Spivonious

I'm not much for big long trip reports, so here are a few thoughts on my recent trip to Vegas, Hoover Dam, and Grand Canyon. We traveled from Feb 28th to Mar 4th. We flew out of PHL into LAS and out of FLG through PHX into PHL. We stayed at the Mirage in Vegas, and at the Tusayan Holiday Inn Express.

Mirage resort fee was a total rip off since the pools were closed, and we didn't get any discounted entrance to the Dolphin Habitat. Honestly, what is the $15/day for when the pools are closed? We stayed in the "King Deluxe". Felt like a basic 3-star room to me, maybe a bit wider. Bathroom was teeny. HDTV had about 10 HD channels available. 3rd floor room had a nice view of the air handling units on the roof of the casino. "Free" newspaper required waiting in line of people checking-out at the front desk, so we never picked it up.

Holiday Inn Express was nice, but a bit overpriced due to its location. Standard 3-star amenities, although a pretty good free hot breakfast buffet was included in the room rate. That was nice to help us gear up for a day of hiking. We stayed in a "king mini-suite", which was bigger than the Mirage room and cheaper. The bed wasn't quite as comfortable, but still fine. Had two HDTVs (one in the bedroom, one in the sitting room) but no HD channels. 2nd floor room had a view of the parking lot. The maid left an open bottle of Sprite in our room during the day. We left it there for him/her

Both hotels were a bit slow on check-in, but our rooms were ready immediately. At the Mirage we felt nickeled-and-dimed; at the HI we felt left alone.

If I return to Vegas, I'd definitely stay somewhere else. It just felt the the other hotels in the area (e.g. Caesar's, Venetian, Wynn) offered a much more complete package, while the Mirage was really just a hotel with a casino.

We saw the volcano erupt and the pirate show at the Treasure Island next door. Wow were they lame. The volcano might be fun if you were 10 years old. The pirate show was definitely not for kids (lots of innuendo), the songs were bad; overall it was just not worth waiting in the crowd to watch.

The reason for our trip was to see the Beatles LOVE show and it did not disappoint. It was my first Cirque show, and I honestly believe I could see it 5 more times and see something different every time. There was almost too much going on. Definitely worth seeing if you're at all a Beatles fan.


Now on to some general thoughts:
#1. I was worried about being close to the Mirage. I feel stupid. We could have stayed anywhere north of Paris (and gotten a better room rate) and still been fine walking, and anywhere on the Strip and been fine taking the Deuce.

#2. $2 public bus from airport to South Strip Transfer Station, then $7 24 hour pass to the Deuce bus to get to hotel. The only other options are taxi or pre-scheduled, privately-owned shuttle bus. The Mirage does not operate a shuttle.

#3. We could have waited to get tickets there for major discount or even free. The theater was about half full and they moved 300 level people into the 100 level so it would look fuller. I don't know if this is because it was a Monday night, but I felt stupid for paying so much.

#4. Vegas was neat but not being a gambler or nightclubber, I don't think I'll be back.

#5. Rented a car from Hertz at Caesar's Palace and drove to Grand Canyon, stopping at Hoover Dam on the way. It was a great way to see the scenery, which is VERY different from the northeast (duh). Left Vegas around 9:15AM, got to Grand Canyon around 7PM (Arizona time). That included two meal stops and about 2 hours at the Hoover Dam.

#6. If you don't mind walking, the parking is free on the Arizona side of the Dam. It was $7 on the Nevada side.

#7. Powerplant tour was $11 but worth it IMO.

#8. Surprise! Grand Canyon is in the mountains. I always thought it was in the desert. There was about 5 inches of snow on the ground.

#9. Desert View is the best view of the canyon along the South Rim, IMO.

#10. Hiking down into the canyon is too slippery for sneakers in the snow. Hopefully we'll be back in warmer weather.

#11. Going into the park at night is really creepy but totally worth it for the thousands of stars in the sky. I don't think there is anywhere that dark in the northeast.

#12. No ranger checks after 9PM or so, so if you're staying in the park, it might be a way to get in for free. Normally it's $25 per vehicle for 7 days.

#13. Flagstaff airport is about 1:15 drive from Tusayan. It has only one gate, and the check-in staff also does boarding, so you need to check in at least 15 minutes before boarding starts or you'll miss your flight.

sarge56

Spivonious, I don't know if this was your first trip to Vegas, but it sounds like perhaps it was.

We stay at the far north end, at the Hilton. The elevated train that runs behind the east side of the strip (behind the casinos) had a stop right at the Hilton. It was great to just walk out and hop on that train.

I have to agree about the Beatles LOVE Circqe show. I could see it 10 times and never get bored, I'm sure. We got discounted tickets from our hotel, but they were still $150 for the best seats. In my opinion, well worth it. Awesome, incredible, entertaining, phenomenal show.

Glad you had a good time at Hoover Dam and GC. The stars are the best part. To lay on the ground and let your eyes adjust... you just never could have imagined that there were that many stars out there, could you?

Here's to your return trip!

emalloy

Have to agree, Vegas is tacky, but it can be an inexpensive place to fly to so we always check the airfare and car rental and compare it to other places, like Phoenix, Albuquerque, Denver, or Salt Lake City when we plan a trip to the southwest. We never spend day time there after breakfast and sometimes just spend the first and or last night there before taking off for the fantastic National and State Parks in the four corners area.

Sounds like the trip was fun and hope you get to visit some of the other beautiful places out there.

Thanks for the report.

Spivonious

@sarge - yes it was our first trip to Vegas. My wife enjoyed it a bit more, but I think we were both a bit disappointed by it. We would definitely enjoy it more if we had more disposable income.

@emalloy - I think that's a good idea. The airlines are always running deals to Vegas and it seems like a good jumping off point for seeing the parks.

sassy_cat

I'm not a big fan of Vegas either but it's a great gateway.
What did you pay for the Mirage?; you sounded unhappy but it's usually cheaper than the Venetian/ Wynn that you mentioned..

Sounds like a nice quick break overall and thanks for the report.

Spivonious

@sassy_cat - I can't say for sure since it was part of an Expedia package deal with the flight, but there were cheaper packages available for the (IMO) nicer hotels in the immediate area.