Hello all.
I will be traveling to Vegas next week with my husband and the in-laws - no kids . We will be in town on Friday and Saturday and also for a 1/2 day on Monday before our midnight flight back home. I am the only planner in the whole bunch and was wondering what would be good to see and do for first-timers? Also would love some budget minded options for meals. (Buffets or quick bits would be good)Also I love shrimp - any good places? It would also be nice to find out a sequential order to do things. In the past we have toured together and I have found that they all seem to send me in circles and we really don't see or do anything. Trip is also not really allowing time or money for a fancy show. However, it would be nice to check out some free or lower cost option. If you could include a romantic spot for drinks for my husband and I to sneak away for a while that would be nice too. Remember, I'm a first-timer who is from farm country, Indiana so I'm sure it will not take too much to muse me. Thanks for any and all reponses in advance. Michele

I would suggest that you go to the Freemont Street lights show (Downtown) in the evening - it's pretty cool and free.

For Romance just walk along the fountains outside Bellagio in the evening, performances I think are every 15 minutes up til 2300.

IF you're into Elvis then the Elivs-A-Rama musuem is quite cool. It's a bus / taxi ride away from the strip.

This is quite a good list of things to do....
http://las-vegas-hotels.tripadvisor....as_Nevada.html

One reasonably priced buffet is at The Orleans. It's off strip, but there should be a shuttle from Barbary Coast. They have 5 or 6 different food types, plus a salad and dessert bar. I've heard the buffet at the Palms is good as well, but I haven't tried it yet. That should be in the same price range ($10-15 for dinner).

I second the thought on the Bellagio fountains for a romantic spot. They don't have any benches, but you're free to wander around with wine and watch as long as you want. We enjoy the enterior of the Venetian a lot, too. They have benches scattered by the grand canal, and you can hear the gondoliers singing in Italian as they glide by. Aaaah, Venice. Even when it's fake, it's great!

I also second the idea of Fremont St. It's pretty neat to walk around and watch 1 or 2 light shows. It's quite a sight to see all the casinos turn off their lights in preparation. While you're down there, there's many places with cheap shrimp cocktail. ($0.99/1.99 for a glass) I think the Plaza and 4 Queens has a good one. My Dad has to go there at the end of his visit for a quick shrimp cocktail fix...

For a good afternoon show, Rick Thomas at the Tropicana is excellent. I think tickets run under $20, and you should be able to get buy one get one free tickets as well. I think the Tropicana Players club was giving away free tickets just for signing up recently. He does magic and has some white tigers- it's a rather amusing way to spend a few hours. Sorry for the long reply, but I hope it helps you plan!

I third the Bellagio fountains for a romantic spot with your husband. I can watch those all day, but definately see it at night if you have a chance.

Check out www.lasvegas.com on their attractions page. They list all the free attractions. Plus Fodor's has a good 3 day itinerary you can get some ideas.

One thing I haven't seen all the way through is the Masquerade in the sky at Rio. I caught the last part of it and it was pretty impressive, but only runs about every 90 minutes so you have to plan for it.

First time I went we stayed at Luxor and never made it past Caesar's Palace and we were on the go for the weekend.

For some inexpensive ideas, check out cheapovegas.com It's a very comical website.

If you do want to see a show and not spend a great deal of money, go to the 1/2 price ticket booth at the big coke bottle.

Have fun....the first time I went to Vegas, we did a lot of walking on the strip and also took the Hoover Dam tour. Take comfortable shoes...what appears to be right next door is a loooong way away!!

DEFINITELY check out cheapovegas.com to find out what hotels, restaurants, and attractions match your budget and your interests.

We did a low budget trip to Vegas last spring. We stayed at the Luxor in a very exotic, large room for $65 a night. One of the most fun things to do is walk up the strip, and stop at all the hotels. Most of them have free live music, and some of it is quite good, like Motown revues, Prince impersonator, etc. New York New York had the most interesting variety of entertainment - a rowdy piano sing along bar, a cool jazz/blues band, and a loud and frantic dance club. There is sooo much to see and do on the strip that is free or very inexpensive - although one Vegas visit was enough for us!

