Las Vegas for the Non-Vegas Type: A Trip Report
Jan 22nd, 2008, 12:52 PM
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Las Vegas for the Non-Vegas Type: A Trip Report
This is my second trip in a year to a destination I’ve chosen despite my not being the “type” who typically enjoys that sort of place (the other trip was to Grand Cayman). In each case, I found myself in a wildly popular destination for reasons that overrode my typical reluctance to visit. (Indeed, “popular” rarely figures in to my vacation choices, as I tend to prefer leaving the well-trod path.) In the case of Las Vegas, it was to help my sister celebrate her 10th wedding anniversary. She and her husband, as well as all the others who joined them, are repeat Vegas visitors; I was the only “virgin.”
Vegas: It’s Busy
Lucky for most of us, we’d planned this trip well in advance. The combination of the MLK holiday weekend, and the AFC and NFC championship games, meant that flights and hotels were PACKED. In fact, some of our party were unable to get rooms at our headquarters hotel because they booked later.
We flew Southwest non-stop from our home airport, BWI. (I don’t usually fly Southwest because I like assigned seats, but am grateful that Southwest’s presence at BWI keeps all the majors competitive for the domestic routes we ordinarily fly. In this case, we made an exception and chose Southwest because their flight schedules were better.) Both inbound and outbound flights were fully booked. We checked into our flights within seconds of being able to do so, and discovered that getting an “A” boarding pass is somewhat like scoring tickets to a Jimmy Buffett concert. We managed to get A group both ways, but just barely for the return flight. Beyond the hassle of getting loaded up and settled in, both flights were close to on-time and unremarkable.
On arrival, I started getting a sense of the magnitude of Vegas as a tourism magnet. The airport was mobbed, but it was a controlled sort of chaos that included orderly queues for shuttles and taxis. It took a good 15 minutes to reach our hotel by taxi, even though it was visible from the airport, so congested is traffic, even in the middle of the afternoon. And the line to check in at our hotel was long, even though it was hours before the official check-in time.
Our hotel was THEhotel at Mandalay Bay. Only after a few days in Vegas did I fully appreciate what an oasis THEhotel is compared to other large hotels on the Strip. Though part of the Mandalay Bay complex, THEhotel has a separate entrance and lobby that has nothing to do with the noise and smoke and congestion of the casinos which seem to front every other hotel. THEhotel has no casino, though Mandalay Bay’s is not far away by enclosed walkway.
THEhotel is studiously hip and stylish, though unlike many other boutique hotels, the rooms are generous suites (the smallest at 725 square feet), not shoe boxes. It’s all creamy marble and chocolate/coffee brown accents in the public areas, and even more chocolate in the rooms. The rooms are dark almost to a fault, exacerbated by the fact that fluorescent bulbs in every single light fixture take some time to warm up to full illumination … don’t go into either of the 1.5 baths thinking you’re going to touch up your lipstick immediately, unless you don’t mind missing the mark in the slowly brightening darkness.
Darkness aside, the only other complaint we might have had with our room was that it had no view, unless you count the HVAC plant and the parking structure a “view.” I suppose that’s the price of checking in early. But we just drew the curtains and moved on, choosing instead to enjoy the living room large enough to host 9 of us to watch the second playoff game on Sunday, the beautiful marble bath, the comfortable bed, the wet bar, the 3 flat-screen TVs, etc.
Vegas: It’s Big and Expensive
Aside from popularity (read: crowds), the next thing I noticed about Vegas is that it is BIG. Deceptively so. We arrived early Friday afternoon, and once checked in, my goal was to shop. In fact, I’d deferred my year-end consumer urges for this trip, planning to achieve some wish-fulfillment at the Forum Shops at Caesar’s Palace. What looked on a map to be just a few doors down from THEhotel was, instead, a 20-minute cab ride away – the trip being so long not only because the giant hotels’ footprints require some distance, but also because traffic is so hideous.
We took a lot of cab rides over the course of our long weekend, including 6 on our first day (those red suede boots were NOT made for walking…), and not a single one clocked in under $10 before tip, even though they were all confined to the Strip.
