welltraveledbrit

Just back from 3 days in Vegas...we had a great room (Bellagio) went to three fun shows ("O", Tome Jones and a Neil Diamond tribute show) and ate at wonderful restaurants (FIX, Commander's Palace, Seablue and Rosemary's) but somehow I still didn't love Vegas.

Vegas is a place that's hard to get around...to me it isn't a town for walking, driving or taking public transport...eg the monorail and the various trams where are endlessly pushed through the casinos.

We had some fun but I won't be rushing back. I guess I just had to see what everyone was talking about.

HOTEL: Stayed at the Bellagio in the new Spa tower which is where you'll find the partial lake view rooms. The room was lovely, very luxurious and we loved the bathroom, the view of the lake and of Paris opposite. The housekeeping staff were excellent and we enjoyed the turndown every evening.

Though I liked our room I just couldn't warm to the hotel overall. With the exception of the concierge staff (who are excellent) the hotel offers virtually no service. It's so big that we were constantly put on hold to reach the front desk. There was nothing really bad just no there there.

The pool was packed...yes we found a lounger but who wants to lie three loungers deep surrounded on all sides ?! Luxury is about privacy and you won't get it here.I wasn't really expecting it but when you get there you realize how much you miss it.

The hotel is packed with people...people who are staying elsewhere. Eveywhere you go there are people, "just coming to take a look"...it's great but it doesn't make for a pleasant place to stay.There is no private area for those who are staying at the hotel...there's the room and the pool...Oh and the spa if you don't mind their condescending attitude.

FOOD: The food in Vegas was wonderful though not cheap. We used chowhound.com as a great resource before we went and I made reservations in advance which is a necessity. Loved the following...

FIX at the Bellagio was wonderful....it's a very clubby, dark atmosphere. The food was great lobster tacos, Kobe beef sliders and hot doughnut filled with banana creme. Excellent, hip and highly recommended.

SEABLUE at MGM...it's one of Micheal Mina's Vegas outposts. Very nicely decorated with a rather urban sophisticated feel. The food is mainly seafood and was good though expensive. We shared small plates, several of which come in trios. Oysters Rockerfeller, an interesting raw trio, crab stuffed squash blossoms etc. Also recommended, though the service didn't match the food or the prices.

Jazz Brunch at Commander's Palace: The service and food were wonderful plus it was an easy walk from Bellagio.I greatly enjoyed the bbq oysters and eggs hollandaise on a biscuit. They gave us a wonderful table because I had mentioned it was our anniversary and the jazz was wonderful. It's $36 for brunch and I felt it was well worth it. The appetizer, dessert and amuse bouche were all wonderful...also recommended.

Rosemary's off the strip. This is a highly recommended local place which we enjoyed. On Sundays they have half price wine which meant we enjoyed a great Bordeaux without breaking the bank. The food was good with some interesting flavour (especially those from New Orleans because the chefs worked with Emeril and Susan Spicer).

We particularly liked the parmesan souffle. The service was great and we enjoyed the meal but by this stage we had just eaten too much!


SHOWS: We enjoyed "O" and were happy that the hotel concierge could get us great tickets. It is VERY expensive $150 but quite spectacular...it's very hard to describe the stage made of water which comes in a range of configurations from very shallow to very deep with a constantly changing size and shape. Spectacular and magical.

Neil Diamond tribute show at the Riviera. What a hoot..this chap was alot of fun. It's a tiny venue and a long way from the Bellagio in every way/ We brought the average age in the room down dramatically but we enjoyed it...very Vegas!

Tom Jones...ever more Vegas! This was a great show in a fund venue at the MGM. There were less than 800 people and we sat at a small table and had a glass of wine. The people next to us had last seen Tom Jones in Miami in 1969!He really puts on a great show and doesn't take himself too seriously plus he has recently been doing some fun stuff with Jools Holland and Wycliffe Jean. Highly recommended as long as you can take the knickers being thrown on stage!

Hope this helps someone else in planning or considering a Vegas trip.

