Las Vegas

How to do Vegas, Unconventionally

The first time I went to Vegas, I was 13 and in complete awe of the city.  My family and I were on a road trip moving from Alaska to Virginia, and we decided to stay in Vegas for two nights.  I loved everything about it – bright lights, a ton of things to do (even for a 13 year old), the energy, the bustling streets.  My parents said that was when they knew I’d be a ‘city girl.’

When I was 21, I returned for my friends 21st birthday.  We did the whole Vegas experience – gambling, clubs, Thunder from Down Under (heh) – veeery Vegas-esque.  It was also a great time, but after that trip, I felt like I’d be fine if I never returned.

This summer, at 27, I went back for a wedding.  The wedding was on a Thursday, so we stayed for the whole weekend after that.  Neither I or the friend I went with really felt the need to go to pool parties, gamble, dress up, or go to clubs, so we found a ton of other really fantastic activities to do:

1. Eat.

We didn’t have one bad meal while we were there.  As soon as we landed we ate at the buffet at the Bellagio, it was about $35, but worth it.  We got there around 10:45am, so we had the pleasure of eating both breakfast and lunch there! We ate at Bouchon at the Venetian one night, a French restaurant where we had escargot, delicious wine, and steak.  The ambiance is lovely there; the Venetian is one of my favorite hotels in Vegas so it all just added up to be a great night.

The next night we ate at Momofuku in the Cosmopolitan – the friend I want with had been pining to eat at one of David Chang’s restaurants, and we were extremely pleased.  We ordered hamachi, meatballs, truffle ramen, and of course, delicious wine.  Afterwards we rolled ourselves over to the Chandelier bar where we got one of the most interesting drinks I’ve ever had  – more on that later.  For lunch we tried to find whatever non-chain lunch spots around our hotel, and were not disappointed in anything.

2. Enjoy walking on the strip.

Our favorite activity while we were in Vegas was to grab a Bud Light tallboy or frozen margarita and just walk along the strip – there were so many characters! People from all over the world go to Vegas on vacation, and it’s such a unique city that it brings out pretty spontaneous personalities in people.  I know New York is the ‘city that never sleeps,’ but Vegas sure doesn’t either!

3. Relax by the pool.

Since we weren’t in the mood for an actual pool party, we just hung out at the MGM Grand pool with a bucket of Bud Lights.  Tip: wear sunscreen! And reapply! The music is great, there’s a lively crowd, it’s clean, and the beer is reasonably priced.  It made for a relaxing day.

4. Take in a comedy show.

We booked a last minute comedy show at the Laugh Factory at the Tropicana, it was pretty fun, and the comedians were super personable, but in all honesty – we drank too much and fell asleep halfway through.  That’s Vegas for ya.

5. Go to the Hoover Dam.

We rented a car for half a day (there are rental places all along the strip) to go hiking and to the Hoover Dam.  It’s a really easy drive, and nice to get away from the lights and crowds of the strip.  You can see the other side of Nevada (and Arizona) and take in some amazing engineering feats at the same time! Being an engineer, I completely geek out over not only the dam, but also the new bridge that spans the two cliffs.

6. Hike the Valley of Fire.

Remember how I said we drank too much? Yeah…that made this hike a lot less fun at 9am in 100 degree weather with absolutely zero shade.  However, I totally recommend going to the Valley of Fire.  It’s about an hour north of the city, so we rented a car (this is when we went to the Hoover Dam as well) and attempted to get up early enough to beat the heat.  The red rocks are incredible, and the wave formation is definitely something amazing to see.

7. Drink on the Street.

There are so many little bars along the strip, either with live music or rowdy crowds, and Vegas has an open container law, so you can just bop around to different places.  We loved walking into a convenience store, cutting costs a bit by buying our drinks there, and then just walking around and taking in the city.

8. Enjoy a cocktail at the Chandelier Bar.

After we ate dinner at Momofuku, we stopped for a cocktail at the Chandelier Bar, and we heard a man next to us talking about the best cocktail he’d ever had, and he was drinking it right then.  We asked the bartender what it was, and he said it’s no longer on the menu, but it’s called The Verbena.  It’s a delicious cocktail with a szechuan flower granish.  You eat the flower first, and then slowly sip your cocktail.  The result is insane – your mouth starts tingling, it feels like Icy Hot in your mouth, in a strangely good way which lasts about 20 minutes.  Super delicious and very unique!

9. Visit Old Vegas.

The after-party for the wedding we went to was in Old Vegas, and it was a blast.  It has the same atmosphere as the strip, but the crowd was made of a lot less tourists.  The buildings are much shorter, but a lot more flashy, so it’s an interesting change.  My parents used to tell me about their experiences in Vegas some 30 odd years ago, and they describe Old Vegas, cheap buffets, flashy slot machines, and lots of fun – which is just what I pictured while sipping Old Fashioneds on cool rooftop bars.

10. Visit the insides of Casinos.

I’ve stayed in the Paris, the Venetian, and the Monte Carlo, and been inside almost every hotel on the strip.  The casinos are so beautiful, definitely not all of them, but most are truly magnificent.  The casinos and lobbies inside The Paris, Caesars Palace, The Venetian, and The Bellagio are some of my favorites.  You can spend an entire day just walking around the shops, coffee joints, bars, and casinos in just those four.  The shops inside Caesars Palace are fun for a super hot day when you need some shade.  The ceiling is painted as the sky, there are aquariums, and there are tons of things to look at.  The Paris, The Bellagio, and The Venetian are just gorgeous on the outside and inside.

Have you been to Las Vegas and kept yourself busy with something a little less Vegas-y? What was your favorite thing to do? Let me know in the comments!