VEGAS Help! Please!

[MbyMJ]

I am going to Vegas on November 21st for 5 nights and I'm getting very overwhelmed with the planning. I don't want to spend my whole time shopping because it won't be very interesting time for my fiance. I still would like to shop but don't know the best and most exciting places to go to. I keep hearing Caesar's Palace, Miracle Mile and Fashion Show Mall. I also would like to find clothes for work that are very nice. Any recommendations for shopping?

I just don't know where to stay? Which hotels are the best in the $500 to $600 range and how would you plan 6 days in Vegas?

Best eats as well?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[peace43]

6 days is a lot of time in Vegas. You will have plenty of time there to do everything you want to do including dragging your fiance to the shopping malls! (Everyone goes!)

Fashion Show Mall is a regular mall and has many department stores: Bloomies, Neiman Marcus, Saks, Nordstrom, Macy's, and I think Dillards. It also has many other retail stores (Gap, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, etc.). This mall is directly across from Treasure Island and also the Wynn hotel.

Forum Shops at Caesars is only one hotel away from Treasure Island and has tons of high end retail shops (LV, Gucci, Tiffany's, etc.) and several nice restaurants on the top floor. Boa is a great steak house with good service.

Miracle Mile Mall is connected to Planet Hollywood Hotel and has retail shops but not super high end shops.

I personally love going to Fashion Show Mall and Forum Shops at Caesars. I also like the Venetian/Palazzo shops.

Wynn has a few high end shops like Louis Vuitton. And Bellagio has a few high end shops (Tiffany's, etc.)

When you said $500-$600, did you mean per night or for the entire 6 day stay? I would suggest you review hotels on expedia.com to see hotels on the strip. (You didn't say if you would have a car rental while in Vegas.) You can look for 4 star and above hotels on expedia for Vegas and read customer reviews and see the different room options.

Try Wynn, Encore, Venetian/Palazzo, Bellagio for higher end hotels. Treasure Island is nice but not high end but is convenient since the pedestrian bridge goes from Treasure Island to Fashion Show Mall. (There's also a pedestrian bridge from Fashion Show to the Wynn/Encore hotels.

If you stay at Treasure Island, Mirage, Caesar's, Wynn, or Encore, you'll be near Fashion Show and Forum Shops. If you stay at Bellagio, you'll have a very long walk to Fashion Show and Forum Shops. Venetian/Palazzo has two connected malls that have a lot of interesting shops. The higher end shops are on the Palazzo side but also connect back to the Venetian mall.

Go see some shows!! There are lots of Cirque du Soleil shows!! The Love/Beatles show at Mirage is fantastic (seen it twice). Mystere is at Treasure Island. Ka is at MGM Grand (other end of strip). "O" is at Bellagio.

Jersey Boys is very entertaining and is at the Palazzo Hotel/Venetian Hotel along with Blue Man Group and Phantom of the Opera.

Go see Hoover Dam while you're in Vegas and maybe the Red Rocks Canyon area.

There are lots of spas in Vegas. Canyon Ranch Spa in the Venetian mall is good. (You can also get to it from the Palazzo hotel.)

Do a search on tPF and you'll find a lot of threads on Vegas hotels/attractions.

Have fun!!!!!

[flashy.stems]

i love mandalay bay, venetian and bellagio!

joey's is tasty.. its not that expensive either

enjoy your trip!

[MbyMJ]

Thanks to you both for your posts on Vegas. It's very much appreciated!

Special thanks to peace43 for the in depth review on Vegas. I am definitely going to be referring to your post when booking me and my fiance's vacation. It would be $500-$600 for the entire trip. I am currently looking at expedia.ca to review the hotels and make a reservation.

[redney]

And like peace43 said, do a search in this subforum and you will find many other threads with great information on Vegas hotels, attractions, restaurants, clubs, etc.

[peace43]

Originally Posted by MbyMJ

Thanks to you both for your posts on Vegas. It's very much appreciated! Special thanks to peace43 for the in depth review on Vegas. I am definitely going to be referring to your post when booking me and my fiance's vacation. It would be $500-$600 for the entire trip. I am currently looking at expedia.ca to review the hotels and make a reservation.

Your welcome!! Actually, I like staying at Treasure Island (TI) - especially if you don't have a car. As I mentioned earlier, TI is across from the Fashion Show Mall and also Wynn and Venetian. Plus, you can take the TI tram to the Mirage (next door) and then walk to the Caesar Forum Shops (Caesar is right on the other side of Mirage.)

Driving from hotel to hotel on the strip is very inconvenient as there is a lot of traffic on the Strip. However, you can take Paradise Rd which runs parallel to the Strip (Las Vegas Blvd). Majority of the time, my DH and I just park our car at TI and walk to all the hotels right near TI. (At least you get exercise when you walk!! LOL!)

