[ SUNDAY TRAVEL ]
LAS Vegas has never been near the top of my list of places to travel. For years I've read about the "new Las Vegas," the "family friendly Las Vegas," the "theme park Las Vegas." My mother- and brother-in-laws, who live in Southern California, "love" the gambling Mecca.
Twenty-four hours is a
What it has to offer By Tim Ryan
short time to spend in Sin City, so
you have to move fast while you can
Star-BulletinDespite my trepidation -- especially after watching the film "Casino" several times -- when an opportunity arose to visit the city for just 24 hours, I figured I'd take the gamble.
I know lots of Hawaii people LOVE the place. But I'm not a gambler, I don't spend a lot of late nights out, I'm not fond of smokers, and I'm not particularly fond of marble bathrooms or swarthy guys in shark skin suits. OK, I suppose that's a stereotype.
It's true, Vegas has changed. It is more family friendly, and as I learned, you don't have to be a high roller to have fun. I think they should charge admission for people-watching.
The casinos are marvelous places 24 hours a day; the Las Vegas Strip is a nightly light show of not-to-be-believed proportions; there's entertainment to meet every taste; and roller coasters, bungee jumping, shark tanks, lush gardens, art galleries and, yes, lavish buffets. My 24 hours in Las Vegas turned out to be as stimulating as it was informative. And, yes, I'm glad I went.
With so little time, I decided to take the bulk of my day and part of the night to walk the four-plus mile Strip.Starting at the Strip's most southern hotel, the Four Seasons, I would make my way north while stopping and shopping and gawking and eating whenever the mood spoke.
Las Vegas is a good walking town, but there are plenty of trams, shuttles and a monorail in case your feet get tired.
I began with breakfast at the Four Seasons, the only hotel on the Strip that doesn't have gambling. But it's also connected to Mandalay Bay through a secret one-way door. Open it and suddenly you're in LAS VEGAS. Not 50 feet from this secret door were two gorgeous women in low-cut dresses and 4-inch heels -- remember it's 10 a.m. -- holding massive squawking parrots on each arm, letting visitors have their pictures taken with the birds.
The 11-acre Mandalay Bay water environment, with a sand and surf beach and a variety of swimming pools, is closed during the winter months so I headed to Shark Reef, a $40-million aquarium covering more than 90,000 square feet that holds more than 1.5 million gallons of sea water.
Because there are so many tropical animals and plants here, the temperature is kept in the 80s with humidity at least as high. Why, I thought, does Las Vegas have a bigger and more extensive aquarium collection than Hawaii?
There are two Nile crocodiles and several thick moray eels, and hundreds of moon jellyfish housed in an oval tank bathed in black light. The white, iridescent jellyfish gently rise and sink, creating an aquatic version of a lava lamp. The sharks range from 12-foot nurse sharks to 112-foot baby zebra sharks, the latter housed in a small "touch tank."After my hourlong visit, I stop off at Mandalay's Kona Cafe for "Kona" coffee then head to the free monorail for a 2-minute ride to the pyramid shaped Luxor Las Vegas, interesting to look at but a few years old. Before me is the Strip, probably the most famous stretch of road in the world, filled with neon-lit resorts and 24-hour-a-day action.
I continue on the monorail beyond the Excalibur, a "castle" complete with a moat and a fire-breathing dragon. The moment you step across the drawbridge, you're transported back to the medieval days of King Arthur.
This is the monorail's last stop so I get to head to the Big Apple, Las Vegas style, the Statue of Liberty, Morocco, Paris, Italy and Venice.
Though I've seen it in lots of photos, New York New York is astonishing in its detail and the ridiculousness of the imitation. There's only one Empire State Building, after all.
The hotel features 12 New York City-styled hotel towers extending 47 stories and 529 feet, the tallest hotelcasino in Nevada. There's also a 150-foot replica of the Statue of Liberty and a 300-foot long, 50-foot high replica of the Brooklyn Bridge; and a replica of the Soldiers and Sailors Monument. The inter-connected skyscrapers have hotel rooms are decorated with 1930s art deco.
"It's like visiting New York without having to deal with New Yorkers," someone says.
Several people stand in front of the Statue of Liberty replica having their pictures taken, including a family from Manhattan who ask me to take theirs.
