Just got back from our trip ! We had a wonderful time. Went out to Las Vegas to get married. Everything went great. A few things could have gone slightly better but all in all I was very happy.
MONDAY
Left out of Albany NY on Southwest. It was our first time flying them. We printed out boarding passes 24 hours in advance- We got Group A! We got to the airport about 1 1/2 before the flight. Got in our A corral with only 1 person in front of us. I had gone on seatguru.com and scoped out the seats we wanted Row 11 D %26amp; E. That is the only 2 person row. After preboarding the elderly, kids, etc. We get on. I didn%26#39;t realize there were 2 entrances- front and back...we went front...got stuck behind all the preboards who didn%26#39;t quite get settled yet . Another couple who was behind us on line went on the back way and got our seats! I was pissed...Rookie mistake though. WE settled on another row. In our haste we didn%26#39;t reralize the row we were in the seats didn%26#39;t recline. I guess I should have had a plan B! It wasn%26#39;t too bad though. We slept most of the way anyway. I guess SW know we were getting married because I carried y dress on the plane so they mnade an announcement at the end of the flight ( a little embarrasing) and gave us a bottle of champagne!
We arrived in Las Vegas 1/2 early. We took a shuttle bus to our 1st hotel- The Barbary Coast. Next time I would spring for a cab as we had done in the past. We were the very last stop and it took a long time.
We chose the Barbary Coast as our pre wedding hotel because on every previous trip ( 3) we always wind up gambling there. It%26#39;s fun, it%26#39;s young the minimums are always low and we just really enjoy the smaller casino. We decided to stay this time. Besides we got the room for 49.00 a night. They aslo have a great little coffee shop.
We check in BC- We were upgraded to a suite since they knew we were getting married. Honestly we were not expecting much in the way of rooms being that this hotel is a little older and smaller. We were pleasently surprised. We has a 1 BR- 2 Bathroom suite. We had a full wet bar with seating for 4 also a dining table with seating for 4. Large Living room with a big screen TV and a huge bedroom. We had a corner room so we had a view of the srip out of the large windows. We were able to see the Flaminingo, Ceasers, ...things in that direction. It was a little noisy right there on the corner of the strip but we hardly slept and when we did we were so liquored up we didn%26#39;t hear a thing.
I have a disease called Celiac Disease and it really limits me as to where and what I can eat. This was my first trip since being diagnosed. In simple terms it means I have an allergy ( not really but that%26#39;s the easiest way to describe it) to wheat, wheat gluten and other various grains. My food has to be cooked in a different part of the kitchen with different utensils because I can get very sick if even a crumb of gluten touches my food.
That being said PF Changs has a Gluten Free menu designed specially for people like me. It was great. My serveer was extremely knowledgable and even brough me out wheat free soy sauce before I had to ask for it The Asian Pear Mojito drink was phenomonal. I%26#39;m not a chain restaurant type of person but they really impressed me and I did not get ill at all.
TUESDAY
Barbary Coast is very convienent to everything. We walked over to Ballys and took the monorail to The Hilton to see the Star Trek Experience. That was fun, even though we had done it on a previous trip, they added a new attraction. I%26#39;m not a Star Trek fan and I thought it was fun ( both times)
After Star Trek we took a cab over to the Marriage License Bureau. Got our license in about 40 minutes. Really easy process. There were all types of people there. A couple where the woman was about 9 months pregnant. A very young couple with the girls mom there to give consent ( I guess she was 16 or younger) she looked pregnant. Just a wide range of people.
After that we walked to The Golden Nugget since it was only 2 blocks away. We gambled there a little. I won a little on a slot machine.....one of only 2 wins for me this trip!
We had hired a photographer to take us around the strip and photograph us at various locations in our wedding attire. Her web site is www.picture mein vegas.com. Her name is KAren and she is wonderful. She picked us up in a limo and took us to The Vebtian, Ceasers gardes, paris, The Bellagio and The Welcome to LAs Vegas Sign andtwe had a blast. She is funny and nice and totally put us at ease. I highly reccommend her ( even tough I haven%26#39;t seen my pictures yet!)
After we finished with Karen we were starving and I hadn%26#39;t researched another place to eat so we wound up at PF Changs again. It was just as good the second time. They have a large menu so we tried lots of different things. I LOVE chinese food ( I used to work 1 block from Chinatown in NYC) and since I%26#39;ve been diagnosed I haven%26#39;t been able to eat it, so this was heaven for me.
We gamble at BC that night. Had fun..Hubby played Black Jack and made up for all my losses.
WEDNESDAY ( Wedding Day)
I had someone come and do my hair and makeup for the wedding. www.glamsquad702.com My guy was James. He did a good job. Only thing I didn;t like about him was that he was a smoker and when he was applying the makup to my face I could smell cigarettes on his fingers. Kinda grossed me out.
