We took United airlines from Dayton, Ohio to Chicago and on to LV. $220 total per ticket round trip, a real bargain, except that the UA 747 from LV to Chicago was a real cattle car with no elbow room, no leg room, poor service and power failure just after landing.

We stayed at the Luxor in the East Tower. Room badly needed updating, and the Murphy bed was unusual. The rest of the Luxor was OK, but I'd return to the TI the next trip.

We rode the Trolley a couple of times,but once is enough. It is VERY slow due to the way the stops are well off the street. From the Luxor to the Stardust was over an hour. The first time was ok for an orientation, but it is not very practical for transportation.

Visited the shopping area in Bellagio and Venetian, and was impressed with the shops and the indoor canal. The water show at Bellagio was excellent and probably would be even better at night with the lights.

The shows were Mystere at TI (A+), Follies at Tropicana (A), Imagine at Luxor (B) and Enter the Night at the Stardust (B+). The Stardust was a great deal as it was free if you had dinner there. We went to Tres Lobos at 5:30, got seated in a few minutes, and had an excellent meal with nice atmosphere, great service, good food and reasonable prices. You need to spend $18 per person for a free show, and a good dinner with one drink made that up. The waiter (Jaime) said not to worry about making the $18, he would take care of it.

Two things to be aware of there - drinks in the bar inside the Tres Lobos do not count toward the $18, and you do need to make advance reservations for the show. The 'coupon' and information is in the free magazines that are in the airport, hotel rooms, etc.

The deal also applies to their other two restaurants, Tony Roma's and William B's, but with a slightly higher $ amount. The show also includes tax, tip and two drinks (one if you get a premium drink). Great deal.

What would we do next time? Stay at TI, avoid United Airlines 747s, see the Bellagio water show at night, try to check out the seat location in the showroom before payment, and eat less...

Lou,
I haven't seen the show at the Stardust for years. Was this your first time seeing the show? If not, how would you compare it to others at the Stardust?

"eat less"....yeah, like that's gonna happen! I tell myself that every trip, but the meal options keep expanding just like my waist! LOL

Thanks for the trip report and taking the time to post! I need my Vegas fix you know! BTW...UA doesn't win any awards from me either on those Vegas flights!

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Lee-PA
Moderator, What's New Forum
lee@talkvegas.com

Lou,
I agree the free show at Stardust is a great deal. I've actually seen it on two different trips, after a nice meal at William B's. Makes for a nice evening at a great price.

Lou,

We agree that the trolley is a once and done thing. When traveling that route we usually take the CAT bus or walk it. The tram between Mandalay Bay and ExCalibur is equally slow and crowded. One direction is slower but I forget which it is. Join the crowd with saying you;ll eat less next trip. I've said that at least six times.

Thanks for your trip report.

Fred

Lee, on our very first trip to LV we went to the Stardust as part of an escorted tour we were taking to the Grand Canyon, etc. That show was not very good - I distinctly remember the 'flying Russian' hoping that he would let go of the rope and glide over the crowd. I also remember that I ordered gin and tonic, and they were the worst I ever tasted. The guy next to me had the secret, he ordered bottled beer.

This time things were much better. I enjoyed the laser light show and the Gaucho drummers in particular. It was a show that normally would have been priced at $30-35 each, so the price was really right. The dinner at Tres Lobos was well worth the $13-16 that we each paid. The chips, salsa and bean dip were also excellent, as was the service and the drink. I forgot to mention that they also gave us a comp. desert of a small flan and a whipped desert. Don't know if that is standard or the waiter did it because my wife discussed the menu in Spanish (she is Spanish and still fluent in the language).

I was hoping that the desert air made my belt shrink, but the scale tells me otherwise.

Lou,
The spanish might have had something to do with the free desert, but you got to remember these folks are working for tips! <s>
Like I mentioned earlier, it's been a long time since we last viewed the Stardust show. Maybe it's time to view it again. <s>

As for the waist line, all I can say is....join the club! Fred is right, it's hard to say NO in Vegas! <VBG> So you might as well enjoy yourself! EAT! <s>


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Lee-PA
Moderator, What's New Forum
lee@talkvegas.com

Lou: Although I've only seen Mystere out of the shows you saw and rated, I sure do agree that it's an A+ show. From your ratings, it looks like you really enjoyed all the shows.

Too bad about UA, but your airfare was a good price.

Thanks for the trip report and all the good tips you provided!

Lou,

Thanks for the report. That's a great airfare. We usually have better fares from Columbus to Vegas but I'll have to check Dayton now.



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Jeff, Gambling Moderator
senatorjm@talkvegas.com