The Las Vegas Thread and MSE guide

davidmcg2u

We checked out of the Venetian on Sunday & headed to the MGM for our last 3 nights. We got a great rate for a Celebrity Spa Suite via info posted on these site - thanks!! Again our room was ready at 12:00 & we were on the 7th floor over looking NYNY & the Tropicanna. We also had good view of Mandalay Bay & the Pyramid at the Luxor.

The room here were excellent too. Very big in size, ery large bathrooms & a Spa bath too. Overall we were haappy with the room, as we were with the previous 2 room but the Venetian was the best for me.

We headed back down to the ticket centre again & decied to go & see Rosanne Barr at the Sahara. We were a little apprehensive as we didn't know what to expect. Again were were in a hurry as time passes so quick in Vegas - wandering & shopping all day!! We got the Deuce to the Sahara were intending to wait until after the show for dinner but we were a little hungry so decided to get the buffet inside the Sahara. Well I took notes of all the good eateries in Vegas but I didn't note the bad 1s down - this was bad - cold & poor food. We ate pizza & ribs & that was about it & left - you learn by your mistakes. Anyway Rosanne Barr was very funny - she was only on about 65mins but she had us in stitches for the whole show. We had an early night as we had booked to do the Helicopter tour to the Grand Canyon & took PinkPinkFizz's advice & went on the 1st trip of the day so the alarm was set for 5am.

We booked our tour via Papillion who called us the hotel on Sunday to confirm all the arrangements. We were picked up at 5.55am on Monday morning (my b'day) & were driven to their airfield at Boulder City. We checked in & watched the safety video & then it was time for our pilot to take us to the helicopter. We are both very nervous flyers so this was either going to go well or go bad - no in between. We got ready to go & take off was very smooth. Before we knew it we were up in the air & nice & relaxed. Within minutes of being up in the air my new camera (which is going back today!!) chucked it - the battery went flat :mad:

I specifically bought a new 1 for this trip with rechargable battery. The only time the battery display came on is when it was saying low battery!! I was gutted & angry - I should've charged it just incase. We flew over the Hoover Dam etc. & everything was nice & smooth - then Julia (pilot) says "just over this ridge is the GC" wow - what a site but just as she says "you are now 5000ft above the earth" it got bumpy (well for us anyway) - as I said we aren't the best up in the air. For about 5mins we were stiff with fear but then landed on the floor for our lunch. Everyone was taking picture & I was still gutted then I remembered I had my mobile in my pocket. We managed to get some pics & video clips which made me feel alot better - at least we have something. The journey back was nice & smooth too. We had a great time & would recommend this trip to anyone. We also bought the souvenir pic of us with Julia pre-flight for $15.

We then headed to the Startosphere for lunch. The food is superb, reasonably priced & the views are superb. Liz didn't enjoy the view though - too high for her!!

That night we headed to Mandalay Bay for Mamma Mia. We had tickets to see it here but that was before we had booked our Vegas trip. We managed to sell the UL tickets & buy front row centre seats direct from the Mandalay Bay. I have since discovered Travel Zoo & realised I could've got the same tickets for half price - no matter - we paid $227 all in & had a great time. The best view ever & the show was superb. All in all a great b'day!!

We had decided to go back to Freemont on Tuesday but Liz said that after seeing MM she thought Ka (Cirque du soleil) would be good. We were in 2 minds as it was our last day but we managed to get half price Ka tickets from the MGM box office. I explained to them that I could get 20% off down the street at the discount shops & asked if he could match it. Initially he said no & then he started typing away. In between I was asking - how much for these seats?, how much for these seats? He said (very quietly) he could give me 2 military tickets for $165 all in - they're $165 a piece so I said yes & gave him $170 before he could change his mind. :rotfl:

We went to the MGM buffet that night as they had given us a $25 food credit. So it cost us $31 all in for the both of us. The only complaint we had was the estimated queue time, 15-20mins. Took us 40mins easy but you can see why - it was fantastic - the food selection, quality - everything about it was amazing! The queue didn't hinder us really as the show was in the MGM anyway and we had ample time to stuff our faces!!

We were sat in row DD in block 202 which is centre - probably about 25 rows from the stage. The Ka theatre in the MGM was superb & when the show started we realised that we had the best seats in the house. There was so much going on that if you were sat near the fron you'd miss half of it. The show was absolutely superb, we both loved it!!

Wednesday was our flight home day. We did some last minute shopping & headed down to the Bellagio to see the fountains as we had missed it so many times. It was also windy a few days so the fountain show was off - and it was off on Wednesday too - next time!!

There are so many wonderful hotels there but we liked the 3 we stayed in for all sorts of reasons. I wouldn't do 3 again in a week though as we never really got time to settle properly. We really liked Planet Hollywood & may look at staying there for a few night the next time. Other candidates depending on price/budget are Paris, Caesars, Mirage (although we never got to see it), Mandalay Bay & The Hotel (WOW!), Luxor (was nice too) & of course Bellagio.

The only thing which I have really mention is the shopping. The Miracle Mile in Planet Hollywood & the Forum area of Caesars are great as is the Fashion Mall opposite the Wynn. We got several pairs of trainers, t shirts, tops etc. I personally got 4 tees, a hooded top & a watch from Guess for about $300. The watch was only $115 & I seen it here for £115 so I'm wel pleased. Next time we are heading out with a lighter case & buying more stuff there.

