2 nights in Vegas any tips please.

[Gaynor]

I know it's not strictly wdw planning but as part of out California/Disneyland etc trip I've booked 2 night in Vegas staying at The Mirage and I know a few of you on the boards have visited Vegas.

As We've only got 2 nights I was wondering what the 'must see' things are and some places to eat. Up to now all I've thought of is a visit to 'The Secret Garden' in the Mirage.

Any information would be great!

Thanks Gaynor

 

[Danauk]

Not knowing the sorts of things you like I will just list the things we have done on our various Vegas trips!

Must do's: Look in all the theamed hotels, they are amazing. Our favourites to look in are: Bellagio (you must see the dancing fountains both in the day and night time. I like to have a drink at the Fontana bar on an evening and watch them from there - see my tag and avitar pic!!), Venetian (gondola rides are nice), Palazo, Wynn (have a drink in the parasol down bar and see the night lake show), Paris (you can go up the Eiffel Tower, great view), MGM (the lions are cute!), Mandalay Bay (the shark reef is worth a visit), NYNY (great coaster if you like those things), Ceasars (amazing shopping and the fountains move and tell stories using fire and ice etc!)

Shows: Vegas has some great shows, we love Cirque shows and our favourite in Vegas is O. There are also some other great magic shows, commedians etc. The Sirens show outside TI on an evening is free to watch and a fun way to pass half an hour or so.

Food: Vegas is famous for buffets and they are great value. We like the Buffet at the Bellagio (last trip we stayed at the Bellagio and had breakfast at the buffet every day for free at it was always really good and the servers cleared away really quickly and filled your drinks quickly too), Luxor and Mirrage. Vegas also has many wonderful fine dining restaurants, I'm not sure what type of food you like but we have had a wonderful steak at the steakhouse at the Bellagio, but one of our favourite meals ever was at Nobhill at MGM, the somalier there was amazing and did great wine paring with our food.

Shopping: If you like to shop Ceasars and Planet Hollywood both have amazing malls. The Fashion show mall is great too, all these are on the strip. There are also outlet malls at each end of the strip but you need to take the trolly to get to these.

Old Vegas: If you want to see the Old Vegas then you need to go to Freemont Street. Here there are the old Vegas hotels and casinos. The 2 block area has been done up, it is under cover and there are no cars allowed down the street. At night the canopy is a giant TV screen that does verious light shows.

Things maybe to avoid: There are a few hotels on the strip that I would not go to again, Circus Circus IMHO is a dump, The Stratosphere, whilst it is good to go to the top to see the amazing view and to do the thrill rides (yes we did them!), the resort itself can be skipped. Hotels such as the Sahara, Ballys, Imperial Palace, Riviera, Monte Carlo although are OK, they are nothing special so can also be skipped if you are short of time.

If you only have 2 nights you might not have time to do this but it is worth a mention: Helicopter flight to the Grand Canyon. We have done this twice now on different packages. You fly over the Hoover dam, land in the Grand Canyon then fly back down the strip.

Thats all I can think about off the top of my head! I've been to Vegas a few times so if you want any help feel free to PM me.

Oh, just thought a thing I did last time. If you want a relatively cheap momento of your trip, collect a $1 chip from each casino you visit. I did this last time and colelcted a $1 chip from every casino on the strip, all 27 of them!

 

[Lizzybear]

I'm probably a bit useless at this as we weren't keen on Vegas and ended up going off-strip more than most people would BUT I do recommend the Planet Hollywood 'Spice Market' buffet, we preferred it to the Bellagio's (IMO overpriced with dirty tables everywhere) Also the Burger Bar at Mandalay Bay is great (it's in the mall there) We spent a fair bit of time just walking up and down the strip and visiting the casinos (which is free of course, the Bellagio's dancing fountains are a real highlight =) didn't do many of the strip attractions that you pay for, just the IMAX at the Luxor (total waste of money..!) I did consider the Secret Garden but thought it was a bit pricey for what you get. I realise i'm sounding like a total skinflint now I think after having pre-bought our tickets for most other stuff during our holiday it was a bit of a pain to do it on the day, though you can buy a Las Vegas Pass apparently that gets you into many of the attractions for a set price/number of days. One thing I wished we'd done is see the Grand Canyon, though I realise in 2 nights you may be a bit pressed for time as it's really something that takes up a full day. We'll definitely be doing this next time we visit the west coast We did visit Red Rock Canyon and the Hoover Dam which we loved but, again, for a 2 night stay they probably wouldn't be a priority.. The strip would be more than adequate. We didn't make it to the north end of the strip to visit Circus Circus and the Stratosphere but if we ever visited Vegas again we would, I think I was just in the wrong frame of mind to go on non-Disney theme park rides after reluctantly leaving Disneyland Ooh also, be sure to see a show of some description. We saw Penn and Teller and got tickets from goldstar.com (great seats and a fab show!) but there are places on the strip selling discounted tix for that day aswell

 

[fizz13]

I went to vegas when I was 18 so a little while ago now but the two things that stick out for me are going to the top of the Stratosphere Tower, the most incredible view down the strip, and if you are brave enough and love ultimate thrills then do the ride on top on the needle, i have never been so scared in my whole life, but totally amazing.
The other one is standing inside the Luxor and looking up, all sides slope in as its a pyramid and it will make you feel a bit dodgy possiblybut again nothing else quite like it.
of course i remember food and the buffets, dont think you have done Vegas unless you do a buffet
hope you have a wonderful trip x

 

[paulh]

going to the top of the Stratosphere Tower, the most incredible view down the strip, and if you are brave enough and love ultimate thrills then do the ride on top on the needle, i have never been so scared in my whole life, but totally amazing.