The Forum Shops were everything I’d hoped for, and I got the few things I’d planned on getting, as well as a few others (c’mon ladies, you just KNOW that red suede pointy-toed boots are not really an impulse because they will go with EVERYTHING…). The array of shops here, and elsewhere (including the Venetian and Mandalay Place), was mind-boggling. With the likes of Harry Winston, Louis Vuitton, Dolce & Gabbana, and Jimmy Choo leading the pack, Coach and Kate Spade start to look low-rent by comparison. The store proprietors have willing targets for their wares, with windfalls at the tables, or seriously compromised inhibitions, or big budgets resulting in open wallets.
It seems that the high-end shopping is symptomatic of what is happening to Vegas in general. The newest hotels attracting all the buzz are outdoing each other with opulence and amenities, while older hotels are being demolished to make room for the more exclusive ones. Those that aren’t facing a date with the wrecking ball and dynamite are making heroic efforts to reclaim their status, such as Luxor, which I’d understood was in decline but has now been revived because of the addition of a hot new club (LAX).
Hot clubs are de rigueur in Vegas, and the longer the line to get in, the greater the cachet. But it’s also a matter of timing. The club atop THEhotel (Mix), for example, sported a long line to get in at 10, but our group stopped there for pre-dinner drinks at the unfashionably early hour of 7 with no wait whatsoever, and got to enjoy the spectacular nighttime view of the Strip.
Vegas: It’s Delicious
While I’m not the typical Vegas type since I’m not much of a gambler, I can certainly appreciate shopping, and I also like dining out. We had two planned dinners – one by ourselves, and one with the group -- while the rest was done on the fly.
Our first dinner was at Bouchon, in the Venetian. This is celebrated chef Thomas Keller’s bistro contribution to Vegas cuisine, and the experience of dining there was worth every penny and calorie. The staff were incredibly efficient, engaging, and informed, and helped us order up a memorable meal. Of course, with the foie gras terrine (and appropriate dessert wine accompaniment) as our starter, the meal could go nowhere but downhill. (When I asked the waiter whether it was “sex on a plate,” he assured me that it was better – “a foursome”. Yikes!) For entrees, we had classic moules et frites and braised short ribs, all capped off with a pear tart to share for dessert.
Saturday’s dinner at Aureole at Mandalay Bay was spectacular for its food … and, unfortunately, inattentive service. Aureole is best known for the 4-story wine “cellar” with wine “angels” fetching bottles as they are hoisted up and down in harnesses. The wine list is so expansive, it is delivered via tablet computer. Our evening started out well, with cocktails and delicious starters (I had ahi tuna 3 ways), but by the time our main courses turned up, our waiter tuned out, disappearing for 45 minutes before someone came to take dessert orders (which were included in the prix fixe menu). In order to appease us, we were brought another round of desserts, which went largely untouched since we’d already gotten – and paid for – the desserts we’d finally ordered.
Mandalay dining was redeemed on Sunday, when our group of 8 had dinner at China Grill, a high-concept Asian fusion restaurant. Service here was excellent, and the food creative, well-prepared and delicious. But the expectation that appetizers and entrees are sized in portions meant to be shared put the onus on us to pass platters and divide up the food (e.g. 5 dumplings to be split 8 ways), and this was a bit annoying.
Not since I lived in New Orleans have I seen a locale as liberal about carrying around open containers of booze as Vegas. Perhaps even more liberal, because at least in New Orleans, we were in the habit of emptying our glasses into plastic “go cups” as we left an establishment. So I was momentarily taken aback when I ordered a drink in THEhotel’s lobby bar in a “go cup” only to be handed a glass and sent on my way. But since booze is one of the lubricants that opens gamblers’ wallets, it shouldn’t surprise me.
