Posted by Mike Jackson on April 07, 2002
Kent SmithHello,
We just returned from a week long Spring Break with the kids. Leaving here with a lot of snow on the ground, it was nice to get into some warm weather. We spent two nights in Las Vegas and stayed at Circus Circus.
It has been quite a while since I had been in Vegas and it has changed a lot. They were still working on the Treasure Island resort when I was at a NESA convention, if that dates the trip.
We spent one evening out with the kids looking at the huge signs, the volcano show at the Mirage, pirate ship battle at Treasure Island, and the water show at the Bilagio (sp?)....all pretty darned cool.
We spent the second day walking through some of the newer casinos at the far end of the strip. Unfortunately, most casinos do not allow photography in them, so it was hard to get photos. I saw a lot of fantastic murals, wall graphics and sculptures. Actually they were everywhere. With all the flashing bulbs, rotating gadgets and streaking neon around, I still ended up studying the hand painted murals more. Equally impressive was the wall engravings and huge sculptures in the Luxor!
I'm not a big gambler, and that stuff gets old really fast, but the walk around and through all the casinos is something worth doing if you ever get a chance. Knowing that all the land down the strip has to be incredibly expensive, it was also amazing to me that they would give up so much real estate creating the attractions. All the newer casinos are going overboard now. Wow! The quality and craftsmanship of the architecture and embellishments was outstanding.
It was a nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there! I was missing the quiet!
Mike Jackson
Rick SacksNext time you go there, let me know. Cassi's office is in Vegas although she is rarely there and Judi's sister lives there. They have raised their family there and know many of the better places for family activities. Also Uncle Don manages the showrooms for Mandalay Bay and Bellagio so he is connected well enough to know the better places as related to his job. Cassi also knows all the better spots and has connections for many of the shows. She doesn't perform there anymore as she is busy being a mom but she choreographs and produces 6 shows in town as well as many across the country, still Executive Entertainment Coordinator for the company. Glad you all got away, makes us jealous.
Mike JacksonMike, what did the boy's find interesting? The trip you described sounds geared for your mind to engage.
Dan Sawatzky - Just returned too.Hi Rick,
Vegas has changed a lot, as I said earlier. There is a swing towards the town being more family oriented, at least on the surface. They still want the gambling of course. We stayed at Circus Circus, which now has their Adventure Dome. A one price fee of about $19 lets them ride all the rides all day and up until midnight. My kids rode their roller coaster roughly 15 times, plus all the other spinning, twisting, and rocking rides. Circus Circus also has an arcade area around the free circus acts. They happen every 30 minutes starting at 11:am until about midnight. Kids can walk through the casinos but can't stop to watch or gamble. All the resorts have swimming pools.
New York New York as a huge outdoor rollercoaster which weaves through all the outdoor exhibits and statues. Again, every casino we went into had a kids arcade, sure to suck up all your spare change. M&Ms and Coke had a large retail building across from NewYork NewYork and we had to pry them out of each. Quite a few casinos had those virtual ride simulators with the wrap around screens and hydrolic seating. Most were around $5 per ride. The volcano, pirate battle, and water show were outstanding....especially at night. Darla opted not to ride the big New York roller coaster so she could go through the Madam Trouseau's wax museum. We carried our Motorola Walkabout walking talkies with us which really helped keep us together and co-ordinated with two cars and two families. We didn't make it to the Stratasphere (space needle with roller coaster and huge drop at the top), but we could easily see it. We drove by, but didn't stop in the Paris section which had an Eifel Tower and huge hot air baloon on the outside. If you could stand the fun, it would take a week to make it through even half the place now. The kids also enjoyed the sea aquarium behind the registration desk at the Mirage. It was probably 50 feet long, 10 feet tall and only a few feet deep...crammed packed with beautiful salt water reef fish. Many of the resort casinos are now interconnected and by trams, walkways, moving walkways, and so forth. Most casinos have free valet services so you can let them park your car, and walk around in one area for only the cost of a tip for the valet when he brings it back.
