Favorite Casinos - Las Vegas

Although I hilighted the Stratosphere, Bellagio and T.I., a bunch more casinos really struck my fancy. I'll try and go down the strip, from south to north, naming some of my favorites!

First is the Luxor. This casino/hotel is Egyptian style, and the best thing about it is its pyramid shape. The interior follows suit, with the rooms slanted, and the elevator even goes up at a diagonal incline! The rooms are around the perimeter of the hotel, with a huge lobby area on the middle. Another hilight about this hotel is the skyway that connects Mandalay Bay, the Luxor, and Excalibur. This makes these hotels easily accessible right from within!

 The Monte Carlo is such a classy hotel, it's hard not to go in! When we visited the Monte Carlo, we mostly went in there to play at the tables. The service is great, the dealers are nice, and the fellow table-mates are friendly. We seemed to have a lot of luck there, too!

The second time in Vegas, we stayed at the Flamingo. This hotel/casino is the oldest standing hotel on the strip, and I like it for several reasons. The Flamigo is right in the heart of the strip, known as one of the casinos on the 4 corners. Even though it's right in the thick of things, it is very reasonably priced. The casino also has a walk-out entrance/exit to the strip.

One of my favorite places to play table games is the Mirage. I liked their casino War, and it seems they are the only casino to have it. I like those low-risk card games! I also liked the Mirage's asthetics. You walk in the casino and it felt like you were walking into a jungle! Very tropical!

The Wynn and Encore, 2 very modern hotels, are the last of the favorites. These hotels are as one, connected through a skyway and built with the same design in mind. This casino had different options for blackjack, like Blackjack Switch. The Wynn and Encore had a very Aisan feel, and I really liked it!

Vegas Baby!

Can you believe it took me 25 years to get to Vegas?! This past year, I attended the Travel Academy in a suburb of Minneapolis, and as a graduation gift in October of '09, my fiance and I went to Las Vegas! There truly is no better place to unwind. I really had no idea what I was in for when our plane landed.

First of all, if you can imagine something you thought was larger than life, imagine that thing 10 times bigger and you have Vegas! I've seen it all on T.V., the strip, the hotels, the lights, but to say it was amazing is a complete understatement!

The extreme north end of the strip is under construction, making way for 2 new hotels/casinos, so it was a long walk to get to the first casino, or maybe it just seemed like it because I was so excited to get there! When we got into the thick of it all, we really just walked in to each casino/hotel we came to, just to check them out. All the hotels have different themes, so it was very cool to see how each hotel ran with their own ideas! A few hotels had mini shows being performed out in front, so we stopped and watched them, and even those were elaborate! Some of the shows include the Sirens of TI (Treasure Island), the Fountain Show at the Bellagio, and a Volcano Show at the Mirage.

Here are some tips on Vegas:
-Vegas is probably the cheapest destination in the U.S. right now, so keep an eye out for lots of flight and hotel deals. The further away from the majority of the strip you stay, the better the deals. It should be noted that there is plenty of public trasit, so you won't be spending your "fun" money on a taxi ride.
-When you check into your hotel, ask for any deals or offers the hotel might have.
-When you see something along the strip that you want to buy, buy it, because there is so much to see, you will most likely never go back.
-Don't spend all your money in one casino. Spread it out because you will want to experience each casino. Vegas requires a lot of self-control.