"We've never even been to the real one," the patriarch says.
I cross busy Las Vegas Boulevard to the MGM Grand for one reason: I have to see the largest video mall in the world. It's really big.
The next block between Tropicana and Harmon avenues is pretty dull, though the Monte Carlo hotel is a striking as a turn-of-the-century Belle Epoque-style resort reminiscent of, where else, Monaco. A quick walk-through shows crystal chandeliers and marble and sculptured fountains. They must be difficult to keep clean, I think. You can body surf in the Monte Carlo wave pool.
In the distance, I see the outlines of my Nirvana: The Aladdin, Bellagio, Paris, Bally's, Caesar's Palace, Treasure Island and The Venetian.
The Strip's newest hotel is the Aladdin Resort & Casino and a 500,000-square-foot "shopping adventure" where every half hour a rainstorm with lightning pummels the mall.
There are high-end shops here adjacent to modest stores like the Honolua Surf Company. Then there's the big sign FCUK for a haute couture business, which I'm told means French Connection something.
It's just past 1 p.m., so I hit Aladdin's Spice Market Buffet where offerings are set apart according to country of origin. I made it through Italy, not as far as Mexico. Breakfast was $10.99; lunch $12.99; dinner $18.99.
A minute's walk from Aladdin is the City of Light, faithfully reflected in every square inch of Paris Las Vegas. Anchored by scaled-down replicas of the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe, the resort feels worlds removed -- from Las Vegas.
A quick peek inside -- I swear I heard the doorman speak French -- shows fountains and statuary; the gaming tables sit under faithfully reproduced Art Nouveau-style Metro arches. The shops and restaurants of "Le Boulevard" sit on a cobblestone "street."
The block north contains Bellagio, renowned for its excess, detail and luxury. A doorman tells me the annual electricity bill for the hotel is about $31 million. It sits on a landscaped hillside with a 10-acre lake. Bellagio also is furnished with art masterpieces.
More than 1,000 fountains dance in front of the hotel, creating a union of water, music and light. Performances range from delicate and whimsical to grand and commanding.
In Bellagio's Botanical Gardens are a dozen couples standing in line to have their pictures taken in a white gazebo.
Bellagio's buffet -- $15 for lunch, $20 for dinner -- features some of the freshest seafood I've ever seen, and lots of marinated meats from steak to prime rib to duck.
At Via Bellagio, the shopping arcade at the Bellagio hotel-casino, even a CEO could plunk down a year's salary in less than an hour. Nevada's only Tiffany & Co. is here. The shop's nature collection boasts diamond-encrusted fish, sea horses, crabs, etc. (A 4.4-carat diamond turtle pin goes for about $15,000.) Looking to spend a little less? Tiffany's has some reasonable crystal pieces -- a 16-ounce crystal beer mug at $25; an 8-inch diameter dolphin bowl for $85.
Also represented: Hermes, Gucci, Chanel, Moschino, Giorgio Armani and Prada.
It takes me an hour to walk through Bellagio's lobby, garden, gallery, casino, shopping mall and lake. When I see blue sky again, I'm awestruck by Caesar's Palace. Suddenly, I'm in ancient Rome with the marble statuary and fountains in the Garden of the Gods. Numerous thick white columns stand from near ground level to the roof.
Then there's Treasure Island resort, all fun with its skulls and crossed-sword sign out front near where a dramatic sea battle between the pirates and British Navy take place on Buccaneer Bay.
It's nearly 4 p.m., about seven hours since I started this trek and I'm a short block from my hotel, The Venetian, which tries to capture the romance and beauty of Venice's canal.
There's a detailed fresco covering the arched ceiling leading from registration into the casino; the 500,000-square-foot Grand Canal Shoppes, which has a canal winding through it with gondolas drifting along its length. There's even a version of Madame Trussaud's famous wax museum.
I pass a strolling juggler and the Venetian quartet, dressed in regal opulence. There's a harpist located just beyond the Great Hall -- a human statue stationed in St. Mark's Square's. At the Regis Gallerie I check out Faberge eggs.
I'm tired and know I have another jaunt a few hours later in the neon of the Las Vegas night so I opt for a very restful, though touristy thing to do: The Gondola Ride -- $10 for adults, $5 for children 12 and under, private gondolas $40 -- in the Venetian's St. Mark's Square.
