Las Vegas Las Vegas Tips

[DisneyGal08]

I just got back from a week in Las Vegas. It was a good trip, with some personal bumps in it. But some tips for your next trip to Las Vegas, or your first.
First...external battery for your phone/electronic devices is must. I am so glad I brought mine because it saved me a lot of time. I charged it over night and used it when needed, which was handy. If you don't have a external battery you are left with having to plug into a wall and wait... which isn't fun. I got mine at a five below and it came with a built in flash light.

you don't have to walk everywhere.
there are a total of 4 monorails...or trams. 1 major monorail is $$ while the 3 others are FREE. One is located at Excalibur and takes you to The Luxor, and Mandalay Bay.
The second FREE monorail is from Park MGM that takes you to the Bellagio (or the Bellagio to Park MGM). and the 3rd monorail aka tram is at The Mirage and takes you to Treasure Island.
FREE Parking is still available on the strip... the best FREE parking is at Planet Hollywood/Miracle Mile Shops (closest to the everything) and across from the Bellagio. The other FREE parking is Treasure Island (which is far from the main hotels). It's cool at the Miracle Mile Shops they have Robot Bartenders.
EARN MONEY... don't lose money. Located at MGM Grand is Television City. They will ask you about your television show preferences and ask you to watch a 45 minute clip or episode of a upcoming or show already that is aired. you will get $20.00...or if you are extremely lucky $100.00. You will also get a coupon booklet. But again this takes at least 45 minutes to complete.
Souvenirs
If you are looking for souvenirs to bring home to family/friends, head Downtown Las Vegas near The Plaza. They have great deals on t-shirts/post cards/keychains etc. There is also a $10 shop at Treasure Island. You can get to Downtown Las Vegas by Bus if you don't have a car. And riding a double decker bus is pretty cool.
Restaurants
Fast food restaurants on the Las Vegas Strip are more $$ then off the strip. I highly suggest staying away from the McDonalds located by Harrahs. The service isn't that good. The McDonald's at The Plaza is good if you like McDonalds. They do have Wendys and other restaurants near M&M World...next to MGM Grand. If you are looking for a great sit down burger joint I suggest Wahlburgers at Balley's Hotel. (and no I don't work for them or am associated with them in any way). They also have the best Margarita's...at least in my opinion. Another great sit down restaurant is Mon Ami Gabi at Paris Hotel (located next to Planet Hollywood and their free parking). Great breakfast. Many hotels have Starbucks.
Hotel Suggestions
I highly suggest staying on the strip. It's not that expensive. I've stayed at Excalibur, Balley's, Treasure Island and Park MGM. (thanks to myVegas slots facebook game). I really loved Park MGM. The layout was great and close to the action. If you also are a Lady Gaga fan, Lady Gaga has her residency there and a gift shop with all her amazing outfits. I really like staying closer to the MGM Grand compared to staying at Treasure Island which is far away from the main hotels. unless you like The mirage and Venetian then Treasure Island is good...but a bit out dated. Park MGM recently was remodeled and renamed from The Monte Carlos. It has outlets to plug things in as well as USB ports in case you only have 2 plugs for your electronics.

Also for those great views, may I suggest going to the top of the Eiffel Tower instead of the Linq… Going on the Linq is pretty cool, takes 30 minutes to complete but from personal experience. not the best views. you mostly see the back of hotels and golf courses. The Eiffel tower experience, is an elevator ride, and you can stay up there as long as you want...not just as long as it takes for the Linq to go around. You can see the fountains at Bellagio go off every 15 minutes. Great view. Another great show is The Volcano at The Mirage...Goes off every hour until 10pm. Treasure Island still has the Pirate Ships, but no longer have the pirate shows.

FREE SHOWS
Along with the fountains at Bellagio and the volcano at the mirage. head to M&m world. You don't HAVE to buy anything... They have 3D movie starring RED and YELLOW m&ms. It's cute. You can also get a picture next to the M&M race car. Circus Circus also has Circus acts at 11:30am for FREE...and if you have kids they have an indoor Amusement Park, but that's not free.

