TR May 6-10 Day 1..... Bally's, Bill's, GN, ';O';

Will post as a reply below.......

TR May 6-10 Day 1..... Bally's, Bill's, GN, ';O';

My mom and I went to Vegas to celebrate my 32nd birthday. My parents took me when I turned 21 for the first time, and I have been hooked ever since! We usually go as a family or family and friends 2-3 times per year.

Sunday we had a 7 am flight out of Denver on Frontier. I always like taking early flights out and late flights back to “maximize” my Vegas time. Once we were on board, they told us we had to wait for some people who were arriving late from a different flight. 30 minutes later they finally boarded, and we were on our way.

We arrived at the airport and headed to the baggage claim. My mom has a new suitcase that we nicknamed “Big Lime”. It’s bright lime green, and you certainly can see it coming off the baggage carousel...LOL!! We heard a lot of people comment “Wow...you wouldn’t mistake that suitcase for another one” and I think that’s the reason she got it. I had my new tripadvisor luggage tag on my suitcase, but sadly my backpack had not shown up yet. =(

We went to pick up the rental car. We had to wait about 10 minutes to board one of the busses to the new rental car facility. They did have 2-3 busses loading at the same time, but it was slightly chaotic and confusing compared to the old system. Once we got to the new megaplex, we went to the Avis counter, quickly signed the paperwork, and were leaving in no time. I always do priceline for rental cars, and they usually end up giving me Avis. It was $128 for the 5 day rental (4 door Ford Fusion).

We drove and self parked at Paris, then walked through to Bally’s. We always start our trips by having breakfast at the Big Kitchen Buffet. We were seated right away, and we got to sit in one of my favorite spots. They have a big open window that overlooks Bill’s, part of the Bellagio, and you can see the Rio in the distance. I always feel the excitement of being in Vegas building when I look at that view as I eat. Good food, and good service.

Following breakfast we gambled at Bally’s (no big wins), and then walked down to the Flamingo. We played the big wheel of fortune machine. I always play seat 8 (my lucky number), and my mom plays seat 3. Today was not lucky for either one of us though, as we didn’t get to spin the wheel. We went outside to see the flamingos and other birds. I really miss the penguins...they were so fun to watch! We went and looked at the wedding gazebo, and there was someone getting married.

On the way back to the car we stopped at Bill’s and signed up for the players card. We got the coupon book they give away, and it has some great coupons for Harrah’s properties in it. There was a $5 off coupon for the Bally’s Big Kitchen breakfast buffet...oops! Should have signed up for that before we ate! The coupons are good through the end of the year though and I think we’re going back in August, so we’ll use them then.

Headed back to the car, and we drove downtown to the Golden Nugget. Dropped the car off at the valet, and I was really happy we had decided to pay the $15 for VIP check-in when I saw the huge line that was in the lobby!! We went into the VIP lounge, and there was no line at all. We got our requested rooms which is also a part of the VIP fee (I wanted non-smoking King, and my mom was in a smoking King), and we were off to the south tower. I asked for a high floor with no connecting door to another room, and was given a room on the top floor of that tower with no connecting door. (Room 22-096). Very clean, air conditioning worked really well, etc. My TV was malfunctioning while I was unpacking, and after a call to the front desk, they sent someone up who fixed in about 5 minutes. I’ve stayed in the North Tower once before, but from what I remember the only difference in the rooms was that the North tower had a marbled entryway, and was slightly updated. The one thing I didn’t like about the North tower was that the bathrooms seemed really dark. My bathroom in this room in the South Tower had new light fixtures, and was really bright. There was also a great (looked brand new) Kohler shower head in the shower, and I had amazing water pressure! I think they’re slowly trying to update the South Tower rooms.

Met my mom back in the lobby, and we walked to the ABC store for supplies. We always go here for water, soda, etc. as it’s really cheap and convenient. On our way from the South Tower to the casino exit for Fremont street we had to pass the new pool area. We noticed on our walk that an older gentleman was about 20 feet in front of us, and was wearing a speedo, t-shirt, and flip flops as he headed to the pool. We had a good giggle watching all of the people staring at his speedo. One poor older woman actually had her jaw drop wide open as she elbowed her husband, and then she ran into another person because she was too busy staring! I couldn’t understand why he wouldn’t wear shorts over it until he got to the pool, but to each his own right?

We came back with our supplies, changed clothes, met back downstairs and got the car from the Valet. We were off to the Bellagio to see “O”! We picked up our tickets at the box office and then had about 1.5 hours to kill before showtime. We gambled on a lot of the penny and nickel slots by the showroom. We had great drink service here!! After the first time we ordered (I had water since I was driving, my mom had a white russian), the cocktail waitress dropped by about every 20 minutes to check on us!

Went to the show, and we were seated in the Loggia section (Left side) seats 217 and 218. I loved these seats!! They were single seats that wrap around the curve of the balcony, so it was like you were in your own little row! We had a good view, and even though we were off to the left hand side, we could see everything. I LOVED the show, and will do a separate show review, so won’t report that here. One note though...the showroom was really chilly, so ladies it would be a good idea to bring a light cardigan or sweater if you see the show!

After the show, we had dinner at Cafe Bellagio which is at the back of the Conservatory. We had great service, and good food (I had the tuna melt, my mom had a mushroom swiss burger). After dinner, we walked through the Conservatory to see the butterfly exhibit. It was really pretty...and they had some amazing live butterflies in the butterfly glass house that you could walk through.

We picked up the car, headed back downtown and went to bed! Plans for Day 2 included downtown gambling, the Orleans, New Frontier, and the Wynn.

TR May 6-10 Day 1..... Bally's, Bill's, GN, ';O';

lol, everytime anyone mentions the speedos, I picture the scene from ';Night at the Roxybury'; where Will Ferrel and Chris Kattan are walking the beach in their undersized speedos!

On to part 2.....