I was in Vegas earlier this year for work. I dressed preppy. But then again, I always dress preppy. :)

I think you can get away with anything in Vegas. For a guy, dark jeans and a blazer is probably fine. We went to some nice restaurants and my colleagues in jeans were fine (you should be too, provided they are nice jeans). The better question is, why go to Vegas :) - Yuck!

I should have known better than to engage in a discussion about Las Vegas.

At the risk of more abuse, I'll add that I know whereof I speak in my comparison, having been married to an A-list musician in the good 'ol days. We stayed there from time to time when he was booked there and I don't think it was just youth that made it enjoyable, as long as I didn't have to stay too long. It was a small town, we knew lots of people whose names you'd recognize and while there was always a mob-oriented element, it could be fun. But no good thing lasts forever.

Things don't have to stay the same to continue to be good and there are certainly entertaining shows now. But the ambiance of the town is gone, everything huge and overboard to attract more and more people and you know what that does to a place, the pervading trashy feel. But maybe everyone needs to go once.

<I>and you know what that does to a place, the pervading trashy feel</I>

Now I get it. Nobody goes there anymore, it is too crowded. Sprinkled with some nostalgia.

FWIW, I grew up in a small town that nobody visits. I don't think you have any clue what trashy is, if you think attracting visitors brings it.

In VEgas people wear - or don;t wear anything you can think of. You will be overdressed for everything except one or two of the most elegant restaurants. I have seen people in the casino in what appear to be their pajamas - and no one cares as long as they're losing. for the shows many people go in shorts and tees.

Romantic in Vegas??? Impossible, unless you like the "slappers" handing out porn everywhere you go!!
Romance in Vegas is an oxymoron!

What a ridiculous thread. Las Vegas has a dozen or more top-flight chefs' restaurants, household name stars in residence and performing nightly, gorgeous new hotels, and I could go on and on. To say that it is nothing but porn and trash is utter nonsense, and says more about the way those people choose to spend their time in Vegas than anything useful about Vegas.

If you stay in cheap hotels, wander the Strip aimlessly, eat at buffets and hang around the one armed bandits, then yes, Vegas is tacky. But that's only your limited view. The OP will have a fun, and yes, romantic weekend.

Sorry - Vegas is no more "romantic" than the average strip joint or "gentlemen's clubs".

While there are several upscale hotels and restaurants - the entire atmosphere is tacky, tacky tacky! And the homeless persons wandering the sidewalks handing out flyers for "escort services" or similar to everyone from the age of about 10 up is really NOT the worst of it.

I can think of no place less "romantic".

Wear what you want, do what you want, be yourself and see for yourself. It will be romantic and fun not because of where you are but who you are with.

<Vegas is no more "romantic" than the average strip joint or "gentlemen's clubs".>

nyt, since you seem to be familiar with such venues, I defer to your opinion of them. I have managed to go to Vegas without encountering any.

Wow - I leave the thread for a night and come back to a... very diverse and somewhat heated set of responses.

Here I pictured our long weekend as consisting of some fine dining, seeing a few shows, hanging out by the pool, and maybe a bit of shopping.

Now I guess my wife's birthday will consist of us getting kidnapped by homeless people and being held for ransom in sleazy strip clubs surrounded by tattooed thugs in tank tops and sleazy women wearing too tight pants with "juicy" splayed across their rear end.

And to think, all I wanted to know was whether or not I should pack a suit.

You don't need to pack a suit.

HTtT

Pack your oldest suit and give it to a homeless man. Do your part to make Vegas less tacky.

Well, that's one way to look at it.

What I'm taking from this thread is that should I ever find myself in Las Vegas, I will pick a nice hotel with a quiet pool scene, take part is some of the fine dining available, and perhaps take an excursion for a bit of sightseeing.

I don't really see myself there, but I'm sure I could put together a nice weekend.

MmePerdu: due to an accident of birth, I experienced "old" Las Vegas a few times while I was growing up and in my twenties. It was certainly clubby and atmospheric and glamorous.

I don't want to go back but might have to fly in and out of there on a hoped for trip to the Utah and AZ parks. I would treat myself to a nice restaurant if I do end up there.

If one selects carefully one can avoid much of the tacky. But that is what many people go for - and it is everywhere. I have been to several casinos in europe - and they are nothing like this (more like the James Bond version of a casino). And in those other cities we were not pursued by mobs of touts handing out flyers for X rated "entertainment".

It just depends on what you want.

If ind Las Vegas to be a very sad place - but then I'm not a gambler.

I've never been 'pursued by mobs of touts'. They don't chase people around the city, they stand around and pass things out to people as they walk by. Are they everywhere? No.

Wear what you think would be appropriate for the situation, regardless of the city. Period.

So,
<the entire atmosphere is tacky, tacky tacky!>
turns into
<If one selects carefully one can avoid much of the tacky.>

nyt, do you even try to make sense, I wonder?

<i>Sorry - Vegas is no more "romantic" than the average strip joint or "gentlemen's clubs".

While there are several upscale hotels and restaurants - the entire atmosphere is tacky, tacky tacky! And the homeless persons wandering the sidewalks handing out flyers for "escort services" or similar to everyone from the age of about 10 up is really NOT the worst of it.

I can think of no place less "romantic".</i>

By this logic, New York City isn't romantic.

<i>I've never been 'pursued by mobs of touts'. They don't chase people around the city, they stand around and pass things out to people as they walk by. Are they everywhere? No.
</i>

Agreed. I didn't find the touts that bad to be honest. Certainly way better than someplace like Southeast Asia, and plenty of people think Bali is plenty romantic.

<i>Here I pictured our long weekend as consisting of some fine dining, seeing a few shows, hanging out by the pool, and maybe a bit of shopping.</i>

I think you have a fine plan and the right attitude. For that sort of itinerary, Vegas is perfect. The only thing I might want to caution is that I'm not sure what the pool scene is like at Aria. From what I've read, it isn't terribly crowded and isn't basically a nightclub like some of the other hotels, but it is a big pool for a big hotel. If you wanted something more low-key, with more attentive service, you'd probably want to look into the Mandarin Oriental.

<i>What I'm taking from this thread is that should I ever find myself in Las Vegas, I will pick a nice hotel with a quiet pool scene, take part is some of the fine dining available, and perhaps take an excursion for a bit of sightseeing.

I don't really see myself there, but I'm sure I could put together a nice weekend. </i>

Your attitude is exactly right. If you can't put together a nice weekend in Vegas, it is only because you refuse to have a nice weekend there.

<<Here I pictured our long weekend as consisting of some fine dining, seeing a few shows, hanging out by the pool, and maybe a bit of shopping.>>

Easy to do. I don't love Vegas, but it's one of very few direct flight options from where I live, and my husband and I have done a couple of weekends exactly like you describe.

I do prefer the north end of the strip a little better (Wynn area) than the south end because I like being closer to the shops at Caesars and the mall that is across from the Wynn hotel.

MEN

Feather earrings
Tube top
Hot pants
Flip-flops

<I>I do prefer the north end of the strip a little better (Wynn area) than the south end because I like being closer to the shops at Caesars and the mall that is across from the Wynn hotel.</I>

We stayed at the Wynn last time but prefer City Center because we prefer the restaurants at Aria and The Cosmopolitan. That being said, we ate off-strip a lot last time (Raku, Kabuto, Fat Choy), so not sure it mattered that much. FWIW, though, I think the Mandarin Oriental is way better than the Wynn.