Vegas, Grand Canyon, Zion Vacation

[kymom99]

Thanks, everyone, for the info. I will definitely look up gctours,@Ngwira. I have to get much more fit before I can consider this kind of a trip as a reality, but it is good to get myself motivated.

I am also a teacher and have to vacation in the hot summer--a touring bus (although the idea of them sitting so high on the road and careening around hairpin turns is unsettling, to be sure) that is air conditioned and letting folks out for scenic views and short walks does seem more doable for me. I love nature and gorgeous vistas and stunning scenery; I can easily believe that my hiking days are all behind me but.....perhaps not with a year to get in better shape, work out, lose weight? That poor young girl!

I am 53 and overweight. Start walking now to build up your stamina. Also if you can, start going to a gym. I spend about 30 minutes a couple days a week with strength training machines and it really makes a difference. I also started going to a chiropractor. I'm still overweight but I feel stronger. Get yourself some hiking shoes and sticks. Wear loose clothing and take your time. You will be surprised at how much you can do. Temps on top of the GC aren't bad. Also Bryce temps looked comfortable up on the rim. Zion is hot but has trees for shade and it's a dry heat.

 

[Ngwira]

Thanks, everyone, for the info. I will definitely look up gctours,@Ngwira. I have to get much more fit before I can consider this kind of a trip as a reality, but it is good to get myself motivated.

I am also a teacher and have to vacation in the hot summer--a touring bus (although the idea of them sitting so high on the road and careening around hairpin turns is unsettling, to be sure) that is air conditioned and letting folks out for scenic views and short walks does seem more doable for me. I love nature and gorgeous vistas and stunning scenery; I can easily believe that my hiking days are all behind me but.....perhaps not with a year to get in better shape, work out, lose weight? That poor young girl!

Yes tours are so easy. We will likely do Bryce and Zion again via tour. Here is the article on the girl. https://www.sltrib.com/news/2018/02...ion-national-park-is-closed-after-hiker-dies/
We also were in Vegas around the time the helicopter crashed into the Grand Canyon. Needless to say, we were happy to have arrived home safely.

 

[Ngwira]

I am 53 and overweight. Start walking now to build up your stamina. Also if you can, start going to a gym. I spend about 30 minutes a couple days a week with strength training machines and it really makes a difference. I also started going to a chiropractor. I'm still overweight but I feel stronger. Get yourself some hiking shoes and sticks. Wear loose clothing and take your time. You will be surprised at how much you can do. Temps on top of the GC aren't bad. Also Bryce temps looked comfortable up on the rim. Zion is hot but has trees for shade and it's a dry heat.

I specifically bought Merrell Moab hikers for the trip. They were great.

 

[kathy884]

So sorry you were feeling so horrible for so much of the trip, but glad you were feeling better at the end. I agree with you whole heartedly about Springdale and Zion. Springdale is such a charming friendly town, the best gateway to a national park little city we've ever stayed at. Love the shuttle service and am amazed at all the wonderful restaurants they have. Normally I like to stay in the national park, but for Zion I go for Springdale instead. I too am super impressed with the shuttle system they have at the National Park and in Springdale -- amazing (really easy to get around).

So tragic about the death of that 13 year old -- most likely that Angel's Landing hike. The month before we went to Zion two different 50 year old women died on that hike too. I stick to more family friendly stuff where even doing something really stupid would maybe be a broken leg vs. a tragic fall. On our trip we did one night in Vegas, three at Zion, and three at Bryce.

Different destination, but same general area of the country -- Sunday we fly to Phoenix and stay the week in Sedona. We'll do a Grand Canyon South Rim day trip too.

The national parks and whole area is just really stunning and so unique.

 

[kymom99]

So sorry you were feeling so horrible for so much of the trip, but glad you were feeling better at the end. I agree with you whole heartedly about Springdale and Zion. Springdale is such a charming friendly town, the best gateway to a national park little city we've ever stayed at. Love the shuttle service and am amazed at all the wonderful restaurants they have. Normally I like to stay in the national park, but for Zion I go for Springdale instead. I too am super impressed with the shuttle system they have at the National Park and in Springdale -- amazing (really easy to get around).

Yes! So efficient!

