Hi from Sydney, Australia!

[ocam]

Hi all,

Long time lurker in the JC forums, but finally got around to registering. Just wanted to say thanks for all the useful advice that each of you have given in the various threads - I'm sure there are 100s of people that read your posts and (like me, until now) don't say thank you.

A bit about me - I'm from Sydney, Australia; 26 years old; and work as a lawyer. Been to LV only once (August 2011), but will be there for my best friend's bachelor party over the LDW. Anyone else already got plans on being in LV then?

Our group looks like it could be anywhere from 3 to 12 people. As you can imagine, it's been hard getting people to commit to an overseas 5-night bachelor party (factoring in travelling time and costs, and trying to get leave from work). But, who knows, we might get a sizeable crew together in the end.

I've put some posts in the bottle service pricing thread which relate to my trip to LV in August 2011. Hopefully they are helpful.

Thanks!

[Marco A Delgado]

Hey ocam,

I'm from Melbourne and travelling with my partner for the first time to Vegas for 5 days in late July.

What did you get up to in Vegas during your first visit?

[ocam]

Hey Marco

I thought I might as well do a bit of a trip report (which can also serve as a reminder to me in the future).

I flew into LA 3 nights before getting to Vegas. Because a lot of aussies stop by LA before getting to Vegas, I'll give you a quick rundown which might be helpful. We hired a Mustang convertible from Dollar Rent-A-Car to drive around in. There are buses which take you directly from the airport to the various rental car companies (Enterprise was one of the others, can't remember the rest).
We did the usual touristy things like visit Santa Monica Beach, Malibu, Universal Studios, drove down Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood Boulevard, Rodeo Drive.

There are some great restaurants that I can recommend in LA - BOA Steakhouse and Katsuya for quality food, and In N Out Burger for delicious, waistline busting greasy food.

A more senior (but still awesome) colleague of one of my friends was also in LA at the same time as us for a bachelor party, so we joined his crew on their table at Playhouse on Friday night. Decent club I thought - but nothing spectacular.

We left LA on Saturday morning and started our drive to Vegas. We made a few wrong turns trying to get out of LA (ending up in the ghetto at one point); but after asking directions at a few gas stations along the way, we were finally on I-15 and cruising towards LV. Conjuring thoughts of Jonny Depp in Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas, we had the top down.... for all of about 5 minutes.... With the sun high overhead and the searing heat making it feel like our skin was melting off, we rushed to get the top down and the A/C on.

We passed by multiple signs warning us to switch the A/C off from time to time so that the engine wouldn't overheat. We took that advice, but within minutes the car was back to extreme heat. We thought winding the windows down would help get some air circulating through the car. Nope. Instead it felt like the hot, dry winds were cooking us, like we were somehow in a big fan-forced oven.

Anyway, we soldiered on and stopped by a fine dining establishment on the way (Taco Bell). After eating lunch and taking some obligatory shots draped over the Mustang, we were off again for the final stretch in to LV. As we were arriving in Vegas in the afternoon, we didn't get to see the city lit up in the distance. A lot of people recommend trying to time your drive in around dusk, so that when you approach Vegas you get to see the city, with all the buildings lit up, surrounded by nothing other than dark desert.

Pulling up to the Encore at Wynn, we had finally made it. We were in the Encore Tower Suite complex, so had our own check-in counter which was really quick. Within seconds I had realised our bags were all gone. "F**K ! WE HAVE BEEN ROBBED", I thought. The extremely cute receptionist, breaking the silence, said, "your bags have been taken up to your room". She had obviously seen the reaction in my face when the penny dropped that our bags were not there anymore.

Phew. That would have been a sub-optimal way to begin our Vegas adventure. We threw our bags into the room and briefly sat around to absorb the A/C that gave us a welcoming hug the second we set foot through the door.

About 1/2hr later, I returned to pick up the car and drop it off at Treasure Island (FYI, you can return cars rented from Dollar there). By chance they had the pirate show out the front of Treasure Island so we stopped to watch it. It was mildly amusing, and worth seeing if you have the time. We returned to the room, had a bit of a nap, then got ready for night 1, Saturday.

