samwise6222

Us: 2 women celebrating 30th birthday. We both have never been to Vegas so this will be our first. One with M-Life Platnium from Hyatt matching.

Arriving: Aug 24 11:30PM (so too late for anything friday evening?)

Staying:
2 nights at Delano booked via Amex FHR for $235/night + taxes & resort fee (yuck) which comes with
- 2 breakfast (which I heard was $30 credit per person per day?)
- 4pm check out on Sunday
- $100 F&B credit
I saw some other deals on mycheapvegas - but this seems to be the best I can find at the moment.

We are both not hardcore gamblers (I have hard time sleeping if I lose $100) - so we both booked this trip thinking to experience the entertainment scene in Vegas.

What we want to try in two days:
- Wet Republic or Daylight Beach Club? (we may strike this as we feel like we will be the oldest one there) or just try to chillax at Delano Beach Club
- Shooting range (where else can I shoot a machine gun?)
- Light Night Club (try to stick with places that are walkable from our hotel...and i am guessing lines would be crazy on Saturday?)
- Penn & Teller (never been to a magic show)
- SkyJump (time permitting...)


Any feedback / suggestion would be greatly appreciated!

redtop43

You sound like you've got a pretty full schedule already.

If time gets crunched, you could go to the high-altitude zipline at Rio instead of the Skyjump at Stratosphere, as Penn & Teller perform at Rio. (I once had a girlfriend who wanted to do the skyjump, and we joked that I would be happy to push her off a tall building. In the end, I would have been extremely happy to do so, bungee cord or not!)

If you and your friend are good-looking, you should be able to get into a nightclub or a beach club for free. But I don't know precisely how that stuff works. My ex used to work the strip, basically trying to get hot girls or free-spending men to go to clubs, from which she got a commission. I guess you could look on Craigslist to see if some of the promoters advertise there.

Delano is nice, I stayed there about 12 years ago. $300/night (all in, including taxes and resort fee) on a weekend with the Amex FHR amenities isn't a bad price. Pretty much every hotel in Vegas has a resort fee so just think of it as built into the price.

I wouldn't say you're too late to do anything Friday night, although I think the nightclubs do close at 2. But do pay attention to the jet lag. If you're like most people you'll be up early on Saturday and falling asleep early Saturday night.

You should be able to get discount tickets for P&T. However, do check out the prices. They have a few ticket kiosks like Tix4Tonight but they're not necessarily good deals.

Have you seen Cirque de Solei? I think of that as being much more iconic Vegas than P&T. I don't think there's that much difference in the quality of the shows vs. price, so you could easily go to one of the cheaper shows at Aria or Treasure Island. I haven't been to the Cirque Michael Jackson show at Mandalay Bay (I think that's where it plays) although I might go on my next trip.

Take Uber or Lyft. They've raised the prices significantly but it's still much cheaper than a taxi.

With regard to gambling, if you don't want to, then don't. But if you want to, I'd suggest:
a) Play the pass line at craps. You can't screw it up and it's one of the best bets in the house. You can play the free odds also, but since you're risk-averse, there's no reason to.
b) Absolutely don't play more than $10. Most of the strip casinos will have a $15 minimum, particularly on weekends. Excalibur might be lower, I don't know. I know Hooters is lower, and that's the only place I can think of offhand that's in your neighborhood. If you do go to Rio, Gold Coast is across the street and very likely will have $5 tables (but don't count on it on a weekend evening).
c) Stay away from roulette which has horrible odds, and slot machines which are worse.
d) Avail yourself of the free drinks, but don't forget to tip the waitress a buck or two. You can tip with chips, although you can't buy anything with chips. (Why? Because a tip is voluntary, whereas paying for something in a restaurant or gift shop is mandatory.)

samwise6222

Wow - Thank you so much for your detailed post. Really really appreciate it!