Vegas: It’s Tacky
One of the things I was looking forward to in Las Vegas was getting an eyeful of architecture. And for the most part, it was irredeemably tacky and flashy, and all intended to draw the visitor though the casino as often as possible. Friday night, we saw a show (Second City) at an “old school” casino, The Flamingo. We arrived there 20 minutes before our show, needing to pick up tickets at the box office first. Whether by unintentional misdirection or design, we were sent running through the casino in every direction but the correct one to pick up those tickets and get seated for that show at the very last minute. (The show, incidentally, was very entertaining, mixing up Second City’s cutting social commentary with a lot of goofin’ on Vegas and tourists.)
Many of the newer casinos hew slavishly to themes. I was most curious to visit the Venetian, having played a tiny part in the hotel’s development, so we spent a couple hours there on Saturday. My breath was taken away – not by the quality of the architecture, but by the fact that someone thought it would be a good idea to reproduce the canals of Venice and St. Mark’s Square and then DID IT. I was not transported to Venezia for a second, but the lighting and atmosphere were so cleverly and artfully conceived, that at times I forgot that I was trapped indoors and was instead strolling under a sunlit blue sky.
At least daytime at the Venetian simulates daytime. Everywhere else, it seems, is permanently evening. At least at Luxor (the inside of a pyramid) and Excalibur (a dark medieval castle), the darkness is thematically defensible. But at New York, New York, the reproduction streets of the City that Never Sleeps are set just after dusk. We spent many an hour here, having taken up residence at a bar to watch the Patriots/Chargers game, with the greatest entertainment coming for a foul- and loud-mouthed 20-something woman who was “cheering” with her entire being for the Chargers (and was eventually asked to leave by security).
When I first saw the Atlantis complex on Paradise Island, it seemed so incongruous and out of place, it could only be a mirage. So appear the big Vegas hotels, which, I suppose is only fitting since they’ve sprouted out of the desert.
Las Vegas: It’s Grand
Of course, I had the same mirage-like vibe when I first laid eyes on the Sydney Opera House … something so iconic, so much larger-than-life, that when you finally see it, you can’t believe it’s real. But in a good way. And so I felt when we took a helicopter tour of the Grand Canyon, which I’d never seen before now.
I suppose the helicopter tours are tacky-touristy (the Second City folks certainly had no mercy), but what a way to travel!! We booked with Sundance helicopter tours, and were picked up at our hotel in a stretch limousine, which whisked us to a site at the edge of the airport. Within a few minutes, we were scissoring past the Strip, then on over Hoover Dam and Lake Mead, and then over the Grand Canyon – down in the canyon and whizzing along the Colorado River. I won’t try to put words to the experience, but will simply say that the creations of man (e.g. the Vegas Strip) have absolutely NOTHING on nature.
We landed in the canyon, above the river, and took a walk around and had a champagne lunch. The weather was optimal, at 55 degrees and sunny. We simply could not have asked for a better experience.
Vegas: It’s Disorienting
I definitely enjoyed my Vegas experience, and got as much out of it as I’d hoped to (and walked away from the casinos with a net $11 gain). But it’s a hard place to relax, since the whole time I was there, I never felt quite good, or right. The 3-hour time difference from the East Coast got ruthlessly shoved aside, as I stayed up (much) later and got up (a little) later than my normal clock would dictate. The lack of humidity wrought havoc with my system, as did the constant stank of cigarette and cigar smoke. The constant noise of the casinos and crush of people was enervating. And eating and drinking beyond normal limits is never a good thing. So it was actually a relief to board the big bird and go home.
I don’t know that I’d ever return to Las Vegas just for the heck of it. With my limited and precious vacation time, there are places I’d much rather go, like New Orleans (which NEEDS all of us) or Key West. But I’m glad I did it, and don’t regret a single minute.
Vegas: It’s Busy
Lucky for most of us, we’d planned this trip well in advance. The combination of the MLK holiday weekend, and the AFC and NFC championship games, meant that flights and hotels were PACKED. In fact, some of our party were unable to get rooms at our headquarters hotel because they booked later.
