM Grand-they've got several lions on display there which is pretty cool), New York, New York-where we ate at the ESPNZone (and where my BF told me I was perfect for him while we were watching sports and eating Buffalo wings). We then wandered around some more and ended up at the Venetian where we looked at the shops and then ate at Wolfgang Puck's Postrio, and THEN he surprised me with going to see Blue Man Group--which we loved. The second day we checked out the Paris and went on the Eiffel Tower Experience-which was amazing because we went just as the sun was setting, and as the Bellagio water show was going on.

Second: Stayed at The Orleans-which is way off the strip but it was nice because they had a free shuttle to and from the strip-and the rooms were pretty nice too. Then we went to go see TOOL again (can you tell the BF is a big fan??)The next day we went to The Mirage and checked out their mini zoo and dolphin exhibit, went into Harrahs, Bally's, Caesar's Palace and saw the Fall of Atlantis show in the Forum Shops (And looked at Tiffany's!) and saw the Tournament of Kings show-which has dinner included in the price-which was nice. Then we went to the Sahara, and then the Stratosphere and saw Bite (topless vampire ballerina chicks-his choice, not mine!). We also figured out how to utilize the Monorail-which made getting around the strip a lot easier and a lot cheaper (the day passes). We tried the buffet at the Orleans, but I don't really remember much about it except eating lots of shrimp cocktail.

The monorail runs behind the hotels on the eastern side with stops at MGM, Paris/Bally's, Flamingo/Caesar's Palace, Harrah's, LV Convention Center, and then at the Sahara. Don't get me wrong, there is still a lot of walking involved-but so much less than if you just walked the length of the Strip. And way cheaper than cabs.

Third:
We stayed at the Excalibur, which was...interesting. Nice and cheap, but our room was really dark and had a puzzling light fixture that didn't have a light switch. We wanted to hit all of the new/major hotels that we didn't get to the first two times, so the first day we walked to the Venetian (I spent way too much time in Sephora), the Bellagio, the Wynn, and to Treasure Island to see the Sirens of Treasure Island-but it was closed(I think it opens Jan 1st though)- so we had the buffet there instead. I actually really liked the buffet because it had sushi and creme brulee-two of my favorite foods that I never get to eat at the same meal. Then it was back to The Venetian to see Gordie Brown-he's an impressionist and his Michael Jackson impression is great!
The next day we went to Caesar's Palace (where I shopped at MAC and almost bought something at Tiffany's), and watched the Fall of Atlantis again because we walked up when it was starting. We ate lunch at Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill-awesome and not as expensive as I thought it would be. We saw the watershow again at Bellagio-which was great because a couple had just gotten married and was taking their wedding pictures outside with the show as a backdrop-and they had Christmas carols as the music. It was lovely. That night we decided that we wanted to see another show and caught Zumanity-which I would recommend to anyone but my parents because it was amazing, but rather racy. We both loved that, and even though we bought tickets for it only a few hours before, we were in the second row.
Next day we tried the Buffet at Excalibur for lunch, but it really kind of sucked. A lot. Then we wandered to the Fashion Show Mall where dear BF bought me some Steve Madden heels (gotta tell you-my shoe obsession is bigger than my bling obsession-which is good because they're cheaper

). We saw the Flamingo, and pretty much all of the major hotels that are on the strip. Later we went and saw Jubilee-which is pretty amazing because of all the rhinestones (blinding) but pretty dang overwhelming and a little...goofy. But it's classic Vegas showgirl stuff, so almost necessary to see at least once.
The next day we went to Planet Hollywood and walked around the Miracle Mile Mall, watched the rain "show" which was pretty lame. Then we went to Paris and found their little mall area which was nice and then down the street to the M&M store-which is 4 stories tall and a bit too many kids. Then we were tired and went and saw Sweeney Todd: Demon Barber of Fleet Street at the movie theater on the Strip before going back to Excalibur and getting our bags to go back to the airport where our flight was delayed until almost midnight.

I should put a disclaimer that my BF doesn't drink (heart issue-and he's on blood thinners-at age 25) so I don't drink(I had one), and neither of us gamble. So partying wasn't something that interested us. And neither was any gambling. From what I can tell though, the bars at Planet Hollywood, The Palms, and NYNY seem pretty hoppin'.

