The Las Vegas Valley is
home to 1.4 million folks with homes, businesses, schools, churches, museums,
and all the usual things that make a community and city. However, the
Entertainment Industry and tourism is the bread-and-butter of the economy. When
it comes to “playing tourist”, this is mainly where the attractions are. Gaming
is the obvious draw but the casinos have all sorts of attractions to lure you
into the casinos. Many are free, engaging, and entertaining. Some have nice
movie theaters, bowling lanes, ice rinks, water features, alluring exhibits, aquariums,
bingo, spas, thrill rides, observation platforms, and other amusing
attractions.
This is our on-going tour
of the Las Vegas Casinos and the “free stuff” that they offer:
Eliminate the
competition and make gigantic profits: 20 of the 31 Las Vegas “Strip Casinos” are
owned by just two companies AND the vast majority of all Vegas casinos are
owned by just five companies. We do not gamble but if you do gamble, get the
“players cards”. Do not use the “Players Cards” just to make points but do use
the player’s cards if you gamble. The player’s cards and seniors cards will get
you lots of complementary and money saving promotional offers. Cards do not
expire and can be used ongoing, at all of a particular companies, sister-properties.
We have players cards just for discounts at casino attractions, movies and food.
We principally like to visit the properties and see the things that they offer,
especially the “free stuff”. I have tagged the “fee” things, but even those things
occasionally offer discounts and/or free days/times.
Beginning on the south end of Las Vegas Blvd.
(The Strip) and proceeding north:
The famous “Welcome to
Fabulous Las Vegas Nevada” sign, with a small parking lot, accommodates
stopping, visiting, and taking pictures. It has a fascinating story!
On the west is Mandalay
Bay with Shark Reef Aquarium(fee) and the “Mandalay Place” shopping promenade that connects to the Luxor and
Excalibur. Mandalay Bay has a huge Convention Center and a separate Events
Center. The Luxor has the world’s largest light beam (315,000 watt) pointing skyward
from the top of the Egyptian pyramid-shaped hotel/casino. You can see it from
200 miles away. A unique landmark, and one of our nightly reference points,
from our mountainside perch on the north end of the valley. Luxor also has a
real-body anatomy showcase on the human body. Very popular but not for us. Finally,
the Luxor boasts a huge collection of Sports memorabilia that is a huge
attraction. An intriguing property to explore, but miles of walking.
Next on the west is
Excalibur, named for King Arthur’s mythical sword, resembles a medieval castle
and has a jousting arena show, along with the usual casino, dining and stage
entertainment.
Across from Excalibur
is Tropicana, birthplace of the “Mob Experience” now relocated to the downtown
“Mob Museum” No surprise, gangsters were predominate in Vegas and visitors like
to hear about it.
Next block on west is
New York New York with the “Statue of Liberty” and a fun roller coaster(fee).
The US Postal service released the “2010 Forever” stamp using this Vegas Statue
image instead of the “real” New York Harbor original. Biggest mistake they ever
made on a stamp. Also has Hershey’s Chocolate store. This is a fascinating
property to explore.
Across from New York
New York is the MGM Grand, former home of the “Lion Habitat”, has an arena, and
two theaters with big shows(fee). The MGM Grand is the southern terminus of the
Monorail. The MGM Grand was initially the largest hotel worldwide but now it’s
just the largest in the U.S. It is exciting to explore and they have immense
entertainment. The Rainforest Restaurant is a jungle-setting, with beautiful
saltwater aquariums. All the casinos
offer gaming lessons and MGM is good.
Left is the Monte Carlo,
an attractive and curious property to explore. Like its Mediterranean namesake,
it has chandeliers, marble floors, neoclassical arches, gaslight lit
promenades, and ornate fountains.
Right is the Showcase
Mall and the Hard Rock Café. Fit for a rockstar! Lots of great shopping
opportunity and other curiosities.
Left is City Center
with the Crystals Luxury Shopping and fine arts collection. City Center is the ”new
Vegas” with fine architecture and art scattered around the massive complex.
Right is Hawaiian
Marketplace with Animatronic Bird shows, Hawaiian Dancers, and Viva Vision. Modeled
after the International Marketplace in Honolulu, with the spirit of Aloha. Take
an imaginary shopping trip to Hawaii. We were disappointed because it’s looks
old, dusty and worn. Looks like they’re struggling to stay in business.
Left is The
Cosmopolitan with two exclusive high-rise towers, a gorgeous lobby and lots of
nightlife opportunity. Many suites have their own private terrace.
