Sin City – everyone knows that this is none other than Las Vegas. Seeing a cheap ticket, I decided to fulfill one of my bucket list trips and do a Western American tour (San Francisco, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Grand Canyon). Here is the 3rd part of the tour!
Part 1 is about San Francisco, Part 2 about Los Angeles.
Table of Contents
Day 1: Arrival
Since I visited many places, I had three days for Vegas. I arrived from San Diego via Los Angeles by bus on a Monday morning. Since I could only check in to the hotel at 3 PM, the plan was to have breakfast and then explore the city during my nearly 9 hours of free time.
The Greyhound bus arrived at the northern part of Vegas, directly opposite Fremont Street. This is a long, covered street with a row of casinos, shops, and bars. Before the Strip was built, this was Vegas’s „main street.” Since I was hungry, I looked for a place to have breakfast.
If you’re in America, don’t just go to McDonald’s, there are plenty of good fast food places. I looked for a Denny’s, knowing that you can have a very tasty breakfast there. An omelet filled with pork, mushrooms, and onions, with toast on the side. It was a large portion and not expensive (by American standards, of course).
After that, I headed on foot towards the Strip, about a 4 km distance. Fortunately, the weather was ideal, sunny but not hot. It’s best not to go to Vegas in summer because temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius (104°F) are not uncommon then.
I also passed several Wedding Chapels, which I think everyone knows, mostly from the first Hangover movie.
The first notable hotel was the Stratosphere, recognizable from afar by its large tower. This is basically where the Las Vegas Strip begins, although you still have to walk a bit to get to the truly famous part.
The famous street, the Strip
It was just after 9 o’clock when I reached the Treasure Island and the Venetian Hotel diagonally across from it. Here I encountered the first „Vegas trap”. At several intersections, you can only cross to the other side of the road via an overpass. However, these usually take you into the hotel, where they often don’t indicate which way the overpass is.
Of course, while finding your way, you wander into the casino or the path leads there, where many people are tempted and play slot machines. In the Venetian, I spent about 10 minutes looking for the exit before I found it. But I stopped myself from playing the machines.
After the Venetian, the famous hotels come one after another: Mirage, Caesars Palace, Bellagio, Planet Hollywood. Of course, I went into the Bellagio. There are huge game rooms where we can play on many machines from 1-cent bets up to base bets of several tens of dollars. There is also a separate room for people who want to play with higher stakes. I can imagine how much money turns over (and burns up) in a day!
I played a solid $2. Not far from me sat an older gentleman who fed the machine with ten-dollar bills on several occasions. I didn’t count, but I estimate he put in about $50 in just five minutes. And it didn’t look like he wanted to stop… So, ladies and gentlemen! Be careful in the casinos, you can leave a month’s salary there in a flash! 🙂
By the way, unfortunately, there are no dress code expectations in the hotels, as several people were strutting around as if they were at a beach. I was in jeans and a normal T-shirt, I think this is the minimum when a person is walking around in such famous and prestigious hotels.
The fountain only operates from 3 PM on weekdays, so after prowling around the Bellagio, I continued on to take a photo at the famous „Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign. Along the way, I passed the famous New York-New York, MGM Grand, Tropicana, Excalibur, Luxor, and Mandalay Bay hotels.
Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas
Since in America they make money (and a show) out of everything, you have to pay for photos at the Las Vegas sign during the day (once passing by on a bus, I saw that you didn’t have to pay in the evening).
There’s a long line because of this, I didn’t wait it out, as a private individual I took good pictures from a bit of an angle. It was half past 12 then, pleasantly warm.
There was a McDonald’s nearby, I decided to cool down a bit. I sat down, got a cold drink, and wrote messages home.
At the hotel
Around 2:30, I headed towards the Silver Sevens hotel, which was a fifteen-minute walk from the Bellagio. So I feel like I managed to find accommodation in a good location. After an hour of leisurely walking, I was able to check in early. I quickly showered and lay down for a few hours, because sleeping on the night bus isn’t exactly full-value rest.
A good piece of advice for those who book a room in a hotel where they block a certain amount. If you provide a different card at the time of booking than the one you want to pay with on-site, indicate this in advance, because otherwise, the hotel system will reject the card! Of course, there’s no problem with this, the receptionist enters the change and everything is fine. That’s how it was for me too.
Bellagio Fountain
The few hours of sleep gave me new energy, so now in the dark, I walked to the Strip. It’s a wonderful sight even from a distance, and standing or walking there, it’s even more so!
I watched several fountain shows in front of the Bellagio, it’s a fantastic pairing of water jets dancing to music in front of the beautifully illuminated hotel. It’s worth viewing from several locations, the different musical performances provide a brilliant experience always with a different background.
Day 2: Grand Canyon
The next day, the Grand Canyon was on my program. I got up early in the morning because the bus came for me at the hotel at 6 o’clock. I booked the trip with a company specializing in this, the price included viewing the Hoover Dam, seeing the Grand Canyon at two different points, and lunch. Unfortunately, the journey by bus is quite long, 5 hours there and 4.5 hours back. Those who can, especially those traveling in groups, are better off renting a car and going that way.
Hoover Dam
The Hoover Dam provides Las Vegas with electricity, it’s a huge structure in a narrow little valley. And the Grand Canyon, needless to say, is an endless natural wonder. You can feel this in person.
It was as if I was on Mars, a landscape cut by huge and deep valleys spread out before me. In the distance, you could see the Colorado River.
The Canyon
First at Mather Point, then at the Bright Angel viewpoint, we could admire the canyon. I also took a small hike, of course on a marked route, as getting lost wouldn’t have been good.
I advise those who get there once to spend as much time as possible, and those who are more prepared should walk down to the Colorado River. It’s not an easy hike, but I’m sure it’s worth it. Next time I’ll try it too.
Back in Las Vegas
The bus returned to Las Vegas around 9:30 PM, where I got off at the Excalibur so I could spend as much time as possible on the Strip in the evening.
I wanted to see the „fiery” performance in front of the Mirage, but unfortunately, it’s only scheduled for 8 and 9 o’clock. For a few more hours, I enjoyed the nighttime Las Vegas, then I bought a 24-hour bus pass and now went back to the hotel by bus, in whose casino I played another dollar.
Day 3: Sightseeing
The next day (Wednesday), my bus to San Francisco was only leaving at 8:30 PM, so I took advantage of the fact that I only had to check out of the hotel at 11 o’clock and slept in. I had breakfast, checked out, and rode the bus a bit.
In the afternoon, I also checked out Fremont Street, which was now populated. I didn’t notice on Monday, but sliding on a cable wire, you can try the Skyride. It must be a great experience to „fly” over the heads of pedestrians. I went into a gift shop to buy a few small things to take home.
I took the bus back to the Strip, where I had coffee at a Starbucks across from the Venetian. I took advantage of the good weather, sat outside, and enjoyed the moment.
I watched a few more fountain shows, had an early dinner, then took the bus to the station, from where I traveled to San Francisco for just $8 on a budget bus.
Summarized
I hope this Las Vegas experience report has stirred the imagination of many. To be honest, Las Vegas was a positive surprise for me.
It has happened several times before that I expected a lot from a given place and received fewer experiences. But that wasn’t the case here. Even on the third day, I was walking on the Strip as if it had been my first day in the city of sin.
I encourage everyone, if you have the opportunity, go and enjoy the Vegas glitter. But try not to lose the price of a house in the casinos! 🙂