We flew Southwest non-stop from our home airport, BWI. (I don’t usually fly Southwest because I like assigned seats, but am grateful that Southwest’s presence at BWI keeps all the majors competitive for the domestic routes we ordinarily fly. In this case, we made an exception and chose Southwest because their flight schedules were better.) Both inbound and outbound flights were fully booked. We checked into our flights within seconds of being able to do so, and discovered that getting an “A” boarding pass is somewhat like scoring tickets to a Jimmy Buffett concert. We managed to get A group both ways, but just barely for the return flight. Beyond the hassle of getting loaded up and settled in, both flights were close to on-time and unremarkable.
On arrival, I started getting a sense of the magnitude of Vegas as a tourism magnet. The airport was mobbed, but it was a controlled sort of chaos that included orderly queues for shuttles and taxis. It took a good 15 minutes to reach our hotel by taxi, even though it was visible from the airport, so congested is traffic, even in the middle of the afternoon. And the line to check in at our hotel was long, even though it was hours before the official check-in time.
Our hotel was THEhotel at Mandalay Bay. Only after a few days in Vegas did I fully appreciate what an oasis THEhotel is compared to other large hotels on the Strip. Though part of the Mandalay Bay complex, THEhotel has a separate entrance and lobby that has nothing to do with the noise and smoke and congestion of the casinos which seem to front every other hotel. THEhotel has no casino, though Mandalay Bay’s is not far away by enclosed walkway.
THEhotel is studiously hip and stylish, though unlike many other boutique hotels, the rooms are generous suites (the smallest at 725 square feet), not shoe boxes. It’s all creamy marble and chocolate/coffee brown accents in the public areas, and even more chocolate in the rooms. The rooms are dark almost to a fault, exacerbated by the fact that fluorescent bulbs in every single light fixture take some time to warm up to full illumination … don’t go into either of the 1.5 baths thinking you’re going to touch up your lipstick immediately, unless you don’t mind missing the mark in the slowly brightening darkness.
Darkness aside, the only other complaint we might have had with our room was that it had no view, unless you count the HVAC plant and the parking structure a “view.” I suppose that’s the price of checking in early. But we just drew the curtains and moved on, choosing instead to enjoy the living room large enough to host 9 of us to watch the second playoff game on Sunday, the beautiful marble bath, the comfortable bed, the wet bar, the 3 flat-screen TVs, etc.
Vegas: It’s Big and Expensive
Aside from popularity (read: crowds), the next thing I noticed about Vegas is that it is BIG. Deceptively so. We arrived early Friday afternoon, and once checked in, my goal was to shop. In fact, I’d deferred my year-end consumer urges for this trip, planning to achieve some wish-fulfillment at the Forum Shops at Caesar’s Palace. What looked on a map to be just a few doors down from THEhotel was, instead, a 20-minute cab ride away – the trip being so long not only because the giant hotels’ footprints require some distance, but also because traffic is so hideous.
We took a lot of cab rides over the course of our long weekend, including 6 on our first day (those red suede boots were NOT made for walking…), and not a single one clocked in under $10 before tip, even though they were all confined to the Strip.
The Forum Shops were everything I’d hoped for, and I got the few things I’d planned on getting, as well as a few others (c’mon ladies, you just KNOW that red suede pointy-toed boots are not really an impulse because they will go with EVERYTHING…). The array of shops here, and elsewhere (including the Venetian and Mandalay Place), was mind-boggling. With the likes of Harry Winston, Louis Vuitton, Dolce & Gabbana, and Jimmy Choo leading the pack, Coach and Kate Spade start to look low-rent by comparison. The store proprietors have willing targets for their wares, with windfalls at the tables, or seriously compromised inhibitions, or big budgets resulting in open wallets.
It seems that the high-end shopping is symptomatic of what is happening to Vegas in general. The newest hotels attracting all the buzz are outdoing each other with opulence and amenities, while older hotels are being demolished to make room for the more exclusive ones. Those that aren’t facing a date with the wrecking ball and dynamite are making heroic efforts to reclaim their status, such as Luxor, which I’d understood was in decline but has now been revived because of the addition of a hot new club (LAX).