 

[kymom99]

Here we go with day 6:

We woke up at a fairly early hour. After showering and getting dressed I said let's go get breakfast. My original plan was to hit the pool first thing but I wasn't feeling it. We decided to go to Denny's which is directly across the street from the Mirage. As we were walking along towards the restaurant, I stepped wrong on an uneven section of sidewalk. It was painted yellow but who is looking down when walking the vegas strip? I fell and landed on my right side. My palm is still a little bruised where I put my hand out to catch myself. I also hit my right hip when I went down. If it makes sense, I actually fell kind of smoothly and got myself right back up, but I was so embarrassed!

Breakfast with tip was about $40. It was crowded but we were seated right away. After we ate, we decided to do some walking. We went into the Flamingo and saw the little wildlife area. Then we walked through the Linq and crossed over to the Bellagio. We went in and saw the conservatory plant display. It was pretty but I liked the one they had on my first visit better. We went into Caesars and walked through the forum shops. Somewhere along the line we bought my son a tshirt. By this time my husband was getting tired of walking so we headed back towards our hotel. we decided to cross back over to the Walgreens across from the Mirage to get a few Mountain Dews and Diet Cokes. It takes forever to get across there. While we were in walgreens my husband had words with a young adult girl because she and her friends were spread out at the register counter and we couldn't even get to the card reader to pay for our order. There were literally 4 girls buying one bandana at the register next to ours. I said excuse me a number of times. The cashier just stood there. Finally my husband told them a little less politely to get out of the way. One of the girls told him he was rude and started mouthing at him. I was just afraid the police would be called. Thank goodness we left and never saw them again. My husband felt bad for the scene but he just felt they were being very inconsiderate.

When we got back to the room I went to the pool and my son went to the fitness center to lift some weights. I couldn't find an empty chair for about the first 30 minutes. Finally 2 people left so I grabbed their chairs. My son came out and joined me briefly. The pool was nice but just way too crowded. I liked the MGM pool much better last time I was out there. They have an adult pool that doesn't cost any extra. Mirage has one but there is a fee to use it. They also have the Bare pool but I wouldn't be caught dead there!

After pool time I went in and showered again. Since we had a red eye flight home, I decided to see if I could get a late check out for the next day. I knew it would cost me but I was beginning to dread the late flight. I went to the concierge to ask how I could request a late check out. The woman told me to just get in the priority check in line and tell them over there. The line was much shorter than the regular check in line. I was able to get a 3:00 check out for $40.

My son and I wanted to go to the High Roller to check it out. My husband decided to go too, since he had rested up. We first went to eat at Yardbird in the Venetian. They have gluten free fried chicken and a dedicated fryer for their fries. I had a BBQ sandwich. My son had a sandwich of some sort too. The server was very knowledgeable. After dinner my son and I got gelato in the Venetian by the canal. It was $14 for a scoop in a cup and a scoop in a waffle cone. It was good though.

After looking around the venetian a bit, we headed to the Linq. My son decided he didn't want to ride the high roller after all. We walked back to our room to rest a bit. Later my son and I went back out. We went into Planet Hollywood, MGM, and NYNY. We also went to the Coke store. My son rode the coaster on top of NYNY. It cost $15. He was interested in the fact that MGM now has a video gaming area. We talked about that being a good place for him and his friends if they ever decide to go out there together. There were lots of those scantily clad girls standing on the strip trying to get men to take pictures with them. My son is very shy and he was embarrassed.

I should also mention that the hockey team had a game that night at the arena. That brought lots of people to the strip wearing hockey jerseys.

After we finally made it back to our room that evening, I had a blister on the bottom of my foot and had walked 30,000 steps according to my phone app.

I'll comment here on my feelings about where we stayed. I liked the size of the Mirage. It's not too big so it doesn't take forever to walk through it to get places. My friends stayed at the Venetian recently and said it was way too big. However, I did not like the location. It seems like there were so many more people around making the sidewalks very congested. I also noticed for the first time how rude people can be in vegas. They walk right at you like playing a game of chicken. I have never done so much side stepping in my life. Also, I have never been out there on a weekend before. My previous trips were early in the week. It made a big difference in the crowds. I probably wouldn't do a weekend again.

I love vegas but enjoy it much more with my friends. My husband doesn't enjoy crowds so after the first little bit, he was tired of it all. I told him at least he can say he has been there.

We went to bed and slept pretty good after such a long day.

 

[HHMcG]

I'm not crazy about drives with steep drop offs next to me. Years ago DH and I were on a trip visiting friends in Telluride, we day tripped to Arches NP and Moab. I remember some tense moments for me. But DH doesn't mind it At ALL.
On our trip this summer we are doing Going-to-Sun Road. Once I saw some photos of it we decided to take the 'Red Bus' so DH doesn't have to drive and can take in the scenery.

