Vegas Vacation suggestions...

[postesf]

Good Day! I noticed on the Vacation thread that quite a few folks frequent Vegas very often.

DH and I are thinking of going the last week of March/first week of April of 2009. We would be staying at the "Las Vegas Hilton on the Strip."

I'm wondering if anyone has any suggestions of place to eat, things to do, see. Maybe one "Not to miss."

I'ver heard that the Cirque du Soleil show Ka is excellent.

We also want to make sure we see the Grand Canyon. Is this something you can do yourself or is better to book a tour? If you do a tour, can you book it at your hotel or is it better to book in advance.

Do you suggest a rental car or can you get around on the monorail, foot and taxi's ok?

Thanks!

 

[TinklednPants]

If you go to the $1.49 buffet, be certain to have some of the blue and plenty of the yeller.

 

[DisneyDad1960]

Las Vegas is one of my favorite places to go.

I'm just wondering why you chose the Hilton. It isn't on the strip, but it does have a monorail station that can take you down the strip.

I haven't seen Ka, but I have seen Love, the Cirque show at the Mirage.
It is set to Beatles music and is amazing.
When I go to Vegas, I usually try to see some shows with name entertainers.
If you do stay at the Hilton, Barry Manilow is there and even though I'm not a fan, he does put on a good show.
Elton John and Bette Midler at Caesars Palace. Donny & Marie Osmond at the Flamingo.
I usually check a couple of weeks before my trip to see if anyone I would like to see is in town.

For restaurants, it all depends on what you like and your budget.
My two favorites in Vegas are Delmonico Steakhouse at the Venetian (run by Emeril Lagasse. Food and service are top notch, but very expensive) and SushiSamba at the Palazzo.(Asian_South American fusion. I don't know how they do it but it works)

If you have any other questions PM me or I'll just reply to your posts.

Michael

 

[jsmith]

We also want to make sure we see the Grand Canyon. Is this something you can do yourself or is better to book a tour? If you do a tour, can you book it at your hotel or is it better to book in advance.

Distances in the west are deceptive-are you planing on doing a flight tour or driving over? its 280 mile drive from Las Vegas to the South Rim in Grand Cayon National Park-so a ground tour-either in a rental car or on a bus tour will take a very long day or two days-air tours are less time consuming and more expensive-i would do some good research and book ahead of time.

 

[postesf]

Las Vegas is one of my favorite places to go.

I'm just wondering why you chose the Hilton. It isn't on the strip, but it does have a monorail station that can take you down the strip.

For restaurants, it all depends on what you like and your budget.
My two favorites in Vegas are Delmonico Steakhouse at the Venetian (run by Emeril Lagasse. Food and service are top notch, but very expensive) and SushiSamba at the Palazzo.(Asian_South American fusion. I don't know how they do it but it works)

If you have any other questions PM me or I'll just reply to your posts.

Michael

We are staying at the Hilton Grand Vacation Club on the Las Vegas Strip. The name is very confusing. The address is 2650 Las Vegas Blvd. I think it's on the strip but it's at the end... We are transferring in on a time share. I was hoping for the Las Vegas Hilton at the Flamingo, but it was all booked up...

We may do one really nice meal, but not many. I've heard there are some good buffets.

We have never been so it is all NEW to me!

Thanks!

 

[postesf]

Distances in the west are deceptive-are you planing on doing a flight tour or driving over? its 280 mile drive from Las Vegas to the South Rim in Grand Cayon National Park-so a ground tour-either in a rental car or on a bus tour will take a very long day or two days-air tours are less time consuming and more expensive-i would do some good research and book ahead of time.

Have you done either of these? It seems the bus tours and definately an all-day event... The air one appeal to me, but they are much more expensive...

 

[Danauk]

We have used Sundance helicopters in the past a few times to go to the Grand Canyon from the strip, they are very good and well worth the money. We too love Cirque shows and although we enjoyed Ka we enjoyed O even more. Ka was more about the technology to us rather than the actual Cirque style of performance.

 

[Papa Deuce]

We are staying at the Hilton Grand Vacation Club on the Las Vegas Strip. The name is very confusing. The address is 2650 Las Vegas Blvd. I think it's on the strip but it's at the end... We are transferring in on a time share. I was hoping for the Las Vegas Hilton at the Flamingo, but it was all booked up...

We may do one really nice meal, but not many. I've heard there are some good buffets.

We have never been so it is all NEW to me!

Thanks!

Correct. It is on the strip, closer to the north end I think... accross from the Riviera.

For ONE thing to do.... well, let me say this.... just take your time and enjoy it.... though I would take the trip to Hoover Dam.... amazing! and really close... like 30 or so minutes away.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Check out CheapoVegas, they have maps and tons of reviews. It is my favorite place to plan...one day I will get to Vegas.

http://www.cheapovegas.com/index.php

 

[Peter Pirate 2]

Hoover Dam is totally amazing ... And very Las Vegas. You can't do the Canyon justice in a day from Vegas, IMO. It deserves much, much more.

All Cirque shows are great. Loved "Mystere" and adored "Zumanity" and can't wait to see "Love." "O" gets the best reviews and "Ka" the worst of the mainstram shows (Zumanity gets a lot of 50-50 reviews because Americans are so uptight about ****ies and gays ... But it's so good).

There are just endless choices for food in Vegas. I love Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill and Kahunnaville (Ithink that's the name) at TI is a fun place (bar/restaurant). I'd love to try Craftsteak on my next visit, but oh the money...

