Not as young as I used to be- Las Vegas edition

Last time we went to Las Vegas as a couple, we did it in style- One-two punch of Cirque du Soleil’s “Love”, then poolside seats to “O”. Vegas Uncorked and Dinner at Twist. Helicopter over the strip for lunch in the Grand Canyon. This time around, we brought our two-year-old, and Vegas looked very different.

Here are some of the ways that Vegas let me know that I am not as young as I used to be:

I prefer my suite to most everywhere else.

First, our room was pretty awesome, with daybeds and  TV on the private terrace overlooking the city. It was also a quick step away from the AC inside, and stocked with a full bar, compliments of CVS.

View from the top

This all came in handy, as our son’s nap time cut the day right in two. While one of us took a few hours to ourselves, the other could babysit in the room and not feel like they were missing much.

We have become fairly used to tag-teaming this nap/sleep time. While it is not the most romantic way to enjoy a city, it beat the alternative of hiring a random stranger to come to our hotel room for $50/hour.

Up and out by 5am, the slightly bedraggled ladies are just making their way home from the club.

With only a few days and a three-hour time change, we remained on NY sleep schedule for the duration of our trip. This allowed us insight into the early morning activities of the party people as we sipped our Starbucks. I hope the night was worth it….

One of the most enjoyable meals you have is at the Whole Foods Buffet.

Waking so early leaves you with few options for entertainment. We decided to take an Uber to the Town Square Shopping Center, and spent an hour gathering snack for breakfast at Whole Foods. The food was fresh, cheap, and at a pace we could manage with a toddler. They also had a “kids club”, which meant that each child could take a free piece of fruit or granola bar to snack on while you shopped. Everyone should have this!

Jackpot!

In the car back to the hotel, our driver- a super-hip DJ that lives in Thailand and returns to Vegas to maintain his properties- let us know that he, too really enjoys the buffet. Phew.

Enjoy the children’s playground more than the strip.

After biding our time at the Whole Foods, the playground finally opened and it was totally worth the wait. Water spouts, pretend play areas, a stage, and a topiary maze could have occupied the little one all day. We returned to the hotel before mid day, when the temperatures were reaching 110 degrees.

Town Square Children’s park

One family-friendly attraction on the strip was the Siegfried and Roy Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat at the Mirage. We watched the dolphin training, and were able to escape the heat from the underwater viewing areas. Oh, and they have a white tiger, obviously.

Siegfried and Roy’s Secret Garden at the Mirage

A big negative to walking the strip was the inaccessibility. The walkways over the street are difficult to navigate with wheels, and many of the elevators remain under construction. When your kid REALLY loves pushing elevator buttons, weaving back and forth can basically consume your “leisurely” stroll. totally don’t remember this from the first trip, BTW.

Regardless, the Bellagio fountains will always be cool, the Mirage has fun rotating displays in their atrium, and RIP Treasure Island Pirates. You will be missed.

Go to a high-end “day club” at a pool, and leave as fast as possible in favor of the quieter “family” pool.

During my afternoon “me time”, I ventured over to MGM’s “Wet Republic“. The lines and fees would have usually made me run in the other direction- the group in front of me was quoted $600 p/p for a table. However, since comp tickets and immediate entry came as a suite perk, I thought “why not?” and went in to see what the fuss was about. The pool was shoulder-to-shoulder packed, and lined with hordes of people dancing to Tiesto in “upscale pool attire”. I did not get that memo, so I made my way past the high heels and diamonds to the emptiest plot of water and prepared to take a dip. All of the chaises and loungers were reserved for bottle service and VIPs, so as I took off my flip flops to leave them by the side of the pool, a very well-coiffed and tattooed young man came over to berate me. That side of the pool was not to be sullied by my belongings, so I had to move them to the other side along the growing mound of stuff on the floor.

Wet Republic at MGM Grand

The meat-market vibe is not my thing unless there is actual meat involved, so I decided to make a break for it. Even getting out apparently required a line, which I joined. The man in front of me turned around and said “this seems a bit like racial profiling to me, they’re screening only the brown people”. Perplexed, I asked, “To get out?” Turns out the line was for the bathroom. I fled to the exit and made my way to the relatively empty family pool. I’ll take kids screams of joy over inflated sense of importance any day.

Struggle to stay out past Midnight.

We managed to score free tickets to Garth Brooks’s concert, though while not completely in my wheelhouse were still hard to pass up. As it turned out, they were filming for a TV special, asking the crowd to cheer extra loud and join in certain rituals during specific parts of each song. Garth is a great performer, and Trisha Yearwood joined him for portions of the concert. Though I did enjoy myself, as the clock approached Midnight I left in favor of bed. How Garth continues to jump around like that for hours, I’ll never know.

Garth Brooks at T Mobile Arena

Really enjoy coming home.

The flight back to NY was relatively easy. The baby napped, we retrieved our bags and car with little stress. The time change worked in our favor in this direction, providing this sunset as the backdrop for our return. Though we seriously love to explore new places, sometimes, it just feels really good to be home.