I am also a teacher and have to vacation in the hot summer--a touring bus (although the idea of them sitting so high on the road and careening around hairpin turns is unsettling, to be sure) that is air conditioned and letting folks out for scenic views and short walks does seem more doable for me. I love nature and gorgeous vistas and stunning scenery; I can easily believe that my hiking days are all behind me but.....perhaps not with a year to get in better shape, work out, lose weight? That poor young girl!

With school aged kids and wanting a long trip we could only do summer. I was 'afraid' of the heat of the southwest parks. So we are doing northern parks (Olympic, Mt Rainier, Glacier, Yellowstone & Grand Tetons). May be an option for a school teacher like yourself.

My son and I wanted to go to the High Roller to check it out.

My son decided he didn't want to ride the high roller after all.

I did the High Roller a couple years ago. I was slightly afraid of the height. We rode free (SIL works for the casinos) but I don't think it would have been worth the cost. You didn't miss much.

 

[Ngwira]

Here we go with day 6:

We woke up at a fairly early hour. After showering and getting dressed I said let's go get breakfast. My original plan was to hit the pool first thing but I wasn't feeling it. We decided to go to Denny's which is directly across the street from the Mirage. As we were walking along towards the restaurant, I stepped wrong on an uneven section of sidewalk. It was painted yellow but who is looking down when walking the vegas strip? I fell and landed on my right side. My palm is still a little bruised where I put my hand out to catch myself. I also hit my right hip when I went down. If it makes sense, I actually fell kind of smoothly and got myself right back up, but I was so embarrassed!

Breakfast with tip was about $40. It was crowded but we were seated right away. After we ate, we decided to do some walking. We went into the Flamingo and saw the little wildlife area. Then we walked through the Linq and crossed over to the Bellagio. We went in and saw the conservatory plant display. It was pretty but I liked the one they had on my first visit better. We went into Caesars and walked through the forum shops. Somewhere along the line we bought my son a tshirt. By this time my husband was getting tired of walking so we headed back towards our hotel. we decided to cross back over to the Walgreens across from the Mirage to get a few Mountain Dews and Diet Cokes. It takes forever to get across there. While we were in walgreens my husband had words with a young adult girl because she and her friends were spread out at the register counter and we couldn't even get to the card reader to pay for our order. There were literally 4 girls buying one bandana at the register next to ours. I said excuse me a number of times. The cashier just stood there. Finally my husband told them a little less politely to get out of the way. One of the girls told him he was rude and started mouthing at him. I was just afraid the police would be called. Thank goodness we left and never saw them again. My husband felt bad for the scene but he just felt they were being very inconsiderate.

When we got back to the room I went to the pool and my son went to the fitness center to lift some weights. I couldn't find an empty chair for about the first 30 minutes. Finally 2 people left so I grabbed their chairs. My son came out and joined me briefly. The pool was nice but just way too crowded. I liked the MGM pool much better last time I was out there. They have an adult pool that doesn't cost any extra. Mirage has one but there is a fee to use it. They also have the Bare pool but I wouldn't be caught dead there!

After pool time I went in and showered again. Since we had a red eye flight home, I decided to see if I could get a late check out for the next day. I knew it would cost me but I was beginning to dread the late flight. I went to the concierge to ask how I could request a late check out. The woman told me to just get in the priority check in line and tell them over there. The line was much shorter than the regular check in line. I was able to get a 3:00 check out for $40.

My son and I wanted to go to the High Roller to check it out. My husband decided to go too, since he had rested up. We first went to eat at Yardbird in the Venetian. They have gluten free fried chicken and a dedicated fryer for their fries. I had a BBQ sandwich. My son had a sandwich of some sort too. The server was very knowledgeable. After dinner my son and I got gelato in the Venetian by the canal. It was $14 for a scoop in a cup and a scoop in a waffle cone. It was good though.

After looking around the venetian a bit, we headed to the Linq. My son decided he didn't want to ride the high roller after all. We walked back to our room to rest a bit. Later my son and I went back out. We went into Planet Hollywood, MGM, and NYNY. We also went to the Coke store. My son rode the coaster on top of NYNY. It cost $15. He was interested in the fact that MGM now has a video gaming area. We talked about that being a good place for him and his friends if they ever decide to go out there together. There were lots of those scantily clad girls standing on the strip trying to get men to take pictures with them. My son is very shy and he was embarrassed.

