A home for my words.

Ah yes, the city of sin.
Known as a place where you could strike it rich,
but the house always wins.

– poem I just made on the spot!
(This is why I like to remind my friends I could be a rapper lol.)

Visit ‘The Strip’

The first time I visited Vegas was during covid times. I was feeling boxed in at my apartment in Phoenix and decided to take a day trip. I literally flew into Vegas on the first flight of the day and flew back on the last flight of the night! Much of that first trip simply consisted of walking The Strip. By the end of the day, I’d walked over 30,000 steps and my feet all the way up to my knees were seriously fatigued. Essentially, if you plop yourself along Las Vegas Boulevard and start walking into whatever tickles your fancy, you’ll end up seeing most of what there is to see in the heart of the Las Vegas strip. Let’s get into some of what those things are:

Hang in Your Hotel / Room

One of my favorite hotel activities is finding the inevitably available Friends marathon on the hotel television and kicking back to watch it like I did in the 90s 😀 Others prefer the luxury of room service. Do whatever it is that you most enjoy. If I hadn’t chosen to stay in one day and relax during a second Vegas trip — this time with friends — I may have never noticed this man from my window living his best life.

If you’re up to venturing outside of your hotel room, you can easily cruise the Las Vegas vibes without ever having to leave whichever building your hotel is in. Most hotels will have casinos, restaurants, and an abundance of people-watching opportunities. This is an especially good idea of what to do if the weather is rainy, too hot, or too cold in Vegas. These things can still happen in the Mojave desert.

View the Fountains of Bellagio

Thankfully a friend in our group had deals on a room in the Bellagio hotel through their credit card. That meant we could view the Bellagio Fountain Show right from our very own room! This happens from afternoon to night every 15 or 30 minutes, depending on the day of the week. Our room’s windows were well-sealed, which meant we couldn’t hear the music very well, but that also thankfully meant we couldn’t hear any of the other usual noises of Vegas.

⛲️

Visit the Venetian

The Venetian is a well-known name for a reason. It was my first stop during my first trip to Vegas and its beauty kept be occupied for probably an hour or so.

Eat and Snack

On my first trip to Las Vegas, I stuck to my usual game plan. I’d bet $20 and then quit. Luckily before I’d tapped out my $20 on the slots, I won $300! I stopped right there and put some of the money towards treating myself to dinner at Momofuku later that night. I had high expectations for the duck ramen, but unfortunately the ramen toppings arrived rather cold. But on my second trip, my friends and I had a lovely dinner at SUGARCANE. I also got to eat nearly all of my favorite things at The Buffet at Bellagio. It was so pleasing, I went back and built the same exact buffet plate for seconds before picking at some desserts later on.

I debated leaving this one out, but I already wrote it (lol) so:
learned of Aubi & Ramsa Ice Cream Co.‘s alcoholic ice cream shortly before my second trip to Las Vegas, which this time was a friends trip! The “alcohol” part is more of a novelty, due to there only being about 4.9% abv in a single serving. Suffice to say, I certainly did not catch a buzz from this ice cream, but the packaging and decor of the two locations we visited made for a great atmosphere. Gimmicky as it may be, the flavors were delicious and I tried a serving at each of the two locations along The Strip. Unfortunately, it looks like these Las Vegas locations are now closed down. However, there are locations in New York City and Miami at the time that I’m writing this, so check those out if you take a trip to those destinations!

Visit Fremont Street

Think of this as The Strip’s older brother, since it actually came about before The Strip and at around the same time that Las Vegas was founded. This is yet another location where there is loads of fun to be had, even if all you do is people-watch. There are shops and an opportunity to zip-line above the crowd!

You can simply take a taxi or ride-share over to Fremont, especially if you’ll be consuming anything. Although my friends and I agreed that our ride-share driver on the way back from Fremont street appeared to be under the influence of… something. (You see what I mean? Waymo would never!).

 Downtown Container Park

Located right off of Fremont Street, this is a great place to kick back. There are plenty of shops and a nice playground area for kids. The reason I really wanted to go was for the Praying Mantis. At sundown, a drum circle forms and the praying mantis comes alive! It shoots flames into the sky in unison with the rhythm of various songs.

Take A Ride on the High Roller Wheel

I love finding ways to access heights while traveling, like ziplining in Mexico, climbing up the Passion Tower in Barcelona, or hopping on an Arizona state fair ride that I lowkey regretted (hey, they can’t all be winners)! There is an opportunity to bungee jump off of a building in Vegas, which I was able to watch live, but didn’t participate in. So the High Roller Wheel was a far behind second option haha.

My favorite part was an announcement that a staff member made at the end of the ride. “As you exit, please do not forget to collect all of your belongings, such as your children….” It started out as if he was going to list a few items. I wasn’t expecting ‘children’ to be the first and only thing mentioned. It made me laugh, but also think about how many poor children had accidentally been left in the pods in the past!

Dinner and Live Music at The Mayfair Supper Club

So there you have it

You don’t have to gamble or drink in Vegas if you don’t want to. If you’d prefer to enjoy the great outdoors and the weather permits, you could even head west to Red Rock Canyon or south to Sloan Canyon.

Vegas may be known for debauchery, but the city is really only as sinful as you are 😉