Things I wouldn't miss:
The Bellagio watershow (especially from the Eiffel Tower)
The Forum Shops at Caesar's Palace.
The Bellagio Gardens-and the chocolate fountain that's in one of the dessert shops.
A celebrity chef's restaurant.
Tiffany's-because they're almost everywhere.
The Venetian Canal Shoppes.
Sephora.
Blue Man Group or a Cirque Du Soleil show.

One thing I will say, it's colder than you'd think it would be this time of year. It was colder in NM when we left but Vegas is in the middle of nowhere-and there is NOTHING to block the wind. So when the wind is blowing it gets COLD. Most days I was walking around in a long sleeve t-shirt with a light jacket over it and a scarf-and I was ok, but walking around outside for a long time was still a bit iffy.

No matter what you do-have fun! It's Vegas!!And with all the jewelry stores around, you're bound to come back with bling!

ETA: I didn't mean to write that much...

 

[monarch64]

Great suggestions all around, just wanted to pop in and say have a wonderful time in Vegas, KtIceRN! I would suggest one of the chopper rides out to the Grand Canyon, but I don''t know if they even operate in the snowy season there. DH and I went with friends a couple years ago in Sept. and we had a blast doing the chopper tour of the GC, touch down champagne picnic and all and it was wonderful (even though I was freaking out because I hate flying, period)...we have the DVD of the whole thing and it still scares me just to watch it, lol! But a worthwhile experience if you''re able to do it. Have so much fun, enjoy!!!

 

[UCLABelle]

My favorite thing to do was the WWRY show at the Paris, but it isn''t there anymore....My favorite thing to do now would be shop, so I cannot be much help. But, Fred Leighton is there, and that just blew my breath away!

 

[EricaR]

For a really really yummy meal at a good price, check out Hugo''s Cellar downtown, I think in the 4 Queens. The buffet at the Mirage is my favorite as far as buffets go.

I have a lot of friends that live in Vegas and we go a lot - at least four or five times a year. If the shopping is really good where you are from then the malls are nice but not necessary. I live in Orange County California and am surrounded by huge malls and designer stores and there isn''t anything in Vegas that I couldn''t get ten minutes from home.

If you do gamble, try to pick one chain of casinos and stick with them - you might be able to earn enough points from their player''s club to get a free meal or two. I usually stick with Harrah''s, which owns Harrah''s (of course), Paris, Caeser''s Palace, Rio, Flamingo, Ballys, and Imperial Palace. I''ve stayed at just about all of the big hotels and my favorite rooms, by far, are at Caeser''s.

 

[mintve]

I used to live in Vegas and I worked at Caesars. I miss Vegas and I think you will love it! Its hard to go wrong as there is so much to see and do!

- try to see as many casinos as you can bear. its amazing what they are like on the inside! The strip is a lot longer and the casinos are much bigger than you would think, so take advantage of the shuttles btwn hotels. The canals in the venetian, the gardens in the bellagio, the tigers at the mirage, the Forum shops at caesars, the eiffel tower at Paris (for a cool photo op, go up to the pool level and get a really nice photo w/ the eiffel tower in the background). Everyone always love the look of the pyrmainds and inclinators (elevators on an angle) at the Luxor. SO many of the casinos have awesome pools and the wedding chapels are fun to see too! The list could go on...

- EAT!!!!!!!!!!!! The number of amazing restaurants on the strip are second to none. I am partial to all those at casears...Bobby Flay''s Mesa Grill, 808, is asian hawaiian fusion, Hyakumi for sushi. Brunch at Bellagio or for a dinner buffet, the one at the Paris is really yummy! Paris also has really good crepes and choloates for dessert. If you go to the Hard Rock, the Pink Taco is tasty!

to increase your chance to spot a celeb, go to the Palms or The Hard ROck, they are both off the strip, but The Palms is closer

if you want to get off the strip, you can drive the look at Red Rock, its gorgeous, or drive out to Lake Las Vegas.

For cheesy souveniers, you can go to the "world''s largest souvenier shop" at Las Vegas Blvd and Sahara

The shows!!!! WOW!! Elton''s Red Piano is AWESOME! if you are a fan and he is in town when you are there, GO! The traditional show girl shows at Bally''s and Tropicana are just specatualr. The costumes and hte glitz and glam and Very vegas! just be warned that most of the evening shows have a few topless showgirls...buts its all very tasteful. The Cirque shows are very good too! and if you want to laugh, the Second City improv at the Flamingo is a must. ANd for duelly piano bars that kick booty, go to Harrahs! its the best!

