We have been to Las Vegas SEVERAL times and have stayed at numerous hotels.  There was a great rate at the Las Vegas Hilton, which is off the strip, and since we had already stayed at most of the hotels on the strip we decided to take advantage of the Hilton's offer. (http://www.lvhilton.com/hotel/index.shtml?src=adwords_brand)

 

Our room was in the East Tower and desperately needed some updating.   When we checked in, they offered us a newly upgraded room in the North Tower for an addition $50+ per night.  We declined.  Our room was REALLY large and had a beautiful view of the mountains to the east and north, and of downtown Las Vegas.   The bathroom had a tub/shower and the tub was quite large – 2 people could easily fit in there.   I am not big on baths (I’m a shower girl) so I didn’t try and don’t know how comfortable it was (it was just a standard bathtub – no jets or anything).  Water pressure in the shower was very good.  The room could use more towel racks.  The only one we had was above the toilet, and twice a washcloth and hand towel fell off the rack and right into the toilet!

 

The air conditioning in the room worked well – we were always comfortable.  There was a nice desk area with office chair and an upholstered arm chair.  We didn’t watch TV much, but were surprised to find that there were only about 10 free channels – if you wanted more you needed to pay!

 

My complaints... The carpet was old and stained and was fraying at the doorways.  We could barely get the closet doors to move – they needed some WD-40.  Under the bathroom sink there was black stuff all over the wallpaper – it appeared that maybe at some time they had a major water problem under there and they did some welding but didn’t bother to clean up.  There was crown molding missing on some of the walls and there were stains on the chairs.  We had to ask for a sheet for the bed – it just had a fitted sheet and a down comforter with a really annoying cover on it – the cover kept coming off the duvet.  We also asked for 3 more pillows, since the ones that were on the bed were really flat. 

 

We did rent a car which was very convenient with the Hilton not really being near anything but the Convention Center.  We were able to drive a few miles from the strip and find food that was MUCH more affordable.   The Las Vegas monorail system does have a station right at the LV Hilton, so a car would not be necessary if you were planning on just going and site-seeing near the strip.  (http://www.lvmonorail.com/) There is a free self-park car ramp at the Hilton.

 

 

We used the pool 2 days.  It was VERY hot!  They supply towels down by the pool.  Their lounge chairs are just your typical plastic strap resort lounge chairs.  They do have 2 areas where you can seek shade under a large screen-topped cabana type thing.  There were 2 shallow mid-calf deep pools that were good for just sitting in to cool off.   And those pools had steps down to the larger deeper pool area.   The pool always seemed to be busy, and several chairs were “reserved” with people’s towels on them, but after sitting out there for 3 hours, I never ever saw most of those chairs being used.  They had a bar by the pool and cocktail waitresses – but be ready to pay $5 for a small glass of Coke, and $10+ for anything with alcohol.  There was also a small café down by the pool, I saw several people with burgers, chicken fingers, fries etc.  Cabanas were also available for rent and included padded lounge chairs, a plasma TV, phone, etc.

 

One tip I have for the pool area is DON’T FORGET flip-flops… whatever the floor in the pool area is made of absorbs heat and is EXTREMELY HOT!  You will get burned if you try to walk on it.  Bring shoes that you can either wear into the water, or that you can take off easily right at the water’s edge.

 

We ate the Café on the main level of the hotel the first morning.  Spent $30 on basic breakfast foods that would have cost about $10 total at Denny’s or Perkins.  We drove the car over to the Bellagio and valet parked it.  I needed to get some jewelry cleaned at Tiffany’s.  While we waited for the jewelry to be done we walked across the street to the new “Miracle Mile Shops” at the Planet Hollywood Hotel & Casino (formerly the Aladdin).  Some major  renovation is being done to the strip-side of the hotel, but other than that the shops and hotel all looked the same to me.

 

At the Bellagio's gardens their current theme is "Route 66" - see photos below.

 

For dinner that first night we drove down to the new Silverton Casino that is a few miles south of the strip.  (http://www.silvertoncasino.com/categories/)  It had a cabin feel – log siding and a huge Bass Pro Shop attached to the casino.  I had read a review about the Mexican restaurant at the casino called Mi Casa.  The wait to get in was over an hour, but their paging system allowed us to walk around the casino and shop at the Bass Pro Shop while we waited.  There are several Orange County Choppers on display in the casino.  There is also a large aquarium with tropical fish and stingrays.  We arrived right during stingray feeding time – a diver goes in the tank and hand feeds the stingrays to make sure they are getting enough food.  The Bass Pro Shop is something to see – it is absolutely HUGE!

 

Unfortunately our fajitas at Mi Casa were nothing special – Jeff only ate about 2 bites of his.  The restaurant is hip, but kind of in an old-west contemporary style.  The waitresses wear skimpy little outfits which Jeff did enjoy.  However, we were very disappointed with the food. And in true Vegas fashion… $70 later we were out of there.  (Please note the days of $3.99 buffets in Las Vegas are long gone!  Plan on spending $150/day for a couple to eat in Las Vegas.)

 

Friday it was off to Red Rock Canyon which is about 15 miles west of Las Vegas. (http://www.redrockcanyonlv.org/)   If you have a rental car, this is a MUST SEE.  I had been there before a few years ago, but Jeff had never been there.  It was a beautiful clear (but hot) day.  It costs $5 per car to enter the park.  There is a nice visitors center, and then a 13 mile loop that you drive along in your car with several stops to get out and take photos or explore.  Jeff jumped out of the car at the first stop and immediately began climbing the large red rocks.  He had a blast and I just tried to catch up!  If you plan on climbing around wear appropriate shoes and bring tons of water!  There are areas for having a picnic but there isn’t anywhere to buy food in the park, so you would need to bring it in with you.

 

Friday evening we ate at Benihana’s which is located right in the Las Vegas Hilton.  Very good food and a fun experience, but again, very expensive.  We spent $90 on dinner and that was with no drinks or dessert!

 

Saturday some friends of ours came to town and because the hotel was almost full when they checked in, they got a complimentary upgrade at the Hilton to the north tower rooms – the room was a night and day difference from ours .  The room was smaller than ours, but the upgrades are fantastic.  They had a plasma flat-screen TV, comfy chair with ottoman, fancy alarm clock, new contemporary lighting and furniture including a mini-fridge, new carpet and updated bathroom fixtures.  After seeing their room I probably would pay the $50 extra per night for the upgrade.

 

One thing that we noticed going into the weekend was how nice and uncrowded Vegas was on Wednesday and Thursday.  By Friday we didn't want to get near the strip - it was like college springbreak in Mazatlan!  Drunk college kids running around making fools of themselves.  All the times we had gone to Las Vegas in the past we had always gone over a weekend, so we didn't know any different - it was always wild.  We really enjoyed Vegas this time during the mid-week slow time.

 

If you have any further questions about this trip or any others don't hesitate to ask me!

 

Jenni