Las Vegas Travel Forum

My BF and I plan to travel to Las Vegas sometime in the late fall/winter, we have not booked our trip. Never been there before, a few general questions come up:

1. We are going for at least 4 days, can extend the trip up to a full week. Should we stick with just Vegas or split the trip and do 4-5 days in Vegas and also do 1-3 days on a side trip to Hoover Dam/Grand Canyon, etc.? (Would this be trying to do too many things at once?)

2. What hotels are drop-dead the absolute must to stay in for first-timers? We are open to doing all our stay at one hotel or splitting amongst 2-3 hotels for a couple nights each. We want to max out our experience while there.

3. My parents insist we see a Cirque du Soliel show while there. I see there are a few of them running simultaneously. What's the best Cirque du Soliel show for beginners that will give us the best first-time experience?

Thanks!

In answer :

1 I would do Hoover Dam and Grand Canyon as well. I did a day trip that covered both but if you want to do any walking or see more than the West Rim, then you need more time than a day trip for Vegas.

2 To a certain degree, the answer to this question depends on your budget. I've only stayed at the Flamingo and I have enjoyed my stays there.

3 Haven't seen any of the CdS shows so can't advise on this one.

Have a great trip!

You are going to have a fantastic time! As for hotels, I would check out the hotel reviews on travel forums as they really do indicate how good a hotel is. There are so many great hotels in vegas too so it really depends on your taste.
The canyon is a long drive, 8 hours I think from Vegas. If you have a week to spend there, I would go for it!

4 days can be a bit much in Vegas unless you like to gamble and you happen to be lucky. I would definitely learn to play craps. It's a fun game where the whole table of people are all rooting for each other. I haven't stayed at too many hotels. The Hilton is very nice but no frills. The Venetian was absolutely spectacular and the rooms are well appointed. I imagine the Bellagio is as nice if not nicer. I've only seen "O" in Vegas. It was amazing! The other cirque shows are probably just as wonderful. Definitely take time to see the Forum shops between Caesar's Palace and the Mirage.

bellagio or the wynn or encore if open go to legions at the imperial hotel and see my cousin in law sing as dusty springfield [katysetterfield.com]

If money isn't a problem, you must stay at the Wynn Tower Suites. Ab-so-lute-ly fantastic. The pool area is gorgeous, and you can't find a bad meal in any of it's restaurants.

For the most bang for your buck I recommend eating at the Grand Lux Cafes in the Venetian; one is in the casino of the Venetian, and one is in the casino of The Palazzo -- they are both owned by the Cheesecake Factory, they have great food at rock bottom prices. You may have to share an entree and an appetizer like we do as the portions are huge.

I would do an internet search and see which Cirque show appeals to you; each has a different theme. We have seen Love at the Mirage twice and were blown away.

Cirque du Soleil's 'O' is fabulous. I enjoyed my stay at the Bellagio Hotel.

Definitely set aside a few days for the Canyon. We drove from LV to Flagstaff, stayed there overnight, then continued on to GC. We spent two nights at the Grand Canyon and, for me, this wasn't enough time to take it in!

I would spend 7 days in Vegas. There is plenty to do and see theme hotels shopping entertainment.The Grand Canyon a lot of people say go there but to me driving 8 hours up and back looking at a hole in the ground for 5 minutes then driving back to Vegas is a waste of time.Yes I would see a cirque del soliel show THe Bealtes Love or Belliago show.The Venetian The Wynn Belliago Marage Four Season all 4 or 5 star hotels.The Palm is very nice special 99.00 for a suite with a strip view.You can get good deals now because the hotels gaming is down 20%.Check out vegas.com Teribles is 49.00 2nd night free so 25.00 a night.A lot of places under 100.00 a night now. You can rent my 900 s/f condo 2 miles west of MGM grand for 700.00 a week.It really depends on your budget if you have a lot of money I would stay at a 5 star hotel if not check out the older hotels on the strip or off the strip. Dining is great here greatest cheifs all have good places. I live here and have'nt been to the strip in years and don't eat out much or I would weigh 300lbs all the food is so good and Vegas is the fattest city in the country.Gambling do you gamble be careful you'll put 5 quarters in a machine and win and the casinos have you for life.In 18 years in Vegas I've seen a lot of casinos go up they did'nt do it with winners.All you see is what happens in vegas stays in vegas and all the winners you don 't see the people jumping off the roofs of casinos after losing there life savings.