We checked out of the Barbary Coast , we had a limo from The Little Chapel of The Flowers pick us up. They were right on time but apparently did not have the air conditioning on and it was brutal in the back of the limo. My husband ( to be) was dying....It took a few a good 10 minutes to cool off and then it was fine. Needless to say it%26#39;s only a 15 minute ride!
The wedding went off without a hitch. We were not rushed. We were treated very well and I coudn%26#39;t be happier with the services they provided.
Limo took us to The Venetian where we and got the Venezia Tower concierge luxury suite. We got this room for 299 a night when I called back in March.
To get to our suite you had to take 2 elevators to a special concierge suite check in in the 12th floor. They were wonderful. They truly made you feel like royalty. We were still in our wedding attire , so maybe that helped!
We had a suite on the 8th floor. It was ok. I can honestly say The Barbary Coast suite was larger, more private and set up much better. At The Venetian we didn%26#39;t even have room for all of our luggage. I had to put my suitcase on the coffeetable.
They did send a bottle of Champagne and a bowl of strawberries and whipped cream with a note congratulation us on the wedding, which was nice.
The bathroom was large but really, how much time do you spend in the bathroom? There was television in the bathroom but you could not see it from the tub if you are taking a bath....It was put up in a weird spot- very bad angle.
The Venetian concirege lounge shined....This is where I feel we got the most value. They have an open bar from 5-8 pm each evening with appetizers as well. They also have a continental Breakfast each morning- fruit , cereal, coffee, juice, pastries. Cappucino and Lattes, too. They offer botled water all day and tea and crumpets in the afternoon.
We had GREAT wine and Margaritas- excellent cheese and fruit platter. They also know about my disease ahead of time and made me a special appetizer plate with crabmeat, shrimp and lobster that was excellent.
We checked out the pool - very nice. It was private and small. Just right for newlyweds! We had the hot tub to ourselves. Hubby swam in the pool and said the water was great.
We were so blown out from wedding and our LONG day that we decided to skip dinner and just go see our show at 10:30.
We went o see ';O';.....O what a piece of crap! We really did not like it. I felt it was really boring. We had seen Mystere last time we were in Vegas and that was an amazing show. We totally did not like ';O';. I don%26#39;t know if it was beacuse we were so tired or we had drank some before but we were both falling alseep. That was the most expensive nap I ever took.
The cool thing about the show was the actual stage how it goes from water to a solid surface. That was about all I liked!
THURSDAY
We sort of bounced around to different places just taking it easy today and staying close to the hotel.
Concirege lounge printed out our boarding passes at 330 and had them waiting in our room when we returned. I guess that%26#39;s what you pay for.
We had dinner reservation at AquaNox at the Venetian for dinner.
EXCELLENT!!!!
The seafood was extremely fresh, the service was amazing and we really enjoyed the Mojito%26#39;s! This was my favorite meal of the trip!
FRIDAY
Check out of Venezia at 11:00- they hold our bags until 1 when we have to leave for the airport. We went to Harrahs to gamble there and wound up at Toby Keiths I Love This Bar and Grill. I don%26#39;t know why. I HATE country music.
I was trying to figure out if there was anything that I could eat there and narrowed it down to Baby Back Ribs and mashed potatoes. I%26#39;m asking the server what in the various dishes because I have to know every ingredient to make sure I don%26#39;t get sick. She was dumb as a stump. I asked what was in the mashed potatoes and she looked at me like I had 3 heads and replies..potatoes I said that I figured that but perhaps there was something else like cream or butter and she%26#39;s like well yes there could be.......It was just really annoying... Even after explaining all this she just didn%26#39;t grasp the fact that I needed to know EVERYTHING in the dishes. I know should have just left but it was late we needed to eat before we went to the airport so I had the ribs and potatoes, Hubby had pulled pork sandwich. He took about 3 bites and couldn%26#39;t even sit at the table because the smell was making him sick. I had 2 ribs and a bite of mashed potatoes. HORRIBLE, My husband threw up after the meal and I was sick as well. Thank God I had medicine, so I was able to have a good plane ride home.
Went to the airport...lined up in corral. Didn%26#39;t really try for any special seats and we had just missed the 2 person row by one couple anyway.. No big deal. We had a good flight and were happy to be married and on our way home!
Hope this VERY LONG trip report helps someone!
Trip Report ( VERY LONG)-Barbary Coast/Venetian
Thanks for a great t/r.Hope you have a long and happy marraige ,and never go to sleep after a row without making up,.Could you give us a bit more detail on Aquaknox ,we like the look of the menu (we both love seafood) but reviews have been mixed and it rarely gets mentioned here, Price is not an issue but would like to know more about food ,service, ambience etc. Thanks in advance
Trip Report ( VERY LONG)-Barbary Coast/Venetian
Thanks for the good wishes!
I, too, had a hard time finding anyting out about AquaNox. I spoke with the Concierge from The Venezia Tower and she is the one who suggested it. I basically just went on a good gut feeling!
