Hi all, new to the forums and just introduced myself in another one of the sub-forums (26/m/Sydney).
I posted a trip report there, but thought I'd post it here too in case people were interested in reading it.
Anyay, here it is:
"
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 suitcases to claim beds in 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. "Ocam!!!". 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.....
I posted a trip report there, but thought I'd post it here too in case people were interested in reading it.
Anyay, here it is:
"
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 suitcases to claim beds in 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. "Ocam!!!". 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.....
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