February 2011
On Friday, despite being awake for nearly 24 hours the day before, we got out early in the morning. Vegas is nice and calm in the morning. I'm guessing most people are still sleeping off the night before. We went to the flamingo habitat at the Flamingo, walked around the Cosmopolitan, Crystals at CityCenter & Aria, went up the Eiffel Tower, had lunch at the Luxor and walked around the Excalibur & New York New York. Next, we went to see the MGM Lion Habitat and walked halfway up the strip before taking a cab to the Stratosphere tower at dusk. We stayed up there until the sunset so we got both the day and night view. This was followed by another trip up the Eiffel Tower to see the view at night. Overall, the Eiffel Tower affords better views than the Stratosphere. We had dinner at the Paris' le Village buffet and ended the night with a walk over to the Bellagio Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, which were decorated for Chinese New Year.
The iconic Eiffel Tower at the Paris as seen from our hotel room window
Our room at the Paris overlooked the rooftop swimming pool
The mountains surrounding Las Vegas as seen from our hotel room at the Paris
The mountains surrounding Las Vegas as seen from our hotel room at the Paris
The Paris has one of the more elaborate signs in Las Vegas, a giant hot air balloon
The Eiffel Tower at the Paris is half the size of the original in France
Flags at the Paris
Ballys main entrance features a long people mover to get you from the Strip to the front door
The Flamingo has been around since 1946
There are real flamingos at the Flamingo
The flamingo habitat at the Flamingo Hotel and Casino
If your casino is called the Flamingo, then it's necessary to have actual flamingos on the property
Wood ducks at the Flamingo's habitat
Waterfalls at the Flamingo
White ibises at the Flamingo's habitat
This Australian black swan lives at the Flamingo
Wood duck at the Flamingo
Waterfalls in the desert at the Flamingo
This mallard duck was wandering free at the Flamingo habitat
The Bellagio and its lake
The Paris is one of the more recognizable casinos in Las Vegas (and where we stayed)
This McDonald's has way more neon and lights then your aveage McDonald's
This typewriter eraser sculpture is 19 feet tall, weighs 4 tons and sits outside the Crystals at CityCenter Mall and the Aria
Focus is a water feature at the Aria designed by the same company that designed the Bellagio fountains
Focus is a water feature at the Aria designed by the same company that designed the Bellagio fountains
Lumia is a water fountain at the Aria designed by the same company that designed the Bellagio fountains
Focus is a water feature at the Aria designed by the same company that designed the Bellagio fountains
That's a monorail track in front of the Aria
This giant gold bunny in Crystals at CityCenter celebrates the Chinese New Year which is the year of the rabbit. Unfortunately, I don't think it's chocolate filled.
Glacia is another water feature by the company that designed the Bellagio fountains. These pillars of ice are lowered into the floor and refrozen each day.
Glacia is another water feature by the company that designed the Bellagio fountains. These pillars of ice are lowered into the floor and refrozen each day.
Planet Hollywood Hotel and Casino (formerly the Aladdin) is right next door to the Paris
The Aria Casino and Hotel
We spent a lot of time coming and going from the Paris
The Paris Las Vegas' Arc de Triomphe is half the size of the original in France
Apparently it's a requirement that every hotel in Las Vegas have a fountian of some kind.
Most of the megaresorts in Las Vegas are huge. Caesars Palace is no exception.
The Alexandre III Bridge crosses over the casino at the Paris and leads to the elevators to the Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower provides a great view of the south end of the Strip
From the Eiffell Tower you can see the massive apparatus required to put on the Bellagio fountain show
The Rio can be seen from the Eiffel Tower with the mountains in the background
From this point of view you can see just how massive the entire Caesars Palace property is
Opened in 1969, the Las Vegas Hilton is the largest Hilton hotel in the world
The Paris hotel looks massive from the Eiffel Tower. Our room was on the 14th floor about 5 windows right of center
PH Westgate is a condo/hotel at Planet Hollywood. McCarran International Airport can be seen in the background.
