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Feature I wrote on Las Vegas for the July 2008 issue of Travel Digest. I travelled to this destination as part of attending a travel industry conference which I also reported on.
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13 Travel Digest, July 2008
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My first impression of Las Vegas is hardly surprising. After a 17-hour trip from New Zealand (including a transfer at Los Angeles), I'm greeted at McCarran International Airport to
poker machines conveniently located beside the baggage claim
area - just in case you need a head start on your winnings, or should I say losses!
Once officially referred to as Sin City, Las Vegas is a place where anything can happen, anytime, anywhere. I arrive at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, a 39-story luxury hotel
The Strip and beyondAs the entertainment capital of the world, Las Vegas is famous for its massive and lavish casino resorts, its unrestricted availability of alcoholic beverages
and adult entertainment. SARAH WEEKS finds there's morethan meets the eye when it comes to Las Vegas.
14 Travel Digest, July 2008
las vegas
Email your order, adding on $6 pack and post [within NZ], to: [email protected] Include credit card details (type of card, name on card, number, expiry date and amount).
Alternatively send your cheque made out to Méthode Media Ltd, PO Box 105-483, Auckland. Provide full name, address, email and phone number.
Clips on to your belt. Counts steps, measures distance (in kms) and calories.
Is also a clock, stopwatch and alarm.
casino at the southern end of The Strip, to find amazing views from my 30th floor room. This hotel has the unique distinction of having two heated pools, a wave pool, a European-style pool (complete with private bar as well as an allowance for female guests to bathe topless) and a lazy river that features a small waterfall and man-made beach. In keeping with the resort's tropical theme, it features a saltwater aquarium, Shark Reef with the third largest tank in North America and a two tunnel-shaped, walk-through aquaria.
Las Vegas Boulevard, most commonly referred to as The Strip, is a mega playground for grown-ups. Magnificent hotels glow green and gold; pink, red, yellow, blue and white neon pulsates all around; electric lights flash; music plays; volcanoes erupt; fountains soar; people in thousands walk up, down and over The Strip; roller coasters corkscrew high above the ground and a laser beam visible from space penetrates the night sky, inviting the whole world to come and play.
Walking down The Strip, it seems there is always something exciting happening no matter what time of the day or night. The majority of entertainment is located along this boulevard and with plenty to see and do, it can be difficult navigating yourself through the maze of casinos, bars, nightclubs and attractions. I start from the northern end, weaving my way in and out of various casinos along the way (exit signs are hard to find here for a reason!), a venture that can take as short, or as long, as you want.
Some of the highlights along The Strip include a visit to The Venetian Resort Hotel Casino and its sister property the Palazzo. This Venice-themed luxury hotel and casino has an extensive indoor retail mall, the Grand Canal Shops, a lake in front of the casino, canals on the second floor in the shopping mall with private gondola rides, an amazing engineering feat in itself. You can also view a performance by the famed Blue Man Group, a trio of mute performers painted blue.
Treasure Island is another interesting feature of The Strip and not hard to miss either with its free nightly show at Siren's Cove, featuring a staged pirate battle, complete with pirate ship, bare-chested pirates, singing and dancing. Further down from here you will find the Bellagio with its notable artificial lake in front of the building housing the Fountains of Bellagio, a large dancing water fountain synchronised to music. These spectacular performances take place every 30 minutes in the afternoons and every 15 minutes in the evenings.
Planet Hollywood Las Vegas is another notable casino resort along The Strip. Formerly known as The Aladdin, the resort was renovated last year and rebranded as Planet Hollywood. The casino is Hollywood-themed with a modern new retail space dubbed Miracle Mile Shops, a great place to stop for a quick fix of shopping.
New York – New York Hotel and Casino is yet another famous landmark on The Strip's horizon and is a recreation of New York City's skyline featuring several towers, which resemble skyscrapers such as the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building. In front of the property is a pool representing New York Harbour with a 46-metre tall replica of the Statue of Liberty, a roller coaster and replicas of the Brooklyn Bridge, Soldiers and Sailors Monument, the Whitney
Museum of American Art, Ellis Island and Grand Central Terminal, among other well-known structures.
Luxor Hotel, conveniently located next door to Mandalay Bay, is one of the city's first fully-themed mega resorts and is among the most recognisable hotels on The Strip. The main portion of the hotel is a 110-metre high, 30-story pyramid of black glass with a massive recreation of the Great Sphinx of Giza sitting out the front. The tip of the pyramid contains a spotlight that points directly upward and is the brightest beam in the world, visible from anywhere in the Las Vegas valley at night (very handy in finding your way home at the end of the night, or morning). Inside you will find various Egyptian attractions such as a replica of the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun.
But there is more to Las Vegas than just glitz and glamour of The Strip. New Zealanders are active travellers and as a generalisation we will spend less money on accommodation and indulgences like expensive spa treatments or golf courses, allowing us to spend more on activities and cultural immersion - and of course more time travelling! Las Vegas is an ideal base for a wide range of scenic day trips. Hire a car and hit the road or join a tour to the Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam or hike Mount Charleston, rock climb at Red Rock Canyons or get on the water on Lake Mead.