XS. The name says it all. We had been given the details of a host from Encore reception and he organised a table for us. See the posts I've made here for what we paid, tipped, etc

Within what seemed like seconds, we were spilling out of XS at closing time and onto the casino floor. I had gotten into a group of about 15 UK girls on a bachelorette party, and said bye before returning to my suite. *Beep* The door opened as I turned the handle with the last ounce of my strength. I flicked on the light to the bathroom to brush my teeth. But before I could move, I could hear rustling and make out 4 silhouettes over in the bedroom. Whoops. Flicked off the light, made a quick 360, and headed back downstairs to play the waiting game before the 2 LA girls who had joined my friends upstairs were gone.

As I walked (read: staggered/stumbled) back onto the Casino floor, I was startled. "Maco!!!". It was one of the UK girls from the XS bachelorette party, and she was with a few of her friends (Note: can't say any of them were anything special, even after being quite a few drinks deep). "Come join us". With no better option, I trundled over as they played some craps.

Small talk ensues. They finish up at craps and ask why I returned. I give them the PG version of the story and they laugh. "Well, you can just sleep in our room. We're here in the Encore too." It was decision time - with no idea of when I could re-enter the room, I graciously accepted. God bless these saintly women, whose only intention was clearly just to ensure that I got home safely.
They even assisted with removal of my jeans in my semi-drunken stupor....

Anyway, day 2. Rejoin my friends in our suite and we try to piece together the memories from the night before/current morning - we laugh, we cry, we go through an emotional rollercoaster. Holy s**t, that was only night 1 of 5! And for some reason, we found ourselves mastering backflips on the bed [necessary backstory].

It now being a Sunday, a pool party was on the agenda. We showered, got ready and were soon walking the plush red halls of the Encore on our way to Encore Beach Club. The same host from the night before hooked us up with a table.

Wow. This place is amazing. The women, delicious! The pool, filled with said delicious women. We were positioned quite well, at the end of the pools with direct line of sight around the whole club. Even had a nice little "shower" in front of us, which some ladies used to cool off, and others used to grab our attention by dancing/spinng on it like a stripper pole/etc. Calvin Harris nailed it on the decks; while he is a little bit commercial, he has the right sound for an afternoon/poolside party.

Again, the time flew by and before we knew it, it was dusk, and we were back in our room with 3 friendly girls from Malibu. A room service cart was wheeled in with some snacks and beverages. We joked around, played some cards, and had piggy back rides with our new friends. Like a boss, I got onto one of the beds to demonstrate one of my superb backflips. BANG! I was catapulted backwards... into the dining cart. Seems I had hit the edge of the bed (rather than the top surface). Full marks for effort, but 0/10 for execution.

Anyway, we didn't go out that night.

Day 3. Monday. Avicii was at XS that night, so we knew exactly where we were heading to that night.

Decided to do a bit of shopping and headed north to the Las Vegas Premium Outlets - North. [Note, there is also a Las Vegas Premium Outlets South, which might be better if you are on the south end of the strip] Compared to Australia, I can't even begin to tell you how cheap this place is. A tip is to sign-up on the website and you get given a coupon book, which might come in handy. Given how cheap everything was, I went a bit overboard with the purchasing of gifts for family and a couple things for myself (including a most ravishing leather folio for work).

We also caught up with LA girls from night 1 at the Palazzo. We had a quick lunch and spent some time in their Palazzo room before leaving to have a quick nap to recharge before the big night ahead.

And so it was. Avicii. At this point in time, his profile was still rising and he had not quite hit the summit he has now reached. I'm a HUGE EDM fan (have DJ'd in the past and still use my decks for personal enjoyment) and had been following him for a while. As I noted in the BS Locations & Minimums thread - this would be one of the top 3 nights of my life. We found that a higher proportion of the crowd that night were also there for the music, and true EDM fans. Everyone was in great spirits, Avicii nailed it, and security brought over some very lovely companions to our table [Epic note/segue: I'm personally not a fan of security doing this - I prefer to select those I think will be fun and have a good time. I think the better method is to wander away from your table, have a chat to people, and see how you get along with them. If they can sustain a conversation and are genuine (or, alternatively, are just ridiculously attractive), then bring them back to the table. They will often be surprised, because you haven't mentioned you have one up until that point. This is a good (but not foolproof way) of sniffing out bottle rats.]