The Strip, Freemont Street and Mt. Charleston. The strip has 5 star hotels and class entertainment, a must for first timers. Freemont Street has several hotels in the 3.5 star range, $1 blackjack tables, one deck blackjack table, $1 breakfast or shrimp cocktail and free working class lounge shows, with bus service to the strip. A half-hour's drive north of Las Vegas, at nearly 8,000 feet up in the gorgeous Toiyabe National Forest, the cabins of the Mount Charleston Lodge are perched along the wall of a steep canyon. A romantic mountaintop retreat, with private decks, fireplaces, double-wide whirlpool baths. No gambling here and the temp is much cooler than the city. If you go to the top you will find wild game served in a beautiful setting. The Rio suite hotel is off the strip but within easy walking distance and all the rooms are suites. Right now for example a primium suite from for 5 nights will cost you about $1,300. It is hot right now so be prepared. Have Fun.

1) If you want to do the Grand Canyon in one day, consider flying. If you are driving (renting a car) or taking a ground tour I'd try and stay overnight. Other day trips you might consider is Death Valley or Black Creek River Rafting. Even on a 4 day trip (my opinion only) I find it nice to have a break from all the craziness of Las Vegas. Did Death Valley last year about the time you will be in Vegas and it was fabulous.

2) Choice of hotels depends on your budget and what location on the Strip you prefer. At the time you're travelling you'll probably find better rates for the hotels (especially this year with the slower economy). Some of my top choices would be Bellagio, Wynn, Mandalay Bay, Mirage, Venetian, MGM, Paris, Planet Hollywood. If you don't mind changing hotels that's a good idea trying 2-3 hotels.

3) I wasn't a fan of Cirque, but went to see Love more for the Beatles music then to see a Cirque show. It was very good and I'd like to see it again. Just recently I saw a touring company of Cirque in my home town & I have been converted to a huge Cirque fan. I couldn't find words to describe how amazed I was by the performances of the Cirque troupe. If you are a fan of the Beatles, Love might be a good first time Cirque show. Some friends have recently seen Ka and really enjoyed it. I would recommend checking the Las Vegas Cirque shows online and seeing which ones appeal to you. No matter what you decide I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

Have a great trip.

You should definitely go and see the Grand Canyon, whether you do a day trip or a longer one probably depends on whether you just want to see it for a couple of hours or really experience it. Personally I have only done day trips from Vegas and you can do this by road (taking in Hoover Dam on the way) or by air.

As others have said for hotels at the luxury end go for the Venetian, Bellagio (Lake view rooms) Wynn or Caesars Palace. However you can still go and see these great hotels even if you are not staying there so I tend to go for something cheaper and base the choice on location. Best location and value for money in my opinion is around the Flamingo, Bills, Imperial Palace, Harrah’s area. Also consider staying a few days on Fremont St Downtown where there is a great party atmosphere at night. Best hotel is the Golden Nugget and I’ve also stayed at Fitzgeralds and the Four Queens and been more than satisfied. Last visit I combined three days at Harrah’s with four at the Four Queens, it was the first time I had switched hotels and would certainly consider it again.

For Cirque, I’d endorse the recommendation for the Beatles Love show.

Have a great time in Vegas

Cheers
Clive

I can never understand people who say things like four days in Vegas is a bit much my last visit was eleven nights and I didn’t get round all I wanted to next time im going four two weeks as I have a large list of things I want to see and do again and things I didn’t get round to last visit

If you're going to do some gambling, be sure to sign up to your casino's rewards program - you never know how much you could save or what offers it will get you for any return trip. Check the tip on my Vegas page.

Hi
I am also a first timer going to vegas later this year. I have booked the Bellagio on recommendations of several people i know, apparently it is absolutely awesome. Even if you book just for one night, it is apparently a must do thing. ITS VEGAS- GO MAD!!!! If you want to splash out a bit as well, i have seen a vip tour to grand canyon for about $300 per person, involves limos, helicopters and champagne lunch on the floor of the grand canyon. Its expensive, but its only 4-5 hours out of the day, therefore you have time to win the money back at the tables/slots(cos it is that easy to win in Vegas, or so i have been told by the Las Vegas tourist board) :) We only have 2 days in vegas, as we are also in L.A., so i have not paid much attention to shows other than i know that Tom Jones, Bette Midler and Elton John are all on later this year.

lucky devil at the bellagio make sure look everywhere at the hotel i looked around for about 3 hours even the toilets were marble,also look arond the wynn hotel as steve wynn spent a fortune on that hotel as well ,and the encore is even better,look on my external site lots of usefull websites for vegas on there,buses are brill $2,50 for 24 hours,i did no shows as they cost a fortune i only went legends to see my cousin law [katysetterfield.com]sing as dusty springfield,she got me in for free.dont bother goin to la go to san fransico

hey, I'm not really sure about the trips around Vegas, but I saw you were asking about hotels and I wanted to offer that you either check out hotels.com and try to find something there.
If you're looking for the best prices check out BroadwayBox at:
http://www.broadwaybox.com/lasvegas/
check out their list of hotels/shows on the left side of the screen and then you can see their entire list of discounts.
they have amazing prices, it's free, and it's completely legit. I stayed at Wynn when I was in Vegas and the hotel was gorgeous! :)