The ride takes passengers on a half-mile journey through the heart of the shopping center. The ride is smooth and my gondolier, Leonardo, was a wealth of information about Italy and Las Vegas. He offers to sing. I ask him not to.
Afterward, I head to the Great Hall, a replica of Doge's Palace in Venice, for a glass of wine at the WB Stage 16 restaurant. Modeled after the movie sets of "Casablanca," "Batman" and "Ocean's 11," the WB Restaurant this late afternoon is a great place to relax and watch people.
Finally, I drag myself to my 20-floor suite overlooking the parking garage and fill my sunken tub to the top with steaming hot water. Before I climb in, I open a bottle of Merlot and carry the bottle and glass into the 200 square-foot bathroom.
I grab a Las Vegas entertainment guide curious to see who's performing.
I wonder if I could squeeze in Wayne Newton and Rodney Dangerfield in the same night
The last time I was in Sin City I was 12 and a Boy Scout. The troop was traveling through Nevada and we spent the night in a high school gym. The closest I came to gambling was seeing a slot machine in a drug store. Leaving Las Vegas
By Tim Ryan
can be difficult with
so much to offer
Star-BulletinSeeing it anew, I was astounded by the excess -- the lights, fountains, enormous hotels, lavish buffets, fur coats, smoking, hookers, white tigers, sharks, komodo dragons. You get the picture. But I was also equally stunned at the pleasantness of the people -- workers and visitors -- safety, cleanliness and variety of available activities.
There's a lot more to do in this city than play roulette until dawn, not the least of which is watch others play roulette until dawn. Las Vegas truly has fashioned itself into an all-around tourist destination. In other words there is something for everybody, even a Boy Scout.
>> Gondola Rides: The Venetian (702)-414-4241.
Ride in a gondola along a 1,200-foot replica of the Grand Canal at The Venetian. The gondola ride costs $10 a person, $5 for children 12 and under (free to kids 3 and under). Rides are offered every 15 minutes from 10 a.m. to 10:45 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and 10 a.m. to 11:45 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
>> Lied Discovery Children's Museum 833 N. Las Vegas Blvd. (702)-382-5437
Interactive exhibits for kids. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays to Sundays; closed Mondays. Costs $6 for adults, $5 for children ages 1 to 17, military and seniors. Free for children under 1.
>> Wet 'n Wild 2601 Las Vegas Blvd. South (702)-765-9700
Fifteen acres of recreation and world-class water thrill attractions have a home south of the Sahara Hotel & Casino as of its grand opening yesterday. The park is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. General admission (for 48 inches +) $25.95; children (under 48 inches) $19.95; seniors (55+) pay $12.95; a Family Value Pack (4 guests) is $69.95.
>> The Liberace Museum, 1775 E. Tropicana
Maybe the best $6.50 you'll spend in Las Vegas. Set among three small buildings a short cab ride from the Strip, the Liberace Museum is a Liberace lovefest and a fitting tribute to the pianist and showman. It's all here: The rhinestone-studded, fur-draped costumes; the mind-boggling jewelry, including a small token of affection from Queen Elizabeth II; the pianos and cars, among them a 1934 Mercedes Excalibur covered in Austrian rhinestones; and lots of photos, press clippings and memorabilia that tell the story of the man who helped put Las Vegas on the map. Open 10 a.m to 5 p.m. Mondays to Saturdays, and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays.
>> Shark Reef, Mandalay Bay
Not all the sharks in Las Vegas are at the gaming tables. Walk through the acrylic tunnel at Shark Reef, Mandalay Bay's new aquarium, and you'll find yourself surrounded by a 12-foot-long nurse shark, a bonnethead, and lemon and blacktip reef sharks, all zig-zagging above, below, and on either side of you. The aquarium features 14 exhibits containing 100 different species, including all sorts of stinging and biting beasts. You'll see 35 sharks churning the 1.3-million-gallon main tank, while in other tanks you'll be able to watch moon jellyfish floating or menacing moray eels popping their heads out of rock crevices.
>> Auto collection at Imperial Palace
Car freaks can check out the collection of antiques and vehicles owned by celebrities and presidents. Stated admission is $6.95 but you can go to their 3rd floor "Redemption Center" and ask for a free pass.
