Satisfaction guaranteed in Las Vegas
If you’ve turned over a new leaf in 2008, it doesn’t mean you can’t still enjoy a trip to America’s gambling capital – the city and the surrounding desert offer so much more than slots and roulette Words | Guyan Mitra WHEN BUGSY SIEGEL built The Flamingo – the first hotel on the Strip – he felt he should offer his guests [...]
If you’ve turned over a new leaf in 2008, it doesn’t mean you can’t
still enjoy a trip to America’s gambling capital – the city and the
surrounding desert offer so much more than slots and roulette
Words | Guyan Mitra
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WHEN BUGSY SIEGEL built The
Flamingo – the first hotel on
the Strip – he felt he should
offer his guests more than just a
seedy gambling joint. Convinced
that this destination could be
a vacation city of no limits, Las
Vegas’s founding father lavished mafia money on
neon lights and art deco-themed rooms, trimmings
which appeared outrageous for the time. His gamble
didn’t pay off. Unfortunately his bosses thought he
was wasting their money and, unfortunately for him,
shot him dead – through the eye, as it happens.
Over 50 years later, it turns out Siegel was on
to something. Of the £19 billion Vegas made last
year, only £4 billion came from gambling. So what
about the rest? How about Lord of the Rings-themed
weddings, with hobbit pageboys? Or maybe a night
in the Eiffel Tower or the Playboy Mansion? Perhaps
sir would like to test-drive a Maserati down the Strip?
Whatever you want you’ve got in Sin City – and you
don’t even have to risk losing it through betting.
width="180" height="127" alt="The Venetian">
Bugsy Siegel’s plaque in The Flamingo is testament
to the adage that true genius is never recognised in
its own time.
Marriage may be a gamble in some people’s eyes, but
in Vegas it’s a big winner. Ironically, weddings became
popular here because of Nevada’s lax divorce laws – quick
divorces meant speedy re-marriages. For more than 50
years, Elvis has been marrying couples – including Jon Bon
Jovi and ex-Dynasty star Catherine Oxenberg, though not
to each other – at the Graceland Chapel
(www.gracelandchapel.com). The Chapel is
a Vegas institution and shouldn’t be missed,
if only to meet this version of Elvis, who is
definitely alive and kicking.
width="180" height="206" alt="Light bar at the Bellagio
hotel">
From the King to Sinatra, all the greats have
played Vegas. But beyond top singers, the city
is spawning a novel take on the musical
show. The hot ticket right now is Cirque
du Soleil’s Love at the Mirage
(www.mirage.com), which is still going
strong – unlike many a quickie Vegas
marriage. The phenomenal circus show
combines mind-boggling acrobatics with
psychedelic light shows, all to the sound of
original Beatles’ recordings.
OPEN ALL NIGHT
width="85" height="300" alt="A bunny girl at the Playboy Club, Palms Resort">
People come to Sin City to, well, live up to its
name. After-hours debauchery is legendary here.
Favourite of US Weekly et al, Body English at the
Hard Rock Hotel (www.hardrockhotel.com) is
where Hollywood “does” Vegas. “It” girls, such as
Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie, are all regulars on
the chandelier-lit dance floors, and the flashing
paparazzi outside makes everyone feel like an
A-lister for the night. For more sophisticated surrounds to
sip martinis, head to Light inside the Bellagio, a refined ultralounge
and nightclub where you’re more likely to find Brad
and Angelina sipping mojitos than Britney flashing her bits.
But what’s Sin City without a bit of gentle smut? Slink
back in the zebra-print sofas at the Playboy Club (Palms
Resort; www.palms.com). Staffed purely by Bunny
Girls,
this Hugh Hefner venture is surprisingly classy – well, at
the very least, everyone keeps their clothes on.
width="180" height="108" alt="The lounge area at Mix restaurant at The Hotel">
But relentless partying can take its toll on any body.
So do any necessary repair work at the Ritz Carlton Spa
(www.ritzcarlton.com), where soothing
mud-packs, Jacuzzis
and seaweed wraps will get you back into shape for the
following night’s revelry. Men can join in too, as male
pedicures are kept macho by combining them with
beer-tasting sessions. Only in Vegas, eh?