Jay71

We stayed at Delano last year and a few years ago when it was THEHotel. The rooms are nice.
Since you are staying there, I'd suggest heading up to the Skyfall Lounge in Delano around sunset. Great view of the strip (google it). Free elevator ride to the lounge but drinks are kind of pricey. Just nurse one and enjoy the view from the balcony.

I don't know if it's your style or if you have the time to fit it in but I always like to suggest a trip to downtown Vegas along the Fremont area at night. There's just so much happening in such a compact 3-4 blocks.

nrr

While it rarely rains much in LAS, wind issues can cause certain events to close. Two days is too short for a first time visit; since you note New York (City?) as your location, you can go to Atlantic City (or even Resorts World in Jamaica) for gambling--so confine your activities in LAS to things you couldn't do elsewhere.
A $8.00 Deuce day pass lets you ride on the Deuce (or SDX) strip busses, so you can get a quick view of the city.

gengar

Two nights with a late arrival on day one is a pretty short trip, but fine given OP says they're not interested in gambling.

Dayclub/nightclub choice should depend on music preference and specific DJ who will be performing. Obviously it's always easier to go to a place on-property (esp. pool parties), but it's not like you're not going to just take an uber/lyft to whatever club you are going to. I can't stress enough that you need to make arrangements prior to arriving at the club; either buy presale tickets or contact a reliable host to make sure you will get quick entry. I think that checking out the big busy nightclubs is a reasonable part of a first Vegas experience, but if you're not into the big crowds, there are also a number of good lounge options.

Low Roller

samwise6222

Thank you everyone

Thanks for the suggestion re Freemont. For the hotel, we moved to Mandalay Bay from Delano
Mandalay Bay came at $110/night w/ $125 F&B credit, so the price difference didn't justify "nicer rooms" (I mean I've stayed at suites in Park Hyatt Tokyo (thank you diamond suite upgrade) and other locations....so don't think Delano was going to impress me.

2) By other's suggestion, we decided to go with Cirque du Soleil for Saturday night.

​​​​​​​Fair point re AC. But neither of us are gambler.... but rather we are going to experience Vegas. That's all.


For transportation-wise, we will probably drive everywhere and Park at an MGM property (free parking).

The _Banking_Scot

Hi,

Just to provide some advice that driving on the strip at most times of the day ( apart from the morning ) can take a lot longer than you think as traffic can move very slowly. ( there are roads running parallel to the strip which can be quicker) You can use valet parking at the hotels ( just tip a few bucks) even if not staying there which can save time getting to and from the self parking.

Regards

TBS

samwise6222

Thank you thank you I will let Waze make the decision for me.

corky

Unless you know the back roads I would not recommend driving around the strip. Traffic is awful and sometimes you are dealing with tons of pedestrians. It is usually faster to walk or if it's too far, I would uber as it is much less hassle.

ijgordon

Yeah, I wouldn't really recommend renting a car in LV to get around the Strip. Getting to/from the airport rental car facility is a pain in the neck, plus the driving/traffic/parking issues discussed above. If you want to drive out to Red Rock Canyon or Hoover Dam or whatnot, the agencies have local rental facilities at a handful of the casinos, so just get the car for one day there.

samwise6222

We just got back and we had an absolute blast during our stay

...and i mean an actual blast:




We liberally used valet parking at MGM properties as my MLife Platinum is expiring next month. It wasn't quite a "walking" weather with everyday hitting 100+.

For driving, we rarely drove on S. LV Blvd and instead opted for Industrial Road and I-15.

Interpol

I was just about to suggest the Machine Gun Experience at Discount Firearms & Ammo on Highland. The $199 package gets you the use of a M249 SAW, an M-4, an AK-47, and a .45 ACP 1911 handgun. You run out of ammo pretty quick, however.

I usually just bring my own firearms and rent a lane on their range.

heresabe

I'm probably too late...but discounted Penn & Teller tickets are often available at Tix4Tonight booths at substantial savings.
With regard to seating, I found that most seats are good, with acceptable sightlines to the stage.

In my opinion, the show is worth seeing, even multiple times, since the "magic" acts can differ from night to night.