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Red Rock Canyon Excursion

Posted on March 13, 2009 by scottyvegas

Originally uploaded by scottyvegas

It’s easy (and rightly so) to get caught up in all the hoopla Vegas has going, but have you ever been walking down the strip then realize mountains were all around you? Living in the Detroit area where the only “mountain” is made out of trash covered by dirt, I find the mountains intriguing. So for our 1/22-1/25 trip I planned to head to Red Rock Canyon and check it out, I’m glad we did.

Tip: As a bonus, The Red Rock Hotel and Casino is on W. Charleston Street which is also the road that leads to the scenic Red Rock Canyon loop. Red Rock Hotel Casino (Station property) is worth the trip! (See 1/22-1/25 Trip Report).

Tip: If you own a GPS and plan on renting a car bring it along. If you don’t own one but plan on visiting off strip casino’s or other area attractions think about renting one from the car rental company. A GPS can make your side trips more fun by getting you there quicker and a whole lot less frustrating.

The Red Rock Canyon is a 13-mile scenic drive. The cost is $5 per car and has many parking areas so you can pull over and take pictures. The recreation area has many hiking trails with multiple degrees of difficulty. We saw plenty of hikers and people climbing the rocks. I was surprised to see many runners and cyclists along the drive. Interestingly enough this attraction receives over a million visitors a year. Supposedly wild burros and long horn sheep run wild, though we didn’t see any. There are also many springs within hiking distance, we didn’t visit them either. If we ever decide to stay longer than a few days I would love to come back and explore the area more keenly. If I ever decide to take up residence in Las Vegas this is an area I would be interested in.

The 411

  • Cost is $5.00 per vehicle
  • The Visitor Center is open daily from 8:30am to 4:30pm, closed Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day.
  • 13-Mile Scenic Drive, Red Rock Overlook on State Route 159 and Red Spring
    • October 1 -31, 6am to 7pm
    • November 1 – February 28, 6am to 5pm
    • March 1 – March 31, 6am to 7pm

Red Rock Canyon Website

Filed under: Fun, reviews, Tips, Trip Planning | Tagged: , | 2 Comments »

Sahara Casino offers FREE BURRITO (if you can eat it)

Posted on March 11, 2009 by scottyvegas
 

Hungry? Really hungry? Then here’s how to get your free burrito, just head over to Sahara Hotel and Casino’s NASCAR Café and order the “Bomb”. The Bomb is 2 feet long and weighs 6 pounds! It costs $19.95 but if you eat the whole thing you get your money back plus a T-shirt that say’s “Conquered the Bomb”. Ready for the best part? As an added bonus the kind folks at the café will also give you two unlimited passes to their roller coaster! (diaper and barf bag extra) Just what you want after downing 6 pounds of beans, beef, and cheese……..  Can’t finish? No worry, there is a consolation prize, a T-shirt that say’s “Weenie”.

Check out this video on The Las Vegas Weekly:

 http://www.lasvegasweekly.com/videos/2009/jul/15/613/

Filed under: Fun, Tips | Leave a comment »

Make a Drink List!

Posted on February 15, 2009 by scottyvegas

Do you find yourself drinking the same old boring drink(s) time after time? Well the next time you’re in Vegas have a little fun and try something new.

Go to http://www.webtender.com/ and look for some great drinks to try. You can search by drink name, ingredient, or booze.  Start a list and when you find one you want to try, put it on it. Keep doing this until you get a good variety. Finally, the next time head out to your favorite Vegas casino, bring the list along and order up something new.  Let the fun begin!

Share your favorite drinks by posting in the comments sections below.

Filed under: Fun, Tips, Trip Planning | Tagged: , | 2 Comments »

Primm Valley Casino Resorts is offering FREE tickets to 2009 concerts

Posted on February 15, 2009 by scottyvegas

Primm Valley Casino Resorts is giving away 500 tickets per show to all concerts in 2009. Looks like a wide variety of entertainers will be performing throughout the year. If you’re planning a trip, check out the calendar and see if anyone is performing while you’ll be in town. Heck, free is good and you just might enjoy getting off the strip for awhile.

Now I’ve never been to Primm Valley but I hear they offer some great room rates and dinner specials. Primm Valley is about 30-40 minutes south of the Las Vegas strip. The next time I visit Vegas I will be sure to put Primm Valley on my list to check out.

For promotion details visit their website at:

http://www.primmvalleyresorts.com/concerts.html

Make sure to review the disclaimer at the bottom of the page. I would be interested in hearing your thoughts about Primm Valley Casino Resorts in the comments section below.

Filed under: Fun, Tips, Trip Planning | Tagged: , | 1 Comment »

Table games? How do you play? You can learn!

Posted on February 2, 2009 by scottyvegas


Gaming Lessons

Originally uploaded by scottyvegas

Want to play table games such as blackjack or craps but don’t know how? Many casinos offer daily lessons on how to play these as well as others. Don’t worry if your hotel/casino doesn’t offer lessons as anyone can take lessons regardless where they’re staying.

After the lesson many casinos give you a coupon good for a free $5.00 bet or give you a matching bet coupon. Better yet learn to play before you arrive in Las Vegas. There are many casino software titles you can buy at your local software store that will teach you the ropes and allow you to play without losing your shirt.

