Think of every cliché you have ever heard about Las Vegas:  the bright lights, the Elvis impersonators, the shot-gun weddings, the huge fake Eiffel Tower, the slightly seedy underbelly, the strippers.  On my recent visit, I realised that every one of these clichés is true, and that’s the way it should be!  Las Vegas is definitely unlike any other place I have seen, and its unapologetic tackiness and brashness is what makes it so much fun!  After visiting Las Vegas, I firmly believe that you should go there for all of those reasons, not in spite of them, and fully embrace its over-the-top and hedonistic nature.  Where else in the world can you drink litres of frozen margaritas out of giant novelty cups while gambling, lie by the pool listening to top DJs, and go to some of the best clubs in the world?

My friends and I have just got back from four nights in Las Vegas.  Mid May was a great time to travel in terms of the weather.  I’m told mid-summer in the Las Vegas desert is stiflingly hot, whereas in spring, the temperatures are ideal - in the mid-twenties, and the hot desert sun makes it perfect pool-lounging weather!  To make sure you are embracing every cliché of the Vegas experience, my suggested mode of transport is to hire a car and do the drive from LA to Las Vegas.  If the red convertible (think ‘Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas’) isn’t quite in your price range, there are many reasonably priced car hire companies in the Los Angeles area.  The drive takes about 4.5 hours, but the exhilaration of knowing you’re actually driving that legendary strip of highway from LA to Las Vegas (combined with the need to keep your wits about you as you are driving on the opposite side of the road) means the journey does not feel that long at all.  Another tip – make sure you get a GPS with your hire car.  This was essential as getting out of LA and on to the desert highway proved to be no mean feat.

As you pull into Vegas, you’ll be confronted by the famous Las Vegas Boulevard, aka ‘the strip’.  This is where all the major hotel and casinos are situated.  We stayed on the strip at the Monte Carlo Casino and Resort, and the Luxor Hotel & Casino – a fantastically tacky pyramid-shaped, Egyptian -themed building.  All of the major hotels have casinos within them, which means it is easy to get carried away with the accessibility of the 24 hour slot machines and the black jack tables – so be prepared to lose some money.  It’s all part of the experience!

A piece of advice – if you’re doing Vegas, leave the boys behind do it with the girls.  Travelling in a group of girls as we did means you will get free drinks in the clubs, and will often be approached by club promoters to get your name on the door list which means not having to wait in line and not having to pay door entry.  Be warned – entry to some of the big nightclubs such as Pure, Jet and LAX can cost $30 or $40 US dollars.  On that note, they like their drinks strong in Vegas – every drink we had was a double, and some were definitely more alcohol than mixer, so be aware of that when you’re knocking them back!

My picks for the best clubs in Vegas would definitely be Jet nightclub at the Mirage - if like me, you are a shameless fan of The Hills and Keeping up with the Kardashians you may have heard of this.  LAX in the Luxor is also amazing – a giant three level club unlike anything I have seen in New Zealand.  Celeb sightings were unfortunately few and far between, however we did manage to encounter Criss Angel (a TV magician whose show ‘Mindfreak’ shows on the Box channel on Sky).  C-list celebrity though he is, we still didn’t hesitate from doing everything we could to get into his VIP area in the club – but unfortunately the closest we got was him asking us if we wanted a photo!

While in Las Vegas I would definitely recommend attending a show – the Cirque du Soleil shows in particular are amazing.  Each of the main hotel hosts a Cirque du Soleil show – we went to ‘Love’, the Beatles themed Cirque du Soleil at the Mirage, and it was one of the best shows I have ever seen –completely spectacular.  There are booths on the strip which sell last minute tickets to shows on that evening, and you can often get tickets for half price or less so definitely check it out.

Shopping isn’t the first reason people come to Vegas, but there are some really great shopping destinations in the city.  There are several designer outlet malls, and the Miracle Mile shops in Planet Hollywood are a must do – the mall has big names like Bebe, H&M, Urban Outfitters and Aldo, plus great restaurants and bars, so is definitely worth a look if your hangover can handle it!

And last but not least, just make sure you walk up and down the strip a few times during the day (with a drink in hand preferably) and at night to soak up the atmosphere of Las Vegas.  No doubt you’ll encounter more than a couple of Elvis impersonators and get approached by men handing out cards with strippers on them, but that’s all part of the fun. 

So after four nights in Sin City, I’d like to say that we owned Las Vegas, but sadly Vegas owned us and we drove back to LA vowing to never drink or gamble again, and feeling surprised we didn’t wake up married or next to a live tiger – but Sin City definitely lives up to its legend and it really is like Disneyland for grownups.  So that’s about all I can tell you – because the rest of what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas!

Article by Natalie Cosgrove

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