Las Vegas thread and MSE guide 2009 part 2

pebblesmax

October , November

There is a winery in Pahrump that does limo tours to a wine tasting and back to town. A freind of mine has done it an thought it was very good. If anyone is interested, I'll make some more inquiries.

We have never done it because Tony hates wine.

aniseedball

September

Only 6 weeks to go till we're there, getting excited now! This thread is helping too :j

We're looking to go to Walmart at some point to stock up on goodies to bring home. Just wondering what's the best way to get there? We're staying at Circus Circus and won't have a car. We'll get a taxi back with all the bags, but would it be easiest to get a taxi there as well or is there a bus? I've looked on the Walmart website and there are several in the area, the closest being 3 and a half miles from our hotel. I'll be 16 weeks pregnant so can't really walk very far in the heat.

TIA :beer:

Boomdocker

September

Hey guys, great to see a Vegas thread. My 2 friends and I are going to stay at the Luxor for 5 nights in September flying Virgin from Gatwick. Have a couple of questions if you don't mind:

1) Reading the start of this thread its suggested that the Virgin Gatwick flight isn't all that great. Its a long flight to be uncomfortable on so I would like to try and book seats so what would you recommend for a party of three? (Not sure of the plane configuration)

2) I can't work out where the Fashion Show Mall is in relation to the Luxor, is it doable from here?

3) Are there any regular malls/stores apart from fancy designer ones where we can find a Walmart/Walgreens and regular american stores, IYSWIM?

4) I have seen a couple of posts mention a $20 upgrade but can't find any full details about this?

Thanks for a great thread, trying to work my way through it.

Wammer

September

aniseedball wrote: »

Only 6 weeks to go till we're there, getting excited now! This thread is helping too :j

We're looking to go to Walmart at some point to stock up on goodies to bring home. Just wondering what's the best way to get there? We're staying at Circus Circus and won't have a car. We'll get a taxi back with all the bags, but would it be easiest to get a taxi there as well or is there a bus? I've looked on the Walmart website and there are several in the area, the closest being 3 and a half miles from our hotel. I'll be 16 weeks pregnant so can't really walk very far in the heat.

TIA :beer:

I can't remember the street name, but there's one along the street between TI and the Fashion Show Mall. I think it may be Spring Mountain Road.

We caught the bus at the stop opposite TI on that road. I normally love Walmart, well the ones in Orlando anyway, but I wasn't impressed with that one. However there is a Target nearby you may want to visit too although we didn't go in.

To save walking you could get the Deuce and get off at the FSM, walk round the corner and catch the bus. The 24 hour Deuce ticket is good on all busses.

It took us about 20 mins to walk from Wynn to CC so maybe 25 mins to walk to that stop.

Wammer

September

Boomdocker wrote: »

2) I can't work out where the Fashion Show Mall is in relation to the Luxor, is it doable from here?

3) Are there any regular malls/stores apart from fancy designer ones where we can find a Walmart/Walgreens and regular american stores, IYSWIM?

2) I wouldn't walk from Luxor to the FSM unless you have an hour to spare. You can catch the Deuce on the opposite side of the street from the Luxor. $3 single trip or $7 for a 24 hours pass.

3) What do you class as "designer"? There are true designer shops such as Hermes, Chanel, etc at the Forum Shops, Bellagio, etc. There are what some regard as designer shops (Guess, Abercrombie & Fitch) at the FSM as well as Macy's, Bloomingdales, etc.

I have explained how to get to Walmart in the post above.

The is a Walgreen's between the MGM and Planet Hollywood and a CVS on the opposite side of the street where you can get cheap souvenirs.

Your best bet is the outlet malls. You can get to the LV Outlets on the bus from outside the Luxor, but I would go to the Premium Outlets at the opposite end of the strip near downtown. You can catch the Deuce opposite the Luxor, but be aware that it will take 1.5-2 hours each way as you have to change busses near the Stratosphere. The driver will keep you right.

