Vegas, Baby!

[tweedlemom]

Never been to Vegas, but DH and I are planning a trip there for Jan 2011. I think we'll be staying at NY NY. Need suggestions for restaurants, shows, etc. for a 3 day weekend. Not renting a car. Thanks!

 

[usnuzuloose]

NY NY is nice you have MgM, Excalibur, Luxor, Bellagio Tropicana. You have the m&m store, Coca cola store, The new Aria. Alot of the casinos have shows out front at night. Make sure to wear comfortable shoes, alot of walking. Me and my husband dont do shows, but there are places on the strip where you can buy tickets a little cheaper than from a ticket agency. We ate at Harrahs buffet it was really good, and alot to choose from. If you go to resturant.com ( free to sign up ) and look at the resturants for vegas that is a way to get a little money off your bill. I keep forgetting the name in the Venetian it was a Mario Batalli rest it was fantastic. I believed it started with a N. We used the bus called the Duece 7 dollars for 24 hrs up and down the strip any time. It will take you down to freemont st and you can see the light show. Strastaphere you can dine at the top of the world. Rest.com GC and then go pay and watch the rides up top.

Shopping galore. While you walk around sometimes you get handed coupons for ice cream shops. There is the gondola ride in the Venetian. Make sure to ask in the hotel for coupon books. You can google free things in lasvegas. We will be going every year for golf tournaments. We love it. Mgm also has the lion habitat ( free ) take pictures. I love it. Sign up for hotels for good deals as well. I get stuff in the mail. The wynn and Encore are beautiful. I could keep going. But look online and you will find all kinds of stuff. Have a great time. Jo

 

[wenmc]

Deleted

 

[Pakey]

I got to Las Vegas an average of every 3 months. How much do you want to spend on food and what do you like? There is an enormouse amount of choices there.

My favorite is Picasso at Bellagio. It's 5 star dining, there is a dress code. Roubichon at MGM is same class, also requires a dress code. It's also excellent, but I prefer Picasso.

A little further down the scale, I really like Mesa Grill (Bobby Flay's) at Caesars. Another interesting choice is B&B Risoranti, Mario Batalli's place at the Venetian (he has a few there; this is the nicest of them). I also enjoy Aureole's at Mandalay Bay. If you enjoy wine, it's fun watching the Wine Angels retrieve your bottle.

IMO, the best breakfast is Bouchon in the Venezia tower at the Venetian. They make made to order beignets with homemade chocolate sauce and fruit preserves. I must eat here every time I go just to get the beignets. The quiche of the day here is always excellent too.

My favorite show is the Beatles Love Cirque show. I've seen all of the Cirque shows except for the newest Elvis one and Love is definitely the best of them. I have no idea what celebrities might be playing there in January but I've enjoyed most of those shows too. The Lion King is a great show, as is Blue Man Group. I hated Phantom of the Opera there.

Enjoy your trip. It could be pretty cool in January. People think it's always warm there but it can be very cool in the evenings.

 

[FergieTCat]

I'll be there next Friday!!

I'm staying at Bally's and seeing Barry Manilow at the Paris. Definitely not 5 stars, but a Fanilow's dream come true!!

 

[rszdtrvl]

We went in January and stayed at Bally's. Loved the location!

We will be there this January too (2011) and went a bit more budget, staying at Excalibur.

And we are going for the NASCAR race in March - staying at Excalibur again (taking our 14-year old son).

 

[everylastbreath]

Your gonna have a BLAST! Nothing like Vegas! IMO I would have recommended a more mid strip hotel, but it will just mean a little more walking. Good move not getting a car, you don't need it. Plenty of Taxi's, The Duece, monarail, and just plain walking- just remember in Vegas things are never as close as they appear to be, just walking across the street might require you to walk down the street, take an escallator, bridge, etc- leave enough time to get from point a-point b... There is so much to see and do, without shows for your first trip (and only 3 days) I would say skip the shows, you can visit all the hotels, see the free shows, next trip I would plan some shows, but if you are sure you want to do shows- my recommendation would be "LOVE" & "Jersey Boys" IMO they are the best shows there- both excellent.