I should also mention that the hockey team had a game that night at the arena. That brought lots of people to the strip wearing hockey jerseys.

After we finally made it back to our room that evening, I had a blister on the bottom of my foot and had walked 30,000 steps according to my phone app.

I'll comment here on my feelings about where we stayed. I liked the size of the Mirage. It's not too big so it doesn't take forever to walk through it to get places. My friends stayed at the Venetian recently and said it was way too big. However, I did not like the location. It seems like there were so many more people around making the sidewalks very congested. I also noticed for the first time how rude people can be in vegas. They walk right at you like playing a game of chicken. I have never done so much side stepping in my life. Also, I have never been out there on a weekend before. My previous trips were early in the week. It made a big difference in the crowds. I probably wouldn't do a weekend again.

I love vegas but enjoy it much more with my friends. My husband doesn't enjoy crowds so after the first little bit, he was tired of it all. I told him at least he can say he has been there.

We went to bed and slept pretty good after such a long day.

Wow, $14 for a scoop of gelato?? And I thought the cost of gelato in the Italy Pavilion at Epcot was bad...lol

 

[Ngwira]

Here we go with day 6:

We woke up at a fairly early hour. After showering and getting dressed I said let's go get breakfast. My original plan was to hit the pool first thing but I wasn't feeling it. We decided to go to Denny's which is directly across the street from the Mirage. As we were walking along towards the restaurant, I stepped wrong on an uneven section of sidewalk. It was painted yellow but who is looking down when walking the vegas strip? I fell and landed on my right side. My palm is still a little bruised where I put my hand out to catch myself. I also hit my right hip when I went down. If it makes sense, I actually fell kind of smoothly and got myself right back up, but I was so embarrassed!

Breakfast with tip was about $40. It was crowded but we were seated right away. After we ate, we decided to do some walking. We went into the Flamingo and saw the little wildlife area. Then we walked through the Linq and crossed over to the Bellagio. We went in and saw the conservatory plant display. It was pretty but I liked the one they had on my first visit better. We went into Caesars and walked through the forum shops. Somewhere along the line we bought my son a tshirt. By this time my husband was getting tired of walking so we headed back towards our hotel. we decided to cross back over to the Walgreens across from the Mirage to get a few Mountain Dews and Diet Cokes. It takes forever to get across there. While we were in walgreens my husband had words with a young adult girl because she and her friends were spread out at the register counter and we couldn't even get to the card reader to pay for our order. There were literally 4 girls buying one bandana at the register next to ours. I said excuse me a number of times. The cashier just stood there. Finally my husband told them a little less politely to get out of the way. One of the girls told him he was rude and started mouthing at him. I was just afraid the police would be called. Thank goodness we left and never saw them again. My husband felt bad for the scene but he just felt they were being very inconsiderate.

When we got back to the room I went to the pool and my son went to the fitness center to lift some weights. I couldn't find an empty chair for about the first 30 minutes. Finally 2 people left so I grabbed their chairs. My son came out and joined me briefly. The pool was nice but just way too crowded. I liked the MGM pool much better last time I was out there. They have an adult pool that doesn't cost any extra. Mirage has one but there is a fee to use it. They also have the Bare pool but I wouldn't be caught dead there!

After pool time I went in and showered again. Since we had a red eye flight home, I decided to see if I could get a late check out for the next day. I knew it would cost me but I was beginning to dread the late flight. I went to the concierge to ask how I could request a late check out. The woman told me to just get in the priority check in line and tell them over there. The line was much shorter than the regular check in line. I was able to get a 3:00 check out for $40.

My son and I wanted to go to the High Roller to check it out. My husband decided to go too, since he had rested up. We first went to eat at Yardbird in the Venetian. They have gluten free fried chicken and a dedicated fryer for their fries. I had a BBQ sandwich. My son had a sandwich of some sort too. The server was very knowledgeable. After dinner my son and I got gelato in the Venetian by the canal. It was $14 for a scoop in a cup and a scoop in a waffle cone. It was good though.