 

[usnuzuloose]

I just got back from a week in Las Vegas. It was a good trip, with some personal bumps in it. But some tips for your next trip to Las Vegas, or your first.
First...external battery for your phone/electronic devices is must. I am so glad I brought mine because it saved me a lot of time. I charged it over night and used it when needed, which was handy. If you don't have a external battery you are left with having to plug into a wall and wait... which isn't fun. I got mine at a five below and it came with a built in flash light.

you don't have to walk everywhere.
there are a total of 4 monorails...or trams. 1 major monorail is $$ while the 3 others are FREE. One is located at Excalibur and takes you to The Luxor, and Mandalay Bay.
The second FREE monorail is from Park MGM that takes you to the Bellagio (or the Bellagio to Park MGM). and the 3rd monorail aka tram is at The Mirage and takes you to Treasure Island.
FREE Parking is still available on the strip... the best FREE parking is at Planet Hollywood/Miracle Mile Shops (closest to the everything) and across from the Bellagio. The other FREE parking is Treasure Island (which is far from the main hotels). It's cool at the Miracle Mile Shops they have Robot Bartenders.
EARN MONEY... don't lose money. Located at MGM Grand is Television City. They will ask you about your television show preferences and ask you to watch a 45 minute clip or episode of a upcoming or show already that is aired. you will get $20.00...or if you are extremely lucky $100.00. You will also get a coupon booklet. But again this takes at least 45 minutes to complete.
Souvenirs
If you are looking for souvenirs to bring home to family/friends, head Downtown Las Vegas near The Plaza. They have great deals on t-shirts/post cards/keychains etc. There is also a $10 shop at Treasure Island. You can get to Downtown Las Vegas by Bus if you don't have a car. And riding a double decker bus is pretty cool.
Restaurants
Fast food restaurants on the Las Vegas Strip are more $$ then off the strip. I highly suggest staying away from the McDonalds located by Harrahs. The service isn't that good. The McDonald's at The Plaza is good if you like McDonalds. They do have Wendys and other restaurants near M&M World...next to MGM Grand. If you are looking for a great sit down burger joint I suggest Wahlburgers at Balley's Hotel. (and no I don't work for them or am associated with them in any way). They also have the best Margarita's...at least in my opinion. Another great sit down restaurant is Mon Ami Gabi at Paris Hotel (located next to Planet Hollywood and their free parking). Great breakfast. Many hotels have Starbucks.
Hotel Suggestions
I highly suggest staying on the strip. It's not that expensive. I've stayed at Excalibur, Balley's, Treasure Island and Park MGM. (thanks to myVegas slots facebook game). I really loved Park MGM. The layout was great and close to the action. If you also are a Lady Gaga fan, Lady Gaga has her residency there and a gift shop with all her amazing outfits. I really like staying closer to the MGM Grand compared to staying at Treasure Island which is far away from the main hotels. unless you like The mirage and Venetian then Treasure Island is good...but a bit out dated. Park MGM recently was remodeled and renamed from The Monte Carlos. It has outlets to plug things in as well as USB ports in case you only have 2 plugs for your electronics.

Also for those great views, may I suggest going to the top of the Eiffel Tower instead of the Linq… Going on the Linq is pretty cool, takes 30 minutes to complete but from personal experience. not the best views. you mostly see the back of hotels and golf courses. The Eiffel tower experience, is an elevator ride, and you can stay up there as long as you want...not just as long as it takes for the Linq to go around. You can see the fountains at Bellagio go off every 15 minutes. Great view. Another great show is The Volcano at The Mirage...Goes off every hour until 10pm. Treasure Island still has the Pirate Ships, but no longer have the pirate shows.

FREE SHOWS
Along with the fountains at Bellagio and the volcano at the mirage. head to M&m world. You don't HAVE to buy anything... They have 3D movie starring RED and YELLOW m&ms. It's cute. You can also get a picture next to the M&M race car. Circus Circus also has Circus acts at 11:30am for FREE...and if you have kids they have an indoor Amusement Park, but that's not free.

The Earl of Sandwich is in Planet Hollywood.

 

[_19disnA]

I have no idea what you would do in Vegas that requires extensive use of your phone. My phone typically lasts the whole day on one charge when at home, so not sure why Vegas would be any different. Charge your phone at night when you are back in your hotel room or if you take a mid-day break and are back in your hotel room.

With regard to the other things you might do in Vegas and how you choose to get around is largely a matter of personal preference. If you have a car provides the greatest flexibility. Some of the provided trams/monorails can be convenient depending on where you are staying and where you want to go.

 

[LovesTimone]

We love Vegas... and have gone every year for the last 15, Yep we went last year, we just had to go somewhere ... this year we are not going, because we are going to New Orleans instead for my Birthday...

Here's my Vegas tips..not in any order just what comes to mind, and I'm warning you now, I have only had a half of cup of coffee so lets see how things work out...

Here's where we have stayed, MGM Grand, Luxor, Mirage, The Palms...

