A first timer's report....

We flew into town to work one day of the SEMA show at the invitation of a business contact. I had never been to Vegas, but my husband had. We extended the weekend so that I could sample Vegas. Here is a report of that weekend:

First, a little about us: We are a happily married, early 40-something couple from the Midwest. We seldom vacation alone because our time and money is spent on our four teens. We don%26#39;t smoke, drink, or (normally) gamble, but I was determined to have fun in Las Vegas anyway.

Day one: Fly in late (Allegiant Air--nothing fancy, but efficient) , grab a rental at Enterprise ($86 for five day economy), and check in Summer Bay Resort. Summer Bay is not really a resort, but the beds were comfy enough and the place was reasonably clean. And, our parent company paid for two nights here--hard to complain about free.

Day two: Work the SEMA show and tear down the booth. Company owner took us to dinner at Tuscany Gardens, a very pretty Italian place with decent food and good prices. After, we toured the south end of the strip but did not gamble. We really like NYNY, but the other casinos all looked the same and were often too smoky for us. By midnight, we were worn out and called it a night.

Day three: Checked out and headed south to Ethel M%26#39;s. Sure, it%26#39;s just an excuse to get you in their gift shop, but we love chocolate so that was just fine. We had some coffee and chocolates and toured the cactus garden--interesting to us Midwesterners. We then headed out to Red Rock Canyon, a beautiful and peaceful place that was full of people hiking, biking, rapelling, and climbing. We planned to have lunch at Siena Golf Club, but it was closed early for a wedding reception. Instead, we found a Capriotti%26#39;s and ate as much as we could of two huge, tasty sandwiches. Then, it was off to the Silverton to see the aquarium and do a little gambling. On the way, we spotted a Ferrari dealership so my husband had to check those out. For some reason, they did not offer us a straight trade for our little rented Kia. After a long day, we checked into the Renaissance by the convention center. This place is wonderful--immaculate, modern, warm, and well-managed. We had dinner in their steakhouse, Envy, with a certificate from restaurant.com. If you go, don%26#39;t miss the pea soup and the creamed corn...very good. This restaurant is beautiful and the service was impeccable. We sat around the pool for a bit, then called it a night. I think we were both asleep before 10.

Day four: We had breakfast at Envy because we had booked the room with a %26#39;stay for breakfast%26#39; package. Again, the food and service were quite good. They were setting up for a jazz brunch that appeared to be quite popular as many people were milling around waiting for that to start at 11. We rode the monorail (really as a novelty because we don%26#39;t have public transportation in our little city) to MGM and visited the half price ticket store next door, but did not find anything of interest to us. Back to the monorail station, then we took the free shuttle to Wynn. Looked around a little while, but that place was very crowded and a bit chaotic. The Wynn is very, very unusual and quite colorful. Next, we drove to Paris and valet parked and looked around while we waited for our table at Mon Ami Gabi. We were able to sit outside on a perfectly beautiful day with a great view of the fountains. Because it was Sunday, we actually saw three shows while we were there. This was a lovely experience, but the food was a little disppointing. I would go again and order something different and hope for better service.

Next, what was meant to be the highlight of our trip: one night in the Venezia tower at the Venetian. First, the valet parking was a confusing mess and we ended up parking ourselves and dragging our luggage through the parking garage. The desk clerk tried to explain possible upgrades to us, but in a voice so low and so fast that my husband finally said, ';We will just take what we reserved.'; We got our keys and found our room, only to discover that neither key worked. I returned for another set, and we were finally in our room. It truly was beautiful, but that was soon dampened by the fact that our toilet did not work. A call to the front desk was not answered, so I walked down to the let them know. They promised to send someone, but after an hour of waiting, I asked to be moved to another room. By now, we had been there for two hours and the whole ';wow'; factor was gone. We asked to see a manager, but they were all ';in a meeting.'; Later, one called our cell phone. He was very sorry for all our hassle and credited us $50 for dining.

