Las Vegas, Nevada Things to See and Do
Good Photo Opportunities: These can be found all over Vegas, but if you want the classic "Welcome to Las Vegas" sign in the background, you'll actually have to wait in line. Not that long though, and worth a stop. South Las Vegas Blvd just past Mandalay Bay. You can get a photo with Elvis here if you want to.
Las Vegas is beautiful at night. Some of the best views are to be seen from the top of the Stratosphere or Paris hotel. If You're in Vegas it is worth the short drive to see Hoover Dam. |
Las Vegas is around a 6 hour drive from Phoenix, not too bad, but it is a pretty boring drive overall. Airline tickets are fairly cheap between the two cities, so if you don't want to take the long drive you can fly there in no time. Nonetheless Las Vegas is a popular destination because of the close proximity. When you enter Nevada (from Arizona) you will drive through winding mountains, cross the impressive Hoover Dam and wind around some more mountain regions-everything is for the most part brown or earth toned with scraggly bushes and shrubs scattered about-far less cacti than on the Arizona side. When you come down that last big hill you can see the City of Las Vegas with the smog in the distance. The nice suburban houses are getting closer each passing year. Every hour 24 hours another two acres of Las Vegas land are developed for commercial or residential use. On average 50,000 people move to Vegas per year. You drive past these,down the freeway and then onto "the Strip". If you come during the day somehow this strip is not as impressive as you would have thought-lots of hotels as far as the eye can see,tons of people,cabs, and palm trees line the BLVD. If you come from the airport-that part of Vegas is even less impressive in my opinion. But wait! When night falls it is impressive-it is what they show on TV. I love Vegas because the city never sleeps. Each hotel has something interesting to see or do. I still have more places to explore and we've been here five times, so it is not possible to be bored while visiting. |
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Caesars Palace Hotel I love the architecture in Caesars Palace. Didn't really care for the Atlantis show, seems like it would be more appealing to kids. There is a large aquarium near the Atlantis show kids would probably enjoy as well. We loved walking around the hotel and they had some nice places to eat and shop. Overall it is a very nice hotel. Address: S. Las Vegas Blvd. |
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Bellagio Hotel My favorite hotel in Vegas. Bellagio is romantic and upscale. The pool area is gorgeous and the check in/check out process was the best I've ever experienced in Vegas. The Bellagio is hard to miss with the incredible water fountain display out front and impressive Chihuly light fixture in the lobby. Address: 3600 S. Las Vegas Blvd. |
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Stratosphere Hotel The Stratosphere is pretty far from the other hotels. They remodeled recently and is nice inside. The views from the top of the Stratosphere are quite impressive. If you stay at the hotel you can go to the top for free. Address: 2000 S. Las Vegas Blvd. |
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Venetian Hotel One of my favorite hotels. The Venetian is one of the more romantic hotels in Vegas (in my opinion) Walk along the cobblestone walkway to shop in The Grand Canal Stores. The ceiling gives the appearance that you are outside with beautiful blue skies and white clouds. If you are here take a relaxing ride in an authentic Italian gondola-this is the closets I will get to Italy, so I enjoyed it. The serenading gondoliers sing in Italian to you while you ride. Not only do you have to have a good voice to get this job-you have to be able to sing in multiple languages. Address: 3355 S. Las Vegas Blvd. |
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The Luxor The largest Pyramid in the US. The Luxor is a really cool looking hotel. The second largest in Vegas , I believe. A giant sphinx sits outside of it-Guarding. The inside is cool because of the pyramid design. Inclinators' (elevators) travel sideways at a 39-degree angle up 30 stories taking you to your hotel room. The outside wall in your room is slanted and has good views. Phone: (800) 288-1000 |
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Paris Hotel If you're in Vegas stop in to see the Paris Hotel. The inside is filled with replicated buildings. Rarely will I recommend places to eat, unless they were exceptionally good. La Creperie inside Paris hotel has really good crepes, the berry dessert crepe and the ham was very good too. I will go there everytime we visit Vegas. Go to the top of the Eiffel Tower, it is especially stunning at night. Phone: |
