Vegas - The 'So much to do, so little time' edition - Part Two

I finished the last blog on 'Things To See' and I was going to move on to 'Things To Do'. As soon as I published Part One I realised two things that should have gone in Part One so here we go......

Whilst you are enjoying the music, the Viva Vision canopy and the characters of Downtown Vegas, why not pop to the Golden Nugget and see the Hand Of Faith. It's the biggest single nugget in existence and a quick fact is that it was actually found in Australia in 1980 by a Kevin Hillier with his new metal detector.

After seeing something Kevin Hillier sold for a million dollars, why not then have your photo taken with a million dollars at Binions. Both the Nugget and the Million Dollars don't cost anything to see, there's lots of other things to see and do Downtown - something I always promote in my vlogs and blogs but because this blog is based on you being in Vegas for a week then I'll save the other stuff for the next blog in this series.

Things To Do

Hopefully you've got a few ideas on what to see whilst in Vegas and so now we look at what to do. It really is a case of so much to do, so little time so lets look at a some things I'd recommend a first timer doing.

New York New York has a roller coaster called the Big Apple Coaster. it takes you around loops and dips through the replica of New York. A new addition to this ride is the option of wearing a VR headset making the ride completely immersive. One bit of advice though, the ride isn't getting any younger and it is a bit rough and ready on the bones - still fun though.

I was going to mention the CSI experience at MGM - it was a fun hands on activity which took you through several forensic scenarios and also taught you the basics of examining and processing a crime scene. Sadly though it's permanently closed.

Next stop is the Linq Promenade for The High Roller and Zip Line. Sadly We've not been able to experience the Zip Line but we have done the one Downtown (Slotzilla)

and the one at the Rio that is very, very high up. Both we're great fun and definitely something to experience, my dad who's in his 70's enjoyed them greatly.

The Linq High Roller observation wheel is currently the worlds tallest Ferris wheel and takes 30 minutes to do one complete revolution and during that time you get to see some amazing views of Vegas. For a bit of extra cash you can do the Linq High Roller Happy Half Hour. An open bar with freely flowing drinks throughout the rotation of the wheel makes the High Roller definitely something to do especially when you consider how expensive drinks in Vegas can be and the drinks on the High Roller are decent named drinks. One thing to consider is that tickets for the evening are more expensive than daytime and that includes the Happy Half Hour tickets too. I recommend getting your tickets from somewhere like Viator, Expedia or Groupon, something I recommend doing for most things.

Remember Part One where I mentioned the Bellagio Fountains? If you can time it right then get yourselves tickets to the top of the Eiffel Tower at Paris, tickets cost $24 and you get an amazing view of the fountains, You won't be able to hear the music that well but it's worth it for the unobstructed view, plus you can take some great phots of the Strip. Plus, if you're want to eat amazing food with the same great views there the Eiffel Tower Restaurant but I'll talk more about places to eat and drink in Part 3. From sunset to midnight on the half hour there is also now a light show on the Eiffel Tower, it's something we've not seen sadly.

We've been to France so lets go to Italy, the Venetian to be exact. Here you can take either an indoor or outdoor Gondola ride. You can share one or just have one for the two of you, it's cheaper to share with others but it kind of takes the romance out of it. You can have a photo taken too but that costs extra. Prices are; Monday – Thursday: $29.00 per person. Friday – Sunday: $36.00 per person. I don't think the prices changes whether you choose indoor or outdoor.

Tired yet? Lots to do isn't there....

Who fancies a trip to Circus Circus? It gets a hard wrap from many and it is showing it's age but it has character and if you have kids the Adventure Dome is fun, during Halloween it usually becomes the Fright Dome but that doesn't always happen. We did go to the Fright Dome once, it was like Universal Studios Halloween Horror Nights on acid. It was pretty intense but a lot of fun. In the Adventure Dome you'll find rides, arcade machines, laser challenge, crazy golf and mini bowling plus lots more. The casino also has Midway games - your standard circus-style traditional skill games and there are circus shows on periodically. Give it a go, it may surprise you.

More rides, more fun, time to go to the STRAT. Not too far from Circus Circus it has the SKYPod, where you can see great views of Vegas and it even has it's own restaurant that revolves 360 degrees. Observation decks are levels 108 and 109 and thrill rides are on level s 109 and 112. The rides include Big Shot, where you’ll be shot 160 feet in the air at 45 miles per hour, Insanity where you dangle from the side of a building and rotate at more than 900 feet high looking down at the ground and X-Scream which teeter totters you over the edge of the SkyPod from 866 feet high. You have to pay to go up to the SKYPod and the rides are extra too. If you need even more of an adrenaline rush you can open-air leap from 829 feet above the neon Strip reaching speeds of up to 40mph on SKYJump.

Whilst we're on the subject of being high in the sky and great views there is also the obligatory helicopter flight over the strip. There are a lot of companies that do this, some better than others so I'd definitely do your research although Maverick Helicopters is the one I see mentioned the most. They also do flights to the Grand Canyon and for a first timer you can't do Vegas and not do the Grand Canyon.

You'll need to decide which part of the Grand Canyon you want to see? The South Rim features the vast, expansive views most often seen in magazines, websites, Facebook and on TV so is considered by many to be the 'true' Grand Canyon and recommended for first timers. We've never been as we chose to go to the West Rim so here's a link to a site that will go into more detail of the South Rim : Best Things to do on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.

The reason we chose West Rim was we we had planned to do a coach trip to the West Rim that also took in the Hoover Dam (another place I recommend if you can fit it in). Helicopter rides direct to each rim are available but was out of our budget. The West Rim is the closest, most accessible portion of the Grand Canyon from Las Vegas, Nevada. Here you will find the Glass Skywalk, that has become the main attraction at Grand Canyon West, there is also the Hualapai Ranch and Guano Point. If you check out my blogs there are videos of the West Rim and also of the time we took a helicopter ride down the Canyon then a boat ride down the Colorado River.

For both of our trips to the Grand Canyon we used the website https://www.canyontours.com/ but there are many others that offer the same thing. I'm pretty sure you can go there in a bright pink jeep if that takes your fancy.

Things to see, things to do and we've not even considered shows to see, where to eat, drink and shop. That's going to have to wait until Part 3.