Anyway, the night continued to escalate and the last thing I remember was spilling out onto the casino floor with a very attractive Bulgarian girl, before she was whisked away by Denisha "Bear" Bryant [Note: it's a Chappelle Show reference]. Unfortunately I didn't have my phone on me [I travel light in nightclubs] so she disappeared slowly into the Encore crowd. A very sad end to an otherwise glorious night.....

[ocam]

Awake now on Day 4, I rustled through my wallet to do a quick funds check and chuck out any unwated receipts, flyers that randoms on the Strip had handed me, etc. Hmmm, interesting. I pick up a $1 bill. Or should I say, half of a $1 bill. Walking over to the bin and about to toss it out, when I randomly flip it over. But, wait, what's this? There are some digits in a thick black substance on the note... OF COURSE! Now I remember! Before she left, the Bulgarian with the luscious lips and silky skin had ripped a note in half, borrowed mascara from a friend, and written down her number. GREAT SUCCESS! [Borat voice]

The boys and I go for a wander down the Strip to check out some of the other casinos... We had hardly left the Wynn/Encore up until this point, other than a brief visit to Treasure Island and Palazzo. We decided to skip going out that night.

We were walking back to the Encore when I felt/heard the *BRZZZ BRZZZ* vibration of my phone in my pocket. "Want to catch up for dinner tonight?", the message from Bulgarian hottie read. Hmm, that's a tough decision.

I arranged to meet up with her for dinner. I got to the meeting point and immediately went white. My heart raced. I felt my forehead begin to sweat. "What did she look like, again?" I thought to myself.

No matter, though, it was readily apparent who she was when she turned the corner - in slow motion she glided over the floor, seemingly floating above it, like some heavenly creature; her hair somehow flinging around wildly behind her in the still, cool air of the casino.

After pleasantries we sat down and began to talk - about life, love, travel. She was a very cool girl. As I briefly scanned the restaurant, I had to do a double take. It was my 2 travelling companions. Awkward. O these slings and arrows of outrageous fortune! Noticing that my gaze had fixed on something other than her, Bulgarian hottie turned to investigate.
"Aren't they your friends?" [They had been introduced on the Monday night]
"Yep... that would be them."
"They can join us if you like."

So we waved them over and had a quick chat. A little while longer, we settled the bill, and went our own separate ways.

I gambled a bit (for the first time on the trip!) and then retired to the suite to get some rest. The time had snuck up on me and it was already 2am.

Day 5. Wednesday. We decided to have a pretty chilled day again, and went even further down the strip to check out the other casinos. I have to say, I'm really not a fan of the southern end of the Strip - it's a bit trashy and the hotels are a little more dated/worn. Really liked the look of the Cosmo though and was tempted to stay there for 2013 Labor Day Weekend, just to mix things up. But went with the Encore given that it was tried and tested.

For our final night, we hit Surrender. The club is great, connecting both an indoor club to the outdoor section where Encore Beach Club is held. Other than an unfortunate position with our table, we were having a great night. The drinks were flowing, the crowd buzzing, and we were killing it on the dancefloor with our shuffling

*BRZZ BRZZ* Bulgarian hottie again, wondering what I was up to. We organised to meet up. I said bye to my friends, who were distracted by some of the fauna at Surrender and took my leave.

Blink, blink. I checked my watch - 9.30am. I was awake in the Encore and it was Day 6.

But this was not my room. Nor was I alone.

About an hour later I returned to the room to find a panic-stricken pair of lads. "And where have you been?" hissed one, while the other scowled at me with arms crossed. "Yeh, you should really tell us when you're leaving", arms-crossed, angry friend #2 added.

After pleading my case, I managed to appease them.