I could go on forever! Hope this helps!! HAVE FUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[mela lu]

OMG we just got back from (only) 2 days in Vegas and I agree with all the earlier posts -they''ve hit on the main attractions. It was my first time there, and DH and I split out time between a bit of gambling (roulette) we came out on top!! we saw cirque du soliel "Mystere" because O was totally sold out, and we did the MOST UNBELIEVEABLE helicopter ride into the Grand canyon!

It landed in the canyon, where you eat lunch and drink prosecco, and truly appreciate the scale of the canyon. WOW! I''m still in awe!

we walked thru Ceasars shops late-night (after they''d closed) and I think DH was secretly relieved, as he knew my intention was to ramble through Harry Winston''s, Leighton''s etc and drool over everything...haha. Next time!

Have SO MUCH FUN!!!!!!!

 

[scarleta]

You have plenty of suggestions already.I would only add one.When you get to Vegas look for Las Vegas Magazine " LVM" Its free and has tones of information in it.Its a small booklet with everything what''s going on bi-weekly.Have fun..

 

[tdiddy]

my DF and i love vegas and try to visit a few times a year.

a few other suugestions...

O is amazing, but if you can''t get tickets try Ka at the MGM. it''s cheaper and you can usually get tickets right before on a weekday night (we got tickets 10 minutes before the theater open and loved it)

red rock casino is a short 10 minute drive from the strip and has a fab spa and some good restaurants as well

a great breakfast "dive" on the north side of the strip is the Peppermill (across from circus circus). think hardees with neon lights! the decor is obnoxious but the breakfast food is TDF and pretty cheap. they have huge omelets and the fruit waffle is fab.

fix at bellagio is a fun restaurant to see and be seen at in the evening. the menu is fun, too. reservations are recommended.

i don''t love buffets but the red rock buffet was good and the mirage is the best on the strip.

great shopping at caesars and the fashion place mall down by the venetian/TI.

gelato at the venetian was my fav....i tried it at probably 10 places though (hehehe).

there are so many options there, we usually just wander up and down the strip and pick a place to eat at whereever we end up that night.

check out the new palazzo that just opened next to the venetian, i''m sure that''s a stunner.

 

[KtIceRN]

WOW!!!!!

Thanks for all the great advice everyone! Things have been crazy for me with the holidays and working 60hr weeks that I have not had much of a chance to check PS.

The plan as of right now is:
Fly in on 1/9/07 we are going to stay at the same hotel as our friends that night called Imperial Palace. I''m not thrilled about switching hotels but we are going to be staying at Treasure Island after that and for what ever reason to stay that one night in the suite we got would be almost $400 just for that one night! To me we will not spend enough time in the room that night to justify that cost..so the IP for the first night then off to TI for the other 4 nights. We plan to eat at the buffet at the Mirage that night and just play a few slots, keeping it low key as I will have worked 4 16hr days in a row (getting out of work at 8am plane leaves at 11am) So I am sure I will be tired.
1/10/07 and 1/11/07 we plan to spend just wandering the strip during the day. I would like to see all the bling stores in the Wynn, Bellagio and Caesars. DH is not as excited for this but he knows it is a must. I would like to see the Dolphin habitat Madame Tussauds and just explore each of the casinos. Not sure where we will eat each day but we are more buffet people so maybe the Bellagio and the Wynn those two days. DH can eat I tell you!!!! Thursday night I plan on seeing KA at MGM. I think we will get the almost least expensive seats (10 so not to break the bank. They have some in the center section of the upper balcony available. I have not bought these yet and may wait till we get there in hopes of getting better seats. On Friday we already have tickets to O!!! I am so excited for this one. Our seats are in the center of the balcony 4 rows back in the middle so those should be great!!
Saturday we plan to go to Red rock canyon and the Hoover Dam. We will probably eat at the Red Rock Hotel I think. We have to watch the NE Patriots football game at 6pm and DH is a big fan. I was thinking ESPN at the NYNY might be good for that. Then maybe that night since we would be there we could see Zumanity, although a comedy show is not out of the question either. That is still up in the air.
Sunday I guess more sight seeing on the strip. We have tickets to go see La Reve at the Wynn that night. We are about 6 rows from the stage so I think that should be good.
That''s all I have planned for now. I''ll write more later. We are renting a car for the whole time as there is free self parking alot of places and its only 90$ for the whole time we are there! That pretty cheap esp if we want to go to Fremont St and the Stratosphere which are farther away.

