Las Vegas II

A view of the Grand Canyon

In our second day we went to the Grand Canyon. I think if you are in Las Vegas and have a day to spare, you ought to visit the Grand Canyon. It is a full day trip (by bus or car) or several hours if you decide to use one of the several helicopter rides. The price for bus tour is about $80.00 per person and it includes free lunch and park entrance fee. Helicopter rides are about $300.00 per person and it also includes lunch.

We decided to take the bus tour, not only because it was cheaper, but because it also stops at Hoover Dam.

Having been to places with plenty of mountains filled with trees and vegetation, I was really surprise to see how arid those Arizona/Nevada mountains were. You do not see a single tree anywhere. Just rocks and brownish dirt everywhere.

Hoover Dam was impressive, but for some reason I thought it would be bigger. Perhaps because I’ve seen that movie “Fool Rush In” several times and the shots of the Hoover Dam on the movie make it look much bigger than what it is. I also did not see the famous white line dividing Arizona and Nevada painted in the middle of the road. Perhaps that was another Hollywood illusion painted just for the movie.

Security was high around the dam. Our bus had to stop on both directions to be inspected by a Federal agent. It only took 3 or 4 minutes and did not delayed our trip.

The bus stopped in two different places in the Grand Canyon. We went to the popular South Rim. I did not know there are actually a couple of places where you can stay right inside the park. You can stay on a rustic 2 people cabin, or a beautiful hotel room overlooking the canyon. Prices are not cheap. A single room can cost up to $250.00 per night. Cabins are a little cheaper, but not for much. I also learned that because the rooms are limited, they fill quickly and sometimes people has to book them several months in advance.

You can actually hike your way down to the bottom of the canyon. But it can take you a full day just to go down. I met a man who was coming up after spending the night at the bottom of the canyon. He said it was a great experience. If walking is not your thing, you can always take a mule trip to the bottom. Prices are around $135.00 per person. Unfortunately if you are on a tour, you would not have time to go down the canyon, as the bus only stops there for 1 hour, then it moves you to a different location for another hour or two.

I took plenty of pictures and I was even able to create a composed panoramic picture.

On the way back to Las Vegas, our bus broke down in the middle of the desert. It was an interesting experience, as we saw plenty of wild life. From a lonely coyote to several prairie dogs coming in an out of their holes.

Finally after two hours, another bus pick us up and we got back to the hotel at 11:00 PM (we have left at 5:45 AM)

If you are booking a day trip to the Grand Canyon, make sure you do not book anything else for the day. There were several people who had purchased show tickets for that night and they almost lost them because when the bus broke down. Luckily for them, another bus stopped by and pick several people from our group and they were able to go back in time.

Where to eat in Las Vegas

I have heard a lot about those buffets in Las Vegas, so we tried two of them. One in Paris Hotel and another one at the Rio Hotel.

I enjoy buffets, mainly because you pick what you want to eat and also because you don’t have to wait a long time for your food to arrive. I have also eaten in many, many buffets, but let me tell you the buffet at the Paris Hotel is without doubt the BEST BUFFET I have ever tried.

We had lunch there. It was the best $18.00 I have ever spent on food. Every thing, from the ambience which makes you feel like you are in one of those bohemian streets in the middle of Paris to the food presentation, the buffet at Paris Hotel was excellent. The food was all gourmet like. The taste was out of this world. Nothing was overcooked, nothing was tasteless. You have at least 8 or 9 different food station where you can taste different samples of French cuisine. They also have big dessert station with every thing from Flan to Cheesecake.

The Paris Hotel buffet serves all three meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner, with prices ranging from $14.00 for lunch up to $27.00 for dinner. Well worth it.

I was really disappointed at the RIO Hotel buffet. It was a combination of Chinese, American and Italian buffet. The place was loud, busy and not a single dish I tried really impressed me. We went there for dinner, and the buffet is not worth the $25.00 it charges. I heard they have another sea food buffet at the Rio which is much better, but we did not try that one.

Hotels to Visit

I think Las Vegas is the only place in the world where hotel sightseeing is a major attraction. We were able to see most of them, and these are the one I recommend you see:

Caesar Palace

The Venetian

Wynn Hotel

Luxor

Mirage

Stratosphere (only for the view to from the tower)

Paris (mostly for the buffet)

Circus Circus (only if you have children)

Shows

We were only able to see one show (Jubilee) It is an adult only show (lot of topless girls) The show was entertaining, but I was mostly impressed by the stage. Throughout the show the stage transformed from a cabaret setting to the Titanic ship. In between the dancing and the singing several performers take the stage doing their act. Very impressive indeed.

This concludes my review to Las Vegas. It was a great vacation. I am glad I did it without the kids because the heat and the walking would have been too much for them. I might return some day with them, just to take them to the Grand Canyon and see a couple of shows such as Cirque du Soleil (they have 4 different permanent shows in Las Vegas) or one of the big magic show.