A couple of Las Vegas questions: headed there next weekend!
Jun 16th, 2005, 03:37 PM
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A couple of Las Vegas questions: headed there next weekend!
Hi everyone,
My husband and I -- along with my mom and stepdad -- are all going to Las Vegas for the first time next Saturday for 3 nights. We are not planning on renting a car -- can we just grab a cab at the airport that will take us to our hotel? (We are staying at the Mirage).
With only 3 nights, what would you suggest we as first-timers do? We are not huge gamblers, but will probably play the slots a little and a little blackjack.
We are on a budget, so we don't want to spend a ton on food....what kind of restaurants would you recommend for breakfast, lunch, and dinner? One nice dinner would be fine....where else would be a good atmosphere with great food?
Thanks for any help
My husband and I -- along with my mom and stepdad -- are all going to Las Vegas for the first time next Saturday for 3 nights. We are not planning on renting a car -- can we just grab a cab at the airport that will take us to our hotel? (We are staying at the Mirage).
With only 3 nights, what would you suggest we as first-timers do? We are not huge gamblers, but will probably play the slots a little and a little blackjack.
We are on a budget, so we don't want to spend a ton on food....what kind of restaurants would you recommend for breakfast, lunch, and dinner? One nice dinner would be fine....where else would be a good atmosphere with great food?
Thanks for any help
Jun 16th, 2005, 05:04 PM
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www.cheapovegas.com has reviews of all the hotels, casinos, shows, etc. in a very funny format!
Yes, a cab from the airport will be fine.
Mirage has a great buffet!
Yes, a cab from the airport will be fine.
Mirage has a great buffet!
Jun 16th, 2005, 05:51 PM
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As a first timer, you don't want to miss seeing the fountains at Bellagio both during the day and at night.
The shops at Caesar's Palace and Aladdin are definately worth strolling through, and the Venetian can't be beat for atmosphere and ambiance.
We really enjoyed going down to "old" Vegas and seeing the "Freemont Street Experience". You'd need to take a cab, but its definately worth it and a nice change from the strip.
The days of cheap eats in Vegas seem to be over. We had to search a bit to find food that was reasonably priced (under 20.00 per meal) but we enjoyed the Pyramid Cafe in the Luxor and Calypsos in the Tropicana. Both were reasonably priced and had a wide variety of foods. Not much in the way of ambiance there, but for lunches, they were perfect.
There is a little Italian restaurant called Bertolini's in Caesar's Palace that has excellent food at more reasonable prices than many other places. You can sit "outside" there and people watch.
Are your Mom and Stepdad good for walking a lot? We spent hours and hours just wandering from one hotel to the next enjoying the themes and architectural diversity. AAAAhhhhhhhh Vegas!!!! Enjoy!!
The shops at Caesar's Palace and Aladdin are definately worth strolling through, and the Venetian can't be beat for atmosphere and ambiance.
We really enjoyed going down to "old" Vegas and seeing the "Freemont Street Experience". You'd need to take a cab, but its definately worth it and a nice change from the strip.
The days of cheap eats in Vegas seem to be over. We had to search a bit to find food that was reasonably priced (under 20.00 per meal) but we enjoyed the Pyramid Cafe in the Luxor and Calypsos in the Tropicana. Both were reasonably priced and had a wide variety of foods. Not much in the way of ambiance there, but for lunches, they were perfect.
There is a little Italian restaurant called Bertolini's in Caesar's Palace that has excellent food at more reasonable prices than many other places. You can sit "outside" there and people watch.
Are your Mom and Stepdad good for walking a lot? We spent hours and hours just wandering from one hotel to the next enjoying the themes and architectural diversity. AAAAhhhhhhhh Vegas!!!! Enjoy!!
Jun 16th, 2005, 05:54 PM
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Lots of free attractions in Vegas. Go to www.lasvegas.com
Jun 16th, 2005, 05:58 PM
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The restaurants we enjoyed last weekend were: Mon Ami Gabi, Mesa Grill (Bobby Flay's restaurant), we had Sunday brunch there. It was great. We also went back to Emeril's NO Fish House.
We had gelato at Bellagio, also had breakfast there by the pool--yogurt with fruit and granola. We are not gamblers either. We just enjoy the food, shopping and people watching.
We had gelato at Bellagio, also had breakfast there by the pool--yogurt with fruit and granola. We are not gamblers either. We just enjoy the food, shopping and people watching.
Jun 16th, 2005, 09:53 PM
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On a budget in Vegas the key word is "sharing"...portions are pretty big at lots of places and sharing is very popular. You can share a big salad and big dessert, or big sandwich and an appetizer at places like Cheesecake Factory in Caesars Palace and Grand Luxe Cafe (don't MISS this place) in the Venetian. Bertolini's in Caesars Forum has good salads and great brick oven pizza...Calif. Pizza Kitchen right in the Mirage is another good bet.
The Mirage and TI next door have great, newly-renovated buffets and the $15 lunch buffets will fill you up way past dinner. Kahunaville is a fun sandwich place in TI...and for your "splurge" meal maybe Canaletto (menu at IlFornaio.com) overlooking the Venetian Canals area or Mon Ami Gabi patio down at Paris if you get down to that end of the strip.
Food isn't too out-of-control expensive in Vegas but they will stiff you on the drinks and desserts at a lot of places. The days of the $7.95 dinner buffets are long gone, at least on the strip.
As for "what to do?"...with only 3 nights you'll have plenty to do just trying to SEE all of the hotels and casinos. Start with maybe Mirage-TI-Venetian-Wynn on your first night, 2nd day maybe get down to Caesar's (the Forum Shoppes alone can easily amuse you for 3 hours) and Bellagio, then on the last day maybe down to Paris, Aladdin, MGM and NYNY. Mandalay Bay is quite a hike from Mirage but you can always hop the trolley or take a cab.