So we have done both private car ( we have shared to 2 other couples) and uber/lyft... no/never taxi's way to expensive... especially if the take the scenic route...

We rent a car if we have plans and are leaving the strip. We can get a deal through DH's employer which is nice, Watch the fine print, get the insurance... I repeat get the insurance... our friends rented a car and did not get the insurance and someone side swiped the car, it was a mess...

For snacks and drinks for the room there are 2 Walgreens/CVS on each end of the strip, with much better prices than in the hotels stores by far...

We normally don't go the food court route for meals, the prices are sooo ridiculous.. for a couple more dollars, you can get a nice mid-range meal and have someone wait on you... We normally only eat 2 meals, and like some appetizers or tapas and a few drinks pool side or find a nice bar and relax... and people watch.

Dining - in general... there are alot of really good middle of the road spots to eat, and you can get some amazing food all with out paying the price for the "Chef" named restaurants. So my biggest tip here is while wandering around, check out the menus posted out front... check the casino websites and to see what they offer...

Buffets - We haven't been to one the last couple of trips, a few times we got deals from the players cards, like buy one get one, or we each will have a free buffet.. so we normally pick for a early lunch...

If you have a players card use it, and make sure before you check out to see if you have any comp's... most of the time we have enough to cover the resort fees for the trip. Even a few meals, and some spa charges... We stay were we like to gamble, so those points add up...

We have been to Hoover Dam, really amazing, Red Rocks worth the drive and to check it out, as well Red Rocks casino is very nice, and we like to have lunch in the casino... this is a perfect day trip, we have done this multiple times. Went drove over to the Reservation side of the Grand Canyon... really amazing, they have the walk out over the canyon really pricey and stopped for lunch at some famous road side diner, and it was not worth the stop... Counts Custom Cars, which was really kinda neat, its not a big place, and it doesn't take you long to go through it, if your a car person or love the show Counting Cars its worth a stop.

So going down to old Vegas, you can go by bus, we just get an all day pass... only a few bucks.... Also you can Uber if you want... We don't like old Vegas.... at night.... way way to many sketchy people... so if we go we do it during the day or early evening...

We like the Gold Coast and the Rio which are off the strip, a quick uber ride... and a easy walk between them. Our favorite restaurant is Ping Pang Pong... at the Gold Coast.... sooooo good...

Lets talk about a All Day Spa pass... this is one of the best things ever... So for hotel guest its normally around 20 to 35 dollars and for non-guest not sure more cash I would guess... on Check out day if our flight is late. We get a day spa pass, which is so nice... you get a locker which is great, DH and I both have these canvas type bags, that he can throw is contact stuff into and undergarments, and a hanger with clean clothes, and in mine is my basic make up, under garments, and travel yoga style pants, and t-shirt, hoodie all on one hanger.... the pass allows you to use the whirlpools, saunas, steam room and most importantly the shower, and they showers are equipped with everything that you need, as well as the dressing tables, have hair dryer, and lotions, tooth paste, mouth wash and other grooming items. Nothing like heading home relaxed and all clean...

Vegas Shows - We normally see one show, I know that there are tickets places to get them cheaper, and that's great but alot of times the show we want to see is not available...

Bring a jacket, the casinos are really cold... and it gets cold at night...

Watch for pickpockets...

Win Big...

 

[_19disnA]

Yes, I agree, plenty of really nice casinos to check out along the strip. Most of the largest hotels belong either to MGM/Mirage or Caesar's so it is worth getting one of their player's club cards when gambling. You can accumulate points for free play, reduced hotel rates, discounted food, etc. Those same player's club cards can also be used across the US at various casinos located in different states. If you happen to live near one, you can continue to accumulate points there as well. If you are only going to visit one of the standalone casino not affiliated with MGM/Caesar's, it is a waste of time to signup for their player's card. You will likely never spend enough to accumulate points to be worth something.

We were last there before covid and friends we were with wanted to see Fremont St/downtown since none of us had ever been there.

We don't like old Vegas.... at night.... way way to many sketchy people...

Way too many sketchy/homeless people begging for money even during the day. You can't valet park unless staying at one of those downtown hotels. The casinos were all tiny and had very few machines. You have to park at a nearby parking lot and walk to that area. We would never go there again regardless of the time of day.

Lots of choices for meals along the main part of the strip. Check out the menus to find places that match your taste and budget. Agree you should bring at least a sweater even if over 100 outside, since many casinos seem to have the A/C running full blast. Not sure why they do that, but good to be prepared rather then chilled in the casino.