>> Rollercoasters
Stratosphere Tower: This addition to the Strip is the tallest free-standing observation tower in the United States. The view from the top is spectacular -- you'll see all the hotels on the Strip, the suburban sprawl that is the new Las Vegas and even Mt. Charleston in the distance.
The Stratosphere folks also added a rollercoaster at the top, the world's highest rollercoaster. And try the Big Shot, a reverse bungee jump that will shoot you 160 feet into the air at 45 mph and then send you zooming back to the top where you can order yourself a stiff drink.
The tower is open from 10 a.m. to 1 a.m. Sundays through Thursdays and from 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
>> Manhattan Express: Set over a replica of New York Harbor at New York New York hotel-casino, the Manhattan Express sends people twisting and turning like never before.
Riders twist, turn and dive through a series of hills, loops and corkscrews that leave them short on breath and high on thrills.
The second drop will really get your heart racing. Riders plummet 160 feet at a 50-degree angle, and can reach speeds of 67 mph while speeding through a vertical loop before barreling through a one-of-a-kind heartline twist on the C-shaped track. The best part of the ride, however, is the 540-degree spiral.
Although a rough ride, at 2 minutes and 45 seconds, the Manhattan Express is one of Vegas' most generous in time. Go only if the line is short.
Hours: 10 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. weekdays, 10 a.m. to midnight, weekends. $8 per person. You must be 54 inches tall to ride.
>> The MGM-Grand, HI-Boardwalk, and Circus Circus (indoor) also have roller coasters.
>> Circus Circus Hotel offers the Adventuredome -- the largest indoor theme park in the country. Family friendly
Accommodations>> Mandalay Bay Resort, which features an 11-acre water playground, including a wave pool.
>> Monte Carlo Resort, where families don't have to traipse through the casino to reach their rooms.
>> The small, nongaming luxe Four Seasons Hotel connected to Mandalay Bay provides special amenities for kids and childproof rooms.
Las Vegas offers plenty of attractions to keep kids entertained, plus these shows geared especially to the younger set: Entertainment
>> Tickets to Lance Burton's shows start at $44.95. (877)-386-8224. Burton, a veteran Vegas entertainer, makes a point of calling the youngest members of his audience to the stage during the show.
>> The tigers in the "Rick Thomas Magic Show," a matinee event at the Tropicana, are especially popular with families. $15.95. 1-(800)-634-4000.
>> Junior Elvis fans enjoy the afternoon "Love Him Tender" show at Bally's Las Vegas, where tickets go for $14.95.
1. The Volcano Fountain in front of the Mirage erupts every 15 minutes after dark until midnight. Freebies, freebies, freebies
2. The Fountains at Bellagio display sends sprays of water 240 feet into the air from Bellagio's Lake Como. Water jets from more than a thousand moving nozzles are flawlessly timed to a surround-sound system playing a selection of classical, opera, pop and Broadway tunes.
3. The Pirate Ship Battle in front of Treasure Island has great special effects. Staged every 90 minutes from 4 to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday; 4 to 11:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
You may want to catch one of the later shows after it gets dark outside so you can catch the volcano and Bellagio fountain shows at the same time. These occur every 15 minutes so you can see them both in a relatively short amount of time after the ship battle.
4. Shoppers should check out the Forum Shops attached to Caesar's Palace. The entrance to the Shops is right next to the Mirage casino entrance. There is an animated statue show every hour on the hour from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. in the first rotunda.
5. Automobile freaks can check out the auto collection at the Imperial Palace featuring antiques and vehicles owned by celebrities and presidents. Stated admission is $6.95 but you can go to the 3rd floor "Redemption Center" and ask for a free pass.
6. Lighting displays
>> Fremont Street Experience. The canopy over Fremont Street is the "screen" for a great, free light and sound show using 2 million bulbs. Shows start at dusk and are repeated until 11 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and midnight Fridays and Saturdays.
>> At the south end of the Strip at night, the intersection bound by the MGM, New York New York, Excalibur and Tropicana hotels, is illuminated in a rainbow of colors, as are the hotels. This intersection has pedestrian bridges connecting all four corners so it's easy to stroll over all four of them to take in the sights.
