Long story short --- Flying out west next week and meeting up with friends. The plan WAS
lot of time in Arizona and a day in Las Vegas. NOW we are going to max the time in Las Vegas.
Looking for provocative shows with hundreds of tall, great looking show girls.

I saw one show with "show girls" in it. Most depressing thing I've ever endured. It should be hard to screw that up, but they did - wildly.

OTOH, any of the Cirque du Soleil shows will be worth every damned penny of what they charge. You'll talk about it for weeks, if not months afterward.

FC

Can't help you, my friend. After dozens of trips there, the only thing I like to see is Vegas itself - in my rear-view mirror.

FC & RR - thanks I will keep that in mind. Also, tell me about smoking laws. Several places here in east
you can not smoke outside. As we are planning to drink, smoke ...etc. a little too much can
a man smoke a cigar in a Las Vegas bar ?

It's been a few years for me, but as I recall, smoking was encouraged. They're gonna make sure you're as content as can be while you're giving them $. Smoking & booze 24/7.

And I'm sure if you're looking for a high dollar cigar place, you'll have plenty of options.

FC

Saw this one a few years ago. Not really a show-girl thing but it was worth seeing. A little out there, but fun.

Zumanity

If you plan to go to a "girlie" bar, pretty much everything goes. I'm speaking here of your money, though. All of that will go.

Nothing in Vegas is cheap these days. And if you find something that seemingly doesn't cost much, it will end up being worthless.

You can find a bar that caters to just about anything: cigar bars, girlie bars, girls with cigars bars... Frankly, if you want to drink and smoke, you're probably better off to get a bottle and smoke in your hotel room - but be SURE to book a smoking room because if you smoke in a NON room, the hotel will empty your bank account with penalty fees.

A guy here at work said that while you are gambling the booze is free Can that be true ?

I've been there 3 times in the last 4 years. Twice for work and once for some friends who decided they wanted to get married there. I have seen a few of the Cirque shows and they are ok, of them I thought Mystere was the best. Blue Man Group was ok too. Don't get tricked into paying full price for tickets at their respective box offices, you can get them for about half price on the strip.

All in all, my favorite part of Vegas was leaving. If I go back I will spend more time outside of town at Red Rocks Canyon, Hoover Dam, etc.

Largely so. Just remember, though - they wouldn't give you free booze if it didn't make them lots of $.

FC

I see ... so it sounds like ... No free booze at the $2 blackjack table.

Well, they'll happily fill you with cheap booze no matter where you are losing your money, from the slots on up. But it's hardly a bargain, because while you're downing that free booze, you're still losing. Their ONLY goal is to lower your inhibitions and impair your judgment.

Take a wild stab at how many millions of dollars a day it takes to run one of those big casinos, and then realize that not one penny of it came from winners.

It seems like you've never been there, hotload. I predict that once the glitz wears off, you'll see Vegas for the tawdry cesspool it really is.

When you get home, report back, willya?

Been there a couple of times. It's one of those places that everyone should experience at least once. Even if you don't gamble a lot. Take a walk through the big hotels on The Strip. Those places are fooking amazing. Hoover Dam, another amazing place. Take a drive through Red Rock Canyon, or in the high desert. Lots to see.

RR - I'll talk with the guys who are going ....maybe we should go back to plan A. Which was max time in Arizona.

See what you get for asking a site with a bunch of old, pissed off at the world, no fun seeking, internet commandos! Saying their best time is when they are leaving- wow, they must be a hoot to hang with- NOT!
Vegas is a freaking blast, it is what you make of it. There are a lot of great shows and the people watching is amazing!
I have never been in a casino on the strip that does not give you free booze while you gamble.
Go in with an amount you know you are going to spend. Just stay within your budget. If you know you are helping pay for their light bills, then when you loose you loose. Thinking you are going to Vegas to strike it rich is like believing that stripper who tells you that she is just putting herself through school.
Buying drinks in the casinos is expensive, if you are walking the strip there are a few quick mart type places you can buy booze at and you are allowed to have open containers on the street- so enjoy.
Have fun.

We typically go once a year, in January or February just to get out of the cold and see something other than snow. We stay off strip and don't spend much time in Vegas itself. We go to Valley of Fire State Park, north of Vegas or out to Red Rocks or just into the desert somewhere. We've been to Blue Man Group and loved it and also to O which is a Cirque de Solei show. Loved that too.
Smoke anywhere you want, except in a non smoking hotel room. PLEASE don't smoke in the non smoking hotel room, the wife and I can't stand the smell of cigarette smoke. Booze is free so long as you are gambling. The higher the limits on the gambling you are doing, the better the service from the drink girls. That should say something right there.