One more thing.... before you book your hotel..... review everything on Expedia first to narrow down your choice of hotel but then also look at a particular hotel's website for room rates. Sometimes Expedia is cheaper but sometimes you may find a better deal at the actual hotel's website. I like Expedia because it shows all of the customer reviews and pics of the rooms. You can also look on Tripadvisor.com for additional reviews of hotels.

Sometimes I read reviews that are complaints but then I realize that what the person was complaining about would not actually be an issue for me. So take complaints with a grain of salt and just look at the overall reviews - if the majority of reviews are generally good, then go for it. Every hotel has its good and bad reviews.

Have fun!! (I go to Vegas at least twice a year for the last 15 years with my DH. We don't really gamble but go more for the shows, shopping, and food, and people watching.)

[MbyMJ]

^ Yes! & thank you! That's what we would go for too - the shows, shopping, food and meeting people, possibly swimming if it's not too cold in November.

How are the Premium Outlets and which one would you suggest?

We were thinking of staying at NY NY. We have read the reviews and overall it seems like it's a great hotel to stay at. What are your thoughts on it?

Out of the shows that you listed, which two would be your top recommendation?

Thanks in advance for your help!

[awhitney]

I loved the Premium Outlets! my mom and I went for at least 4 hours and still didnt see all the stores! next time i go to vegas, im going back to the outlets! sooo worth it. have fun in Vegas!!

[peace43]

Originally Posted by MbyMJ

^ Yes! & thank you! That's what we would go for too - the shows, shopping, food and meeting people, possibly swimming if it's not too cold in November. How are the Premium Outlets and which one would you suggest? We were thinking of staying at NY NY. We have read the reviews and overall it seems like it's a great hotel to stay at. What are your thoughts on it? Out of the shows that you listed, which two would be your top recommendation? Thanks in advance for your help!

I've stayed at NY NY but it's closer to the MGM Grand side of the strip. It's fine but it's been awhile since I've stayed at NY NY. You didn't say if you were going to have a car. Again, if you're not going to have a car, it might be better to stay in the center of the strip so that you can go to either end on foot. (I hate paying for taxis.) Treasure Island is at the opposite side of the strip (North end). Recommend that you look on a Strip map to see where all of the hotels are located. http://www.vegas.com/lounge/map.html

You'll need transportation to get to the various outlets. Primm Outlets are outside of Las Vegas - south - probably at least 45 minutes near the Nevada border. Then there are closer outlets near the strips - I think that's the Premium Outlets. And then there's a newer outlet area north of the strip that also has a Coach outlet. I don't remember the name.

Lasvegas.com has a lot of info on attractions, etc.
http://www.lasvegas.com/shopping/

Top shows that I would recommend:
Cirque du Soleil's Beatles Love show (I've seen it twice!)

I love Jersey Boys (seen it 3 times: SF, NY Broadway, and Vegas)

Cirque dul Soleil's O show.

Blue Man Group - seen it a long time ago when it was at the Luxor but it was fun. It's now at the Venetian/Palazzo.

Go to the Cirque du Soleil website: they will probably have clips from their various shows in Vegas that you can review.

Also check out Jersey Boy's website. They will have a video of the performers.

[buzzytoes]

DH and I went to Vegas in November last year and stayed at the Luxor. We ended up spending all of our time down by Caesar's, TI, etc. Yes you can take the tram down there (it stops at Imperial Palace) but we felt like we had to walk a mile each time just to get on and off the tram. We just got back from Vegas on Friday and this time we stayed at Treasure Island. That location was absolutely PERFECT as far as we were concerned. Like was previously mentioned it is right near Fashion Show Mall, Caesar's, Mirage, Harrah's. It is pretty much smack in the center of everything. We were there for four nights and got the Petite Suite for a total of $625 I think. When we stayed at the Luxor last year I think we spent about $1000 for five nights in a one room suite. Not nearly as nice as the TI Petite Suite I don't think.

I highly reccomend the Cirque Du Soleil shows as well! We saw Ka last year and absolutely loved it. The things they do are absolutely amazing. We saw Mystere this year because they were doing two for one tickets if you were staying at TI. They did amazing stuff as well but I am glad we didn't spend the amount we spent on the Ka tickets. Ka had an actual storyline, whereas Mystere was kind of more along the lines of what you used to see on TV from them. It was just seperate performances of different tricks. Definitely worth seeing though!

[kendal]

5 nights in Vegas might be a little too long - I find that Vegas can get a little overwhelming if I stay for more than 3 nights.

