Yes, we went there! We took our son to celebrate his 21st birthday in Vegas. All the glitz, all the ‘glamour’, all the hustle and bustle and his response to it all was: ‘eh, not my scene’. Whatever that might mean. Then again, the boy was not exactly impressed with New York either.
There was so much to see and so little time. We stayed four days three nights, but it felt like we were there for eight days. Most everything on the strip was only in a short or long walking distance (if not, there was Uber or Lyft). Even though it was a hustling and bustling area, the pace was a little slower, basically, moving with the crowd, especially at night, when it was packed on narrow the sidewalks and overpasses.
We stayed at the Linq Hotel, which is kind of on the strip. One of its entrances lead to the Promenade, which in turn lead to the strip or to the High Roller. There is also a combined access of the Linq and Harrah’s that took you to the Monorail, barely a 5 min walk on a very slow pace. The rooms were nicely redesigned and refurbished, with one little flaw: the double rooms do not have queen size beds; they are double and unfortunately, on the small side of being a double.
Besides walking through the hotels admiring their architecture and their amenities, we have managed to make a dent in the list of things we wanted to accomplish.
My favorite three things in Las Vegas: The Monorail, the High Roller and Hot’N’Juicy Crawfish.
The Monorail takes you from one side of the strip to the other. Meaning less walking for this lady. The Linq was located in the middle of the strip, which made it even easier. You could buy a day pass ($13 for24 hrs.) and go up and down till your heart is content. My husband and I used it in the morning when it was quiet, to just take in the view, to get oriented and enjoy the coolness in the cabin. When the rest of the family joined us we took the Monorail to MGM and walked to Excalibur to take the tram to Mandalay Bay. It seems to be that there are tram connections between other groups of hotels as well at no charge. Drinks at the Monorail stations were around $2.00 per bottle for water, which was very reasonable in comparison to some other places.
The High Roller (an enclosed Ferris wheel) gives you a bird’s eye view of the city and surrounding areas. It was a little expensive for a family of four, but we got a discount code in the Linq’s welcome magazine, which you should use online to buy the tickets, but since the website was not working properly, they honored it at the High Roller counter. Instead of $39 we paid $25 per person for a night time ride. Getting in was a little scary for me, because I am afraid of heights, but once the cabin closes, you felt secure surrounded by all the glass. To be honest, I believe it was worth every penny. We went after 11:00pm and had a pod all to ourselves. The views were breath taking, the ride was very smooth and I was able walk freely in the pod fear of heights notwithstanding.
Hot’N’Juicy Crawfish was in an unassuming strip mall in the Las Vegas Chinatown, and was probably the best seafood I have had in a very long time. The table gets covered with plastic table cloth and we got a bib and cafeteria gloves to eat our food (you need the gloves especially if you order the spicy sauce). They brought our food in a bag. Yes in a bag. Our crawfish, shrimp, clams, potatoes, corn…all in a bag, piping hot. The seafood is fresh and the sauces are delicious. There are no plates and we ripped our own paper towel, no dainty napkins. They would not have worked. It was by far the best meal we had while in Vegas.
We took a Lyft to check what the Fremont Experience was. It was beautiful, interesting, colorful, loud and lewd, all at the same time. The Canopy presentation was beautiful. The play of lights and the Heart “concert” was stunning with all the visuals and illuminations. The colors were vibrant. It was a very unique experience and the amount of people walking around in such a confined space. People from all walks of life. Some enjoying themselves and in awe, some zip lining, and others where panhandling. The music was loud you couldn’t hear yourself think. It wasn’t as bad at the exits of the canopy as it was in the center, where it was also warm. Personally, not my favorite combination. With all these captivating activities going on, there was bound to find somethings you rather not witness. Things that parents feel the necessity to cover their impressionable young children’s eyes, or worse, things the children themselves feel the need to cover their own eyes! But then again, you’re in Vegas.
The Wild Life Habitat at the Flamingo Hotel was beautifully done, (they had flamingoes, fishes and other birds in the habitat) especially if you consider that there are no fees involved. Then again, we bought a 16 oz. water and a 16 oz. ginger ale and ended up paying $8.50 for the 2 drinks. That was quite shocking. Not as shocking as a $6.00 water bottle at the hotel bar or a $6.25 water bottle at Starbucks. That is just plain highway robbery. You can get a six pack of water for $6.00 at Walgreens or at CVS on the same strip.
Mystère, what can I say… It’s Cirque du Soleil. It was delightful. We bought the less expensive seats on a Monday night, and I guess because they didn’t sell the seats below, they moved a lot of the patrons to the main flight of seats. It certainly was worth the money. The show kept me at the edge of my seat and as many Cirque shows do, they move quickly. We took Uber from the Linq to Treasure Island and back that day, it was more a time constrain situation.
My ‘babies’ (21 and 24) went to the Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay. It was beautiful, they said, but were not really impressed by it.