There are many free things to see in Vegas. The pirate show outside of treasure Island, the volcano outside of the mIrage, and my favorite thing to do is to watch the bellagio fountains at night. A perfect place to have a drink would be at Mon Ami Gabi at paris -directly across from the Bellagio. It is a French themed restaurant with outdoor seating.
As a first timer, I would spend the time walking through the hotels - walk through the Venetian, the Bellagio conservatory, etc.
IF you want to splurge on a buffet- go to the to the Bellagio.

If you're anywhere near the Aladdin, their buffet is tops and they have cocktail shrimp plus a shrimp pasta dish on the night menu & on Sunday brunch. Brunch includes bloody marys!

Between the Paris hotel and Aladdin hotel on the sidewalk, you will see little racks with coupon booklets. We found "$5 off buffet early bird" coupons in the booklet....valid until 10am for brunch and from I think 4 to 5:30pm dinner

Thank you all for such quick responces to my questions. I will be checking out the adviced web addresses this week.

A few more questions though-

Should we go see Hover Dam or not?

Valley of the fire vs. Red Rock????
or another place instead.... remember we have never been to here before.
Thanks again!

Here's a vote for Valley of Fire. Pix at http://community.webshots.com/user/bookhall in album towards bottom. We didn't do Hoover Dam, though we did see it from the outside--had no desire to do the tour.

Take comfortable shoes on your Vegas trip--don't underestimate the amount of walking involved....

Check out chepovegas...this will give you a start. You wont even come close to seeing everything in 2 nights. I would hit downtown on the way to the airport since you have a late flight. Spend the rest of your time on the strip from the "South" end up to Treasure Island. Once you get past TI there isn't much going on. You might want to buy the Fodors book on Vegas and read it on the plane. You can also watch the Travel Channel every night..its always about Vegas.

I do not know much about the food . I have been there many times and most of the food is nothing special. The buffet at Bellagio the sea food was not good. The buffet at Alladin was better. At Paris the buffet was not good only the cakes. The buffet at Mandolobay is good but you have to call ahead of time and find out the prices, it does not pay to walk there and ask it is too long.
Yet I would like to tell you about the hotels that are a must to see
First Luxor, see the entrance, go down to see the buffet area it is beautiful it is built like an excavation site. and also go upstairs where the Mcdonald is, it is also built like an ancient city.
the other beautiful ones on the inside are Aladin, Paris,Venitian, NY NY (walk all the side streets), Bellagio (outside the water fountain, and the flower garden). there is a tram between bellagio and the hotel next to it. Also a tram between Bali and MGM if I am not mistaken. It is nice to take them because you get to see they whole
Treasure Island is very pretty on the outside AND AT night at certain times they have the pirate's battle which is also very pretty. There is also a tram or a train that goes around on the streets between the hotels. It has a limited time schedules.

In Ceasars there is a big promenade and a shopping mall unless you have extra time.

Actually all the big hotels are beautiful and very clean. The ones that I listed are special on the inside they are a work of art.
Just remember that the walking between the hotels is very time consuming and tiring.

The valley of Fire one hour a way (door to door) is beautiful if you have time.
Zion National Park is only 2 1/2 hours away but I do not think you have the time for it.

Hmm... I have to disagree a bit on your buffet choices, Madi. I felt that Mandalay Bay was a big ripoff for dinner. It was around $25/pp and had a very little selection. The only redeeming factor were the king crab legs, which were served cold (I prefer hot). I enjoy the Paris buffet immensely, and I'm not fond of French food in general. I think it's much more worth the price (about the same), based on the selection and variety, as well as the gourmet cooking stations available.

I do agree the Luxor is cool. The buffet has also gotten better- the quality used to be so-so. We ate there the day before Christmas and it was really good. Also, the pirate show is no longer pirates. They now have sirens- half clad women instead of the traditional pirate show. I haven't seend the new show yet, but I've heard it's less family-friendly, to fit with the TI's new look and marketing scheme.