5 Days In Vegas! (USA Part 3)
Well Vegas, you definitely lived up to the hype! After 2 busy weeks away at this point, we were looking forward to chilling out for our last 5 days on holiday. I didn't really have anything major planned and just thought we would go with the flow. We arrived in very late on our first evening and as soon as we arrived at the airport in Vegas it was clear what we were going to be in for! There were pokies everywhere! Neon lights and gambling paraphernalia stretched as far as the eye could see. It was after 2am at this point so the airport was very quiet so it was a quick exit and into our waiting transfer. The Las Vegas Strip is only about 10 minutes from McCarran International Airport so it wasn't long before we found ourselves checking in at our final hotel, The Flamingo Hotel & Casino. Upon arriving and walking through to the lobby, the first thing I noticed was the huge Casino which was adjacent to the check in area! Exactly what I'd expected! By this time it was close to 3am so we went straight to our room which was large, modern and bright. I was impressed! They even had pink mood lighting in the bathroom (which you could turn off if you wanted) and a TV in the mirror. A nice touch! Plus the comfiest bed we had for the whole trip which was also a welcome addition!
When we woke up and opened the curtains the next morning we were greeted with an amazing view over the High Roller, the pool and the mountain range in the distance. We were on the 20th floor so could see for miles. Our morning was spent exploring the area and the surrounding casinos. Neither of us are big gamblers but you appreciate the effort that goes in to creating the themes all the same! Caesars Palace and the Bellagio were pretty much across the road from the Flamingo so they were our first points of call and they were both everything I expected, luxurious, opulent, and impressive. The Caesars pool on its own was a sight to behold. I can definitely see why they are such popular choices!
We walked down to the Miracle Mile which was only a couple of minutes walk from the Flamingo. It is literally a shopping complex that is a mile long, full of shops, boutiques, restaurants, cafes and bars. Something for everyone. On recommendation from friends, we had dinner that evening in the Miracle Mile at a place called Blondies which was a typical American sports bar where the girls wore cheerleader uniforms and the served probably the best potato skins I have ever had! For those of you who don't know what potato skins are, they are a popular American appetiser. Basically a baked potato which has been sliced in half, part of the potato removed and filled with crispy bacon, spring onion, cheese and sour cream. Soooooooo good!
After dinner we decided to take a ride on the High Roller (similar to the London Eye) which is a 30 minute cycle and reaches 550ft at its highest point. We were super lucky that while we were near the top, the Bellagio Dancing Fountain Show started so we were able to watch the show from up there. Amazing views at night time over the Strip! It's definitely a must!
My plan for our second day was to do a bit of shopping at the famous Vegas outlets! There is a northern and a southern outlet mall however we decided to explore the southern ones. They are called the Las Vegas South Premium Outlets for those playing at home. There are almost 150 shops with something for every budget. We found that shoes were an absolute bargain, even with the bad exchange rate. There is a food court, cafes, Starbucks etc to keep you fuelled as well.
In the afternoon we wanted to see if we could get our hands on some discounted Cirque Du Soleil tickets. We had noticed a discount booth near our hotel so we went to check it out. They had the same set up at the New York booth where as you could purchase discounted tickets for same day shows. You could even buy discounted restaurant and tour vouchers which was cool. It was called Tix4Tonight and we managed to pick up some tickets for Cirque Du Soleil Zumanity which were half price, along with a 50% off your bill voucher at Planet Dailies Restaurant. The show was held at New York New York so we headed up that way in the evening after our cheap dinner (a $4 voucher saved us $30). The show was an 18+ variety and it was both hilarious and amazing. Definitely worth checking out!
Day three had us doing something a bit different. My husband had come across a cool mini golf course that he wanted to try which was located at the Rio All Suite Hotel & Casino which is a bit off of the strip. We walked there from our hotel, but turns out it was a bit of a hike. Definitely don't recommend walking! It was worth the adventure though as it was definitely an experience! It was called KISS by Monster Mini Golf and it was basically a fully indoors, glow in the dark course which was inspired by the famous rock band KISS. Even the golf balls were glowing! The music was loud and they took requests if there was anything you wanted to hear! It cost USD$11.95 a head for the 18 hole course. A great was to spend a couple of hours! After we finished, we found out they had a courtesy bus back to the strip so we took that option and saved ourselves a trek! In the afternoon we wanted to go and see the Las Vegas sign which is at the northern end of the strip, so we decided to catch a Lyft to the sign and walk back. I actually couldn't believe the line up of people who wanted to take a photo in front of the sign. There would have been close to 100 people there. HOT TIP - If you don't mind your photos being a tad off Centre, walk up the side of the line and you can take perfect selfies just off to the right hand side! Saved us over an hour standing in line!