Right is Planet
Hollywood with the Rainstorm and Fountain Show, situated on the “Miracle Mile”,
a circular-promenade, indoor collection of affordable specialty shops and food.
It’s a mile of walking with boundless shopping, food, and entertainment. Great
fun!
Left is Bellagio with
the “Dancing Waters Fountains” (breathtaking union of water, music, and light)
plus 14,000sf atrium/botanical garden /Conservatory, also 27-ft tall chocolate
fountain. The lobby displays an extraordinary Dale Chihuly glass sculpture made
up of 2000 hand-blown, colorful glass blossoms, forming an amazing chandelier,
called, Fiori Di Como. The Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art presents a varying
schedule of famous artwork from around the world. One of our Shooting Range
Officers works at Bellagio, so we get the insider “skinny”. The most
ostentatious landscaping and gardens of all Las Vegas casino properties. All
real, nothing artificial, with an annual landscaping and decoration budget of
$20-million. Had some fine sights and gelato here!
Right is Paris Las
Vegas Casino, with Street of Paris, and Eiffel Tower(fee)(a good night
landmark/reference point). Street of Paris has great shops and food. The
50-story Eiffel Tower replica is fun and romantic with boundless views and even
a special private area where lovers can propose marriage. With a successful
proposal there are lots of hotel “Wedding Chapels” to get married in. Only in
Vegas! Warning: There are no cheap
divorce lawyers in Vegas!
Right is Bally’s huge
hotel towers with the Jubilee Show, first gay bar established on Vegas Strip,
and an attention-grabbing property to explore.
Left is Caesars Palace
with the “Fall of Atlantis Fountain Show”, Forum Shops, Winter Outdoor Ice Rink,
Trevi, and Colosseum Events Center.
Right is The Cromwell,
a luxury boutique hotel and casino, a glamorous blend of modern and vintage
design.
Right is the Flamingo
with the Flamingo Wildlife Habitat. Beautiful garden/grounds with Macaws, water
fowls, Flamingos, colorful Koi and other fish, in tropical garden/water
feature. Very remarkable! Had fun with the Macaws! A unique must-see.
Right is Harrah’s, the
Quad, Linq with the High Roller Ferris Wheel(another landmark and fee), the
Auto Collection(fee), a splendid shopping, eating, and entertainment promenade.
The Linq has a huge world-class car show with all sorts of cool cars to admire.
Also have free entertainment on Linq stage. The High Roller price is $36, for Clark
County employees is $31, for the 30-minute ride.
Left is The Mirage with
the Secret Garden, the Dolphin Habitat, and the Volcano. The awesome, Siegfried
and Roy, Secret Garden is home to White Tigers and Lions, Black Leopards, and a
blue-water Dolphin habitat. The Volcano eruption is a popular free show and fun
to watch, especially on a cool night.
Right is the Venetian,
stroll the Gondola Canals with Madame Tussauds, Grand Canal Shops, and the
Gondolas(fee) The Venetian floors and painted ceilings are very striking.Take a
glide-ride down the Grand Canal, past shops, cafés and under bridges, while
your boatman serenades you and your partner. Venetian also has a Da Vinci
Gallery which showcases his life and works.
Right is the Palazzo, a
stunning, all-suite resort that is a fine people-watching spot. Tallest in
Vegas, the luxury hotel has a modern European ambiance. Terry’s cousin works
here and shares all the inside secrets with you!
Left is Treasure Island
with the Sirens of TI. This free show had pirates and ships and drew huge crowds,
but it’s cancelled. The water and ships are still there but new shops are in
the old stage area.
Left is Trump Tower (a
good night reference point/landmark) and Fashion Show Mall. Lots of fine
shopping with a “high limit” credit card! A luxury hotel, condominium, and
timeshare property, Trump Tower shines like gold. Exterior windows are gilded
with 24-carat gold!
Right is Wynn Las Vegas
with Wynn Esplanade, a luxurious spot to watch the rich and famous. The Wynn
features a factory-authorized Ferrari dealership. The Wynn is an attractive
tower with lots of tourist surprises.
Right is Encore. Wynn
and Encore properties hold the world record for Forbes Five-Star Awards. Yes,
they set the standard for luxury world-wide. A must see.
Left is the new Resorts
World site, coming soon. Will showcase cities of the world similar to the
“Epcot countries” in Disneyworld, but with a casino.
Right is Riviera, an
older property but reasonable rates for their stuff. This the only “Rat Pack”
property remaining on the strip. We visited Uncle Bud and Carole here several
times and it’s in a good location for visitors.