As far as eating goes, there are waaaaaaaay more places than you could ever recommend, I would say you should play it by ear, just see where you are and try something that looks good- all places have the menus outside so you can look and try it. I personally wouldn't weigh myself down with appointments/show times/reservations for 3 days, believe me, you will find something that looks good everywhere you go in Vegas! Have a blast!!! Feel free to ask away if you have any other questions!!

**added- BTW, weather in Jan could be very unpredictable, I would bring layers and lots of them, it could be 60 and it could be 20 and believe me, when it's freezing there its' REALLY COLD!! prepare for everything!!

 

[Shutterbug]

If you are going in January make sure to avoid the dates of the Consumer Electronics Show January 6-9th. Thats one of the biggest conventions of the year. The town is a real zoo during that convention with all the extra people in town. Not to mention higher hotel rates. I saw that the adult entertainment expo is that weekend too.

According to this site http://www.lasvegastourism.com/conventions_jan.htm , the electronics show has 120,000 attendees and the other expo 30,000 although there probably is going to be cross-attendees. In any case I would avoid that weekend.

 

[My2Cinderellas]

there are several Vegas threads over in the Disneyland/West forum section. lots of good advice there!

Vegas is no longer a cheap town to eat/drink in if you stay on the strip. I'm told the $6 steak/shrimp dinners are still around off strip but for the most part those days are over.

Buffets will be your overall best value for food if you are big eaters, the buffets tend to match the hotels - the more upscale hotels have more upscale buffets. I have to say $60 for breakfast for 4 is not out of line. Even coffee/roll at a Starbucks will set you back $7-8 a person. Best breakfast IMO is the buffet at Paris. It is about $14 per person plus tax/tip and worth every penny. I normally shy away from buffets but a visit to the Village Buffet in Paris is mandatory every visit. If you go later in the morning, you can time it so the first round is breakfast and then you can try the lunch items too. You will be full for hours.

For a less expensive lunch or dinner, check out the Burger Bar - it's in the mall that connects Luxor and Mandalay Bay. From NYNY walk across the bridge to Excalibur and take the tram to Mandalay Bay. they have a website to check out menu/prices but we found this to be reasonable for Vegas and a nice change from fine dining.

Drinks are free in the casinos if you are gambling, I like to keep a stash of singles on hand to tip the servers, they tend to come back more frequently that way .

Show tickets - there have been some good discount deals lately, so look around on the web for these. Also, there are usually 3 price tiers, we often book the middle price to save a bit and have never been disappointed with our seats.

Have a great time!

 

[pixiewings71]

We went to Vegas over the summer, we saw the Lion King show, Criss Angel and the Blue Man Group. We rode the gondolas inside the Venetian, we watched all the fountain and volcano shows, the pirate show and anything else that was free. lol We had a really great time, we were there with the kids so we didn't gamble or drink much but food was $$$$. One afternoon we went to the MGM and did happy hour at the oyster place there, it was OK but still $$$.
Come over to the CA section of the boards, there's a whole forum there on Vegas.

 

[tweedlemom]

Thanks for all the great tips! Heading over to the CA boards...

 

[Kewz1]

I was just in Vegas last week. Absolutely loved it!

We ate at Red Square at Mandalay Bay and Bouchon at the Venetian. RS was great and Bouchon was incredible. Would go back to either in a heart beat.

My favorite hotels were the Paris LV, Venetian, Palazzo, and Caesar's Palace.

Oh, and wear comfy shoes if you'll be doing a lot of walking!

Kristen

 

[cepmom]

we're trying to plan a trip to Vegas in January too...haven't amde any plans yet but I wanted to subscribe to get some ideas. One thing I really want to do is visit the Grand Canyon while we're out there, but I'm unsure if the weather might be a problem? Anyone ever go in January? Is it doable?

 

[disneyquestions]

I really enjoyed Jubile - if you go to the late show, its topless, FYI. Walk to all the hotel / casinos you can because they are all different, and all fun. Dont walk to the HardRock - take a cab! Its a great hotel, and I recommend going there (eat at the Pink Taco!!!) but its a far walk, and the way we went, no sidewalks! Have a great time, and remember, Jan in Vegas is COLD - so dress warm!

 

[pooh98378]

Another recommendation for "LOVE" here! It's an awesome show!!!! We also saw the new "Viva Elvis" show at Aria --- it started off a little slow for me, but ended well.