Because of my restricted diet the assistant Chef called me at home before we left to confirm all the arrangements for our wedding night dinner. He told me I was in good hands and they would be sure to take care of me!
They certainly didn%26#39;t dissapoint.
We arrived at the restaurant at 7:50 for 8 Pm reservations. The hostess asked if we could please wait a minute at the bar as they wanted to sit us in a booth. They wished us congratulations on our wedding. I%26#39;m assuming the concierge who set up the dinner told them we had just gotten married.
The booth was large ( could probably seat 4) and had a white curtain around it, so you could not see anyo other diners on either side of you but you could look out onto the tables in fron to you.
When we sat down att he table there was a note on it...apparently my family decided to surprise us by picking up the tab for dinner and they had faxed a note which was waiting for us on the table.
I called my family to thank them while we were sitting and I noticed our serveer was waiting to speak to us. He very politely came back when I was off the phone.
He came over several times during the meal to check on us and was very nice. We made some small talk but he didn%26#39;t linger too long. He told us he was recently engaged and was getting married in Scotland.
Service was excellent. We were not rushed at any point. They treated us very well. The food was great. We had the seafood Plateau ( which they modified to suit my diet) as an appetizer and I had The Signature Fish soup ( clams, mussels, lobster and crab in a tomato saffron broth) and my husband had the Surf and Turf special which was not on the menu.
We had a bottle of wine- good wine list- prices were moderate. And I had 2 mojito%26#39;s ( VERY GOOD). We did not have dessert as we were stuffed.
If there is anything else I can help you with plase let me know. I thoroughly enjoyed dining at AquaNox and would not hesitate to send ayone there.
Congratulations, Popoki321! You certainly did your homework and it paid off! I love to hear about people who need special considerations getting what they need. I have enough trouble trying to diet to lose weight...I can%26#39;t imagine having to watch every ingredient in everything I ate to avoid getting seriously ill. Hope they find a resolution to that problem before long.
I hope you have a long and happy marriage!
I%26#39;m just saying........
What%26#39;s the matter ... You must be a big Toby Keith fan???
Your nasty, sarcastic reply is hardly worthy of an acknowledgment, but I feel I must.
I do not have an embarrassing bowel dysfunction . The only thing embarrassing here is your ignorance.
I have Celiac Disease, which can manifest itself in many, many forms which apparently you are not aware of.
I am not embarrassed nor will I apologize for being as you so eloquently state '; high maintenance dingbat';. A server should be aware or offer to acquire the information that I asked for.
I did ask to speak to a manger and was told that one was not available. My biggest mistake was not leaving immediately. I blame no one but myself.
I%26#39;m not high maintenance, I%26#39;m just trying to avoid dying of stomach cancer. It%26#39;s not alot to ask in the grand scope of things.
I have not embellished one bit of my story. My husband did indeed throw up and *gasp* it was not from ';all the booze';.
I%26#39;m not quite sure why I am even justifying your response with an answer.
I just really dislike ignorant people.
Popoki,
Sorry about the rudeness above. Sometimes, there%26#39;s just no accounting for taste.
If you have pictures of your wedding, or of your hotel rooms, I%26#39;d love to take a peek.
I also loved Mystere but hated O. If it helps, I did love Ka.
Celiac disease doesn%26#39;t cause stomach cancer. It%26#39;s a disease of the intestine. The villi get flattened out and don%26#39;t function as well and you get some inflammation. It%26#39;s similar to IBS.
And for the record, I think Toby Keith is terrible. I just don%26#39;t think the girl waiting on you deserved to be called ';dumb as a stump'; because she couldn%26#39;t meet your particular need. It%26#39;s like the guy who goes to TGIFridays and complains about his steak. You get what you pay for.
Thank you, Dr. for you dissertation on Celiac Disease.
Sorry If I brought back your painful childhood memeories with the dumb as a stump reference.
';New findings suggest that more than 1.5 million Americans are afflicted with celiac disease, a severe digestive disorder. The disease, triggered by gluten found in wheat, barley and other grains, is often mistaken for other ailments and can raise the risk of gastrointestinal cancer if untreated. ';
Since this forum is called TRIPadvisor and not DISEASEadvisor, why don%26#39;t you just grow up and let it go?
Atta girl , Popoki. Let him have it.
I%26#39;m sure your report gave a timely reminder to anyone with the same condition to avoid chain restaurants where there is no thought given to the wellbeing of their customers, just to how many meals they can serve and how quick the turnover can be. It was useful for people with your problem who are going to Vegas to be given the names of restaurants where they will feel safe while enjoying a meal.
Ignore ignoramuses.
Glad you enjoyed yourself other than that mishap. It was interesting to hear that a suite in the Barbary Coast is more spacious than at the Venetian. Because it is a small casino/hotel people assume the rooms will be pokey.