Planet Hollywood (formerly the Aladdin) and PH Westgate with McCarran International Airport in the background
Looking south on the Strip from the Eiffel Tower
The Excalibur and the Mandalay Bay seen from the Eiffel Tower
The morning is when the Bellagio fountains are tested and repairerd
The morning is when the Bellagio fountains are tested and repairerd
The Mirage volcano is tested during the morning hours
Caesar's was smart to put camera ports in the massive anti-jumper cage that surrounds the observation deck of the Paris' Eiffel Tower
The interior of the Luxor is as unique inside as the outside. Inclinators carry guests up to their rooms.
The Luxor is the only casino with its own obelisk
The entrance of the Luxor
This monorail runs between the Excalibur, Luxor and Mandalay Bay
The Excalibur's moat doesn't keep anyone out since they have a people mover that takes you over it
The MGM Grand used to have a giant lion head as an entrance, now they have a slightly less attractive 50 ton bronze statue
The Excalibur is where we stayed the last time I was in Las Vegas my senior year of high school.
The Statue of Liberty stands in front of the New York New York
This 50 ton lion statue at the MGM Grand is the largest bronze statue in the Western Hemisphere.
The New York New York's FDNY fire boat
Walking across the Brooklyn Bridge is much safer than the real one. There's no New York drivers to mow you down.
This Pepsi sign is across the street from a giant Coke bottle
Jelly bean Statue of Liberty, need I say more?
These lions are right on the casino floor at MGM Grand
The MGM Grand lions are washed with baby shampoo and commute to the casino each day
Supposedly one of the MGM Grand Lions is a descendant of the MGM Studios lion
The Hooters casino started out as a Howard Johnson hotel
THe New York New York Casino and Hotel
THe New York New York provides a slightly calmer ride than a real New York City cab.
Harley Davidson and topiary aren't words that usually go together
The Harley Davidson Cafe on the Strip
We could see some of the Bellagio fountains from our room
We never found time to go inside the Wynn
The Sahara is at the north end of the strip away from the big resorts
The Circus Circus as seen from the Stratosphere Tower
A view from the Stratosphere Tower including Fremont Street
The Las Vegas World Market Center
It was cool to see planes coming into McCarran at the same altitude we were standing at
The Big Shot is the least insane of the 3 rides on top of the Stratosphere Tower
Fremont Street as seen from the Stratosphere Tower
The Trump, Rio, Palms and Orleans
Palace Station Casino
As the sun sets over Las Vegas, the lights begin to come on
The Las Vegas Monorail at the end of the line
The Strip starts to light up as darkness falls
You can't see the real lightshow of Fremont Street from here, but the casinos start to light up
The Strip after dark
The Strip after dark
Looking out over the city of Las Vegas surrounded by empty desert
The Eiffel Tower provides more spectacular views than the Stratosphere does
The Excalibur is even more colorful at night
Looking down the Strip from the Eiffel Tower. The massive amount of traffic looks better from this height than when you're in it!
The Bellagio with the Palms in the background
Waiting for the fountain show at the Bellagio to start
This is about all you can see of the Rio over the top of the Bellagio
The Orleans Casino
The clouds look ominous, but the rain held off til the middle of the night
The Bellagio fountain show begins
The Eiffel Tower provides a great vantage point for watching the Bellagio fountain show
The Eiffel Tower provides a great vantage point for watching the Bellagio fountain show
The Eiffel Tower provides a great vantage point for watching the Bellagio fountain show
The conservatory at the Bellagio was decorated for Chinese New Year
Terracotta warriors in the Bellagio Conservatory's Chinese New Year exhibit
Terracotta warriors in the Bellagio Conservatory's Chinese New Year exhibit
The centerpiece of the Ballagio's Chinese New Year exhibit is a Chinese junk.
The centerpiece of the Ballagio's Chinese New Year exhibit is a Chinese junk.
2011 is the year of the rabbit and it shows in the Bellagio Conservatory and Botanical Garden.
2011 is the year of the rabbit and it shows in the Bellagio Conservatory and Botanical Garden.
2011 is the year of the rabbit and it shows in the Bellagio Conservatory and Botanical Garden.
Terracotta warriors in the Bellagio Conservatory's Chinese New Year exhibit
The lobby of the Bellagio features a glass sculpture called Fiori di Como by Dale Chihuly. It is made up of 2,000 hand-blown glass flowers.