My choice of day trip is Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, located just 24km west of Las Vegas. These rock formations can easily be seen from The Strip and are visited by over one million people each year. The area showcases a set of strikingly beautiful red sandstone peaks and walls called the Keystone Thrust. The walls are up to 1km high, making them a popular hiking and rock-climbing destination. A one-way loop road named Scenic Drive provides vehicle access to many of the features in the canyon, including hiking trails. The loop road is very popular for bicycle touring and begins with a moderate climb, then is mostly downhill or flat.
Our tour guide, Red Rock Casino Resort and Spa's outdoor expert David Bert, is a passionate naturalist and gives us a detailed history on the area's complex geology. Believe it
New York New York Hotel and Casino is a recreation of New York City's skyline.
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15 Travel Digest, July 2008
Travel gadget of the year:
Pedometer
For weight loss aim for 10,000 steps per day.
$15.00 incl GST
Email your order, adding on $6 pack and post [within NZ], to: [email protected] Include credit card details (type of card, name on card, number, expiry date and amount).
Alternatively send your cheque made out to Méthode Media Ltd, PO Box 105-483, Auckland. Provide full name, address, email and phone number.
Count your steps when you walk the Great Wall of China, up the Eiffel Tower, around Ayers Rock or
distance around the Promenade Deck on yournext cruise – and then count your weight loss.
Clips on to your belt. Counts steps, measures distance (in kms) and calories.
Is also a clock, stopwatch and alarm.
Who steps out the most in your
office?
Why not have an office
competition?
16 Travel Digest, July 2008
or not, but this area was actually located under a deep ocean basin 600 million years ago. Decaying ocean and marine life formed sediments at the seafloor, which eventually formed into limestone. Around 250 million years ago, the earth's crust started to rise due to tectonic shifts, forcing water out and leaving behind formations of salt and gypsum. Exposure to this allowed some of the rocks to oxidise (literally rust), forming the area's characteristic red and orange rock layers.
The region is also rich with Native American history, with numerous petroglyphs (rock carvings) as well as pottery fragments remaining today. Several roasting pits used by early native Americans provide further evidence that this area was a popular meeting place among different tribes.
Along with hiking, rock climbing and bicycling, visitors can also do horseback riding and camping trips on specific trails and designated areas. Temperatures routinely exceed 41 degrees in the summer, so bringing plenty of water is a must. There is also the threat of poisonous rattlesnakes and flash flooding / lightning from thunderstorms.
Adrenalin junkies will find plenty to get their blood pounding and heart rate rushing in and around Las Vegas. Kiwis looking for activities to rival the bungy jumping experience might try white water rafting on the Colorado River, driving an all-terrain vehicle around the Nevada desert or for a man made thrill, the three rides perched 110-stories above ground level atop the Stratosphere Tower will push anyone's fear limit.
Shoppers, however, should warm up the credit card when visiting Las Vegas. Those looking for retail therapy can shop-till-they-drop whether it is at outlet malls, souvenir stands or designer boutiques. Shopping is one of the most popular activities for Kiwis visiting the United States, with the price of clothing, jewellery, cosmetics and electrical goods generally much cheaper than what we would pay in New Zealand. Las Vegas is home to three factory outlets all selling goods discounted at 25 to 65 per cent below retail price. A 45-minute
drive out to Fashion Outlets of Las Vegas is definitely worth the trip, as you'll pick up unbelievable savings on top-of-the-line designer merchandise.
If you want to experience the classic, historical part of Las Vegas, then Fremont Street is where it all started back in 1905, when the city was founded. Fremont Street is (or was) the address for many famous casinos such as Binion's Horseshoe, Eldorado Club, Fremont Hotel and Casino, Golden Gate Hotel
and Casino, Golden Nugget, The Mint and the Pioneer Club. Prior to the construction of the Fremont Street Experience (brightly-lit display canopy covering four blocks) the western end of Fremont Street was the picture of Las Vegas you would see in virtually every television show and movie that wanted to display the lights of Las Vegas.
The abundance of neon signs, like cowboy Vegas Vic, earned the street the nickname of Glitter Gulch.
The display canopy stretching along the Fremont Street promenade presents nightly light and sound shows beginning at dusk where visitors can view this, standing underneath. Some of the most popular shows include the Lucky Vegas show, which pays tribute to some of the most well known Vegas icons and The Drop which takes visitors on a journey that begins with one drop of water.
So whether it be gambling, partying or venturing out into nature, Las Vegas has it all for visitors of all types. One thing's for sure, this city has been successfully entertaining visitors from all around the world for more than 100 years and it's not about to slow down.
Sarah Weeks travelled to Las Vegas courtesy of Air New Zealand and Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino.
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FAST FACTS
How to get there: Air New Zealand and Qantas with United Airlines transfers from Los Angeles. Allow for 17 to 22 hours travelling time.
Currency: USD$1 = NZD$1.33
Best time to go: All year round.
Time difference: Las Vegas is 19 hours behind New Zealand time.
Highlights: The Strip, Fremont Street Experience and Red Rock Canyon.
Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino . . . allows female guests to bathe topless.
las vegas
