When it comes to Vegas, it’s really hard to know where to start.
After watching The Hangover movie, Vegas was instantly on my bucket-list (because who doesn’t want to lose a tooth or end up with a tattoo on their face amiright?!) but in all honesty nothing can quite prepare it for you until you see it in person.
The best way I can describe it is exhilarating. It’s truly a playground for adults. During the day time, it’s beautiful. Palm trees line the main strip and luxurious buildings stand tall with the Fountains of Bellagio putting on aquatic shows every half an hour. Bars line the main street filled with daytime punters slurping on their frozen margaritas from light-up cocktail glasses. There’s a casino almost every 100 metres and everywhere you look people just seem to be happy.
At night, well. Vegas is a whole other story and we will talk about that more below.
It’s important to note that when we were in Vegas we only kept to the main strip as we were there for just three days (one included the Grand Canyon) so we don’t really know what the rest of Vegas is like.
Accommodation:
So let’s start off with where we stayed. When it came to choosing our accommodation for Vegas, it needed to be extravagant. You can’t go to Vegas without going in style (you totally can) but for us (and especially with me having kids) it was possibly the only time I was ever going to get the chance to visit so we opted for the Venetian. A five star resort that literally has everything you could possibly imagine and more. You could actually just spend five days in the resort and never leave because there is so much to do.
We got an awesome deal at the time and it literally only ended up being roughly $300 for us each for 3 nights. That’s only $100 a night each! and for the pictures below, you know that is an absolute bargain. Also, be aware that Vegas charges a resort tax per room on top of your booking at most resorts/hotels and I think ours was around $150 for our stay in total.
The Venetian takes after Venice in Italy and comes complete with its own Grand Canal where you can take gondola rides. Yep, amazing. It has like five different pools (we didn’t even get to them all), its own Night Club, restaurants, bars, Starbucks, luxury shopping, a huge casino and it EVEN has a Madame Tussauds. I could go on and on but just check it out here and see for yourself https://www.venetian.com/ and if I ever go back I would be staying here again and for a much longer time to see it all.
Night Life
But what makes Vegas, is quite obviously the night life. It is called the City of Sin for a reason and the saying truly goes “what happens in Vegas…”.
You can literally party from morning to night here if you wanted too. Walk in to a bottle shop at 11am during the day and you can purchase a can of beer, cider, wine or mixer and you can walk out on the street drinking it with no questions asked. We did hear that you can’t have any glass bottles otherwise you will be fined for obvious reasons so be safe.
There are heaps of pool parties on during the warmer months if you’re calendar aligns and if not you’ll have just as much fun exploring the strip as there’s a never ending amount of things to see and do. As the night time starts to creep in, the city transforms in to an electric environment. The buildings start to light up in all types of neon colours, the slot machines can be heard ringing through the streets and there is people everywhere you go.
Hot tip: During the day-time you will be approached several times by “promoters” for bars asking you to jump on their VIP lists. It seems like a scam but being on a VIP lists actually gets you faster entry in to the night club (which usually has a huge line) and depending on where you go (we went to Marquee) it also gets you a wrist band that gives you FREE drinks until 1am. YES, that’s right, we didn’t pay for a single drink all night. Talk about dangerous and the exact reason why we woke up the next morning questioning the events of the night, ha! I really did get to live out my Hangover movie dream but fortunately I just lost my phone in stead of my teeth.
The night clubs are jam packed so be cautious of those around you and keep your belongings safe (my phone got stolen/I lost it and then it got stolen ha!), however they are unlike any other I have ever been too. Ladies dance from the walls in the most mesmerising of ways and if you’re visiting at a good time, you may be lucky enough to catch a pretty awesome and famous artist playing.
As for the casino’s, well they are self-explanatory and always lively. Be sensible about what you’re willing to spend because money disappears fast! Also, own the street you will bump in to muscly men with their shirts off and girls dressed in scantily clad outfits who will get photos with you and then make you tip them and they are persistent so do not opt for a photo unless you want to pay up.
Oh and whatever you do. Please don’t take off your shoes at the end of the night, sit on the outside of a fountain and stick your feet in the water to soothe them from the pain of dancing all night. Local Vegas residents will kindly inform you that the homeless people pee in those fountains and you’ll feel very disappointed in yourselves.