"Well hurry up, we need to check-out and we have the transfer to the Grand Canyon helicopter coming past in 1/2 hour". The tour! It had totally slipped my mind. We began throwing things into our respective suitcases. Clothes, toiletries and electrical goods flew threw the air into bloated suitcases, which needed to be wrestled to the ground with full body weight applied to get them zipped. Maybe I had gone a bit overboard with the shopping? Or perhaps the maniacal, methodless packing had not helped. Either way, after doing an FBI sweep of the suite to make sure nothing was left behind, we trundled downstairs to check out.

Since our flight wasn't until much later that evening, we left our bags to be safely locked away.

A shuttle picked us up from the hotel and ferried us to the offices of the helicopter tour operator that we had booked in. After a quick safety briefing, we filed inside with a group of 3 girls (also Aussie) and were soon up in the air. We flew over the Nevada desert - a desolate, red and rocky landscape - exactly what I picture the terrain to be on Mars. We flew past the Hoover Dam and Lake Meade, while the pilot dropped bits of trivia from time to time.

The pilot landed inside the canyon (and by inside, I mean inside - there were canyon walls all around us) and ushered us to some picnic tables. There was another group from another tour also there. Our pilot swiftly re-appeared with some sandwiches and cold drinks.

The Grand Canyon is breathtaking - and I mean that in the most literal sense. I'm usually pretty blasé about a lot of things, particularly nature, but the view is awe-inspiring. The only other place that has ever rivalled that view, is up a tower in a cool little Italian place I once stumbled across, called San Gimignano.

We took photos of the canyon, posed in front of the helicopter, etc and then returned to LV, flying past a few of the hotels and along the Strip. I can highly recommend that any first-time visitor to Vegas (or someone who is yet to do it) go along on one of the helicopter tours. I had also never flown in a helicopter before, so that added to the excitement.

We returned to the hotel, got our bags, and waited at the airport for our plane to New York. The best thing about the airport? You can gamble!! So the waiting time quickly passed while I played the slots and before we knew it, we were on a plane, leaving the glittering lights of Vegas behind us.

As we floated away above the clouds, we could hear Vegas' siren call, beckoning us back. Would we ever be back? When?

[Answer, seems I'm going Labor Day Weekend 2013 for my best friend's bachelor party.]

The rest of trip involved NY, Miami and San Fran, which are beyond the scope of these forums. But I will say that we went to Liv in Miami a couple times and Nikki Beach - and overall preferred the LV nightlife. The people in Miami had a little more attitude and, shall we say, a little more interesting, dress sense. We had a great time in Miami (even though a hurricane had just come through, which in fairness means we didn't experience its full potential), but still missed LV.

Oh well, Las Vegas, my old friend, may the next 7.5 months breeze past so we can be together once more.

[Jhaulotte]

That was a great report man. Sounds like a damn good Vegas trip

[Chuck]

Fantastic TR...welcome to the forums...you'll fit right in!

[Marco A Delgado]

Awesome report mate...

We're also doing LA before Vegas, and after that NYC.... we might add Chicago/Boston after NYC as we have a week to spare.

[Chuck]

There are a couple hosts here that have connections in LA as well...you guys looking to hit clubs in LA?

[ocam]

That was a great report man. Sounds like a damn good Vegas trip

Thanks! The only worry is whether I can top that at LDW 2013.

Fantastic TR...welcome to the forums...you'll fit right in!

Thanks!

Awesome report mate...

We're also doing LA before Vegas, and after that NYC.... we might add Chicago/Boston after NYC as we have a week to spare.

If you haven't been to NY before, I'd suggest at least 5 nights there (and ideally, something like 7-8). It really is a huge place. Plus, the more nights you stay, the more dinners/nights out you get to have in NYC.

[fackz]

I just read your whole trip report, sounds awesome!! welcome!!!

[aria]

If yeh haven't already, make sure you post the TR in the TR section so others who may have missed it here can enjoy it too!

[D7KIK]

Great trip report!
Hoping to have some epic nights with my crew in jst over a weeks times! All coming from sydney! Cant wait

[ocam]

Great trip report!
Hoping to have some epic nights with my crew in jst over a weeks times! All coming from sydney! Cant wait

Send me a PM if you want to have a chat about places to go etc etc

[ccc]

That TR is why we love Aussies.