I'm planning a trip, have any of you been there? What do you recommend to see & do?
I want to see the Grand Canyon as well, maybe by helicopter?
What hotel is good?
let me know, K?

Anyone?

Stay on the Strip.  The Luxor is a good hotel.  If you are going with kids, though, Circus Circus is a good hotel as well.  It is cheaper than most and it is kid heaven.  No kids, I wouldn't recommend it.

As for stuff to do, there is plenty.  Mandalay Bay has an aquarium called the Shark Reef.  It is pretty cool.

It kind of depends on your budget, and what you're in the mood for.  There are tons of great shows to see, but the tickets can be a little pricey.  From what I understand, Cirque du Soleil is incredible, and Elton John plays at Cesars Palace if you can get tickets (and obviously if you're a fan!)  Of course, just walking along the strip can be entertainment in itself.  If you're into people watching, there is no better place on earth.  The casinos are all amazing, and you can just walk around inside each of them and be entertained all day long.  Every one of them has something different to see.  New York New York, the Luxor, and the Bellagio are probably my favorites. 

As for accomadations, if you're staying at one of the big name casinos, you really can't go wrong.  They are all really nice.  I have stayed at the Luxor, the Stratosphere and Treasure Island, and was thrilled with each of them.  Every casino has several resturants, and smaller shows that are usually free of charge inside the lounges.  And of course there's the gambling and shopping. 

There are also lots of rides - New York New York has a Roller Coaster, the Luxor has motion rides, there is a Roller Coaster at the Sahara, and the Stratosphere has a bunch of really scary rides on the top of it.  M and M world and Coca Cola World are also kind of fun to go through, and they are also located right on the strip.  The Mirage has a dolphin show that is really cool, and they have a zoo type attraction, though it's been a while since I was last there.  The Venitian has Gondola rides, and at the Paris you can go up to the top of the Eiffel Tower.  Like Dagwood said, the shark reef at Mandalay Bay is really cool.  And again, just walking through the casinos is amazing.  Each hotel also has a world class pool, and this is definitely the time of year to take a dip - especially in the Vegas heat.

Oh, and the Grand Canyon by hellicopter?  I've never done it, but it would be SO COOL.  There are also a ton of land tours available, and so you should definitely take advantage of them.  And if you have time, Hoover Dam is cool too.

Man, I want to go to Vegas now!  You'll have to tell us all about it when you get back!!

Also, if you plan on walking the length of the Strip, please be sure to have plenty of water with you, especially at this time of year.  ;)

Area 51 ?

I'm planning a trip, have any of you been there? What do you recommend to see & do?
I want to see the Grand Canyon as well, maybe by helicopter?
What hotel is good?
let me know, K?


So much to do, but I'd encourage you to check out the Fremont Street Experience, after dark. The fountains at the Bellagio are a must see as well.

As far as restaurants, check out the Peppermill on the strip, it's one of the best diners you'll ever go to and you'll definitely be full when you leave.


Also, if you plan on walking the length of the Strip, please be sure to have plenty of water with you, especially at this time of year.  ;)

That and make sure you wear some comfortable shoes, you'll be walking and walking and walking and walking and walking.  :o

So much to do, but I'd encourage you to check out the Fremont Street Experience, after dark. The fountains at the Bellagio are a must see as well.





How could I forget Fremont Street?  Yes, definitely go there - one of the funnest places I've ever been!  And the fountains are incredible.

Area 51 ?


Yeah, but it's too far away to walk or even take a cab.  Visiting the border is fun, but it's the kind of thing you do as a geeky pilgrimage - you spend a few hours of driving to get there, barely a few minutes taking your picture on a dirt road, and then you turn around and spend the rest of the day driving back to town.  Even including an hour or two at the Little Ale'Inn, you'll spend an entire day on the road, and only a short while actually doing stuff.

The best-kept secret for bang-for-the-buck geekery on the Strip is the Atomic Testing Museum.  It's barely a mile or two away from the Strip; a $10 cab ride or a half hour walk will get you there.  The museum's open to the public, and has enough to see that you can easily spend the entire day there.  It's a museum that's as appropriate for adults (especially physics and engineering geeks) as it is for children; nothing is dumbed down.  Look carefully at the crowd; you'll notice a lot of grey-haired (or bald) dudes who seem to know what they're talking about -- and whose tour group consists of either a grey-haired lady, or a couple of thirtysomething adults.  This is probably the only time some of the former engineers who worked at the Nevada Test Site have been able to explain to their families anything about what they had done for a living.  (Funniest overheard snippet of conversation:  "I know I told you I wasn't seeing another woman, and I know you believed me, but now I can also tell you I was working on that!")

But as much as I consider the Museum a must-see, I'd recommend saving it for a "serious" day.

Your first day or two in Vegas should be spent doing the normal touristy stuff - walk the Strip.  Duck into every casino, even if only for five or ten minutes to enjoy the differences in decor (and smirk at the similarities).  As a roller coaster, the NYNY roller coaster is overpriced.  As an experience, it's not to be missed.  You'll come off the thing realizing one of two things: (a) You just walked off the street and rode a roller coaster without having to visit an amusement park.  Or (b) the Vegas Strip is a colossal theme park; it's virtual reality in real life; it's Disneyland for adults.  So do the coaster, just to say you did.  There's an M&M Museum where you can buy bags full of any colors you want.  Enjoy the fountains at the Bellagio, but don't forget to go inside and visit the gardens.  For lunch, do something crazy like a $100 foie-gras-topped hamburger - much like the coaster, just to say you did.  For dinner, take in a hotel restaurant; many of these feature world-class food.  And barely a few feet away, the sidewalks are paved with the discarded advertisements for a million hookers.  You've just had kobe beef topped with foie gras, and the streets are paved with b00bies.  Round it out by taking a cab to Fremont Street, and take the grittier atmosphere casinos that were once Old Vegas.  The casinos of Fremont Street were about gambling, not tourism, but you can see the genesis of the tourism by visiting the world's largest gold nugget at the Nugget casino.  Then walk outside as the lights dim, and take in the Fremont Street Experience.  A two-block-long video wall and surround-sound system is the most awesomely surrealistic way to close out your first day in Vegas.  Hunter S. Thompson would be proud.

Let "just to say you did" be your byword, and you'll grok Vegas in its fullness.