LoveItaly

Hi welltraveledbrit, great report!!
I understand exactly what you mean about Las Vegas. We always had fun there but always glad to leave also as the number of people does get a bit much. A private area for hotel guest would be very nice and sorely needed from the sounds of it.

The food you had sounds fantastic but I too can only take so many fantastic and rich meals.

Thanks for sharing your trip and your impressions. Best wishes.

KathrynT

I'm with you. Vegas just doesn't do it for me. It is interesting to visit once in a while, but I'd much rather choose other destinations to vacation.

It sounds like you had a good time despite your feelings about the place. Your comments about the Bellagio will be helpful to others thinking of staying there.

I hope you visited other places in the US that you enjoyed more. Thanks for your report.

TripleSecDelay

Great input, WTBrit.
I had resisted forever and finally visited this year when some events drew us there; it was never my target for a vacation.

It's true: Vegas has been built into this larger-than-life hotspot that people feel they must see at least once. They've done a great job with that, haven't they?

MelissaHI

Women still toss knickers on the stage for Tom Jones? Egad!! I remember my mom's friend did that back in 1973!

I really appreciated your food reviews--I was just wondering about some of those restaurants! Do you think any of them would be fine for dining alone?

Curt

You reckon it is the same women throwing their panties at Tom? Oh perish the thought!

beth48

I agree with you - we went there last September. It was good to see all the sites and to people-watch - you see it all in Vegas!! We greatly enjoyed getting out of town and visiting Mt. Charleston and the Hoover Dam. We always get a rental car wherever we go so we can explore. I may go back again sometime - but it's not on my priority list.

Lori

I'm in 'Vegas at least 3 times a year (we live a few hundred miles away and a short 1 hr. Southwest Airlines flight) and have seen many changes over the years. You just need to take 'Vegas for what it is It's a bit "intense", I'll agree, and that is why I always recommend at least one day of your visit should include going off strip someplace to kind of "regroup your brain" from the intensity.

If you can, rent a car and go see the Valley of Fire, Red Rock Canyon, Mt. Charleston, Hoover Dam -- or just ride around the various "neighborhoods" and see that there is a real city there and real people actually live there.
Even Lake Las Vegas is a nice step away from the strip for a few hours and it's pretty close by too.

While 'Vegas is generally pretty crowded there are times of the year when it is less so, if you can arrange time off to visit then it may be more enjoyable to those who are not sure they "get 'Vegas" .

Little_Man

thank you brit. I understand your vegas opinions. If I didn't live in So. California, I think it'd be a once in a lifetime thing...

I also like the Venetian as a hotel better than the Bellagio, because when I visited, it just felt less crowded.

Viva Tom Jones!!!

JJ5

Las Vegas was, at one time, much more lazy. Not now!

I enjoyed your trip report and happen to agree with you down the line.

Another way to experience Las Vegas in a more private and relaxing way, is to stay off the strip. There are some very nice resorts with easy access available.
This was a choice I took when having to use Las Vegas as a hub to get to an ailing aunt. LV is fun in very small doses to me. And I particularly dislike all the central strip hype places that so many others enjoy.

Sounds like you researched and had a slice of many venues for one visit. Kudos.

I was there so many times in the 90's up to 2003- that I probably will not go back unless connecting with a SW USA vacation.

tcapp

I totally agree with you. I don't get Vegas either. We, too, had a nice hotel, great food, etc. But we couldn't wait to get out of there.
Not my cup of tea in the least.

missypie

I've always assumed that people who like to gamble are the ones who love Vegas.

Patrick

It seems to me your title explains it all very well.

Vegas is a place for people who like great food in great restaurants, great hotels, and great shows.

If you don't like those things, you're right, you probably won't like Las Vegas.

