Day 1
Myself and three of my colleagues from Miles Morgan Travel were lucky enough to visit the bright lights of Las Vegas with Stuart from Gold Medal. WOW!!! It really was the trip dreams are made of and I will never ever forget it.
I travelled from Castle Cary train station and used the Heathrow express from Paddington, it was extremely easy to use. We flew with Virgin Atlantic, I was very impressed with their service. We were provided with a pillow, blanket, and headphones for our 10-hour 40-minute flight. They had an array of films and TV series to watch. We were also given lots of refreshments throughout our flight.
When we arrived, we got a taxi to our hotel, Park MGM. As we arrived at night we were in for a treat, the legendary strip was buzzing with the bright lights. I was in awe as we drove the short distance along the strip to our hotel. I remember seeing the iconic Luxor hotel, the statue of Liberty, the high roller, and the New York New York roller coaster. I felt like a kid at Christmas, it really was an unforgettable moment.
We checked in and went to our room, I shared with the lovely Jade from Chippenham. When we pulled up our blind, we both let out a little shriek! We had an incredible view over the strip. Our room was well equipped with two large beds, a huge TV, a lovely bathroom, a safe, iron and ironing board and a hair dryer.
As it was around 10pm we decided to go for a little explore of our area. I think this helped to beat the Jetlag. We walked along the strip and found an Irish bar playing live music, I was pleased that they sold Cider. It was lovely to be sat outside, listening to music with the spectacular Las Vegas strip in front of us. It felt very surreal! I have seen it many times on TV but actually being there was something else. On our way home we stopped off in our hotel Casino, you cannot go to Vegas and not have a little flutter, we played Blackjack.
Day 2
The next morning, we were woken by the beautiful sunrise over our fabulous Las Vegas strip view. We met with the rest of the group and took a short stroll to Denny’s for breakfast. I had eggs and bacon followed by some delicious pancakes topped with strawberries and banana. We went for a little walk to explore the area and then visited the Paradox Museum. It was a great experience with a host of weird and wonderful illusions to look at and interact with.
We then went for a drink on the rooftop bar at The Brewdog, it was lovely to be up so high, we had an amazing view of the strip while sitting in the sun.
We could not go to Vegas without a visit to the iconic Las Vegas sign! We walked around 40 minutes to get there, it was extremely hot, so I would recommend wearing a hat as there was very little shade on the way. We saw lots more of the sights on route including The MGM Grand and The Luxor hotel. Of course, we all had to have our photo taken by the sign and we even saw Elvis. We stopped for a quick visit to the Luxor hotel on the way back, it was quite dark inside. It had a casino area, shops, and restaurants. The Pool area was lovely and looked very inviting.
We had a couple of hours free in the afternoon, so we all enjoyed our hotel pool. The pool was very busy, but we did manage to get some sunbeds and the pool itself was very refreshing.
That evening was the highlight of my trip! We were taken by helicopter for a night flight over the strip, it was absolutely incredible. When we started to take off, I had a few happy tears as I felt extremely lucky, I felt like I needed to pinch myself as it was unreal. We flew down one side of the strip and seen all of the Las Vegas hotels, the High roller, The new Sphere, and the Bellagio fountains. I would highly recommend doing a helicopter flight, I loved it.
After that, that we went to the Crush restaurant in MGM Grand, my Charred New York Sirloin with Truffle Mash was absolutely delicious. We ventured back to the Irish bar for a couple of drinks. The rest of the group went back to the hotel, but Jade and I had other ideas! We took the very last ride on the New York New York roller coaster, wow what a thrill! Travelling at highspeed through the night sky, taking in the sights of the Vegas strip with Jade screaming in my ear, a memory I will cherish. It was amazing and I am so glad we did it. We then went to the casino where I had a win, it was very exciting, we found a bar and enjoyed dancing before heading back to the hotel.
Day 3
The next morning, we were treated to a bottomless brunch at the Wynn hotel, it was a food lovers heaven. There was so much to choose from, with more than 90 delicious dishes including oriental food, seafood, made-to-order choices and my absolute favourite, the deserts! There was so much choice and so many flavours.
We also had a look around the Wynn, it was a stunning hotel. The hotel entrance is very grand with a formula One racing car in the Lobby. It was also very colourful with a big teddy bear statue and lots of beautiful trees. There were many elegant bars and restaurants, a casino and a spectacular pool which has a view of the Sphere. The pool also had private areas you could hire with sunbeds, tv and comfortable seating. If you needed some extra relaxation, there was the opportunity to get a massage with prices starting from $30.