4) The $20 tip or trick is if you ask if there are any complimentary upgrades at check in. If you get one it is customary to tip the desk clerk $20.

ferf1223

October , November

aniseedball wrote: »

We're looking to go to Walmart at some point to stock up on goodies to bring home. Just wondering what's the best way to get there? We're staying at Circus Circus and won't have a car. We'll get a taxi back with all the bags, but would it be easiest to get a taxi there as well or is there a bus? I've looked on the Walmart website and there are several in the area, the closest being 3 and a half miles from our hotel. I'll be 16 weeks pregnant so can't really walk very far in the heat.

I think the closest WalMart to you is the one on Charleston - it's pretty much at the corner of Charleston and Decatur...had a look at the bus routes and the 206 has a stop at Charleston and Decatur.

http://www.rtcsouthernnevada.com/transit/route/206/206(6-28-09).pdf

So you can take the Deuce from the closest stop to CC (Riviera?) northbound to Charleston and get the westbound 206 from there to WalMart.

We've been to that WalMart and it's not the best in the area - but it's pretty decent, and it's a SuperCentre so it's massive.

ferf1223

October , November

I just noticed something I hadn't seen here before and checked the guide and didn't see it.

The RTC (bus) website has a trip planner.

http://www.rtcsouthernnevada.com/transit/route/

you put in where you're starting and where you're going and it opens up in googlemaps. I tried putting in Circus Circus and then the address for WalMart I'd found from their site. It then says for the starting point did you mean and lists options, one of which is CC hotel/casino so I clicked on that option...then it says for the ending point did you mean WalMart Supercenter...clicked on that option.

Then it gives you journey options...one of which (with the least walking) is the suggestion of the Deuce to the 206...then there are others which have more walking involved.

But anyway, it might be a handy thing.

ferf1223

October , November

Boomdocker wrote: »

Hey guys, great to see a Vegas thread. My 2 friends and I are going to stay at the Luxor for 5 nights in September flying Virgin from Gatwick. Have a couple of questions if you don't mind:

1) Reading the start of this thread its suggested that the Virgin Gatwick flight isn't all that great. Its a long flight to be uncomfortable on so I would like to try and book seats so what would you recommend for a party of three? (Not sure of the plane configuration).

Most of the rows on the sides of the plane are 3s. Check out https://www.seatguru.com and have it open when you're selecting your seats so you can get the best of those available. seatguru will highlight those seats to avoid (and will give the reason). so quite handy to look at the seats available on Virgin's website and go back to seatguru before choosing to be sure you'll get the best you can.

As for the $20 trick - post 1 gives links to the sites that compile info on the $20 trick but one of the pages for Luxor is:

http://www.frontdesktip.com/las-vegas/luxor/

And there's a how to at the top of that page. A lot of people suggest just asking nicely if any complimentary upgrades are available and if so, give a tip - rather than doing the 'sandwich' thing.

trets77

Boomdocker wrote: »

Hey guys, great to see a Vegas thread. My 2 friends and I are going to stay at the Luxor for 5 nights in September flying Virgin from Gatwick. Have a couple of questions if you don't mind:

1) Reading the start of this thread its suggested that the Virgin Gatwick flight isn't all that great. Its a long flight to be uncomfortable on so I would like to try and book seats so what would you recommend for a party of three? (Not sure of the plane configuration)

2) I can't work out where the Fashion Show Mall is in relation to the Luxor, is it doable from here?

3) Are there any regular malls/stores apart from fancy designer ones where we can find a Walmart/Walgreens and regular american stores, IYSWIM?

4) I have seen a couple of posts mention a $20 upgrade but can't find any full details about this?

Thanks for a great thread, trying to work my way through it.

to answer your Virgin Question :
your best bet is a window aisle bank of 3 seats . at least with three of you won't be stuck with a stranger , but the seats will still be uncomfortable .

try to get seats as near to the front left as possible , as you will get off the plane quicker at LV .

rob_kzk

Hi All,

Just after a quick reccommendation really.....

Looking to go to Vegas next Feb and having trouble deciding between the Mirage and the Signature at MGM Grand. Obviously the Mirage has the location and the Signature has the luxury suites which will cost me a few pounds more. Can anyone point me where they would advise staying?

Also, been reading a few bad reviews about the Virgin direct flights from Gatwick. Is it really that bad? I flew on Thomson to the Caribbean last year, is it any worse than that, apart from obviously being a longer flight?! Also, is it worth the upgrade to premium economy?

Look forward to your replies.

Thanks.

Rob