We ate in the Grill at Valentino. The food was good, but nothing outstanding. Our server, however, was stellar. (Wish I could remember his name.) He recommended we visit Bellagio%26#39;s chocolate shop after dinner and we did just that. We saw one more fountain show after dark, gambled a bit, and went to bed fairly early. We woke up early and had breakfast in Bouchon. That French toast was yummy....wish I had some right now. It was a bit chilly to swim, but we sat around the Venezia pool after breakfast just enjoying the quiet scenery and the beautiful weather. After that, we checked out, returned our car, and flew back home to cold, windy weather.

Final observations: We had a great time together, but Vegas is not somewhere I will ever yearn to visit. Every casino looked (and smelled) the same, and after a while, even the prettiest hotel looked just like the last. I think I prefer cities with more history and genuineness or the beach where I can just chill; I can certainly see why Vegas is so popular, though. It just isn%26#39;t MY thing.

A first timer's report....

Thanks for your report... you stayed at some places I have rarely heard about (other than Venetian). Did you get chocolate at Bellagio? I have seen that chocolate fountain, but never got anything there. I suppose if you were more of a drinker/gambler you might have enjoyed Vegas more. I still get amazed by the lights and prettiness factor, so everyone is different. One thing, though, I think moving from place to place would be a drag. Each new checkout and checkin ate up valuable time and left you open for disappointments in the process.

A first timer's report....

Thanks for the TR. It was well written and easy to read. It was interesting hearing from someone who is NOT a Vegas nut like many of us here. I struggle to understand why some of my friends have no desire to try it, even once. I%26#39;ve been trying to convince my sister that if she would just go along with us once, we could guarantee that she would have a great time. Maybe not.......

sounds like you gave Vegas a fair shot for being a future vacation destination. it is not for everyone. I never thought I would want to go there, but once I did, I was hooked. Good for you for being open-minded about going at least once.

I always think everyone should try to make at least one trip to Vegas to see for themselves what it%26#39;s like.

It seems like wherever you go to a social event or even in your workplace someone or other starts talking about their trip to Vegas and what they saw or did there. At least if you%26#39;ve been there and experienced it for yourself you can join in the conversation and have a point of view.

I don%26#39;t suppose there is any place on earth that everyone would love.

We%26#39;re all looking for something different.

At least when you say you didn%26#39;t care for it you will have actually experienced it. You won%26#39;t be just repeating what you%26#39;ve heard other people say.

People come from all over the world because they%26#39;ve heard of Vegas. I sometimes wonder what they say about it when they get back to their own countries.

Suzy, I really enjoyed your report. It was very balanced, interesting to hear the views of someone who is not totally obsessed with Vegas!

Thanks for the TR! Well written and a little different point of view. If you ever decide to go back, I would suggest seeing Lake Mead and perfhaps Hoover Dam and the Grand Canyon. Also you may find Fremont St (Downtown a little more interesting than the Strip). Thanks again!

Thanks for your kind responses!

Yes, moving around didn%26#39;t help. The first place was not somewhere I wanted to pay for after our two free evenings. Staying on the strip that evening was outrageously priced (last day of the SEMA show travelers inflated everything) but we really wanted to try the Venetian on Sunday when the price was much more reasonable.

We did not have chocolate at the Bellagio, but we enjoyed looking at the fountain. It was very busy and we still had our Ethel M%26#39;s to eat so we did not buy any more.

We will return next year for the SEMA show and will definitely plan on seeing Hoover Dam and maybe playing some golf that time. We will also buy show tickets ahead of time--didn%26#39;t do that and we weren%26#39;t able to get tickets to anything we wanted. And, we will choose one place to stay and remain there.

I will also continue to read posts from all of you who love it...they are often very entertaining and were very helpful when I planned this trip.

Suzy, thanks for your report. It is so helpful to hear when someone has a less than thrilling experience, otherwise this place just becomes a cheerleading section.

I can%26#39;t say that I am surprised that you didn%26#39;t fall in love with LV. Drinking, smoking, and gambling are three of the biggest activities in Vegas, and since neither of those is a strong interest for you, I think you are right to feel that other destinations may have more to offer you. But as others have said, you gave it a try and now you know what you%26#39;re (not) missing :)