I personally own many titles by Phantom EFX.

Bodog.com is a website that allows you to play for fun on a variety of casino games without installing any software or signing up. This site has a lot of useful information to offer. Game quality is very good but slow at times.

Wondering about casino games odds or want to spend a few hours getting lost in numbers? Check out Wizard of Odds, I highly recommend this site. It addresses many myths about gaming with proof.

Filed under: Fun, Gaming!, Tips | Tagged: , , , , , | 2 Comments »

FYI: Las Vegas Blvd = “The Strip”

Posted on January 28, 2009 by scottyvegas

Found this sign on the Excalibur property near the corner of Tropicana and Las Vegas Blvd. It cracks me up.

p_00072

Filed under: Fun, Tips | Leave a comment »

Snow in Vegas?

Posted on January 9, 2009 by scottyvegas
So much for global warming

So much for global warming

December 17, 2008 Vegas gets three inches of snow. Notice the little snowman on the left post.

Filed under: Fun | Tagged: | Leave a comment »

Podcast Reviews

Posted on November 25, 2008 by scottyvegas

Ahhhh… Podcasts, what a wonderful thing! After I received my first iPod, a good friend told me about podcasts (What the hell is a podcast?). After I was enlightened the first podcast topic I searched for on iTunes was Las Vegas, go figure…. 

Below you will find a list of Las Vegas podcasts along with my 2 cents worth of a review. By the way, you don’t need an iPod to listen to a podcast. You can use any mp3 player or listen right from the web.

Warning:  before you begin listening I must warn you that these podcasts can become habit forming and may cause strong urges to book LV trips regardless of the cost or amount of vacation days you have left.

Five Hundy by Midnight

www.fivehundybymidnight.com

I must admit this is my favorite LV podcast and hence why I listed it first. Hundy is produced weekly (usually released Sunday evenings) by Tim and Michele out of there Minnesota home. The podcast usually runs between 45-60 minutes.

This is a well done “amateur” podcast that has been around for several years now. Even though you hear airplanes flying over during the summer, Dogs slurping water out of their water bowls and ice rattling while Tim and Michelle get their drink on while recording the podcast. But please don’t let this fool you, all of this is part of the charm hundy has to offer. This podcast has a loyal following and is highly respected in the Las Vegas Podcast community. The content covers everything Las Vegas.

A large potion of the podcast is dedicated to listener reports called “Drunk Dials” where listeners call in and share anything they want about Las Vegas. Callers report on current Las Vegas trip events, reviews, deals or just trip plain drunken ramble.  Anyway  a lot of great stuff comes out of the callers. I have gotten a lot of great information from Hundys listeners.

The Strip Podcast

www.thestrippodcast.com

Of all Las Vegas podcasts, The Strip podcast is probably the most professionally done. Produced weekly by Steve and Miles these guys are residents’ with incredible connections. They offer weekly interviews with nationally recognized and local Las Vegas celebrities. Besides celebrities, real Vegas movers and shakers (aka Steve Wynn) have been interviewed. You won’t find news regurgitated here, you get news directly from the source. The content is all Las Vegas with little fluff. To be honest it took be awhile to get use to their voices and overall volume level of the podcast. Hang in there you won’t be disappointed.

Steve’s weekly tips: http://www.stevefriess.com/podcast/topsecrettips.htm

Living in LV

http://www.livinginlv.com/

The theme of this podcast is exactly what the title says, but in their own words: “Living In Las Vegas Podcast gives an entertaining first-person look into what it’s like to call Sin City”. The podcast is produced monthly and usually runs for just over an hour, Scott and Melissa are the hosts.  The podcast is full of great reviews of restaurants, new attractions, hotels and shows. The hosts of this podcast are truly likable. Melissa is a Las Vegas recruiter and shares good advice on finding a job in LV and who hasn’t thought about what it would be like to live in sin city. I look forward to this podcast every month.  

The Vegas Tourist Podcast

http://www.thevegastourist.com/

The Vegas Tourist podcast is a good podcast with good information. The following comes directly from their website.

“Let Mark and Sazzy show you around Las Vegas.
We are a couple of locals who love the city and want to share it with the world. Warts and all. There is a lot here, so sit back and look around. We have a great podcast where we like to share our thoughts and reviews on the places, people and events that make this the entertainment capital of the world. Plus interview some interesting characters along the way.”

 To be honest I struggle with this podcast, even though it manages to produce some good information I find the hosts annoying at times (most of the time) but judge for yourself.

 Vegas Gang Podcast

http://www.vegasgangpodcast.com/

The Vegas Gang podcast is a bi-weekly podcast that focuses on the gaming industry, LH politics and other issues related to Las Vegas. No “Drunk Dials” here, this is a more serious podcast with great information on the business side of Vegas. Sound quality is poor in my opinion because the podcast is a recording of a conference call. I hope this podcast continues, the participants are knowledgeable and I feel this more serious look at Vegas nicely balances the other Las Vegas podcasts.

Filed under: Fun, reviews | Tagged: , , , , , | 2 Comments »

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