QUESTION: I
don’t gamble. I know there are many shows to see, but
besides that, is
there anything for me to do in Las Vegas?
ANSWER: I’m glad you
asked. I mourned when Las Vegas tried to be a family
vacation spot
because there’s already many places for families to vacation
but few
places for adults. Now that Vegas is embracing its “Sin City”
heritage,
I want to invite all my friends and family to come. Vegas is a
great
place to hook up, especially if you’re a woman. Rio and the Hard
Rock
Hotel attract young crowds; the other hotels attract adults in
their
30s and 40s.
If you’re thinking of other forms of play, Las Vegas has
lots of
rides you won’t find at Disneyland. Circus Circus has a huge
indoor
amusement park, but I like outdoor rides. The rollercoaster at
The Sahara
dips underground during its run. My nephew (who is 23)
always goes on the
New York New York rollercoaster when he visits. It’s
about 10 stories
above The Strip, has a corkscrew turn, and lasts about
3 minutes. The
scariest rides are atop the Stratosphere. One ride is
kind of like a
seesaw and leaves you dangling over the outside edge of
the building about
900 feet above the ground. There’s a second ride
that is kind of like
bungee-jumping upwards on the needle atop the
Stratosphere. And there’s
an outdoor rollercoaster that rings the base
of the Stratosphere’s
tower. I’m too scared to go on any of them. I
prefer to sit indoor on the
51st floor bar and enjoy the panoramic
views of the city. (By the way,
there’s also a restaurant on the 51st
floor that turns slowly as you’ll
get to see all 360 degrees.)
Las
Vegas hotels themselves are spectacles worth a tour. Your can
walk
around the public space of all hotels without being a registered
guest.
Many have their own shopping malls inside. Caesar’s Palace
is
particularly overwhelming. You can see real penguins and flamingos
outdoors
at The Flamingo (where it’s surprisingly cool on even the
hottest
days), and of course the white tigers are on display at The
Mirage. You have
to see these hotels to believe them.
For something
less active, why not just lie around the hotel pool?
Most hotels
require that you be a guest to use the pool. The best one,
according to
the cab drivers I’ve asked, is at Mandalay Bay. The pool
at the Hard
Rock is good, too, but prepared to see lots of piercings
and
tattoos.
Search
for more info:
For other
Destinations, go to www.askaresident.com