[MbyMJ]

peace43 & buzzytoes, thanks for the info! It's greatly appreciated. So we officially booked at the NY NY hotel. I have an obsession with New York (most fave place I would love to visit) so I may as well live my dream in Vegas. The price for each of us including flight and taxes for the 5 nights was $497 CAD. I believe that's an amazing deal. I'm stoked and it's happening in next month. Yes!

buzzytoes, I wish I had known prior to making my reservation regarding the hotel. NY NY seems like living my dream until I finally go to New York that is the reason why it initially intrigued me. There is always next time. I am sure I will learn from this experience if I find it to be too much walking.

kendal, I totally know what you mean. Last year my fiance and I went to Seattle for 3 nights and we felt so rushed it honestly felt like we didn't have a holiday. I know Vegas is busy but I want to leave there having no regrets. When I go back there for other visits, I would probably only book for 3 nights but I really want to experience everything and don't want to feel rushed.

How should I dress for Vegas in November? Is it summer, winter or a combo of both. I don't know what to pack in my suitcase. Also, is swimming in the hotel pools in November an option?

Thanks in advance for the info!

[meluv2shop12]

hubby and i just got back from vegas a couple of weeks ago.. this was our 3rd trip there... we stayed a full week! not sure why people think 4-5 days is too long.. 7 days was too short for us! lol

we kept pretty busy though.. we like going on those timeshare presentations.. it takes about 3-4 hours but they feed you and give you free stuff like cash, show tickets, free dinners, etc... some people may see it as a waste of time to go, but we see it as something to do that is also - believe it or not - quite fun!! we've been to a few so we already know the drill.. when they ask us why we went on the tour if we didn't intend to buy, i have no problem saying, "for the free stuff" lol

i must say though, these sales people can be VERY convincing! despite already owning a timeshare, they make the deal seem so awesome that there were a few occasions where we ended up thinking twice before saying "no"... so WATCH OUT and stand your ground! lol

hubby and i are gamers... i wasn't too pleased with the few times we played in NY,NY.. the dealers weren't very friendly and there weren't a lot of attendants by the slots. one of the slot machines started to malfunction while i was playing and it took almost a 20 minutes to get an attendant to help me out and another 30 minutes to finally get my money! i was not pleased at all :(

if u are gamers too, i recommend paris - dealers are really friendly :)

have fun!!

[LVMN]

My husband and I have been to Vegas 5 times in the last 4 years. We have stayed at Paris, Bellagio, Treasure Island (twice), and Mirage. I HIGHLY recommend Treasure island. I agree with peace43....excellent location. Location is very important in Vegas. While walking the strip, 2 hotels away may not look like much, but it is.

[Cyndee]

Hey, I will be in Vegas the same week as you!
We've been there many times. I've stayed in a number of strip hotels. Here's another very strong vote for TI!! For others interested in booking this hotel, there's a promotion on right now. Rooms as low as $59/night -

https://reservations.mgmmirage.com/b...70&code=TI72HR

I agree that location is very important when in Vegas. If looking for some good deals when eating, try The Coffee Shop at TI. Excellent food and very generous portions too. We like The Cheesecake Factory in the shops at Caesar's, also Kahunaville in TI too. DH and I usually order an appetizer each and split a main since there's so much food.

Since you are staying at NY, NY and it's probably too late to change your booking, I'd also HIGHLY recommend renting a car. I don't recommend the tram. At all. It's a huge inconvenience to get to and from. Cars are very cheap to rent in Vegas. We just book a small car (usually about $25/day) while we're there and drive from hotel to hotel or where-ever we want to go. We book on-line before we go. Everybody has valet parking (even the malls) and it is FREE (be sure to give a tip though).
Drive out to Red Rock Canyon (north-west) for half a day. You can stop at the outlet mall on the way back.
Since you will be there for several days, you will have plenty of time to check out both outlet malls at the north and south end.
As others have said, be sure to take in at least one show. We got a deal that included free tickets to the Cirque show at TI with our booking.
The trip to Hoover Dam is good and inexpensive.
If your DF is into car racing, you can drive north out to Las Vegas Motor Speedway too. Take the highway, it's handy and easily accessible although it's accessible via Las Vegas Blvd too (it'll just take you longer to get there). It takes about 20 minutes to get there and they have the Richard Petty Driving School where he can get the thrill of a lifetime by either going for a ride along in a racecar or even drive one himself! Track tours are available too.
A couples spa experience would be fun, but I've found them to be pricey compared to home.

It will be cool there at this time of year. Take a jacket or warm sweater, maybe even a pair of gloves. 20 degrees C during the day and much cooler at night. Swimming will not be an option - the only people sitting around the pool though at this time of year are us crazy Canucks! lol!