Day four was highly anticipated, it was the day we had booked to take a helicopter flight to the Grand Canyon! We chose a 7am flight so it was an early start, our transfer picked us up at 5.30am to head out to Boulder City Airport where the helicopters left from. I had booked the Grand Celebration tour with Papillion Helicopters which included a flight over Hoover Dam, and a landing and champagne picnic in the Canyon. If you are flying with Papilion, you can request a 'front seat upgrade' at check in which is USD$50 per person. In their helicopters there are 3 front seats and 4 seats across the back. Where you sit in the helicopter is determined by the weight of the passengers to balance the aircraft so if it works in your favour (which it did for us) then you will score yourselves the most incredible, uninterrupted views! It was a beautiful, clear sunny morning. Perfect flying conditions, and after a quick safety briefing we were off! It is about 35 minutes from Boulder City to their landing place in the Grand Canyon, and about 10 minutes into the journey you reach Hoover Dam. It is an absolutely incredible structure and breathtaking to see from the air! I don't even have words to describe entering the Canyon for the first time. The sheer size of it is mind blowing. We landed alongside the Colorado River and had 30 minutes to take some snaps, have our champagne picnic and just take it all in. Photos don't do it justice! We took off again and headed in a slightly different route. Three of the guests in our helicopter had booked an extension of the flight which was a 4 wheel motorbike tour at El Dorado Ranch. So we took a little detour on the way home and landed at El Dorado to drop those guests off. I must say it was pretty cool to see something a little different and have the opportunity to land and take off again! Upon our arrival back in Boulder City Airport we both didn't want to get out of the helicopter. Such an amazing experience went way to fast! We had some time in the gift shop before taking the transfer back to our hotel, still in disbelief that we had actually just flown through the Grand Canyon! It was all a bit surreal!
To cap off our amazing day, it just so happened that the Miss USA finals were being held in Vegas at the Mandalay Bay that very evening. I had seen it advertised on TV when we got back to the hotel and did a bit of googling to see if there were any tickets available. Turns out there was, and for $60 each we were headed to watch Miss USA! Upon arrival at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, I immediately felt extremely under dressed! There was evening gowns, sky-high heels, sashes, bling & tiaras as far as the eye could see! The whole event was being broadcast live on Fox, so we were essentially a studio audience. We had great seats and it was awesome to see what happens behind the scenes during the ad breaks! The audience was very loud and enthusiastic and the entertainment was incredible with live performances from Cirque du Soleil, Pitbull & Ben Eldredge. Worth every dollar that we spent! After Miss District of Colombia was crowned the 2017 Miss USA winner, we headed back down the strip to enjoy our last evening! We hadn't had a chance to experience the famous Bellagio Dancing Fountains in full yet, so that was where we headed. I honestly didn't realise that they 'dance' to a different song each time. We stayed and watched it twice as it was playing every 15 minutes! So amazing!
Day 5 was the day we were checking out to start the long journey home. Our transfer back to the airport was at lunch time so we spent the morning enjoying the sunshine and fitting in a last little bit of souvenir shopping in the Linq Lane which run between the back of the Flamingo Hotel & the Linq Hotel. Tip - There is a fantastic Mexican restaurant called Chayo in this area. Awesome for breakfast, lunch & dinner! There is also another Sprinkles shop & Cupcake ATM for those who missed it in LA! Yum! Finally if you want to have a classic American experience, there is also an In & Out Burger Restaurant next to Sprinkles where the line is often out the door!
So there you have it, 5 days in Las Vegas! Just goes to show you don't have to be a keen gambler to have a lot of fun in this great destination! As always, if you want to know more, please don't hesitate to get in touch!
A x