Hi all, sorry it took so long for me to post these and tell you about my wonderful trip but here it is.
I will touch on the hot spots that I went to and give you an overall feel of the places I visited. We stayed off-strip at the Silverton Casino. It was reasonably priced and not extremely far from the action. The overall decor needs a serious makeover. It is very dated and pretty tacky. The whole casino was so dark that when you went outside you were shocked at how bright it was. When staying at this supposed resort/casino, it is easy to lose track of time and feel like it is late not matter what time of day it is. The slots themselves are pretty standard. They have a few old ones but most of them are updated and modern. The payout is minimal from other casinos that I have been to.
One night, I was playing some slots and a homeless man walked up to me and asked me for money. I did give him some change (although I was not supposed to) because I felt bad for him. I also wanted him to get away from me because I did not feel comfortable with him around me like that (he was pretty close and I had money out to play. After that, I got up and went to another part of the floor and continued to play. Who walks up to me but the same guy. I was somewhat annoyed at this point and told him that he already asked me five minutes ago. He walked away. I got up and waved a staff member down because I did not feel comfortable at all anymore. She asked me what he looked like and I told her what I thought he had on (wasn't extremely attentive because I was more concerned with just getting away from him. I sat down at one of the slots where I was and started to play. The same man comes up again. Thoroughly annoyed, I told him that he needed to pay attention to who he was asking for money and that this was his third time coming to me. I also reminded him that I already gave him money. He quickly walked away and about a minute later, the staff member brought security to me and asked me about him. I pointed them in his direction. The staff member told me that they did eventually get him. She was very nice and every time I saw her, she was very friendly and always said hi. That brings me to my next point: the staff is what gives The Silverton a glimmer of hope. From management, to security, to regular staff..everyone was really nice and provided exceptional customer service.
There is not a lot of action as the crowd is understandably older. If you are young and crave any type of action, then I would suggest that you steer clear of this place unless you are either coming here to eat (the food is pretty good), going to see the aquarium, or going to Bass Pro Shops (located inside of The Silverton), which is nicely put together.
The rooms were dated, ugly, and extremely dirty! We switched rooms and also had to switch sheets because our sheets had blood on them! Oh, and can you say tube television? really? Who watched tube TV anymore? I think we turned that TV on once and that was it. When you are accustomed to seeing things in high definition, a tube won't do. In fact, I was pretty insulted at the fact that these were still in the rooms. The dirt was extremely apparent in the rooms. There was so much dirt that you could see the layers of it in certain spots. Also, some of the towels and washcloths were dirty. It made it hard to believe that they had a cleaning staff.
One of the cool things is that they had an outdoor area and pool complete with cabanas (you have to pay extra to rent the cabanas despite the already included resort fee per night). They had a DJ one night while we were there and the music was pretty good. If you want action, this is the only place in the casino where you will find it. Unfortunately, it closes at ten o' clock..yes ten. Needless to say, we will not be staying at The Silverton again.
The picture above is from The Luxor in Las Vegas. Can you say ENERGY? Wow, it was so cool to be in there. While I have not been to all of the casinos in Vegas (nearly impossible because Vegas is huge. Also, there are even casinos at the stores and gas stations), this one is among the best!
There is so much going on at this casino as well as Mandalay Bay, which is connected to The Luxor. The Luxor has awesome architecture, great drinks and food. Mandalay Bay had much of the same thing but it also has the Minus 5 ice bar. We were not able to go in because I had a dress on and I would have frozen to death, he he. We did go into the lobby and you can see the back of the bar from the outside. From what I hear and have read in the lobby, everything is made of ice, from the bar to the stools to the cups! You are charged admission just to go in but that is mainly because you are renting things from them like parkas, boots, gloves, hats, etc. If you do happen to go or have been there, please come back and let me know. The next time I go to Vegas, I will be prepared to go to the bar.
When you go to Vegas, you definitely have to check out The Venetian. There are so many cool things to see from the Gondolas to the indoor Italian city. The attention to detail is apparent regarding the construction of this casino. When you go there, you really feel like you are in Italy! There is lots to do from riding the Gondolas (which we did) to shopping to dining at one of their fine restaurants. It was extremely hot in Vegas when we visited so we did not spend a lot of time outside even though there is so much to see there as well. The great thing about this place was the fact that there were so many places to take pictures inside that you are not missing anything outside. Please do check out the Gondolas as well. While I was somewhat disappointed in the duration of the ride (very short), I loved the singing Gondolier. Her voice was really beautiful and she actually happened to be from Italy! I also did not like the fact that the indoor and outdoor gondola rides are not connected. There is an outdoor price and an indoor price and while they are the same, you must pay double to do both.
There are many free outdoor shows on the Vegas strip including the pirate show at Treasure Island, the water show at The Bellagio, the show at Caesars, etc. I did not get to see all of them or even most but I did see the volcano show at The Mirage. This was an intense show and I was amazed at all that was put into creating it. It was so much fun to watch that I actually wanted to see it again before we left. I must warn you though..this is real fire and you should not be the first in line to see it unless you want to feel like your eyebrows will get singed. I was in the front and I felt like someone put me into a pizza oven and left me in there. Older people and little children should be especially careful not to be too close.
Food can get pretty expensive, so if you play at the casinos, be sure to sign up for the cards so that you can get comps. Also, I was shocked by the fact that the Mc Donalds on the strip was priced regularly. I expected their prices to be nearly doubled because it is right on the strip but it was not. If you want to save money, go there for at least a meal or two.
Also, if you want to see a show, you had better plan ahead. We wanted to see Criss angel one night but we were too late. Apparently, you cannot purchase tickets at the box office for certain shows at showtime.The cutoff for Criss Angel tickets was 3 pm. He only played a few days a week so we were pretty bummed that we missed it.
Vegas can be a bit overwhelming with all of the sites, lights, and action. Make sure that you take a moment to check out the simpler things. We went to Red Rock in Vegas (pictured above) and it was awesome. You pay a modest price per car to go in and you can drive around to take pictures. It is really big so plan to spend a little time there. Who knows, you may see some cool wildlife. I was talking to a woman there and she told me that she saw a lizard right before we arrived. I would suggest that you wait until the sun starts to set if possible (check hours of operation first). It was extremely hot when we went and we could not stay outside for long periods of time. We kept getting back in the car to cool off again. Funny thing though..as hot as it was, the heat was not as bothersome as it is on the East Coast because it is a dry heat so you do not feel nasty. In New Jersey, when it gets hot like that, you sweat a lot and feel the need to take multiple showers a day during the summer.
There is so much to see and do in this place. The people are friendly (although we did see a big fight on the strip at around 2 a.m.). There is so much energy on the strip that it is easy to lose track of time. I also thought it was interesting to see so many people drinking outside (open containers are illegal where I am from). This place is the absolute best and I did not even scratch the surface! One thing you need when you come here (besides money) is time! This place is enormous! I did not get a chance to do everything I wanted to do because we were only there a few days but I had a blast and I cannot wait to go back.