Hot clubs are de rigueur in Vegas, and the longer the line to get in, the greater the cachet. But it’s also a matter of timing. The club atop THEhotel (Mix), for example, sported a long line to get in at 10, but our group stopped there for pre-dinner drinks at the unfashionably early hour of 7 with no wait whatsoever, and got to enjoy the spectacular nighttime view of the Strip.
Vegas: It’s Delicious
While I’m not the typical Vegas type since I’m not much of a gambler, I can certainly appreciate shopping, and I also like dining out. We had two planned dinners – one by ourselves, and one with the group -- while the rest was done on the fly.
Our first dinner was at Bouchon, in the Venetian. This is celebrated chef Thomas Keller’s bistro contribution to Vegas cuisine, and the experience of dining there was worth every penny and calorie. The staff were incredibly efficient, engaging, and informed, and helped us order up a memorable meal. Of course, with the foie gras terrine (and appropriate dessert wine accompaniment) as our starter, the meal could go nowhere but downhill. (When I asked the waiter whether it was “sex on a plate,” he assured me that it was better – “a foursome”. Yikes!) For entrees, we had classic moules et frites and braised short ribs, all capped off with a pear tart to share for dessert.
Saturday’s dinner at Aureole at Mandalay Bay was spectacular for its food … and, unfortunately, inattentive service. Aureole is best known for the 4-story wine “cellar” with wine “angels” fetching bottles as they are hoisted up and down in harnesses. The wine list is so expansive, it is delivered via tablet computer. Our evening started out well, with cocktails and delicious starters (I had ahi tuna 3 ways), but by the time our main courses turned up, our waiter tuned out, disappearing for 45 minutes before someone came to take dessert orders (which were included in the prix fixe menu). In order to appease us, we were brought another round of desserts, which went largely untouched since we’d already gotten – and paid for – the desserts we’d finally ordered.
Mandalay dining was redeemed on Sunday, when our group of 8 had dinner at China Grill, a high-concept Asian fusion restaurant. Service here was excellent, and the food creative, well-prepared and delicious. But the expectation that appetizers and entrees are sized in portions meant to be shared put the onus on us to pass platters and divide up the food (e.g. 5 dumplings to be split 8 ways), and this was a bit annoying.
Not since I lived in New Orleans have I seen a locale as liberal about carrying around open containers of booze as Vegas. Perhaps even more liberal, because at least in New Orleans, we were in the habit of emptying our glasses into plastic “go cups” as we left an establishment. So I was momentarily taken aback when I ordered a drink in THEhotel’s lobby bar in a “go cup” only to be handed a glass and sent on my way. But since booze is one of the lubricants that opens gamblers’ wallets, it shouldn’t surprise me.
Vegas: It’s Tacky
One of the things I was looking forward to in Las Vegas was getting an eyeful of architecture. And for the most part, it was irredeemably tacky and flashy, and all intended to draw the visitor though the casino as often as possible. Friday night, we saw a show (Second City) at an “old school” casino, The Flamingo. We arrived there 20 minutes before our show, needing to pick up tickets at the box office first. Whether by unintentional misdirection or design, we were sent running through the casino in every direction but the correct one to pick up those tickets and get seated for that show at the very last minute. (The show, incidentally, was very entertaining, mixing up Second City’s cutting social commentary with a lot of goofin’ on Vegas and tourists.)
Many of the newer casinos hew slavishly to themes. I was most curious to visit the Venetian, having played a tiny part in the hotel’s development, so we spent a couple hours there on Saturday. My breath was taken away – not by the quality of the architecture, but by the fact that someone thought it would be a good idea to reproduce the canals of Venice and St. Mark’s Square and then DID IT. I was not transported to Venezia for a second, but the lighting and atmosphere were so cleverly and artfully conceived, that at times I forgot that I was trapped indoors and was instead strolling under a sunlit blue sky.
At least daytime at the Venetian simulates daytime. Everywhere else, it seems, is permanently evening. At least at Luxor (the inside of a pyramid) and Excalibur (a dark medieval castle), the darkness is thematically defensible. But at New York, New York, the reproduction streets of the City that Never Sleeps are set just after dusk. We spent many an hour here, having taken up residence at a bar to watch the Patriots/Chargers game, with the greatest entertainment coming for a foul- and loud-mouthed 20-something woman who was “cheering” with her entire being for the Chargers (and was eventually asked to leave by security).