Please keep the suggestions coming. I plan on printing this thread to take with me for reference. Also any suggestions on good seating for the shows would be great! DH doesn''t want to spend a fortune on show tickets but I want to get the best bang for my buck!

 

[jcrow]

if you're doing buffets - the one at paris is a must.
they have a breakfast one that's sooo good! and i typically don't eat buffets.
there is also one at lunch time too. not sure about dinner. but i'm guessing there's one too. one day we timed it perfectly without knowing and got the breakfast price for the lunch buffet. when we paid and began eating it was breakfast but while there they started putting out the lunch food. hahaha.

 

[EricaR]

Skip the free parking and just valet. It is free at all of the big hotels and will save you tons of time.

 

[scarleta]

KticeRN: if you do everything on your long list you are very energetic.Your itinerary looks very impressive for Vegas. PLease come back and let us know.Have a nice trip..

 

[Shay37]

Kt, whatever you do, just have lots of fun and be safe. Take pics and share the details when you get back. If you get a chance, get a little something something for you while you''re there.

Just tell your DH that we here at PS think you must.

shay

 

[UCLABelle]

JCrow is right, breakfast at the Paris is a must...I can still taste it

 

[AmyBride]

If you haven''t been there before, I think it''s fun just to walk through the theme casinos, just to get the over-the-top atmosphere of the place. I haven''t been there recently, so I can''t really help with the shows.

 

[KtIceRN]

Thnaks everyone.
I got tickets to see Ka last night. I found a deal that they were selling the $165 tickets fro 1/2 price!! So for $164 we got two tickets 7 rows back from the stage in the lower right orch on the center isle!! Pretty good deal. I found it on Smartervegas.com.
I also changed the tickets to La Reve thanks to Aljdewey!! She sent me a link for 33% off so we paid $80 for each of the $119 tickets, 6 rows back from the stage. That deals was from travelzoo.com.
So now I just have to decide about getting Zumanity tickets if that is what we are going to do.
We will do the buffet at the paris for sure since you guys liked it so much.
Only 4 days to go...any other suggestions are more than welcome!!!!

 

[Mara]

KT you''ll have a blast!! Not sure what the weather is like right now but when I went in Jan some years back with Greg it was so freezing cold, it wasn''t that it was COLD out, but the wind whips and it makes you feel brittle and cold. So be sure to take scarves and the like if you will be outside. The desert is not a friendly place in the winter, and it''s DRY DRY DRY. So take lots of lotions and drink a ton of water.

I have heard that the Bellagio buffet is supposed to be fab too though we never tried it. Have fun lady!!!

 

[FrekeChild]

You''re going to have so much fun!!

With Zumanity tickets, we bought ours about two hours before, and then just wandered around NYNY and ate some Ben and Jerry''s while we were waiting. We got awesome seats, 2nd row, 4 in from the middle of the theater, and they were actually the 2nd cheapest seats around 100 each. The sofa seats are about 200 each-but you get to interact with the cast. There is a pre-show so make sure you get there at least 20 minutes early because it starts about 15 minutes before the show starts. We were at the 10pm show on a Wednesday night right before Christmas and I think thats why we got such great seats, although the theater was completely full at showtime.

I''m so jealous that you''re going to go see so many Cirque shows. Zumanity was my first one, and I''m sad that I wasn''t exposed to them earlier.

I hope Palazzo is open when you get there, it still looked like it had a ways to go when we were there, from what I understand it''s basically an extension of the Venetian, but I''m sure it''ll have it''s own thing going on.

As for bling, I didn''t tempt myself by going into the jewelry stores (except Tiffany) but I looked in all of the windows and they had tons and tons of fancy yellow diamond rings in all of them, and I thought that was weird. Gorgeous, but weird.

Don''t forget to take lots of pictures!!! Especially of bling!!