Other things to do whilst your in Vegas!
Eat In N Out burger.
We missed In N Out burger in LA and when we were leaving we realised that it isn’t actually plastered across America and is only in certain parts. Luckily for us, one was in Vegas!
In N Out is as good as everyone says it is. I love that it is such a simple menu which means they know their products are GOOD and don’t need to overstate their options. Ask for ‘animal style’, you won’t regret it.
Grand Canyon (you MUST!)
What surprises me about Vegas is that everyone I speak to who has been before has not made the trip to the Grand Canyon. This was literally the biggest bucket list tick for me and I would not have missed it no matter the Vegas hangover!
Now obviously due to the sheer size of the canyon there are a tonne of sides you can visit and most of them are a rough 4-5 hour drive. We only had a day spare so we did our research and found the Skywalk was only a 2 1/4 hour drive which would give us a pretty epic view.
The sky walk is on the west rim of the Canyon and sometimes Google maps wont pick it up after what we read online and people ended up driving 30min to an hour further down the road so make sure to put in the Sky Walk location and not just West Rim.
When you arrive, you will line up for tickets first. You can’t buy tickets for the Sky Walk only which is a great way to suck you in but you have to buy a package pass. We opted for the basic pass which included two other stops and cost $69 USD. It actually ended up being well worth the money because the Guano point stop had the best views ever of the Grand Canyon and was breath-taking. The Sky Walk was hugely intimidating for me as a person with a strong fear of heights so I can’t say I enjoyed it but I can see how amazing it would be for most people. You’re literally walking out over the Grand Canyon on glass. It will blow your mind how it is even possible.
A shuttle service takes you around each stop and you can spend as much time as you like at each place really before jumping on the next shuttle. They come pretty close together. The last stop at Hualapai Ranch is actually pretty cool as well and is set up like an Old Western town with activities, plenty of photo opportunities and beautiful views (they also have zip-lining). You can ever stay in some of the accommodation there which would be a cool experience.
Overall, the Grand Canyon will be forever remembered as one of my greatest bucket-list items and I wouldn’t have missed it. It is these moments of pure awe at this planet we live on that make travelling so enthralling.
More info: https://grandcanyonwest.com/
Seven Magic Mountains
Located just 20 minutes out of Vegas on a lovely scenic drive are the popular Seven Magic Mountains; a rock art installation by renowned Swiss artist Ugo Rondinone. It is pretty much a tourist pit-stop and you won’t be there long but worth the visit considering how close it is and for the picture.
More info: http://sevenmagicmountains.com/
Stop by an old-school diner for pancakes
I really wanted to visit an old-school American style diner that I had grown up watching on television and order pancakes but there were surprisingly hardly any around.
We found the 50’s Diner Omelet House which was about a 20 minute drive out of the strip but it was exactly what we wanted. So old-school, so pink and the pancakes were SO delicious for just $6. Totally worth stopping by.
More info: http://www.fiftiesdinervegas.com/
Take a Gondola ride at the Venetian
You don’t have to be staying at the Venetian to make use of the beautiful Gondola ride around the Grand Canal! For at least 20 minutes you’ll feel like you’re in Italy as you drift along the water whilst your singing gondolier serenades you. Ours had the most beautiful operatic voice. The cost is $29pp for a shared gondola and it’s money worth spending. You can also choose indoors or outdoors but make sure to book in early for your chosen time as they book out fast.
More info: https://www.venetian.com/resort/attractions/gondola-rides.html
Visit the Las Vegas sign
It would almost be rude to go to Vegas and not get a picture with the famous sign right? Yes it is a touristy thing to do again and yes you’ll only ever have to do it once, but you gotta do it. I am pretty sure there will always be huge crowds at this sign but everyone was politely lining up and waiting for each person to get their photo which was amazing. We snuck in around to the side out of everyone’s way and got one on an angle to avoid waiting in the line as we were short on time and it worked just as well.
Vegas is truly a place that you will remember forever and we had an absolute blast. I would return in a heartbeat to do more exploring and like anywhere you go, always be safe and watch out for each other (and stay together!) and you are bound to create memories for life.
If you have any other questions, leave them in the comment section below.
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