Agree completely i had to take my 10 year old on it as he wanted to go on it.me is s@@ my self
Again the water fountain at balegio we missed pirate show as they were doing a photo shoot.
Visit gerhdilies for a nice ice cream
if staying for longer the grand canyon or some and well worth the money
For 2 days just walk up and down the strip in the evening and soak it all in (colecting the calling cards on the way)
Paulh

 

[wayneg]

We went for 4 nights and wasn't long enough to do the basics.
Favourite thing we did was hire a 4x4 and drive to Grand Canyon, one of best days of my life. Easy drive past Hoover dam and then last few(22?) miles all unmade road, great experience. We considered helicopter but so glad we drove.
Fave place we ate was Bellagio, had Sunday Brunch buffet, if I remember rightly they have 77 chefs preparing the food. Best buffet I have ever seen.
MGM lunch buffet was also very good,
Look at what is on while you are there, we saw Mamma Mia stage show half price tix on Travelzoo, suberb show. Paid full price for 'O' cirque show, fell asleep for about 15 mins of it, Although technically amazing Cirque shows bore me silly, was same with one at DTD.
As said in 2 days just walking up and down the Strip looking at hotels and having a drink or 2 will fill your time.
We did everywhere from the Bellagio south and ran out of time, need to go back and do North sometime, never got to Freemont St experience which we wanted to do
Vegas is somewhere I never wanted to go as we don't gamble and only have the odd drink but it suprised me.

 

[Gingernut]

We love Vegas and can't wait to go back - when DS grows up a bit me thinks.

All of the hotels are worth seeing as they are all so different. Even if you just walk in around and out again. My faves are The Mirage and The Luxor. If you like animals I would give The Secret Garden in the mirage a look at for the lions and tigers -but may be too long to spend there in your two days.
I actually prefer the HOuse of Blues for food at the Mandalay Bay much better than in Florida. And Wolfgang Puck's in the MGM is a fave of mind, although there can be queues.
To be honest for 2 days I would say just see as much as you can and you'll enjoy what you see.
YOu have to play the slot machines - somewhere - and you don't need to spend too much if you do. And the people watching is worth gioing there for alone.
Enjoy

 

[Gaynor]

Thanks for all the replies

I think we'll be spending the time hotel hopping then, starting with the most popular ones you guys have mentioned Bellagio, Venetian (love the idea of a Gondola Ride Dana) Luxor, Paris etc and others that take our fancy on our tour of the strip.

Would love to do the Grand Canyon but will wait for a longer trip when me and DH will be holidaying alone.

Will try and fit in Freemont St and a show.

Don't think we'll be gambling we've got two daughters 17 and 12.

Thanks again I'll have to make some notes from this thread.

Roll on August

 

[Gingernut]

Just remembered as you walk to the MGM from Planet Hollywood, there was about 4 years ago anyway, a Sephora Shop (and one by Harrahs as well) and a Coca Cola Shop and an M & M Shop, might be of interest if you've got kids in tow. And out the back of the Flamingo is where they keep the Flamingo's and Penguins, also worth a look. There is also a place to eat on one side and the other side there are a few restaurants and a takeaway pizza. Worth a look and somewhere to go with kids. Take a look on their website.
Say hello to the fountains for me - i loved them

 

[Frances999]

Personally I'd avoid Fremont Street if you're just there for two nights. There's so much better stuff to see and do on the strip.

If you can only do one show I would 100% recommend Cirque Du Soleil's "O" at Bellagio. It's an absolute masterpiece. Wayne, how on earth did you fall asleep??!!

Your children might enjoy the Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay, it's a really good few hours. Mandalay Bay also has some excellent restaurants. The Secret Garden is okay, but it doesn't take long and, in my opinion, is very overpriced for what it is. Madame Tussauds is good, but I'd recommend getting there right when it opens so that it isn't too crowded.

Caesars Palace has excellent shopping at Forum Shops, and a GREAT free show that runs almost every hour. There's a really good Cheesecake Factory right where the show take place which makes for a great lunch or dinner.

Don't forget the dancing fountains at Bellagio or the Eiffel Tower at Paris. We usually hate buffet restaurants, but the buffet at Paris is truly exceptional - gorgeous fresh-prepared food and really nicely themed to a provincial French town with a beautiful blue "sky" and lot of little "houses". The service we've had there has always been top-notch, which is rare for Las Vegas buffets! Here's a couple of photographs I found online...

 

[wayneg]

If you can only do one show I would 100% recommend Cirque Du Soleil's "O" at Bellagio. It's an absolute masterpiece. Wayne, how on earth did you fall asleep??!!

I have no idea what people see in Cirque shows. I love theatre/musicals, seen scores of them Disney productions, Blood Brothers(my fave seen it 5 times) Whistle down the Wind, Dr Doolittle........ even local school productions I enjoy but Ballet, opera and Cirque just don't do it for me.
We can't all like everything. I agree 'O' is very cleverly done but 10 mins of it was enough for me, don't know how you can be entertained for 90 mins with it.

 

[Lizzybear]

I have no idea what people see in Cirque shows. I love theatre/musicals, seen scores of them Disney productions, Blood Brothers(my fave seen it 5 times) Whistle down the Wind, Dr Doolittle........ even local school productions I enjoy but Ballet, opera and Cirque just don't do it for me.
We can't all like everything. I agree 'O' is very cleverly done but 10 mins of it was enough for me, don't know how you can be entertained for 90 mins with it.

Sounds exactly like me... Love the theatre usually but Cirque did nothing for me I fell asleep during La Nouba so glad to hear i'm not the only one