Traveling to Las Vegas? Not a gambler? No worries!

There are plenty of sites and activities to see and do while in Las Vegas beyond just gambling. I have traveled to Las Vegas four times in the last two years for both business and pleasure. I may even be headed back later this year for another business trip.

Do not let the gambling part of Las Vegas scare you away. If you are a fan of architecture, food or entertainment then you most likely will enjoy Vegas.

If it is architecture that you like Vegas has some of the most eye catching architecture and design that I have seen. The hotels and casinos are enormous and very appealing. For instance the Luxor is a huge pyramid located on the South Las Vegas strip. At night it lights up at the tip of the pyramid beaming miles into the sky. Paris hotel and casino has an actual Eiffel tower! Not only are the outside of the casinos and hotels appealing but, also the insides. New York New York casino has a section that is modeled after a New York City block. The Venetian has corridors that lead along an indoor water way with gondola rides flowing through. Most of the casino or shop ceilings are painted like blue sky with light clouds.

If you like food then Vegas can definitely fill you up. They have everything from the simple hot dog to full blown high end cuisine. If you like they even have all you can eat buffets at most of the top casinos or even the low dollar casinos. For instance at the MGM Grand you can pay for an all day buffet and return later that day for lunch and dinner after having breakfast. Pretty nice deal if you ask me. You can get a hot dog for a buck or two or you can go higher scale such as Emeril Lagasse in the MGM Grand. One of my favorites is the Brazilian style restaurants with the all you can eat meats.

If you like entertainment then Vegas has more than enough to offer. One of the shows that I saw that was simply amazing was the Cirque Du Soleil KA show at the MGM Grand. From the start of the show to the end it was just amazing. Las Vegas has several Cirque du Soleil shows and are spread all along the strip. Many other entertainers are headlining there either on a limited or regular basis. A few of them are Bette Midler, Cher, Donnie and Marie, Penn and Teller, Blue Man Group and Louie Anderson.

So, I hope this helps you relax about the worries of "Just Gambling" when you are thinking about going to Las Vegas. Wait until you see it at night!!

Just a short drive away from Las Vegas is the amazing Hoover Dam. It is located just 30 miles southeast of Las Vegas. The dam was completed in 1936 and at the time it was the larges concrete structure and power generating plant in the world. It has since been surpassed in both of these categories. Still, the dam is still an amazing site. I have yet to take the full tour of the dam and wished that I had prior to the Sep. 11th attacks due to security changes and tour restrictions.



Visiting the dam provides a nice setting for some amazing photos and history lessons. Taking a bus tour from a Las Vegas hotel may be the most popular way but my last visit I provided the transportation.



You will also see some new sites at the dam since they are building a bypass bridge to help with traffic, safety and security. This bridge is going to be a grand site also upon it's completion. As of this post I do not know the exact dimensions and distances but from my visit it just amazed me how far up above canyon this bridge was.

If you are in Las Vegas and need to get away from the casino's just take a short drive and take in this amazing site.

My first visit to Las Vegas was in 1998. I did not travel back until about 2008. Wow what a difference. On my first visit it was for my honeymoon with the new wife. As a gift her parents set us up with a couple day package to Las Vegas. The package included our flight, hotel, a bus tour to Hoover dam and Laughlin, AZ and one dinner show ticket. It was a very nice experience visiting Las Vegas. We stayed at the Sahara hotel and casino. We were pleased with our stay and enjoyed everything we experienced. Now remember that was back in 1998 so imagine the changes in a city like Las Vegas. Upon our return in 2008 many buildings were built up or torn down in the 10 years. Also, the Sahara seemed even farther from the main part of the Las Vegas strip after this time. During our stay in 2008 we stayed at the Excalibur Hotel & Casino. The Excalibur is located at the very opposite (south) end of the strip. After 10 years it makes you want to see everything again to see how it has changed, even the Sahara. Over the 10 years the Sahara lost some of its charm since it is getting to be a bit aged. Sad to see it turn like that since it holds a special spot in our memories.

The 10 year difference brought some improvements too. They built a monorail that runs along the back of the east side strip hotels from the MGM Grand to the Sahara. My feet thank them for that! Also, they built lots of elevated cross walks that connect hotels or sides of the strip. Some of these cross walks provide great photo spots of the strip. The Paris and the Venetian were completed also after my visit in 1998.

Also, in 2008 they were constructing a huge new casino/hotel/residential/retail complex that would compete if not overtake the size of Caesars Palace. Our trip in Oct. 2009 amazed us even more when we saw the size of this new complex. The name is the City Center. It is comprised of several hotels and casinos. It is most likely to open Dec. 2009.

At this posting I am getting lined up for one more Las Vegas trip for work in December. Hope to post on it after my trip. Maybe I can include more about the City Center complex then.

If anyone reading this would like me to post more pictures or create a photo blog I can attempt to do that. That way I can show more of the sites I have seen in Las Vegas. Just leave me a comment if you are interested.

Also, if anyone reading this has any questions about Las Vegas I can try to help the best I can with an answer. Just post me a comment and I will reply as soon as possible.

Thank you.

During a recent stay in Las Vegas I had to stay at a hotel where our convention was taking place. I was reluctant to stay there since it was a hotel that was not located on the main Las Vegas strip. So, I looked it up and investigated where it was located and what the hotel provided. From their website it looked like a pretty nice place and also pretty clean. The reviews were pretty good also. Little did I know that this may be a nice secret place to stay in Las Vegas.

What is the name of this place you say? I will tell you, the hotel is the Tuscany Suites & Casino. Upon my arrival I was impressed by the service. The lobby seemed to point out the hotel was clean. After getting to my room I was impressed by the size of the room. It had plenty of room. It was a nice suite for little money. In fact my trip was during the week and my room averaged around $45 a night. I know, I know you hear $45 a night for a hotel and you think “how much per hour?” This is one of those cases where the price is deceiving. The room also had a couch, arm chair, small dining table, separate shower from the tub and a kitchenette.

Where is it you say? It is located about one and a half blocks off the Las Vegas strip just behind Bally’s and the Flamingo hotels. If you don’t mind a little walk or if you plan on using cabs this hotel will give you some bang for your buck.

Ok, now for the cons. Yes these are cons but I would not let any of them deter me from staying at the Tuscany. There is a casino at the Tuscany but it is small and a bit smoky. Although I did not eat there it appeared to be limited on the food and rumored that the room service was limited by time. Distance from the strip for some may be a con. However, if you are young you can handle the walk. Transportation from the airport by shuttle bus took me a while. I think this was due to the drivers being forced to drop at the major casinos first. The is easily curable by taking a cab. Although, the cab will cost you double what the $6-$7 shuttle bus costs. Double rooms actually have double beds but do not expect a queen size. If you and your spouse are going try booking the king size room instead.

Well, next time your shopping around for a place to stay in Las Vegas give the Tuscany a look. You may just be surprised. I was. Let me know if you have stayed at the Tuscany or are planning to stay at the Tuscany I would like to hear your comments.

Well, just bought my ticket for travel to another business convention in Las Vegas. This will by my first time to a convention or conference in the Las Vegas Convention Center. This may also be my second time staying off the main strip. I will keep you informed. Let me know if there is some site you want me to gather information on. I may have some night time to do some investigating.