Downtown is a hoot. Freemont Street is like a constant party (and much cheaper) and certainly worth visiting, IMO.

Also there is great Horseback riding in the desert. We're not great horsemen (being from The Keys and all) but loved the hilly, desert trails.

 

[7165red]

A great travel site is www.tripadvisor.com click on US then scroll down to Nevada. The members are very helpful I am sure you'll like it. We like to go to Red Rock parl. Don't forget to eat a one of the great buffets. The Rio has a great sea food buffet. Most of the well known hotels all have excellent buffets .

 

[Stacerita]

If you go to the $1.49 buffet, be certain to have some of the blue and plenty of the yeller.

Thank you Mr. Papageorgio.

 

[jsmith]

Have you done either of these? It seems the bus tours and definately an all-day event... The air one appeal to me, but they are much more expensive...

No-we took a trip once where we drove to vegas-and then from vegas to flagstaff-used flag as a base for a bunch of stuff in that area but i cant imagine going to the grand canyon and back to vegas in one day-no time to see anything.

 

[beautybelle]

First of all be VERY glad you arent staying at the MGM. We just got back and we hated that hotel.

Second, I highly recommend taking a bus tour to see the Grand Canyan, you get to stay longer and see more IMO, and also the guides provide tons and tons of information. It does take all day but its WELL worth it. Also we used Sweet Tours and they were great and our guide was an Hawaiian woman and she was full of info.

I cant say this enough, stay AWAY from the taxis, they're a scam just waiting to happen and then to top it off they are extremely rude. Use the Duece busses. $2.00 one way or $5.00 for 24 hrs. Perfect.

Also everybody, and I do mean everybody says stay away from the Criss Angle show at the Luxor. I really wanted to see it but everyone I ran into warned me that it was a huge waste of money so I didnt go. We saw the Jubilee instead. It was great, old school Vegas showgirls. The costumes were absolutely beautiful. It is topless but really the show and costumes just take over and you dont really focus on the topless idea. (At least I didnt, dont know bout you guys out there though. )

Have a good time.

 

[rascalmom]

We stayed at the Hilton Grand Vacation Club next to the Flamingo earlier this year. We basically got a 4 day weekend in a one bedroom for $99 by agreeing to do a timeshare tour....that tour was of the new HGVC on the North Las Vegas Strip. We told them up front that we were DVC members - they thoroughly described their offerings, but there was no pressure at all.

I don't care for the location, but the property is beautiful. I would think about getting a rental car. Even though it is on the strip, it is a fair distance to any of the major casino properties & in an area "iffy" for strolling. We like having a car to casino hop; parking is never a problem at the usual sites. Valet is free most everywhere - just a tip required. We much prefer this to hopping in & out of smokey cabs.

 

[postesf]

Thanks for all the replies!

Any other Vegas go-ers out there???

 

[DeterminedOne]

Hi. Hope you enjoy your trip to Vegas. It's one of my favorite spots! If you're not intimidated by driving in unfamiliar territory definitely rent a car but shop around for the best price. Most hotels offer free parking and IMO the car is worth it just getting to and from the airport. However, renting a car is not necessary as there are plenty of ways to get around - taxi, bus, limo and of course by foot.

I have seen all but one of the Cirque shows (LOVE) and Ka is definitely not the best. It's not a waste of money, just not the best. And as mentioned above, whatever you do - don't get tickets to Criss Angel. I saw it this past October and it stinks!!

As far as places to eat - what's your budget? Are you looking for cheap, expensive or somewhere in the middle?

Check TripAdvisor.com. It's a good site for hotel and dining ratings and also has a very helpful trip planning/trip report forum.

 

[jsmith]

i ve not seen KA but O is wonderful-totally amazing-and i have heard the same about Zumanity. We always rent a car-i think its because we grew up where there was no public transportation and Hubby cant deal with it-but it makes life easier if youwant to go off strip-and we have friends in henderson we sometimes drive down to see.

 

[Tikitoi]

We were there this past April and the weather was good. OK, hot. We got to go to the Grand Canyon by bus tour. I said when we go again, I will do the driving myself. We did all our Vegas activities by foot and the monorail was a great help, too. As far as eats, I would certainly recommend the buffet at Wynn. We went for lunch had NO wait and the food was great. Also, one of our fav's a little off strip is Hard Rock Cafe. Just love it for the food and atmosphere. Also go on travel2vegas.com and there is a lot of good information there.

 

[pooh6890]

I have been three times so far. We stayed at the Mirage first trip (very nice) and last two times at the Bellagio (wonderful visits). We plan on staying at the Venetian next visit in May. I highly recommend Phantom of the Opera, Wayne Brady, Bette Midler, Barry Manilow, Love, O, Jersey Boys and Mamma Mia (which I think closes in Jan 09). I saw Celine 2 times but she is gone now. Also, if you love the Elvis stuff see Trent Carlini's show if he is there. He is the best Elvis we have ever seen. For food.....the buffet at Bellagio, both brunch and dinner was fabulous. We love Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill and also Spago (both at Caesar's Palace) (we won $250 on the slots and it still didn't cover dinner at Spago, but was really worth it). The service was impeccable there. We never did rent a car because the monorail is very easy to get around. I agree about the taxi's, but we used them a lot....$5 to $10 for each ride was worth it to us. Some taxi drivers were really fun and informative and there were also some really rude ones. We chose to ignore the rude ones. It is my absolute favorite place to visit right now. Have a great time!

P.S. I got to www.lvol.com to see all the shows and entertainers that will be there during my visit. it's a great website.