I would say instead of planning on scheduled "gambling time", just concentrate on visiting as many of the big hotels as you can, and when you need a "break" from all the walking, agree to sit down for an hour or two at the machines/tables.
If you can all fit into a cab with your luggage, it should be about $20 to the Mirage with Sat traffic...there are also shuttle busses right outside the baggage claim area for about $8 roundtrip per person.
The Mirage and TI next door have great, newly-renovated buffets and the $15 lunch buffets will fill you up way past dinner. Kahunaville is a fun sandwich place in TI...and for your "splurge" meal maybe Canaletto (menu at IlFornaio.com) overlooking the Venetian Canals area or Mon Ami Gabi patio down at Paris if you get down to that end of the strip.
Food isn't too out-of-control expensive in Vegas but they will stiff you on the drinks and desserts at a lot of places. The days of the $7.95 dinner buffets are long gone, at least on the strip.
As for "what to do?"...with only 3 nights you'll have plenty to do just trying to SEE all of the hotels and casinos. Start with maybe Mirage-TI-Venetian-Wynn on your first night, 2nd day maybe get down to Caesar's (the Forum Shoppes alone can easily amuse you for 3 hours) and Bellagio, then on the last day maybe down to Paris, Aladdin, MGM and NYNY. Mandalay Bay is quite a hike from Mirage but you can always hop the trolley or take a cab.
I would say instead of planning on scheduled "gambling time", just concentrate on visiting as many of the big hotels as you can, and when you need a "break" from all the walking, agree to sit down for an hour or two at the machines/tables.
If you can all fit into a cab with your luggage, it should be about $20 to the Mirage with Sat traffic...there are also shuttle busses right outside the baggage claim area for about $8 roundtrip per person.
Jun 16th, 2005, 10:02 PM
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Yes, you can take a cab from the airport, but the line for the cabs is usually VERY long! You might be better off taking a shuttle. Plus, it's cheaper, but it might take you a little longer.
Totally agree with the other post about going to Downtown Vegas. Some VERY good bargains down there as far as eating.
You HAVE to see a show in Vegas! But stay away from the "big" shows unless you don't mind spending an arm and a leg. Depending on your budget, there are PLENTY of cheap, but good, shows in Vegas.
Totally agree with the other post about going to Downtown Vegas. Some VERY good bargains down there as far as eating.
You HAVE to see a show in Vegas! But stay away from the "big" shows unless you don't mind spending an arm and a leg. Depending on your budget, there are PLENTY of cheap, but good, shows in Vegas.
Jun 18th, 2005, 11:08 AM
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Just wanted to second tracys2cents on the Lux Cafe in Venetian and California Pizza Kitchen in Mirage. I have stayed at the Mirage on two separate trips and these were the two places I ate the most. If you like cappucino/latte type coffee drinks, you must order the honey vanilla latte at the Grand Lux. MMMMmmmmmmm!!!!!!
Mostly had breakfasts there, but also had one dinner and it was also excellent. I know they have a breakfast buffet- I did not do that because I can never eat enough to justify the price of a buffet, but the plates people were carrying by looked good. Their eggs benedict is fantastic.
Neither of these places are what I would call cheap by other city standards, but they're reasonable for Vegas and you do get a ton of food for the money, so if you're up for sharing you could keep the costs down.
Mostly had breakfasts there, but also had one dinner and it was also excellent. I know they have a breakfast buffet- I did not do that because I can never eat enough to justify the price of a buffet, but the plates people were carrying by looked good. Their eggs benedict is fantastic.
Neither of these places are what I would call cheap by other city standards, but they're reasonable for Vegas and you do get a ton of food for the money, so if you're up for sharing you could keep the costs down.
Jun 18th, 2005, 11:11 AM
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Also wanted to let you know- since you're staying at the Mirage and this is the only place I've seen it- if they have the table for War going, stay there and bet a few hands. I never failed to win any time I played, and it's low pressure and stupid easy to play. I spent five minutes there on our last day and won $80. The last time I was there, the table was on the end of the casino near the elevators. Everyone I've ever talked to who played ends up winning.
Jun 24th, 2005, 05:10 AM
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I agree that you should take in at least one show. I recommend Mystere at Treasure Island, not cheap but well worth it. I believe it is 80-90 or so. If that is too much for you, the Scintas at the Rio put on a great family oriented show. Ask around for discount tickets.
As far as gambling goes...Casino War is one of the worst games you could choose, odds wise. Throwing out red ($5) really quickly taking the chance that your card is higher than the dealers is a really bad idea. Certainly anyone can get lucky here and there but its a bigger losing proposition than many others.
Find a cheap roulettte table or learn a little BJ. by the way, Mirage is not a cheap place to gamble.
Make sure that you visit NYNY just cause and while you are in the area stop in at the Monte Carlo brew pub for lunch. May as well walk through the MGM because it is so big, it is a sight to see.
Plan your time in the forum shops to catch the free animatronic shows of the statues.
As far as gambling goes...Casino War is one of the worst games you could choose, odds wise. Throwing out red ($5) really quickly taking the chance that your card is higher than the dealers is a really bad idea. Certainly anyone can get lucky here and there but its a bigger losing proposition than many others.
Find a cheap roulettte table or learn a little BJ. by the way, Mirage is not a cheap place to gamble.
Make sure that you visit NYNY just cause and while you are in the area stop in at the Monte Carlo brew pub for lunch. May as well walk through the MGM because it is so big, it is a sight to see.
Plan your time in the forum shops to catch the free animatronic shows of the statues.
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