But I don't get it. If you went for a weekend of great room, great food, and great fun and found all that, what is there to be unhappy about? If you were looking for museums, natural scenic beauty, "cheap" food and activities, or culture, then you clearly went to the wrong place.

vegasnative

welltraveledbrit,
I liked your trip report even though you may not have enjoyed yourself as much as you would have liked in this crazy..but great..town! Las Vegas draws so many people that it is hard to find private areas on the Strip. The hotels are huge some as big as 5000+ rooms, and they have to be able to accomodate those people at the pools and the others that come to check it out. You can get privacy at Strip hotels, but it will cost you dearly, many have cabanas at the pools but they can be expensive. So if you are looking for privacy on the Las Vegas Strip...don't expect it. The food in Vegas "used" to be cheap. Not anymore, now we have famous chefs from all over the world coming to live, work and open up their own restaurants, and so our food has become something to talk about(we are quickly becoming known for our restaurants), but it too has come with a pricetag. It's not just the tourists that are having to pay here in Vegas, we locals have noticed the cost of living skyrocket in the last 5 years. It used to be a cheap place to play and live...not anymore. As beth48 and Lori both mentioned, for that more quiet time it is a great idea to visit Mt. Charleston or the Valley of Fire. They are both beautiful areas that are not crowded at all. Glad you came, and will hope that you come again and visit "Las Vegas" and not just the Strip.
Cheers!

RBCal

Vegas is plastic, as shown by the many imitations of other places, New York, Venice, Paris, etc. Why people go to Vegas to see imitations of some other place I have no idea. The real thing is much more interesting.

The only reason I would go there is for the shows, gambling you can do anywhere these days (and it gets old very quickly).

welltraveledbrit

Glad that some of you enjoyed the report...Frankie I agree about the Venetian. We visited it and found it to be the most interesting in terms of the over the top fun architecture feel stuff. It seemed that the canal/alley ways of Venice worked well as a themed indoor mall.

Also we went to see Bouchon(didn't eat there because we missed breakfast) which overlooks a pool area...it was all so much quieter and more pleasant than the Bellagio.

Missypie - I think you're right and that it is perhaps people who gamble that like Vegas...I guess what's confusing is that when people come back from Vegas they talk about the shows, the food and the hotels and not the gambling...unless they won! I think Vegas is trying to say...we're about so much more... but the fact is that with the exception of the Four Seasons there is just no way to escape the casinos everywhere you go.

Patrick- what are you saying ?..I don't get it? I wasn't trying to complain or to irritate.

We had fun despite the fact that I didn't really enjoy the locale. The point I was trying to make was that I did like the food, restaurants and shows...it's possible to enjoy these things without enjoying the overall package.

A great room doesn't make a great hotel experience and food and shows don't make a great city. "Different horses for different courses" as they say in England.

Patrick

I wasn't trying to be argumentative. I was just saying that I think your answer was in your title. When you said "I still don't get Vegas", I was saying that you explain what Vegas has and what it is. The only thing not to "get" as far as I can see, and even by what you and others were saying is that it isn't a cultural place or a place for quiet relaxation. I guess I'm saying I don't "get" what you don't "get" about Vegas, since you explained it all very well. I'm saying that it is for those who are looking for just what it is and just what you experienced.
Now, have I confused you even more?

LoveItaly

I am showing my age I know but I enjoyed Las Vegas so much more when Las Vegas had The Dunes, The Sands etc. Getting up late morning and going to the bar and having the bartender fix your Bloody Mary before you even ordered it as they knew what you wanted as they remembered their customers. And no, I have never been a big gambler. It is not that I would not return to Las Vegas but not having unlimited travel money it is not on my list of where I want to go to again. Now if someone wanted to bankroll the trip for me I would make the sacrifice, LOL. Cheers!

Kal

L'Italy,
Is it true you used to date Ol' Blue Eyes during your Vegas showgirl days?


I hadn't been to Vegas in over 12+ yrs until a few weeks ago.

It is so over the top now I can't wait to go back.....but it would still be only a place to go to maybe once every so many years...but NOT 12+!!!

If we couldn't go to Kauai for each New Year's, it would be VEGAS, BABY! \/

LoveItaly

Darn it Kal, I told you to keep that to yourself!!!! What a blabber mouth you are! I won't be sharing anymore secrets with you