When I first saw the Atlantis complex on Paradise Island, it seemed so incongruous and out of place, it could only be a mirage. So appear the big Vegas hotels, which, I suppose is only fitting since they’ve sprouted out of the desert.
Las Vegas: It’s Grand
Of course, I had the same mirage-like vibe when I first laid eyes on the Sydney Opera House … something so iconic, so much larger-than-life, that when you finally see it, you can’t believe it’s real. But in a good way. And so I felt when we took a helicopter tour of the Grand Canyon, which I’d never seen before now.
I suppose the helicopter tours are tacky-touristy (the Second City folks certainly had no mercy), but what a way to travel!! We booked with Sundance helicopter tours, and were picked up at our hotel in a stretch limousine, which whisked us to a site at the edge of the airport. Within a few minutes, we were scissoring past the Strip, then on over Hoover Dam and Lake Mead, and then over the Grand Canyon – down in the canyon and whizzing along the Colorado River. I won’t try to put words to the experience, but will simply say that the creations of man (e.g. the Vegas Strip) have absolutely NOTHING on nature.
We landed in the canyon, above the river, and took a walk around and had a champagne lunch. The weather was optimal, at 55 degrees and sunny. We simply could not have asked for a better experience.
Vegas: It’s Disorienting
I definitely enjoyed my Vegas experience, and got as much out of it as I’d hoped to (and walked away from the casinos with a net $11 gain). But it’s a hard place to relax, since the whole time I was there, I never felt quite good, or right. The 3-hour time difference from the East Coast got ruthlessly shoved aside, as I stayed up (much) later and got up (a little) later than my normal clock would dictate. The lack of humidity wrought havoc with my system, as did the constant stank of cigarette and cigar smoke. The constant noise of the casinos and crush of people was enervating. And eating and drinking beyond normal limits is never a good thing. So it was actually a relief to board the big bird and go home.
I don’t know that I’d ever return to Las Vegas just for the heck of it. With my limited and precious vacation time, there are places I’d much rather go, like New Orleans (which NEEDS all of us) or Key West. But I’m glad I did it, and don’t regret a single minute.
Jan 22nd, 2008, 01:47 PM
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Outstanding, well written report from a different perspective. You're honest, but open-minded and give a good account of the feel of the place. Vegas is not nirvana for everyone, but it has its place in the travel scene. A little bit is plenty. Thanks so much for sharing!
Jan 22nd, 2008, 02:22 PM
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I had somewhat the same reactions to Vegas as you did after my 1st trip. But 2nd time I was on an expense account and I liked it a LOT better. Not a bad place on someone else's dollar. And I agree re the Venetian restaurant, I had a great fresh fish meal there on that expense acct...
Jan 22nd, 2008, 02:32 PM
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Thank you for a thoroughly enjoyable trip report.
I ate at Aureole a few years back and had a truly memorable meal, both food and service were outstanding. Though when I ate there was mid-week in mid-September, so the restaurant was not to capacity (not that that's an excuse for poor service).
Jan 24th, 2008, 12:12 PM
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Thanks for the overview....I too agree with many of the things you said. I have been there 3 times previously.
My hubby and I are headed there in a week and we look forward to doing the non-gambling, non-drinking things that the area has to offer. We do not stay on the strip as we both do not like the casino hotels smoke and the traffic trying to get around from the strip.
We will golf, see a few shows, go to Red Rock Canyon, Hoover Dam and of course hang out on the strip to people watch.
My hubby and I are headed there in a week and we look forward to doing the non-gambling, non-drinking things that the area has to offer. We do not stay on the strip as we both do not like the casino hotels smoke and the traffic trying to get around from the strip.
We will golf, see a few shows, go to Red Rock Canyon, Hoover Dam and of course hang out on the strip to people watch.