For your first time, stay on the strip, hit the casinos and shows and get the whole experience. If it rubs you the wrong way like it does the wife and I, modify as needed. Like I said, we mostly just go for the weather.

I admit there are a lot of people like our friend Hemi. And I'll also admit that everybody should probably see Vegas once. Who knows? You might actually like it.

But if you've been there as many times as I have, the magic is absolutely and very long gone.

Hotload: The VarmintWife and I went to Las Vegas for the first time 5 years ago - we LOVED it!
We have been back twice more and enjoy it more each time - neither of us are gamblers but we stay busy and love to people watch.
We have seen 3 of the Cirque De Soliel (SP?) shows including Ka, Beatles and one other - we loved them all!
Our first show there was "Ka" and I nearly left our front row seats (HARD to get!) screaming in terror at the plight of the very young performers!
I won't spoil that show for you but it IS very entertaining!
I forget the name of the third Soliel show we saw but it was water themed ("O") I believe and again it was well worth seeing.
I have been to Lake Tahoe and Reno several times apiece and now prefer Las Vegas.
Be sure to eat at "The Brand" restaurant one night!
And order one of their HUGE steaks!
We ate on our WONDERFUL leftovers for 3 days!
I think the price of that steak was $92.00 (for two - not counting potato which was $10.00 - but well worth that!).
We are already signed up to see an "X" (or double "R") rated show on our next/upcoming trip but it will be our first viewing of that type show so I can't recommend it to you as yet.
Go see "Ka" and "O"!
Enjoy your getaway.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy
P.S.: Be sure and stop in and see the "M&M" store (4 stories high!) and the "Coca-Cola" store.

Blue Man and Cirque put on tremendous shows, that are well worth the money. You won't be sorry.

If looking foe long legs, feathers and showgirls, the only real choice is Jubilee at Bally's - Classic Vegas.

Hotload: Tex_n_cal is right the Blue Man Crew show is also VERY entertaining.
I did not think I would like it when the VarmintWife signed us up but I indeed DID enjoy it very much.
Things in Las Vegas are NOT cheap - like things used to be in Reno and Lake Tahoe a few decades back but I look forward to our visits very much.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Well ... Yes ... that sounds like the kind of show we are looking for.

Thanks to every one who wrote.

+1 on Jubilee

Cirque de Soliel and Blue Man group are on my bucket list.

I used to love Vegas. Now I couldn't care any less about it.


Vegas has changed drastically over the years.


Las Vegas used to be all about gambling. My Uncle was a "high roller" and was "comped" at most places in town; food at the best restaurants the hotels offered, rooms, golf, shows, etc. .

15 to 20 years ago, friends and I were really into trying to beat the house and did so frequently while we had a blast enjoying affordable rooms, food and "free" drinks. We would make a monthly trip for a couple of days and really hit the crap tables. I enjoyed craps and was successful frequently.


Not having been there for 10 to 15 years, I went to attend the SHOT show in 2011 and was pretty pumped to play some craps. After arriving and having dinner with the crew, I took a cab downtown to Binion's Horseshoe, the hotbed of dice in the old days. You could walk into the Horseshoe and see a literal SEA of crap tables. They used to host big crap tournaments. I don't know how many they had, but it had to be in excess of 40 tables on the floor. I was quite pissed to find two sets of 4 tables run by young kid dealers dressed in referee uniforms. Reminded me of something I'd expect to see at a kid-oriented hotel-casino like Circus Circus.

I spoke with the pit boss and asked what the hell had happened over the years. He said that new owners were taking the place in a new direction....

....as I found out, the entire Vegas I knew and loved had been taken in a whole new direction.



Vegas now is simply geared toward tourists. The gambling now can be had in everyone's home state at a frigging Indian Casino and the novelty has worn off. Indian Casinos suck as far as I'm concerned; none compare to what Vegas had to offer now or in the past.

Vegas is not cheap any longer. Rooms, food and drinks are unbelievably expensive. The Businesses are making money on those things now instead of using them as freebees to draw in real gamblers. Gambling has taken a backseat to tourism. You'll be hard-pressed to find a table where the minimum bet is less than 10$.


I will say that the only reason to go is to see a show on the Strip.

Bring your checkbook and a couple of Visas

Go back to Plan A.

Vegas sucks.

If you do want to see a good looking girl, get a hooker.

702 478 1776




Travis