GET OUTTA TOWN
The city is merely a neon blip in the ocean of desert
that surrounds Las Vegas. Waddle like John Wayne
over to Cowboy Trail Rides (+1 702 387 2457;
www.cowboytrailrides.com), which offers horseback tours
out to Red Rock Canyon. Gallop through the dusty desert,
where views stretch across the cactus-filled scrubby
highlands as far as the Grand Canyon.
width="180" height="111" alt="The horseshoeshaped Skywalk at the Grand Canyon">
Or go one better and get a chopper out to the Canyon
itself. All Las Vegas Tours (+1 702 233 1627;
www.alllasvegastours.com) will fly you
out there in
45 minutes. Once there, press your nose against the
15cm of glass separating you from a 1,220m drop into
a rocky abyss on the newly opened Skywalk Bridge
(www.grandcanyonskywalk.com). This
horseshoe-shaped
glass bridge pokes over the ledge of the Canyon, although
it’s not for those with height issues – on windy days, it
feels like it’s shaking like a feather.
width="180" height="125" alt="Little A’Le’Inn in Rachel, north of Vegas">
Slightly less unnerving is Lake Las Vegas. A 30-minute
drive from the strip and you could
be lounging on man-made golden
shores, twiddling your toes in the
water. Beach bums escape the city
to fish, sail, sunbathe and play golf –
there’s not a chiming slot machine for miles.
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If even that’s not far enough away from the
roulette tables, true escapists can go and have
their photo taken beside the “Extraterrestrial Highway”
road sign on Route 375, 150km north of Vegas. It refers
to the nearby Area 51 government area, the planet’s
top spot for reported alien sightings. Drop into the
spooky Little A’Le’Inn (1 Old Mill Road, +1 775 729 2515;
www.littlealeinn.com) in the town of Rachel
to swap
off-the-planet stories with fellow tourists and yokels
over the house special dish, Alien Burger.
SHOP, SHOP, SHOP
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Even if you do decide to have a flutter and you win, the
house is likely to still get its money back because you
probably can’t resist those designer jeans going for a song
by the hotel exit.
The best plastic spanking is to be had at The Forum Shops
in Caesar’s Palace (www.caesarspalace.com).
Don’t worry,
instead of toga and wreath vendors there’s Diesel, Hugo
Boss, Louis Vuitton, Banana Republic and more.
width="120" height="167" alt="The Forum Shops at Caesars Palace">
True bargain hunters should make for the Las Vegas
outlet stores on the southern edge of the city. There are no
centurions or Roman temples, but when you’re picking up
designer watches and threads for the price of a hot dog,
who cares?
EAT!
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In true American form, Vegas loves to eat. With no local
cuisine to speak of (unless you count cactus water), the
city has become a hub for global food.
Michelin-starred Alain Ducasse’s Mix restaurant at
The Hotel (www.thehotelatmandalaybay.com) serves
French fare with a Vegas
twist – try the lobster
BLT or sauteed scallops
with 64th-floor views
of the Strip for size. And
Japanese restaurant Makino
(www.makinolasvegas.com)
flies in its fish daily from
San Francisco and serves
bargain buffets of fresh-outthe-
water sashimi.
This year’s hip opening
was Pink Taco (www.hard rockhotel.com), and
its quesadillas and margaritas remain
the toast of the party set.
One final tip. Don’t leave town without visiting Luv-it
Frozen Custard (505 East Oakey Blvd). The butter pecan icecustard
is recommended. Well, you are on holiday after all!
ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE
width="180" height="145" alt="Graceland Wedding Chapel">
With more weddings per day than any other American
state, Vegas is all about the love – albeit in a slightly
unconventional form. Gaze into each other’s eyes on the
serenaded gondola ride from ‘St Mark’s Square’, through
the canals of ‘Venice’ at The Venetian (www.venetian.com).
Then stroll hand-in-hand through faux-cobbled streets
to the Guggenheim Hermitage Museum to see original
works by Cézanne, Picasso and Monet. And shoe-loving
brides can nip into Jimmy Choo and Manolo Blahnik on
their way, too.