On the left is Circus
Circus, location of the Adventure Dome and Circus Acts. The Circus acts consist
of a variety of high-wire, juggling, and three-ring entertainment. There is a
daily schedule posted, so you can plan to be there for the acts that you want
to see. It’s a fun experience. The Adventure Dome is a huge indoor amusement
park with everything that an (thrill rides and food) amusement park can have.
The double-loop, double-twist roller coaster has everyone screaming. We did not
ride it because watching was enough for us.
Right is Fontainebleau,
an old property that has had a remodel/facelift and has condos/hotel/casino/food.
On the north end of the strip and Monorail, it’s a good location for visitors, and
has fairly reasonable rates.
Right is SLS and the
northern terminus of the Monorail. SLS (formerly The Sahara) is a boutique
hotel and casino that renovated/reopened in 2014 with pleasant accommodations
and a strong customer service approach. Good spot to park for the monorail.
Left is the Stratosphere
with four “way high” thrill rides(fee) These lofty, screamy rides are situated
on the top of the Stratosphere and take you out over the 500-foot pinnacle. This
is a popular day and night landmark for the entire valley. You can hear the
screams from the busy Las Vegas Blvd. below.
Now, continue north on
Las Vegas Blvd. to downtown and the Fremont Experience Light Show, a four-block
promenade with two free entertainment stages, four-block zip-lines overhead, and
various street entertainers. The Golden Nugget displays the world’s largest
gold nugget. Lots of fun on Fri./Sat. nights. Also, a free neon bone-yard
displays lots of old “Vegas night-lights”. In Vegas, there’s always a “neon
light at the end of the tunnel”!
At 7th and
Fremont is the “Container Park” shopping and dining mall. Constructed from
shipping containers and a unique place to visit. The Fire-breathing ”Praying
Mantis” at the entrance is an exciting attraction. They got me real good on our
first visit, everyone had a good laugh, at my expense!
Outlying places that we
like are;
Red Rocks Casino,
Resort, and Spa in Summerlin, is a fine luxury property well worth the visit to
see how you can spend big money fast. This area was part the old Howard Hughes
Ranch property and there are lots of exclusive developments in the
23-thousand-acre tract. Also, Red Rocks Canyon National Monument is just
several miles west.
Aliante, close to the
Shooting Complex, in North Las Vegas, is an upscale Casino/Resort/Spa with a
nice movie theater, entertainment, and restaurants. It’s also surrounded with
the Ailante residential developments.
Sam’s Town Casino has
Mystic Falls, a free, eight-minute, animatronic-laser-water- fountain show that
is fun to see. It’s best at night, facilitating the laser-light colors. We
stayed at the adjacent Sam’s Town RV Park, our first week in Vegas and enjoyed
the property and vicinity. The Boulder Highway property has some fun
attractions, movie theater, and dining venues.
The Fiesta Casino had
an Ice Skating rink for public skating, a movie theater, and they have Hockey
Leagues. On Wednesdays, the Ice Dancers practice and that’s delightful too.
Silverton Casino has a
beautiful 117-thousand gallon, saltwater, tropical fish aquarium that is fun to
go see. They have 15-minute Mermaid shows in the aquarium and the interesting
part is how the Mermaids get air from the hookah ports in the tank. The
property is on Blue Diamond Rd., just west of the strip and I-15. If you are
scuba-certified, you can get married underwater, in the aquarium.
Nearby, Rio has
discontinued their Aquarium and the Masquerade in the Sky show. The Rio
property is obviously struggling to compete with the neighboring strip” casino
properties.
Station Casinos own and
operate a variety of Casino properties around the Las Vegas Valley, away from
the Strip and downtown. These casinos are kind-of neighborhood casinos that
offer the best food deals. They are large casinos that offer lots of other
attractions too.
The Monorail runs from
SLS, up by the Stratosphere to MGM Grand, with numerous stations along the way.
For a $5 pass, you can ride and visit a bunch of casino properties and
attractions along the strip. We took a ride and discovered an impressive view
of the landscaping, architecture, and off-the-strip properties. Most of the
properties along Las Vegas Blvd. are accessible from the monorail stops. Also,
the RTC bus is easy and cheap, along with free shuttles between company
properties.
We did not mention any
of the plethora of small shops, bars, and restaurants along the strip and
downtown, but they have some good offerings at a fair price. Food at the casino
properties, in our opinion, costs more and frankly, is often institutional food
service. Of course, there are lots of excellent gourmet offerings but we don’t
do that very often.
Valley of Fire State Park.
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