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The Mirage No trip to Vegas is complete without visiting The Mirage~ to see the volcanic eruption among other things. During the day you can view a serene waterfall-visit at night and Every thirty minutes from 7:00 p.m. to midnight, flames shoot into the night sky spewing smoke and fire 100 feet above the waters below, transforming a tranquil waterfall into spectacular streams of molten lava. Really a fun sight to see. One of my favorite features of the Mirage is the Rainforest inside the front entrance, a lush indoor rainforest housed under a 100-foot-high dome. Palm trees reach 60 feet above cascading waterfalls. There are Lagoons, as well as a forest of rich tropical plants. Great place for photos. Phone: (702) 791-7111 |
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Planet Hollywood Planet Hollywood is an interesting hotel. The only one I've seen with stripper poles in the middle of the casino areas. They also have some very cool light fixtures, so don't forget to look up. Phone: |
City Center Ice Sculptures
Water Vortex
back of the staircase at "Crystals" City Center |
City Center-Crystals City Center is fairly new and includes several hotels and a large shopping center called Crystals. Inside the shopping center there are tubes filled with water that create mini tornadoes inside and there are cool ice sculptures. After you walk down the stairs don't forget to look behind you to view the beautiful details in the staircase. Phone: |
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Excalibur-Tournament of the Kings Features jousting, invading armies, dragons, fire-wizards, and a banquet served in true medieval, pre-silverware fashion. An entertaining evening that transports you back in time. This is a fun activity if you're taking the kids to Vegas. Phone: (702) 597-7600 |
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New York, New York
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MGM Grand Easily found because of the giant carved Lion that impressively gaurds the hotel entrance. We went here to see the Lion habitat inside. The MGM Grand Lion Habitat features multilevel areas for the pride lions to play and interact with the public, which is less than 1 1/2 inches away. Open from 11:00am to 11:00pm daily. Admission is free. It is nothing fantastic or that impressive to see, but it is free and you can get your picture taken with the lions for a fee if you want and the kids like it. Phone: 702-891-1111 |
Mandalay Bay-Shark Reef One of my favorite spots is at the Shark Reef in Mandalay Bay. Everything in Vegas is overpriced and a tourist trap in my opinion, this one is no exception. But if you have an hour or so and enjoy an aquarium this is a fun place. Don't expect tons of sharks here because of the name shark reef. There are sharks, but there are also lots of tropical fish, sea turtles,jellyfish,crocodiles and stingrays. My favorite part is probably the "touch pool" where you can touch the stingrays,crabs, and small bamboo sharks. and the Jellyfish tanks are very cool with a black light they glow. Phone: (702) 632-7580 |
Getting around Vegas If visiting Vegas bring along some good walking shoes-if you are spending most of your time on the strip you will want to park your car in a central location and walk or get a cab to get around. Walking is cheaper and good exercise, so bring some good shoes. If you would rather not walk, there are just as many yellow cabs here as there are in New York. Favorite Thing: Do not pay for Alchoholic drinks on the strip. Gamble and they will bring the drinks to you for FREE! Our Vegas Favorites: Best Views: Top of the Stratosphere and top of Paris hotels. Both offer incredible views of the strip. Personally, I prefer the views from Paris hotel, but the Stratosphere offers views you cannot see from Paris. Both were worth seeing. Good Photo Opportunities: These can be found all over Vegas, but if you want the classic "Welcome to Las Vegas" sign in the background, you'll actually have to wait in line. Not that long though, and worth a stop. South Las Vegas Blvd just past Mandalay Bay. You can get a photo with Elvis here if you want to. Don't remember the name of the place, but you can buy drinks at a small stand just outside of Caesar's palace (no bar, but you can take your drink with you) they made good drinks (16oz) and were inexpensive compared to other places. Note: Lemonade and Dragonberry vodka is very good together.
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