Las Vegas

Dublinflyer

I was over in San Francisco for a week for work and a few of us decided to go to Vegas as some of the guys had never been. I used to live in SF so I have been to Vegas more times than I care to remember, and a few I don't, but as it's been over 10 years since I was last there I thought I would go along. We were there for 3 nights over a weekend and I thought I would share a few things that occurred to me.

First of all, Vegas has got so expensive. If you go to any of the big clubs you will be paying $18 for a bottle of beer, after you pay over $30 to get in. Even the non nightclub bars would be as expensive as a city center bar here in Dublin. I also thought they were not very good. There was no real atmosphere in a lot of them and some of them just had no life in them at all. I think what it is that a lot of them have these huge bottle service areas with people just sitting there drinking expensive drinks and watching the commoners below them. Why anybody would want to be in these areas is beyond me, but that's my personal opinion. Haze in the Aria was by far the best with Pure in Caesars Palace the worst. We did a bus tour of the clubs which was great fun and a good way to meet people as well, and comes with free drink! You get to skip the lines as well.

The shows are spectacular but will cost you about $150 a ticket for the big ones. Some of them are well worth the money, Love was stunning but Ka was rubbish. Again, personal opinion there.

The hotels are starting to get a bit overpriced as well and try sell you a lot of extras or bigger rooms that are simply not worth the money. Stick with the big strip hotels and get a standard room, slip the check in clerk a 20 and they might sort you out with a very cheap upgrade or at least a room with a good view. All you are going to do in the rooms is sleep and wash. and maybe something else if you are lucky. Either way you are not going to be in there for very long so why waste the money on it. Unless of course you are into big hotel rooms, then go for a suite in one of the big hotels and you will be amazed by it. Some of them are stunning.

If you're a non smoker bring something for your throat. I have never smoked and am a bit spoiled by the non smoking policy here in Dublin. You can smoke anywhere in Vegas so I felt it a bit in the throat after a few nights. I cant see them bringing in a smoke free environment over there!!

Hit the outlets for shopping, not the hotels. They are still good to visit. If you like your tech visit Fry's Electronics in the Town Square outlet.

Despite what they are saying Vegas is not a family friendly place. I know they are trying to appeal to that market but they are not there yet. Between the dancers and dealers around the place trying to distract you and the 1000's of cards for escorts lying on the ground, and getting handed out it can lead to some difficult questions from the kids.

In saying all that I think it is a great place to visit and if you are in that part of the world you should try get there. 2 or 3 nights are plenty to see the best of it. Make sure you know how much you are willing, or need, to spend to enjoy it. You will spend money there and can end up spending a fortune if you lose the run of yourself so stick with your budget.

Use the monorail to get around during the day. It can be cheap and fast. Traffic can be hell and the taxi's can be slow. I have gone on a bit here but I hope you find some of this useful. Just a few random thoughts to be honest.

InTheTrees

Good observations, thanks.

We go every few years, my GF has family there.

It used to be that the gambling subsidized the accommodation and food. But they're being squeezed so now they're nickel and diming like everywhere else.

Something I noticed is that there's always queues now. For everything. From a cup of coffee to checking in to the hotel. If its a less busy time of day they just take staff off so the queues remain. It was annoying.

Its a fun place for a short time though. Agreed three days is about max.

Its all so contrived though for a genuine "sin city" I'd take New Orleans any day.

Dublinflyer

InTheTrees wrote: »

Good observations, thanks.

It used to be that the gambling subsidized the accommodation and food. But they're being squeezed so now they're nickel and diming like everywhere else.

Yeah the whole customer experience is not what it used to be there and I am sure that makes people less inclined to tip, and that can be a problem as a lot of the staff there rely on tips to make a decent wage.

The resort fee is forced on everyone now. You have to pay it and it's $25 a day to got access to pretty poor WiFi. You also get some other services that a lot of people would not use, a copy of USA today in reception?!?

I always thought as Vegas as a place any american can holiday regardless of budget but if they keep going in the direction they are it will be out of reach for a lot of people and the gambling revenue will keep dropping.

NYC2013

Vegas is like the worst place in the world to be on a budget, all those casinos will get your money one way or the other. As long as your not a degenerate gambler its well worth it though, go there for 3 or 4 nights, a bit of gambling/shopping during the day and partying at night. As gambling spots go I've been to Atlantic City and Maccau and there not a patch on Las Vegas.

