LA$ VEGA$!

Welcome to the Entertainment Capital of the World!
Famous for it's Casinos, Hotels and shot gun weddings
Las Vegas has abit of a reputation to live up to,
and it doesn't disappoint! It's situated in the middle of
the Nevada desert and as you would expect it gets very
high temperatures almost all year round. Make sure you are
cashed up as even the airports has hundreds of pokies!

You will find all the main attractions on The Strip which is
7km's long and includes 31 famous casinos. Each one has
a unique theme and other a different experience.
Here are my top 10 Casinos in no particular street order.

Mandalay Bay Resort is the southernmost Casino
on The Strip and offers Mandalay Beach with 3 heated pools,
a wave pool and a full sized Aquarium.

Next up is Luxor and it has an Egyptian theme,
The building is a 30-story pyramid made of glass.
Inside it's home to four live stage shows.

The MGM Grand is the second largest hotel in the world
and features the Studio 64 nightclub, The Grand Garden
Arena & has Lion's on displayed in a glass room enclosure.
When i visited i couldn't help but feel sorry for them,
There were about 4 and all just laid there looking depressed.

New York, New York is directly opposite and is a replica
of the New York skyline in 1940's, it's main attraction is a
roller coaster that travels both outside and inside the
casino and reaches speeds of 108k's per hour!

From Egypt to New York, you won't have to go far to
check out Paris! As its name suggests, its theme is the city
in France and includes a half scale replica of the Eiffel Tower
and a copy of the Arc de Triomphe!

But probably the most iconic casino on The Strip
would be the ultra stylish, Bellagio! The luxury
5 star resort has a lake that turns into the Fountains
of Bellagio, a large dancing water fountain synchronized
to music. This is a must see and is especially beautiful at
night. You may remember seeing this in Oceans 11.
The show takes place every 30 minutes and
I remember watching this three times to the tune of
Viva Las Vegas" but my favorite was to the Pink Panther
theme, it was very cool!

Caesars Palace is next in line and it's theme is Roman Empire.
It features 'The Colosseum' arena that seats over four thousand
and was originally built for Celine's Dion's concert, Elton John and
Cher have also called the stage home since. Inside the casino is a
free show called Fall of Atlantis which plays on the hour.
Plus check out the replica of the Trevi Fountain!

The Mirage used to be the most expensive casino in history,
The casino features gold dust windows and used to be the home
of the Siegfried & Roy show but now it's attraction the Secret Garden
that features white lions, white tigers, panthers and leopards. There is
also the Dolphin Habitat and a volcano that erupts regularly at night.

But it's hard to go past The Vientian as the most loved Casino
on The Strip. It manages to recreate everything Venice does best
including The Rialto Bridge, The Campanile Tower and even the
Canals! Relax on a Gondola ride either in or outdoors for $16 p.p.
The 15 minute ride takes you beneath bridges and past the
and the facade of the Doge's Palace, It's almost as good
as the real thing! Also go inside to see the replica of St. Mark's
Square, it even has man-made blue sky!

And number 10 is The Stratosphere!
which is hard to miss as it is the tallest observation tower
in America. It's the northernmost Casino on The Strip and
stands at 350 meters tall. It's from this viewing deck you get
the best view of The Strip! There are three thrill rides at the top
of the tower, X-Scream, Insanity and The Big Shot!

We were on a Contiki tour and our night out in Vegas
started with a group dinner, followed by a photo opp
at the Welcome to Las Vegas sign. It was then off to old Vegas
to check out the Fremont Street Experience, this is a free
light & sound show that is projected on a massive canopy
27 meters above you. It projects special effects during a
six minute show, for us it was a tribute to Queen to the
soundtrack of 'We are The Champions.'
I would recommend adding this to your itentary too!

Next up we went to the Graceland Wedding Chapel to participate
in a Vegas Wedding complete with an Elvis impersonator!
Then it was off to a see V-The Ultimate Variety Show
at Planet Hollywood. The live show featured acrobats, comedians
and magicians and i was chosen from the crowd to come on stage
for part of the show!

We also went to The Palms Casino which is located just
off The Strip. It's famous for it's night life and has six nightclubs.
We went to Moon and on this night Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon
were throwing a party for their 1 year anniversary. The couple
came out to a VIP booth on the dance floor at about 1am.
Nick surprised Mariah with a video montage on a big screen.
They opened the roof of the club and let out 1,000 balloons
& cut their cake with was a huge towering white cake with a pink ribbon.

Las Vegas in a crazy place where you can expected to see just about
anything! The Vegas rules are gamble, party like a rock star and
whatever happens in Vegas... stays in Vegas!

My little tip is don't worry to much about were you book to stay
because with so much to see and do, the last place you will be
is in your room! But if you do win big, then book a night at the Bellagio!