Trip Report - May 31-June 6! I want to go back!

I just celebrated my 40th birthday with about 16 friends in Vegas. I found this board just a few days before and the tips I received on here were invaluable! Thanks to all of you...and now I thought I%26#39;d reciprocate.

Lodging - the first two nights we stayed at Harrahs, and frankly, I was very impressed. I had been there before a couple years ago, and it was pretty old and run-down. But our room at least (in the Carnaval Tower) seemed completely renovated and was very nice. We hated to leave. For our last 4 nights, we moved to the Carriage House and it was also great. Convenient location, nice rooms, and the DVD player and kitchenettes were very handy to have. We really enjoyed our stays at both the Carriage House and Harrahs....no complaints.

Other high points of the trip:

Entertainment:

* Manilow at the Hilton - the man is an amazing entertainer, and the show was fantastic! Catch it if you can.

* Big Elvis at Barbary Coast - we did this twice. Pure Vegas and the best free show in town.

* Top of the World lounge at the Stratosphere - if you can%26#39;t afford dinner in the restaurant, go here and have drinks instead. I%26#39;ve never seen a more breathtaking view, and everyone there was just fantastically nice. Also, for the type of room and the view, the drinks were pretty reasonably priced. I%26#39;ll be making this a regular stop.

*Harrahs - Carnaval Court and the Twins at the Piano Bar - loved both of these stops. Great fun.

Dining:

* Grand Lux Cafe at the Venetian - we ended up here 3 times (late night dessert; brunch; and dinner) and absolutely loved it. Food was fantastic and portions plentiful. Try the Sunday Night Pasta, the Caramel Chicken, or the Butterscotch Bread Pudding. (Better yet, do all three!)

*$4.95 Ellis Island steak special - seriously, I ate a lot of expensive meals on this trip, but this was the best steak I had. Best deal in Vegas.

*Breakfast at Terrible%26#39;s - we did this on two days as it was convenient as we were hustling people to the airport to catch flights. One day we ate in their little cafe%26#39; (next to the buffet) and loved it....the pancakes were great! Next day we ate at the buffet and for $4.99 the food was pretty good.

* Mon Ami Gabli at Paris - their system for seating on the terrace is horrible and their people aren%26#39;t the most helpful at explanation or advice, but once we actually got out there, the food and the views were fantastic

We took advantage of the current Harrahs rewards promotion and racked up a lot in free food vouchers that I%26#39;ll be using on my next trip, and also won $50 on the card swipe one day. That is a great deal and I%26#39;m thankful to this board for filling me in on it.

The only real low point was Lucky Cheng%26#39;s. We had 9:00 pm Manilow tickets so we made a 6:30 reservation. When we arrived, they told us the show would not be starting till 7:30. We were a little concerned and expressed that to our waitress before even ordering, but she told us to absolutely not worry and that the show lasted 45 minutes and she promised we would be out of there in plenty of time to make our show. So we stayed. The food was actually OK, but the show did not start until 8:15. The prix fixe dinner is a joke because even though it says $35, virtually every item on the menu has an add-on price to that. If we hadn%26#39;t went and asked, we would%26#39;ve never gotten the dessert, and we got to see virtually none of the show, which is what we were paying all that money for to begin with. We were furious, and I still am. We blew almost $60 each there for nothing, and they were not remotely apologetic. It was a total rip-off.

Other than that, though, it was an absolute GREAT trip and thanks again to all of you for the extremely valuable tips and advice!

JP

Trip Report - May 31-June 6! I want to go back!

Sounds like you had a great trip. We were there 5/28-6/1 so our trips overlapped a bit. Glad you had a great birthday!

Allie

Trip Report - May 31-June 6! I want to go back!

Since there were 17 of you in Las Vegas, anything you would like to share about any gambling aspects of the trip? It is Las Vegas after all.

Any gambling stories?

Well, I personally didn%26#39;t have a lot of luck this time in the gambling department and most of what we play is small stakes, so didn%26#39;t think it was worth mentioning. I did have some luck at craps at the Golden Gate downtown, but mostly we just messed around on nickel slots and $3-$5 blackjack tables. I did try a new Texas Hold %26#39;Em-based table game at the Sahara which kicked my butt. Lost $100 in about 5 minutes without ever winning a single hand. Another thing I liked was these new (to me anyway) electronic roulette stations. I played on the one at Paris for a while. Didn%26#39;t win but found it far more enjoyable than being crammed in with a bunch of other people around a table.

Sounds like a fun birthday trip -- enjoyed all your details, thanks for posting!

Happy B-day and milk 40 for all it%26#39;s worth I still am!! Thanks for the Not- So-Lucky Cheng%26#39;s story, if anyone from that establishment bothers to read this, I hope they realize I am totally turned off and will skip L Cheng%26#39;s in July.

can you tell me more about Lucky Cheng%26#39;s ...what type of show is it, and where is it located? For some reason, I have never heard of it, and I read these postings nightly, like other%26#39;s read books before they go to sleep!