Dublinflyer

Yea it is a great place but I dunno, it just struck me that it has really changed in the 10 or so years between my visits. It's such an odd place in many ways it has to be seen to be believed. A lot of the big hotels are owned by MGM now so maybe they are just resting on it's reputation for a party town and they have stopped trying to out do each other. They have built it and they are coming! The Linq hotel has just opened and there are a few others due 2015/16 and these are all new players how may try shake the other big hotels grip on the strip. It will be interesting to see what happens.

cson

Chalk the Grand Canyon and Hoover Dam down as a must see for any trip to Las Vegas imo.

dor843088

Im off to vegas in three weeks and this thread has bummed me out a bit. : (

The Backwards Man

Don't let it, like everywhere, Vegas is what you make of it. Don't drink anywhere that has a cover charge, you are being robbed. Nightclubs in Vegas are just the same as nightclubs everywhere else, they try to squezze as much out of you for as little return as possible. There are literally hundreds of bars up and down the strip where you can get more bang for your buck .

Smoking is only permitted on casino floors, and as soon as percentages show there are more non smoking degenerate gamblers than smoking ones that will be gone too. Bars, restaurants, lobbies, malls are all smoke free, and the air in the Nevada desert if refreshingly clean, if maybe a little dry, but hey, it's a bloody desert.

If you research the shows and buy in advance you can get some good deals. Alternatively, if you go to one of the Tix4Tonite booths on the day you can pick up a bargain, provided you're not fussed what show you go to. Shows are demand driven, if they weren't getting it, they wouldn't be looking for it.:D As regards concerts, there's nowhere like it in the world. Last time I was there I had the choice of Shania Twain, Garth Brooks, Meat Loaf, Justin Timberlake, Boyz II Men, Merle Haggard, Rush and Bill Cosby within a two mile radius, and most for a lot less than you would see in Dublin. Where would you get it?

Hotels are still a lot cheaper than anywhere else, again, do your research first and you'll be grand. Resort fee is a bit of a balls alright, but you just have to factor it into the overall price before you commit. I think everyone should spend a night in one of the high end ones for the experience, but hotels such as Flamingo, Harrahs, TI, Monte Carlo can easily be got for less than seventy Euros a night, resort fee included. All of these are much superior to most hotels in Dublin IMO. Hell, even Luxor, Excalibur and Circus Circus would be better than a lot, and they practically pay YOU to stay with them!

Shopping; Two words, Fashion Show Mall. Actually that's three words but no matter. FSM is awesome. I made the mistake of visiting New York many years after I first visited Vegas, never as underwhelmed in my life. If you ever find yourself in Vegas on Black Friday, you, my friend, have discovered heaven.

Agree with the OP about the kids, though most places are rapidly backtracking from that market.

Go to Vegas, it's wild craic.

InTheTrees

...and remember to tip. 15-20%. Its not a discretionary thing. The poor minimum wage bastards who are serving you depend on it (they're even taxed on it!) so dont take it out on them.

The Minimum wage for Tipped Employees is $2.13/hr.

InTheTrees

Something thats a little different to do is to go shooting. Its very safe and structured and easy for tourists, and fun as hell. If you've never fired a fully automatic machine gun its something to experience.

http://machinegunexperience.com/
http://machinegunsvegas.com/
http://thegunstorelasvegas.com/

Ponster

InTheTrees wrote: »

Something thats a little different to do is to go shooting.

I went to the Gun Store in 2010. Very friendly, professional people. I didn't think I'd be all that interested but in the end I just wanted them to bleed my credit card dry in exchange for bullets!

If you've never done it before then it's worth a try!

Dublinflyer

Sorry if I sounded negative about the place, it was not my intention. It's a great place and you will have a great time there. You can have a completely wild night in the clubs, casinos and the shows. Or if you are a bit fatigued you can find a nice lobby bar and chill out there for a night. Or do both on the same night. As said above it's a place designed for you to party hard in and sleep on the way home.

egan2020

InTheTrees wrote: »

...and remember to tip. 15-20%. Its not a discretionary thing. The poor minimum wage bastards who are serving you depend on it (they're even taxed on it!) so dont take it out on them.

The Minimum wage for Tipped Employees is $2.13/hr.

Minimum wage for everyone including tipped employees in the State of Nevada is $8.25 (or $7.25 if the employer pays health insurance). So those employees are getting full minimum wage PLUS tips.

ceadaoin.

egan2020 wrote: »

Minimum wage for everyone including tipped employees in the State of Nevada is $8.25 (or $7.25 if the employer pays health insurance). So those employees are getting full minimum wage PLUS tips.

Wow, $8.25 (€6.06) an hour. Definitely no need to tip then :rolleyes:

Doesn't really matter what they are earning tbh. It's expected that you tip in the US, it's not discretionary. Everybody knows that so it's pretty rude not to. It's very rare that you would get bad service.

