Las Vegas In a Week!
I was quite impressed with the International flight on Delta Airlines from Johannesburg to Atlanta, the aircraft was in a good condition, the seats were spacious and services on-board were excellent. Check in was easy and our transit in Atlanta through to Las Vegas was seamless. During our 5 night stay, we were fortunate enough to stay at the Flamingo Hotel which is one of the most centrally located hotels on the Strip! I loved the Art Deco feel about it and its history involving the well-known mobster "Bugsy Siegel". Note that check in is only from 4pm. Our “Fab” room was modern and spacious; it had a great view of the Strip and the Bellagio Hotel & Fountains. The Hotel also offers the “Go” rooms which are slightly more modern with a separate shower and bath. I had the opportunity to visit a few other hotels in the area namely Planet Hollywood: This is a great choice for the South African Market, it is central, modern and very Vegas with each room having a specific Hollywood movie theme and artefact from that movie. I also visited The Paris Hotel: This hotel is very European with stunning bedrooms, great central location as well. I loved the Sugar Factory shop and restaurant located just outside along the strip! I also visited Ceasars: This is a stunning hotel for upmarket guests. With the 6 different towers of rooms, the choice is endless. The rooms and bathrooms are extremely spacious. I had the opportunity to walk along the North and South Strip on different days, going into all the different hotels, casinos and shopping malls. We watched the Bellagio Fountains all the time which has to be on top of your must do list! We also went to the Outlet Mall North where we were able to do some bargain shopping before being dropped off by a taxi at Freemont Street. Here we took a leisurely walk through the Boulevard, shopping and watching stages being set up for evening entertainment. We continued to walk down the Las Vegas Boulevard towards the Strip. Here we got to see all the little Wedding Chapels and even witnessed a wedding or two. There are shows at almost every hotel, day and night. If you do want to catch the popular ones it is imperative that you book well in advance. Alternatively, there are "half price" ticket kiosks around every corner, advertising shows at discount rates on the day of sale. Getting around Las Vegas is extremely easy, in my opinion, walking is the best option as this enables you to experience all that Vegas has to offer. However, there is also the local bus system as well as the taxis. The Monorail is also an option. The present monorail (Phase 1 of the overall project) begins at the MGM Grand Hotel near the south end of The Strip, and runs roughly parallel to the Strip on its eastern side. The monorail passes next to the Convention Center and the Las Vegas Hotel & Casino, both with stations, and it ends at the Sahara Hotel at the north end of the Strip. The ride takes about fifteen minutes to travel its total distance of 3.9 miles (6.3 km).
The Grand Canyon West Rim Tour is a great option if you are visiting the Canyon for the first time as the Tour Bus will take you past Boulder City before heading into the Canyon and later it will pass by Hoover Dam for a photo opportunity when returning to your hotel. Our Tour took us to the lookout point where we could also walk along the Skywalk which is a glass-bottom "U"-shaped bridge that overlooks the Colorado River and the Grand Canyon. Note that the Skywalk is not included in the tour price and costs up to US$35 additional, depending on which photo package you opt for as you are not allowed to take along your own cameras whilst on the Skywalk. I would also highly recommend the Heli Flips into the Canyon, these can be done from the location of the Skywalk or alternatively from Las Vegas. Overall my experience of Las Vegas was more than I can ever have imagined. It is such a great destination as an add-on to any US itinerary, and is well worth the visit! A few words of advice....If you aim to leave Las Vegas with a small fortune, go there with a large one!!