Going to Las Vegas and not see the Fountains of Bellagio is like eating a PB&J without the jelly. During the day it is not as spectacular as at night. When there, make sure to be somewhere where the music can be heard. They have enclosed the overpasses with plastic-glass and all the other noises of people talking overpowered the accompaniment.
The Bellagio Conservatory was pretty and decorated with a sea-creatures theme when we went. The arrangements were beautiful, and never the same as the seasons change. Maybe because it was Bellagio I was expecting it to be a bigger display.
A must see was the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area. It was about half an hour drive from the hotel. The view was absolutely breathtaking. The variation of colors in the rocks and the vast openness of the land make you want to stay and camp there, and I don’t do camping. There was a thirteen-mile (one way) road that takes the visitor through this magnificent area. There were some hiking trails, perfect for the outdoor fanatic. It could easily be a whole day’s affair. Remember to stock up on water, food and sunscreen!
We went to Las Vegas to celebrate my son’s 21st birthday. So we celebrated that at the Minus 5 in Monte Carlo Hotel. It was a fascinating cold experience, and even though we initially were the only ones in the place, it attracted some more customers. It was a different vibe of what there was in the casinos. Drinks were reasonably priced; you drink out of an ice glass. I smoothed mine with my mittens till it was shining. They have different packages which included cover charge, pictures, the rental of regular coats and mittens or upgrade to the fancy coats.
Guy Fieri’s Kitchen and Bar at the Linq had a mixed review in my family. My husband had the pulled pork and wasn’t too happy with it, because besides of it being a lukewarm sandwich, he got quite a bit of the tough, burnt parts of pulled pork that were uneatable. My son had a burger which he liked, but it was lukewarm as well, but it had taste. My daughter and I ordered the Greek salad. The taste was excellent; it was just a little difficult to eat, as it was a deconstructed salad and everything was in large whole pieces. The presentation was gorgeous, unfortunately I felt like I was chopping my own romaine lettuce.
Burger Bar in Mandalay Bay was another establishment we sampled. The burgers were tasty and priced like the other burger joints in Las Vegas on the strip. We ordered their signature Hangover Burger, since I ate it, I have to say it the sauce/dressing was delicious. It melts in your mouth and was seasoned nicely. The Burger Slider, which is a buffalo, an Angus and a Wagyu was looking marvelous, as well as the Baguette Burger. The fries were hand cut and freshly made dressed with truffle aioli. All in all it was a good meal.
For dinner we went to Makino All You Can Eat Japanese Buffet. The sushi was, naturally, freshly made, but also made with only a moderate amount of rice; meaning that some buffets use rice as fillers for the sushi so they don’t have to use a big amount of the expensive ingredients and also fill the customers up faster. Here, the layer of rice was thin and not packed. They had all sorts of specialty sushi and a seafood bar that is constantly refreshed. They had stir-fries, and an array of different Japanese dishes. The food quality and taste was good and not too greasy like other buffets.
Paradise Buffet at the Fremont Experience… My recommendation is to go there during their Prime Rib Special. It was $15.99 not including drinks. The food overall was unexceptional and unmemorable at best, but their prime rib was awesome. The only other dish I thought was passable there was their crawfish salad. The gravy was too salty and the mashed potato was proudly made from a cardboard box as was most of the other dishes on the buffet.
Cafè Belle Madeleine in Paris… The ambiance in the hotel was quite Parisian and the café brought that ambiance home. The aromas in there were as if you were walking in the streets of Paris, early in the morning when all the bakers were baking their breads and goods. The presentation was exceptional, unfortunately, the taste of the chocolate mouse and the crème brûlée was more like a pot de crème and the caramelized sugar glaze was not there.
Bellagio’s The Buffet for all intend and purpose became the demise of my dreams. When we were there about 13 years ago, The Buffet had an amazing assortment of food; so much so, that there was no way anyone could ever taste all off it even in multiple visits. It was the standard I would, for years, compare other establishments with. And The Buffet fell short. It was expensive, quite expensive (around $40 week day), for the condensed selection of food that was served. Unfortunately, some were not worth their caloric value. You are basically paying for the name of “Bellagio”. I am sure that if you paid the $55/$60 for the weekend and (more for) the ‘Chef’s Table’ the selection would have been a better quality?
Last but not least…it seems that you can’t go to Las Vegas and pass on In-N-Out Burger. It is a staple and rightly so. The burgers were under $5 as were their fries and milkshakes. The taste is good; the burgers are fresh and filling and well done for a fast food joint.
All in all, Las Vegas was an interesting city to visit, with a variety of things to do for all ages. There were shows that I would have loved to see, but not enough time. Be prepared that it wouldn’t be an inexpensive quick trip. Food and drinks were expensive, especially on the strip. Even the stay, which used to be affordable, is not so much anymore. It was a nice getaway, but not something I would say that was a must to go again in the next couple of years for us.
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