The Backwards Man

egan2020 wrote: »

Minimum wage for everyone including tipped employees in the State of Nevada is $8.25 (or $7.25 if the employer pays health insurance). So those employees are getting full minimum wage PLUS tips.

Strip hotels pay a lot better than that. Housekeeping get about 18 dollars an hour most places. I still tip well though, tis a cnut of a job.

CaliforniaDream

The Backwards Man wrote: »

Strip hotels pay a lot better than that. Housekeeping get about 18 dollars an hour most places. I still tip well though, tis a cnut of a job.

In most positions they don't. Tipped positions usually get paid minimum wage and you're taxed about $6 of that based on tips.
So a forty hour week usually pays you about $100.

ceadaoin.

CaliforniaDream wrote: »

In most positions they don't. Tipped positions usually get paid minimum wage and you're taxed about $6 of that based on tips.
So a forty hour week usually pays you about $100.

Really? That's depressing!

InTheTrees

The Backwards Man wrote: »

Strip hotels pay a lot better than that. Housekeeping get about 18 dollars an hour most places. I still tip well though, tis a cnut of a job.

No no no. You're saying the housekeeping staff make around $38,000 a year?

Thats completely insane and I'd like to see some evidence of that, the best I can find is around $21,000/yr :

http://www.indeed.com/salary/q-Housekeeping-l-Las-Vegas,-NV.html

The Backwards Man

InTheTrees wrote: »

No no no. You're saying the housekeeping staff make around $38,000 a year?

Thats completely insane and I'd like to see some evidence of that, the best I can find is around $21,000/yr :

http://www.indeed.com/salary/q-Housekeeping-l-Las-Vegas,-NV.html

The mean for Paradise is $15 Scroll down to highest metropolitan rates.
http://www.bls.gov/current/oes372012.htm

WilyCoyote

egan2020 wrote: »

Minimum wage for everyone including tipped employees in the State of Nevada is $8.25 (or $7.25 if the employer pays health insurance). So those employees are getting full minimum wage PLUS tips.

That seems quite a lot. I know that serving staff in Vermont got a raise lately ....... to $4.23 ph. Now if the waiter/waitress doesn't earn much tips the employer has to make up the shortfall to the minimum wage in that State.
They get taxed on the tips. Uncle Sam is not very forgiving.

Kev_2012

Myself and 6 friends went from Vancouver to Vegas at the weekend.
Stayed in Hooters beside the MGM. Cost $80 each to share a room between 4 of us, even though it was only supposed to be between 2.

We had a great time. Were all between 23 and 27 and we spoke to an English lad selling tickets for clubs etc. on the friday some mexican place and paid $85 which got us into Hakassan in MGM where Above and Beyond were playing. Good music, **** club. The second night was a pub crawl and that was great fun.

We started off in some bar I can't remember the name of, went to Koi I think then the Le Chateau nightclub where the backstreet boys were then went to the bellagio nightclub which was wild. Next day, went to Rehab pool party in the hard rock. was reduced admission (still $55) but my god it was one of the best laughs I've ever had. Met Peter Crouch on the strip and I'm convinced I tried to chat up Michelle Keegan at the pool party.

Great place and would love to go again!

My advice, get those tickets for the club entries, don't get out of your mind smashed every night, don't drink four loko, drink loads of water and wear sunscreen!

Dublinflyer

Kev_2012 wrote: »

Myself and 6 friends went from Vancouver to

We had a great time. Were all between 23 and 27 and we spoke to an English lad selling tickets for clubs etc. on the friday some mexican place and paid $85 which got us into Hakassan in MGM where Above and Beyond were playing. Good music, **** club. The second night was a pub crawl and that was great fun.

We started off in some bar I can't remember the name of, went to Koi I think then the Le Chateau nightclub where the backstreet boys were then went to the bellagio nightclub which was wild. Next day, went to Rehab pool party in the hard rock. was reduced admission (still $55) but my god it was one of the best laughs I've ever had. Met Peter Crouch on the strip and I'm convinced I tried to chat up Michelle Keegan at the pool party.

That's what Vegas is all about! Just making a lot of it up as you go along and still having a great time!

InTheTrees

We're going in July. My better half has family there and we'll be meeting other relatives who are coming from Ohio and Minnesota. Its a yearly thing.

This year though my gf's sister and husband are going to rent a RV (they're going on to the grand canyon afterwards) and park it in a casino parking lot. Apparently RV's can park for free in all the casino parking lots (and why not).