We are planning our first trip to Las Vegas and are looking for ideas about special places to visit and good restaurants.
We will do the tourist thing and check out the different casinos and downtown and maybe Hoover Dam. What places should be on our "do not miss" list?

Red Rock Canyon (about 20 miles away) was absolutely gorgeous!

We have been to Vegas a couple of times. Both times we stayed on the strip. Here are a couple things that we liked.

If you don't mind heights the top of the Stratosphere is awesome at sunset. You can see the whole strip full of lights. It costed about $5.00 each to just go to the top. You can do the rides up there but they are extra.

The Venetican is awesome. It depicts Italy. You can go on a gondola ride or just wonder through. There is a ceiling painted like the Sistene Chapel.

The pirate show in the evening at Treasure Island is cool. It is outside and free. Standing room only and there are a couple shows each night.

Walking up and down the strip at night and wondering through all the casinos passes lots of time. Each place has unique things to see for free. The Bellagio has dancing lights in the water. The Mirage has an erupting volcano. We saw a free Elvis show at the MGM. Circus Circus has acrobats.

Read up on all the free stuff. Many websites will list free things to see. There were a couple magazines in our room with coupons and things to see and do.

No matter what....there is never a dull moment.

Hoover dam is a great trip too!

Don't forget about "old Vegas" on Freemont Street with the light show at night.

We ate at Toby Keith's I Love This Bar Bar at Harrah's. The food was very good (generous portions) and not too expensive.

Are you staying on the strip or downtown?

There is a comedy show at the Tropicana that is around $20. We had a good time and I believe it included one free drink. The shows were at 8pm and 10pm nightly (one of them is smoke free but I don't remember which one).

I second a visit to the Venetian. It is one of my favorite places. It is hard to describe the atmosphere. Lots and lots of shops. They have a very nice food court also that we choose to eat at a couple of times. Less expensive and quicker.

Don't miss the Forum shops at Caesar's Palace. They are very expensive but fun to see. There is also a free show at one end involving one of the Greek gods. Its at the end near the Cheesecake Factory.

The Rio has a neat Mardi Gras show where the floats hang from the ceiling.

Wear comfortable shoes. A lot of walking is involved as the hotels on the strip are large inside and far apart outside.

The monorail is available. Here is a map you might find useful

http://monorail.tix4vegas.com/map

Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay is a walk through aquarium that is pretty cool. I think the Titanic exhibit is still here. Bellagio has rare art work by the masters.

There are tours by bus or helicoptor to Grand Canyon.

I'm looking out the window and Mount Charleston has snow. So if you want to ski the ski area is open

Food can be as expensive or as cheap as you want it.

A brand new law is in effect and smoking is no longer allowed in places were you eat. Its still being tested but for the most part people are abiding by it.

Ditto on the walking and the comfortable shoes. You can see a hotel for a mile before you get there and after you get there you still have to walk a long distance to get to the front door.

I bought a great book at a book store that tells all about the casinos, reaturants, etc and ranks the restaurants according to price and how good the food is. I just can't remember the name of it.

It's pricy, but the Cirque du Soleil shows are incredible! I saw Mystere and completely loved it! I think we spent $75 per ticket.

I think someone else said it, but take comfy shoes, the distance between each hotel is very deceiving. It looks a lot closer than it really is.

If you're going to catch a show, I agree that one of the Cirque shows is the best choice. Most of the tickets are around $100 each, depending on the show. I highly recommend the Titanic exhibit at the Tropicana, they have some great artifacts and it's only about $12-14 a person. I also enjoy the Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay. The atmosphere at the Venetial is great, they have the shops, gondala rides, and the wax museum. Bellagio has the great fountain outside and a beautiful garden exhibit.

If you're going to have a rental car, then Red Rock Canyon is a great place to drive through and the views are incredible. Mt. Charleston is also a pretty area, and there is a nice lodge up there. There are also a couple of museums (LV Natural History, Clark County) in town that are fun to check out.

Recommend Cirque shows. I loved Hoover Dam. We went on a dinner cruise on the lake one evening. Very differnt view of the dam from there; dinner was OK but the ride was very nice. Downtown overhead light shows are really nice too. We went to see an Elvis impersonator (very reasonably priced)or else we couldn't really feel like we had bee to Vegas!

Depends on what time of year your going and what your into.

If your going in the Summer, walking around can be very draining with the heat. At night it is still Hot but more pleasant. There are so many things to do indoors, or if you like to hang our by the pool there is usually music, drinks and lunch brought to your chair.

You can do everything or nothing at all and have a great time.

My Favorite Hotel is Ballys, because it is right in the middle of the strip, but not too pricey and they have a decent pool.

My favorite Restaurant is PF Changs located in the Aladin, it is best to make a reservation as the wait can be two hours.

I just love walking around the different hotels, stopping somwhere where there is band,grabbing a seat and a drink and sitting back and enjoying myself.

Margaritaville is a lot of fun also.

We're staying on the strip. The trip is the first of June -- we'll be there 5 days.

I love The Hotel at Mandalay Bay...great pool area too!

Downtown is fun for great people watching, loose machines, and cheap powerful drinks....its fun to go down there, get a light buzz and enjoy watching the characters!

Hoover Dam is also a short and easy drive if you want to rent a car. There is also a well marked scenic route that is not much longer and just as easy to navigate. The internal tour at Hoover is interesting also. There is also a small railroad themed hotel/casino along the way (I forget the name!) with a great cheap buffet!

Which hotel?

Lois - it will probably be very hot at that time so be prepared.

Which casino has the loosest slots in your opinion? We had good luck at New York New York.

I won at the Rio on two different machines (all within two hours of arriving in Vegas!). A couple of people in our group had good luck at the MGM and one at NY NY so it was pretty spread out.

We won at New York New York within an hour of arrival. But it went downhill from there. But we were able to play on our winnings for most of the visit.

I totally forgot that you asked about Restaurants, are you looking for places on the strip or just anywhere in town? There are some great places, but the really great finds are off the strip.

If you're looking for Buffets, then the Rio is the best. The regular and the seafood buffets are the best in town IMO. If you can drive a little ways, check out The Bone Fish Grill, there is only one here in NV (on Eastern I believe), but they have a few in Seattle and some others on the East Coast. Great good, not just seafood, and very good service.

jdh, I didn't win anything after the first night either but like you was able to play the whole trip on those winnings (and actually went home with more than $5 in my wallet!).

Sing, I wanted soooo badly to try the Rio's seafood buffet but couldn't get anyone to go with me. We ended up having burgers at the American Grill or Bar in the Rio. The burgers were awesome but I'm sure not nearly as good as the seafood!

LoisLane, the buffets on the strip really aren't that cheap. I think I paid $25 at the MGM.

There is a very good italian restaurant in the Excalibur but I can't remember the name of it.

Mandalay Bay is like $27 per person.....off the strip a bit though, or int he old strip, much more affordable.

This is a national chain (but a very yummy place to eat) so if you are looking for something that's really special to Vegas this wouldn't be it.

You've got a lot of good suggestions but I second the Italian restaurant at the Excalibur...it was very good.

I also ate lunch at Margaritaville...gotta have a cheeseburger in paradise. It was very good and not too expensive.

I also ate pizza somewhere that was really good...maybe at Caesars?...it was out in the middle of the casino area.

I also ate one night at an open air cafe in the Venetian that was nice.

We usually just took off walking and looked at the menu's posted outside.

Aladdin