Las Vegas was our starting and ending point for our southwestern adventure. We spent two evenings here, and of course had plenty to do. These are the five things we did with our time!
Walk through the casinos
We stayed in the Excalibur our first night. Our flight landed late, so we had less time than we originally planned on. We decided to walk around to the best casinos and possibly stop for a drink or two. We crossed the street to New York, and then crossed the street again to MGM (kitty corner to the Excalibur). Most of the streets have pedestrian bridges. While these are really nice, they’re not very convenient and we got turned around a few times, as some of the bridges funnel people into the casinos instead of letting you continue on to the sidewalk. Next we hit up Monte Carlo, The Cosmopolitan, The Bellagio, Caesars Palace, and finally Paris.
If you’ve been to Vegas, you know that everything is extreme and grand. Other than the hundreds of slot machines, you feel like you’re in a different city when you walk into each casino. The detail put into each building is amazing. There’s no other place like it!
You will end up doing a lot of walking if you’re going in and out of the casinos. The Excalibur to Caesars Palace (the furthest place we walked) is only 1.4 miles, but we ended up walking over 5 miles over the course of the night!
Get a drink at the Chandelier Bar
The Chandelier Bar is located inside of The Cosmopolitan hotel. We came inside from the pedestrian bridge, which is on the third floor. You can see the chandeliers hanging from this level, all the way down to the ground floor. We made our way downstairs and found tables. The drinks are a little pricy, but the atmosphere is great.
Photo courtesy of tripadvisor.com
Watch the free fountain show at the Bellagio
The fountain show is something that the Bellagio is known for. There is a huge pond in front of the hotel, and the show starts every 15 minutes, with music and lights to go along with the fountains. People will line up all the way around the water. We watched it from the Bellagio side, behind a row of people since we showed up as it was starting.
Take a picture at the Fabulous Las Vegas sign
If you’re near the iconic sign, why not stop to get a picture with it? It’s located on the southern end of the strip, just past the last hotel. We pulled up and there was a long line of people waiting. The line was slow-moving, as everyone was taking their time making sure they got the perfect picture. We waited for about 30 minutes, being entertained by the several Elvis’s that were there. Once we got up to the front, we made friends with the family in front of us so we could take each other’s pictures. There is a photographer that will take your picture, but a tip is necessary.
Seven Magic Mountains
The Seven Magic Mountains are a colorful art installation just 20 minutes south of Vegas. There are seven totems located in front of a beautiful mountainous background. It is only here for two years, so I wanted to check it out while it’s still in place. We had plenty of extra time after we dropped of Jessie at the airport, before we had to be back there for our flight. We took pictures and drone videos for about 30 minutes before heading back into town.
See my video below on Vegas and our Narrows hike.
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