visiting! HM questions...

gymbugmj2k

Hi!  sorry to barge in on your board, but FI and I are planning to honeymoon to vegas and have NO idea where to begin since there seems to be hundreds of websites and options to research.  We're seasoned travelers, but neither of us have been to vegas!

our biggest question:  is there a list somewhere of "honeymoon discounts" or perks?
we're planning to enlist the help of a travel agent to give us some guidance and ideas on how to best navigate our trip. We're thinking mid/end september for 5-7 days.  some of our 'must do' items are:  bellagio fountains, cirque (probably mystere), see deadmau5!, venetian shops, eifel tower, general exploration of the strip... any other spots we should really check out? best pool or spa perhaps? we're big into food, but havent done much research as to where we'll eat yet. we'll most likely try to stay at the bellagio (unless there's a better deal elsewhere)

in any case, any tips or ideas or ways to get better prices/perks would be appreciated again, sorry to crash your board, but i figured who better to ask, then you ladies!

lsvensson

If you're big into food, I can give you my favorite restaurant pic-- Lavo @ The Palazzo.  Not super romantic because it's kind of loud in there (it's a hip lounge-type of place), but oh lord, is the food good.  Get the giant meatball as an appetizer.

As for the other sights on your "to do" list, those sounds great-- those are a lot of the big ones.  Congrats, you'll have a blast in Vegas!

udream05

If you're going in September though you could sit outside though on their outside patio which is quite nice and you get to watch the Sirens of TI show.  Food is great there.  I wouldn't bother with a travel agent, I really dont' think you need one for vegas.  You can book everything yourself through the travel websites like Vegas.com or using the hotel concierge or spa dept depending on what you're looking to do.  There are plenty of great places to eat though! There are also a ton of those 1/2 price ticket places all over town now, so if there are some shows that you don't mind waiting until the day before or day of, you can go to one of those and get your show tickets that way. 

vegasgroom

I wouldn't waste money on a travel agent; they won't get you anything in Vegas you can't get for yourself so may as well spend their commission on yourself.  Also don't expect too much in the way of honeymoon discounts; that might get you a free room upgrade at check-in but not much more; Vegas is #1 in weddings so being on your honeymoon there won't set you apart from the other thousand people who get married every weekend.

One thing to look at when comparing prices; MGM properties charge a ridiculous $24/night 'resort fee' for crap you won't use, so any price you see quoted for one of the MGM properties, add $24 to it.  Caesars properties don't charge that, so their prices are what you'll actually pay.  Bellagio is really nice, so you won't be disappointed, but you may have been equally happy elsewhere for less.

For pools, Hard Rock, Palms, Planet Hollywood and Cosmo are probably the biggest party/club-style pool experiences if you're looking for that.  It would be worth taking a visit to Freemont Street (aka real Las Vegas, downtown) at least once while you're there for the night light show and to see some of the classic casinos like the Golden Nugget, etc.  For food, we dont visit Vegas without also visiting N9NE steak house at the Palms and Mix at Mandalay, along with Margaritaville for a few 'perfect margaritas.'  You've already identified one of the best malls, but visit Caesars Forum Shoppes too.  If you or your FI are into video games at all, Vegas has the pinball hall of fame available during the day, and a club-style place called Insert Coins for night time where you can play most any video game console and game you want from classis Nintendo to current with bottle service and private booths lol.  There are clubs everywhere; but my personal favorites are Foundation Room or Mix Lounge at Mandalay (64th floor overlooking entire strip), Moon and Ghost at the Palms, Tao at Venetian, Tryst at Wynn and Pure at Caesars.  Being friendly with the casino can make it much easier to get in, so if you're gamblers, don't be afraid to ask your casino host to hook that up.

themrsJRD

I second visiting Fremont Street... everything is much closer together, the light show is cool, & I think things are cheaper there (definitely the casinos have lower minimums). Congrats!

gymbugmj2k

oh wow. so many great suggestions -- thank you!  can't wait to share the ideas with FI.  You guys are definitely helping me not need a travel agent.  we were just SO overwhelmed with all the options and ways to go about planning this sort of trip!

i'll definitely check out some of those suggestions. funny enough - we're not all that into gambling, so we're mostly going to vegas for the shows/dining/etc.  Its also a perk that deadmau5 will be in residency there too (FI's fav!)  We're definitely excited about the bellagio fountains (we both love clair de lune - im walking down the aisle to it! - and we always picture the fountains like they did in oceans 11 haha). so that idea about dinner overlooking the fountains is exactly the type of thing we'd want!

we love to plan ahead, so although there might be good last-minute show deals - i think we'd end up paying ahead for cirque at least.  might work for other shows and last minute ideas though

FI would love the video game place...might have to visit.

quick question about the pools --- can we go to any of them we want without being a guest of the particular hotel? Im assuming there is a cover charge, places to change into suits, etc?

vegasgroom

Expect to pay $20 to $30 per person to enter most pools if you're not a guest. Sometimes it will include a free drink though.

Regarding shows, by the time you go, Jersey Boys will be back at Paris.  They're in the process of moving the show there from Palazzo so they're on a three month break.  That's my absolute favorite show.  I used to be able to tolerate Cirque but after seeing several of them they all started to feel the same and put me to sleep now.  Seriously; I saw Love and fell asleep LOL.  Probably just me; I'm just not all that into watching dudes doing tricks and flying around in tights.

gymbugmj2k

ah, good to know @VegasGroom.  Also, your comment about cirque made me laugh.  I've been a gymnast for 18+ years (and its how FI and I met), so we're all about the tricks n flips! in fact, my floor routine was set to "rondo" (from Mystere) which is why i'm partial to seeing that one
I can see how after awhile, the cirques start blending together though. I guess that's why we're content just seeing one of them. FI's favorite is Alegria, but that won't be closeby...

sounds like we're adding Fremont St to the list too

katslack

smartervegas.com is a great place for promo codes for all hotels and shows ect. the bellagio is a great hotel too and its right in the middle of the strip so location is great. My favorite show so far in Vegas is Blue Man group. O by cirque is also pretty amazing.

starryeyed77

Just a side note, our first trip to vegas was so jam packed we were always exhausted.  Make sure you set aside time to relax, people watch, or lay by the pool especially since you will be decompressing from the wedding!  There is so much to do and see it can be easy to wear yourself out.  Have fun!