nittany

Any suggestions where to stay, planning on going week of Thanksgiving for 6 days with my wife and two teenage daughters. I was told Paris and Mandalay Bay are good though I'm concerned Mandalay Bay is too far out. Also, should I rent a car while there? Any suggestions about what to see, where to eat, and traps to avoid would be helpful.

Lola

Definitely rent a car for a day at least and get out of the Strip area.
Go to Red Rock Canyon, only half an hour from the Strip. Hiking, walking, just drive and see the area and the wild burros.
Go to Mt Charleston and/or Lake Mead.
It will probably be a welcome break from the casinos since the teens cannot gamble or be in the casinos.
I would recommend the Paris Hotel.
Put Las Vegas into the text search and read some of the many posts on where to eat and what to see.

clarkgriswold

Are you looking for a place with large rooms (2 queen beds) to squeeze into, or something with mini-suites like a bedroom/living room combo, or two connecting rooms?

nittany

looking for a nice place, want to make this a trip to remember. Is the Grand Canyon a "driveable" day trip or is it too far?

utahtea

My tripmaker program says that from Las Vegas to the Grand Canyon visitor center says is 5 hours. My tripmaker program is usually pretty good on the time. This trip is 280 miles ONE WAY and a little less than half is on interstate highways.

I would advise spending one night at the S. Rim of the Grand Canyon so you will have some time to really enjoy it's beauty. Otherwise you will be spending at least 10 hours driving and since it will be in late November you don't have a lot of daylight hours.

BTW, the N. Rim is closed for the season so you will have to go to the S. Rim.

Utahtea

Darvy_Kuntz

6 days is a lot of time, so I would split your stay between 2 hotels: 1) Mirage, because it's got lots of kid stuff like animals, dolphins, good pool, interesting atmosphere, etc. and is on the strip. 2) Mandalay Bay - a little far down the strip, but great pool area for the kids to enjoy. MAndalay also has a great spa - so great for the parents to end the trip with a massage and treatments!!!

I would rent a car, yes. And I would go to the Red Rocks, as suggested above. The Hoover Dam is also fun to visit with kids.

Eats? Let's see. For buffets, I'd do Paris. There's a crepe stand that's fun there. For fancy schmancy, try Bellagio's Prime or Mirage's ONDA. For old time fun, try Peppermill or Betista's Hole in the Wall. For chinese, try Moongate at the Mirage.

Traps to avoid: The Luxor. The hotel is best seen from afar, and the attractions inside are not worth the look.

Have a great time!

Darvy_Kuntz

Oops - the pool may not be a big factor, I now realize, since you're going in November. I hear the pools often stay open during that time, but it may not be scorching enough to take a dip.

bashfulLV

I'd choose Paris as well - it's right in the center of everything. As far as the Grand Canyon goes, there is a good tour that takes a little more than half the day. Family of mine from Australia just took it last week and thoroughly enjoyed it. They picked them up at their hotel at 4:30 a.m. and took them to the airport where they took a small plane (it may have been a helicopter, my memory fails me) which took them to the Grand Canyon. They spent most of the day there and then came back about 12:30 or so in the afternoon. After a brief nap they were ready for the show we went to without skipping a beat. After spending several days in a hotel room with teenagers (I'm the recovering parent of two -mine are 21 & 19 now!) you may welcome the wide expanse of Grand Canyon! The name of the company was Scenic Airlines - their website is www.scenicairlines.com.

As far as buffets go, Bellagio, Mirage and Aladdin have the best. We had an enjoyable dinner right out on the Strip one night when my visitors were here. "Seven" restaurant/nightclub is open air right on the corner of the Strip and Harmon, just across from Harley Davidson. The food was good and the had a huge wine list. They also had a dinner special for $9.99 which offered an angel hair pasta with chicken, another chicken dish and also a huge cheeseburger with seasoned fries. It was cool to sit and watch the people going by while we ate. At 10 p.m. the restaurant transforms into a nightclub - still in the open air.

One thing not to miss is the Secret Garden/Dolphin Habitat at the Mirage. It's worth every penny of the $12 charge for admission. Get there early because once you're in, you can stay until they close. It's awesome to see the dolphins and the white tigers and lions and the other animals. I'm glad I had family visit so I could go and do all these cool things that I've never done as long as I've lived here!

If you decide to stay at Mandalay Bay there is a tram that runs between MB, the Luxor and Excaliber, which helps since MB isn't really on the Strip.

Have fun!