Our next stop was the Venetian! I remember walking around the corner and being wowed! It is a beautiful hotel with real wow factor. The Gondolas out the front looked amazing. Inside the artwork is incredible with painted ceilings and chandeliers. The Venice area gave you the impression of being outside with clouds and blue sky on the ceilings, it was stunning.
That afternoon we went on the Flyover ride which is a magic flight that transports you through immersive, state of the art technology. It lets you dip, dive and glide over awe-inspiring landscapes of America including the Grand Canyon. It also sets your senses wild as you can hear, see, smell, and feel the areas you are flying over. It was a fantastic experience, be prepared to get a little bit wet.
We then had chance to explore the area before heading to hotel New York New York to watch the famous Cirque Du Soleil Mad Apple. It was an incredible show! New York inspired acrobatics, music, dance, and comedy. The performers were amazing, the double wheel finale was heart stopping, a definitive must do while in Vegas.
That evening we had great fun, singing and dancing at the New York New York center bar. It is a very lively hotel with many areas to enjoy.
Day 4
The next day we had lots of hotel inspections starting off with the Bellagio. We met our host Sarah in the lobby, and she showed us around. This hotel was just breath taking, in the lobby they have a gorgeous glass ceiling feature of flowers. They also have an impressive floral display in the conservatory area made from real flowers, it was stunning. I was also extremely impressed with the giant-sized chocolate fountain.
We looked at a resort King room with a Bellagio fountain view, they play the music in time to the fountains in each room that has a fountain view. It was very spacious and had a large bathroom with a full bathroom length shower. We also looked at a one-bedroom Lakeview suite, it was very modern, it has a large bathroom with a strip view from the marble bathtub.
We had not realised but there is a free tram link between the hotels, this became very handy as it saves a lot of walking. It is free for anyone to use, you do not have to be staying in any of the hotels it travels between. We travelled back to our hotel Park MGM, which we never knew had a tram station. We got to view the Skylark suite at Park MGM & a No Mad suite at the No Mad hotel, it had a roll top bath in the bedroom and a fantastic strip view.
My favourite hotel for rooms was the Aria! They all had very impressive floor to ceiling windows with amazing views. They even had bathrooms with panorama views. My favourite room was the corner suite, it had a large living room area, a huge bedroom and bathroom with separate bath and shower. I also really liked the lobby area of The Aria hotel, it has an autumnal theme with large leaves and acorns hanging from the ceiling. It also had a selection of lovely restaurant and a large casino.
That afternoon we visited the Mirage hotel which has been taken over by Hard Rock and will be undergoing a huge renovation over the next few years. We met our lovely host Tina in the lobby. That was very impressive! They have a 20,000 gallon saltwater fish tank behind the front desk which is home to more than 450 fish, it was mesmerising. They also have a waterfall in another area of the lobby. The Mirage is currently home to the Cirque Du Soleil, The Beatles Love show. One of the rooms at The Mirage had a kitchen area which is popular with families. It is more of an apartment; it had a lounge and dining area as well as two bedrooms and a huge bathroom.
Tina then took us to The Rhumbar cocktail bar in the hotel, we all enjoyed a cocktail sitting in the sunshine. There was a fly over for the NFL Raiders game that was taking place that evening. The Lakers basketball team were also playing a game that evening opposite our hotel, Vegas was very busy with lots of fans.
That evening we were in for another treat! It has been on my bucket list for awhile. We got to do the Fly LINQ zipline over the shopping plaza, it was amazing, I loved it. We then went on the high roller and went up to 550 feet above Vegas for some more incredible views. On the way home we watched the Bellagio fountains, dancing to the music, it was beautiful.
Day 5
Our last day! This morning we checked out of our hotel and then headed to Caesars Palace for our last hotel visit. We met our host Pavy in the very impressive lobby, in her words we saved the best till last! She was not wrong. There was a beautiful fountain with a statue of three goddesses in the lobby and many Roman statues throughout the hotel, including Ceaser himself. It has real wow factor, with soft marble tones and elegant furnishings. It is a very classy hotel. It has five towers with 3,980 rooms. Everything at this hotel was very stylish. It had many shops, restaurants, and casino areas, it also had a luxurious pool.
I was lucky enough to watch the Bellagio fountains again from hotel entrance, they were totally different in the daytime but equally as beautiful. We had some free time to explore a few shops before our flight home. The flight back was only 9 hours 30 minutes.
I had an incredible time in Las Vegas, if any of you are thinking about a trip, please feel free to come and have a chat with me. I would be happy to share my experiences with you and have many photos and videos.