1 downside, if you can call it that, is the amount of time share folk who are after your time & money. They offer you free shows & meals etc. to get your time. We fell for it right away thinking free shows - great! but then the $60 deposit & 2 hours of your time came out. Not sure if anyone has actually tried these out to get the freebies but the deposit is supposed to be refundable & I suppose if you planned it correctly you could get loads of freebies. Anyway, I didn't have the $660,000 required for one of the Condos anyway.

Anyway, in summary we had a great time - best ever!! So much to do, so much to see & so much to eat!! We haven't even scratched the surface yet so we are intending to go back - ASAP!!

:beer:

davidmcg2u

luci wrote: »

Excllent trip report David and I'm looking forward to the rest.

We intend going to see Defending the Caveman so I was glad to read your review.

I've always avoided comedy shops as I usually don't "get" American humour, we have run out of shows to see so this time we also intend seeing Carrot Top and George Wallace as well as Legends in Concert and the Jersey Boys.

I really liked the room at the Venetian, but hubby preferred Caesars. I'm imagining the Palzzo to be identical in layout, but a bit more plush. I am alos considering room service for my birthday breakfast or the Wynn buffet, depending on what I fancy on the room service menu.

5 days to go!

5 days - lucky you!!

I thought the Amercian humour would be difficult too but apart from references to specific politians, Rosanne Barr was fine. She actually mentioned Carrot Top - said she seen it & was very funny.

Until now I've never fancied Vegas as it was Liz who always wanted to do it, now I'm like "when are we going back!!".

The Glasgow flights are limited - June & July only so we had to go to Manchester but even so it was worth it although the flights from GLA-MAN were really rough.

Have a great time - my 1st review so tried to be short but how can you??

:beer:

c_l_a_i_r_e

November/December

David, what a great trip report. Thanks for posting it. It won't be long until your next trip now i'll bet lol I was like you when i first went to vegas, as my boyfriend had always talked of going and i just kind of tagged along- now we are going on our fifth trip in june lol (and i still have a "to do' list as long as my arm!). Really glad you enjoyed the bon jovi concert- i always seem to miss them in vegas!

JoKay_2

Great report David, thanks very much!

luci

May

davidmcg2u wrote: »

The Glasgow flights are limited - June & July only so we had to go to Manchester but even so it was worth it although the flights from GLA-MAN were really rough.

Have a great time - my 1st review so tried to be short but how can you??

:beer:

As far as I'm concerned, the longer the review the better. Can't get enough of reading about Vegas.

Who did you fly with? We have done connecting flights, but the last 4 have been Aberdeen to Manchester then Manchester direct to Vegas all with bmi. I find them to be really good. We have gone through Gatwick, Heathrow and Amsterdam and I particularly hate Heathrow.

I have been considering Ka as there are half price tickets on TravelZoo. However we saw Mystere and it was just OK. I don't think Cirque is my thing although I did enjoy Love, but more for the music than the acrobatics.

nvh

May

mookybargirl wrote: »

Hi guys,
I want to join the virgin miles programme. Is there a best way to do this? Is it worth doing now even if I don't need to book a flight straight away? Is the poker deal still going? (Don't want to sign up for the white card).

Thanks all :beer:

definitely start by making sure you sign up to the virgin flying club:
http://www.virgin-atlantic.com/en/gb/frequentflyer/index.jsp

I got an invite off them the other day to join 'e-rewards.co.uk' and if i did so, they'd give me 500 'miles'.

Not saying they'll definitely send you an invite but if they've got your email address, it's a start

Stew68

David,

Thanks for taking the time to post your trip report, I love to hear about other peoples trips, especially the food!! i'll try to make little notes when i'm there (just over four weeks to go!!) and make my own report when I get back.

Thanks again.

Stew

dan28

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davidmcg2u

luci wrote: »

As far as I'm concerned, the longer the review the better. Can't get enough of reading about Vegas.

Who did you fly with? We have done connecting flights, but the last 4 have been Aberdeen to Manchester then Manchester direct to Vegas all with bmi. I find them to be really good. We have gone through Gatwick, Heathrow and Amsterdam and I particularly hate Heathrow.

I have been considering Ka as there are half price tickets on TravelZoo. However we saw Mystere and it was just OK. I don't think Cirque is my thing although I did enjoy Love, but more for the music than the acrobatics.

We flew from Gla - Man return with Flybe (rough - small planes high winds) & from Man - Vegas with Thomas Cook. I believe the seat pitch on the TC/Airtours/My Travels flights is increasing on their longhaul to 33 or 34 inches as of 1st May but luggage allowance is still only 15kg.

Ka - I didn't know what to expect but from the moment we went into the theatre area, where your tickets are checked by guys dressed up with the Ka theme outfits, I knew we'd like it. We normally don't do shows like that, we usually stick to Gigs & Comedy, by Mamma Mia & Ka were both great.

I shortened the 2nd half of the review down somewhat as I felt as if I was going on but if you have any questions feel free to ask. I did forget to mention the Big Fight build up in Planet Hollywood. We just missed a public training session with Hopkins & Calzaghe but we did get a picture taken with Audley Harrison who is fighting on the undercard tonight. It would've been great to see that fight in Vegas!!

In terms of the food, we only did 1 buffet which wasn't planned it was just the way it turned out. Probably just as well as at least our clothes still fit.

niceday999

Davidmcg2u
Fantastic Report.Really enjoyed reading it. I am going next month for the first time and cant wait.Did you book your Grand Canyon Trip when you got there? Is it easy to find the right place to book it. An early start would be fine for us. How much is the helipicoptor trip to GC ?
I think i would prefer that to the long bus trip to there.