I went full tourist this spring break! It was my first plane ride, my first time on the West coast, my first time drinking in front of family, and the most money that I’ve probably ever spent in my life. Of course, there are some things I wish I had done and things that could’ve been better. But my trip to Las Vegas was the best trip I’ve gone on in a while. I ate both expensive and well-priced food. I did a lot of shopping. I gambled a little. I didn’t get to visit the Grand Canyon, but I did get to see old Las Vegas. I was the happiest I’d been in months. I think it’s pretty obvious I had a great time, but I wanted to share a bit of the highlights in case any of you are contemplating your first trip to Vegas.
- The Best (& Worst) Food
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The first restaurant I went to was Gordon Ramsey’s Pub & Grill for dinner. It was a little on the expensive side. My food was great, but my family said their food wasn’t worth the price. That seems to be a common sentiment for a lot of “big name” restaurants in Vegas. If one of those restaurants interests you, I’d say choose very carefully. Gordon Ramsey’s Fish and Chips was much cheaper and the food was a lot better.
The best restaurant that I went to was probably a tie between Hash House A Go Go and Brio Italian Grille. Hash House is a wonderful breakfast place that is very easy on the wallet and also very filling. My pancake was larger than the plate it came on. Brio Italian Grille is a bit more pricey. However, this was definitely a restaurant worth the dent in my wallet. Plus, they had good wine.
- Hotel Recommendations
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During my trip, I stayed in the Luxor Hotel. It’s iconic because of its Egyptian pyramid shape and theme. I enjoyed my stay there. However, for the cost, it did not completely live up to its hype. I visited Caesar’s Palace, The Wynn, and Treasure Island for various things while I was there as well. I only spent a few hours in each one, but those seem like a much better experience — especially The Wynn and Caesar’s Palace (they have great shops/malls and photo ops.).
- Best Places to Shop
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I have a confession to make, I spent a lot of money shopping in Vegas. I won’t say how much. Just know, it was a lot and the number in your head is probably much lower than what I spent. In my defense, I saved for a really long time before it, so that I could spend a lot and not feel bad about it later. I regret nothing.
With that being said, if you’re interested in breaking the bank and visiting some of the luxury stores Vegas has to offer, I’d recommend the shops inside of The Wynn and Caesar’s Palace. Between the two of them, they have almost all of the luxury brands you could think of, and they might have some sales.
If you’re looking for more cost-efficient shopping, the shops along the strip are great. You literally won’t be able to miss any of those. I think the strip has most of the most popular clothing and jewelry stores available. There’s also an outlet in South Las Vegas (Town Square, I believe) that looked pretty amazing! That’s definitely one place I wish I had spent more time in. It’s also a little less crowded because it’s off the strip.
- Things to Do & Things to see
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The more adventurous side of me didn’t really get to reach her full potential on this trip. It’s the reason I’ll definitely be going back to Vegas at least two more times. There were so many things that I wanted to do and so little time to do them!
Some of my favorite things that I got to do were: visit/participate in The Hunger Games Exhibition, attempt the Number One Escape Room, ride in the High Roller Observation Wheel, and watch the Cirque Du Soleil Mystere show.
The things that I will be returning to do and recommend that you do too, are the Hoover Dam Highlights Tour, visit the Mob Museum, the Las Vegas Walking Tour, the LINQ Zipline, visit the Grand Canyon, and experience more of the Vegas nightlife.
Of course, there are a lot of other things that you could do on your trip. But these were the ones on my list and the ones that I found the most interesting. To make doing some of these things a bit easier, I’d suggest getting a Go City Pass. They have an all-inclusive option that lets you do everything the pass pays for during your trip — including most of the things I just mentioned. There’ll also probably be a lot of things that you choose to do on a whim when you arrive. Vegas has multiple shows, performances, and artist residencies happening at all times, so you’ll never be bored.
These are just a few of the things that I got to experience on my trip during the break. I was only there for 4 days, but I think I made the most of it. I hope that my recap gives you a lot of ideas for your future trip! I can promise that you won’t regret it. Though, you may want to save up a lot of money — Vegas is EXPENSIVE!