Flying to Las Vegas isnt the same as flying to any ordinary place. The passengers are more boisterous, laugh louder and are in better spirits than you would find on any other plane irrespective of the time. There’s just something about the ultimate destination which tantalises with the promise of letting your hair down, having fun and letting go. Either that, or the aggressive tourism policy of the government with the memorable tagline’What happens in Vegas . stays in Vegas’, builds on the city’s reputation as the ultimate party town. Probably the only people not sharing in the resulting festive atmosphere are the amused-then-harassed stewardesses who have to deal with incessant, unceasing demands for the little bottles of airplane liquor.
A first visit to LV can be mind-boggling when confronted by the gigantic casinos. Sometimes occupying two city blocks by themselves, a drive down Las Vegas Boulevard is a must if only to see the grandioseness and opulence that man and money can create. From the golden glamour of Mandalay Bay, the pyramids at the Luxor, the Lion outside the MGM Grand, the Eiffel Tower at the Paris, the cool elegance of the Wynn to finally, the towering Stratosphere, the casino facades are all worth a dekko. LV is actually a large city, but the heart and tourism centers around LV Boulevard popularly known as the Strip. Straddled by the McCarran International airport at one end to the Stratosphere on the other, this is the place where everything happens in Vegas. A popular touristy thing to do, is walk one end of the strip to another. This is easier said than done, though! And if you are wearing those sexy little strappy stilletoes this could quickly become the most hideous decision of your life. Gettting around in a car is fine, all the hotels have free parking, but towards nightfall be prepared for interminable traffic jams and the rudeness of the LV taxi drivers. A better alternative is to walk to the closer casinos and use the tram which can get you between various casinos for a fee.
Good times to book rooms are off-season or during the heat of summer where you can get lucky with even the 3+ star hotels for as low as$50 a night on Hotwire/Priceline etc. The repeat visitor quickly realises there’s a few times never to try for last minure bookings - 4th of July, New Year’s Day for instance. NY sees Vegas as one of the most popular spots to celebrate in and even the off-strip hotels quickly start increasing their prices as the year trickles to a close. For someone who has been there on that memorable day, it’s easy to see why. The carnival atmosphere never really lets up here, but this is magnified on NY with people partying on the streets till daybreak. And, the fireworks show is not to be missed! But, getting there on other days of the year doesnt mean that there’s no fun to be had. My young visitor earlier this year was a bit surprised to see alcohol make its appearance on the roads in the morning’But, dont the cops stop them’? Replying in the negative, I had to quickly follow it up with’Possibly in other cities you couldnt.’ so as to temper the first impression of America being the Land of Plenty - booze & partying, that is. I wasnt surprised then to see the look of steely determination on his face, to ensure that before his visit was over he would do as the Vegans did. I sighed, but forbore to protest.
The hotels on the Strip offer designer nirvana to someone so disposed. My favorite window-shopping/people-watching areas are the mile-long shops at the Planet Hollywood, the shops around the canals of the Venetian(you can take a break & watch the gondoliers singing lustily in Italian) or the Forum shops at the Caesar’s Palace. My favorite indulgences - perfumes or sunglasses usually get bought on my trips here, but that’s because I dont want to be left out of the fun. For the bargain hunters, there is an outlet mall with designer stores about a 45 min drive from Vegas and with shuttles to/from the hotels & casinos.
What would Vegas be without the food?! We love the Spice Market buffet at the Planet Hollywood, it offers stations of different cuisines for under$20. I did hear that the buffet at the Wynn had better choices for around$28. Recently, we ate at a Burger Bar between Mandalay Bay and the Luxor where they offered American Kobe Beef at$16. We generally dont eat meat medium-rare, so the Kobe-ness of the beef was lost on us but we did have some decent gourmet burgers there. However, I thought and BH agreed that the burgers were far, far tastier when we did our Vegas pilgrimage to the In-N-Out Burger(a fast food chain known for fresh ingredients, found just off the strip), cause the setting was less pretentious, the meat cooked as we liked it and the fast-food cooks(not chefs) had learned the important art of being able to salt the burgers just right. There’s really cheap food to be had here, a good thing to do is check online for coupons or restaurant listings with deals before arriving.
Vegas is known for it’s extravagant shows - Cirque du Soleil, the Blue Man Group, the Celine Dion nightmare and so on . tickets can be$60+ for the cheaper one but you can get same-night tickets for half price at a booth at the Showcase Mall(opposite New York). Theres’s museums galore - the Bodyworks show, Mme Tussauds, the Dolphin exhibit at the Mirage, an exhibition of vintage cars at the Imperial Palace, art museums, endless Elvis museums, and a shark exhibit at the Mandalay Bay. Having been dragged to every aquarium in every city I have ever stepped foot in, I didnt find the last exhibit very impressive - the corals are fake and the sharks are few. Kids do derive a lot of fun from watching the sharks though!
Night life there is also plenty with lounges and clubs opening from 9:00 pm onwards. When you are inside the casinos it’s almost impossible to find out if it’s day or night . but a good indicator will be if you look at what the ladies are wearing. After 5pm and you will find all the slinky, shiny outfits come out to play, even if it’s only to the slot machines. And how can I leave out the gambling itself. If you are like me, scandalised by how quickly you can lose$1 at a slot machine(a nanosecond, if anyone is really interested), look around for the cheaper tables. On the Strip the Imperial Palace and Casino Royale(a casino with no hotel) offer cheaper tables, while off-strip you will be able to find plenty of such casinos.
Over the years I have grown quite fond Vegas. For the record, I dont gamble, dont drink(much) or party the night away. But, how can I be judgemental of a city that is so accepting of all it’s visitors and where I’ve never been bored. Visit the Sin City and indulge in your favorite vice - be it greed, gluttony, lust, sloth, extravagance, whatever your itch, you will find a way to scratch it. If you are planning a visit, here’s the advice I invariably give everyone - be responsible, find what you are going to enjoy, carry enough pairs of shoes(this is for the women:) and have a great time . the plane ride home’s going to be enough of a downer anyway!