The kids had a great time! That lifestyle is not for me, but it was certainly eye candy for a creative person.
Mike
Mike
As one who speciallizes in this very industry Las Vegas was a must see for me. I was there for 3 days with a client. We were on an exploration and fact finding trip. We spent a week in LA and then 3 days in Vegas. It was my first time in Vegas.
Sensory overload... to briefly describe it. Every casino trying to outdo the last. After the first day and a half I was ready to move on. Not my kind of place.
I did enjoy the theme work. Endless examples of fine work everywhere. And I took a lot of pictures inside the casinos. Nobody bothered me either.
There is an amazing amount of fine craftsmanship at every turn. They love to spend a great deal of money there and it shows.
My favorite attraction was the pirate's cove at the Treasure Island Hotel. I took a bunch of photos of the amazing work in all the buildings and faux rockwork that surrounds the show area where the ship battle takes place. Lots of inspiration there. Inside the hotel was awesome as well.
I enjoyed my trip to Vegas immensely but I'm not in a hurry to go back soon.
-dan
Giggle Ridge Studios
Cultus Lake B.C.
Canada
www.giggleridge.com
Janet Balogh
"Sensory Overload" ... heehee Dan! Told ya!!!!
I enjoyed it too. My first time was Oct of last year. My fav was Treasure Island too.
We did ALOT of walking and looking.
I really like the "ambiance" within the "paris" casino too. They did a killer job on that sky.
It felt like an early evening night outside in there.
I absolutely loved Belagio's fountain shows. Watched several of them. Dave and I had a sidewalk cafe dinner at the "french" restaurant across the street while the fountains "performed".
Pretty darn romantic.
Didn't it just reek of "cha-ching" in Belagio?
What a fabulous place.
The "old" part of Vegas, downtown was much fun!
It's coincidental. I just finally got the photos developed last week.
Janette
Dan Sawatzky
Mike Jackson - YellowstoneI walked from one end of the strip to the other three times. And took over 20 rolls of film.
The Paris casino was the most spectacular on the outside... just awesome.
I enjoyed the Coca Cola store (my Coca Cola collection numbers in the 400+ range) and the fellow I was with was facinated with the M&M store.
As far as Vegas being family friendly... not in my book. You couldn't walk the streets without getting constantly barraged with Xrated brochures every few feet. The sidewalks were littered with these same brochures. Many of the theme parks and attractions which were put in Vegas to attract families are bing dismantled... in fact we were there to look at one park to see if my client could use any of the rides in his new attraction we are designing. Either you are family oriented or not... no inbetween or both.
The Circ du Solei shows "O" and "Mystere" were outstanding. I even got to 'star' in Mystere. We had seats front and center and I got 'selected' to play the 'role' of Papa at various times in the production. The best part was it gave me a chance to go backstage briefly during the production and see what the folks sitting in theseats never get to see. Both shows are amazing. If you can only go to one I would choose "o" an amazing production, half in and half out of the water... simply amazing! No words can describe it.
Vegas is like no other place on earth.
But for my money and especially with kids... I'll go to Disneyland or Disneyworld.
-dan
Dan Sawatzky - Little OnesHi Dan,
My two boys are now 9 and 12, so they probably fit into a different category than your little ones. I'd hate to call Vegas a family place, especially by comparison to Disneyland, but they have done a pretty good job of giving the family things to look at than just flashing lights and hookers on the streets. Certainly, Vegas is another world. I'd hate to raise a family there, much less tolerate the heat of summer. If we ever go back, we will probably stay at St. George, UT and then make a quick side trip down. From St. George, you can still get to Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon National Park, along with a trip to Lake Mead and so forth. For pure beauty, it is hard to beat the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone in the summer when the rest of the country is baking. Of course, you can hop over to the mountains in your area. They are spectacular, too.
Have a good one!
Mike
Mike
My little ones are now (Rebecca) 24 yrs & (Peter) 26 yrsBoth still my favorite kids in the world. Oh yeah & my son-in-law too... Phoenix 30 yrs.
-dan
Denver Chapter of the Letterheads