After looking around the venetian a bit, we headed to the Linq. My son decided he didn't want to ride the high roller after all. We walked back to our room to rest a bit. Later my son and I went back out. We went into Planet Hollywood, MGM, and NYNY. We also went to the Coke store. My son rode the coaster on top of NYNY. It cost $15. He was interested in the fact that MGM now has a video gaming area. We talked about that being a good place for him and his friends if they ever decide to go out there together. There were lots of those scantily clad girls standing on the strip trying to get men to take pictures with them. My son is very shy and he was embarrassed.

I should also mention that the hockey team had a game that night at the arena. That brought lots of people to the strip wearing hockey jerseys.

After we finally made it back to our room that evening, I had a blister on the bottom of my foot and had walked 30,000 steps according to my phone app.

I'll comment here on my feelings about where we stayed. I liked the size of the Mirage. It's not too big so it doesn't take forever to walk through it to get places. My friends stayed at the Venetian recently and said it was way too big. However, I did not like the location. It seems like there were so many more people around making the sidewalks very congested. I also noticed for the first time how rude people can be in vegas. They walk right at you like playing a game of chicken. I have never done so much side stepping in my life. Also, I have never been out there on a weekend before. My previous trips were early in the week. It made a big difference in the crowds. I probably wouldn't do a weekend again.

I love vegas but enjoy it much more with my friends. My husband doesn't enjoy crowds so after the first little bit, he was tired of it all. I told him at least he can say he has been there.

We went to bed and slept pretty good after such a long day.

High roller reminds me of the Ferris wheel in Niagara Falls, ONT.

 

[kymom99]

Wow, $14 for a scoop of gelato?? And I thought the cost of gelato in the Italy Pavilion at Epcot was bad...lol

That was total for 2 scoops. Still a lot of money!

 

[Ngwira]

Yes, however I LOVE the Palazzo. I won't stay anywhere else if given a choice.

 

[kymom99]

Here is the last day:

On Saturday we got up and got dressed. We decided to go back to Denny's. We never go to Denny's around here so I guess it was something a bit different. Not to mention they have their gluten free items clearly marked on the menu. I actually had a lunch item since it was after 10 when we ate. The total was about $40 again. Then we stopped in Walgreens to get band aids for my blister.

We went back to the room and packed up our stuff. Then I went down into the casino to walk around a bit. Around 1 or so we took a little nap since we knew there wouldn't be much sleep that night. It was good that we got late check out even though it cost extra. A little before 3:00 we left the room and I did a check out at the kiosk near the elevators. We went to the garage and had to clean out the van a bit and put some of our dirty clothes and hiking stuff into our bags. Finally we were ready to go.

I found my way out of the garage and back onto I15 without any trouble. We headed to Red Rock Canyon since we had several hours and our park pass was good there. I had been there before so I knew a little about it. We stopped at the visitors center and just as we got there it started to pour down rain. The visitor center has some animals (stuffed) on display and there is a big window with a view of part of the canyon. There is also a gift shop. We waited a bit for the rain to let up then drove the 13 mile scenic loop road. We stopped at one overlook. It wasn't very crowded.

After leaving there, we headed back to town. I put in the address of El Pollo Loco and this time found it with no trouble. We ate there and it was about $25. We headed back to drop the car off after bagging up some trash and dropping that into a trash can.

I am not a fan of the car rental center that serves the airport there. It is huge and the desk attendants are high pressure. I'm somewhat embarrassed to admit I caved and took the Loss Damage Waiver insurance when I picked up the car. The girl was talking a mile a minute and I was second guessing myself. I don't rent cars very often so I'm not comfortable with all that. Next time I know I need to be better prepared mentally. It's also not an easy place to navigate. But we returned the car with no problems and got the shuttle back to the airport, way before our flight.

I bought myself a big pretzel and diet coke and killed some time eating that. Our flight was actually a little early and we arrived back at our home airport 30 minutes early, about 5:00 am. Luckily my nephew was awake and came to get us right away. I gave him a chipotle gift card which I had received for a birthday gift. He had to get up early to drop us off and pick us up.

We got home and I slept some. My cat was beside himself that we were home. Very noisy. I plan to buy a box of peaches from the peach truck when it comes through town next month. I'll give at least half of them to my sister in return for her taking care of my cat and getting the mail, etc.

So that's it. Our family trip is on the books.

 

[FQLover]

Again, thank you so much, @kymom99 for taking the time to describe your trip and the details that went along with it. I enjoyed reading!

And I got some good tips for how I might manage a trip west next summer, if we decide to go for it. I appreciate all the ideas, everyone!

 

[Eighty8Keys]

Thank you so much for sharing this. I really enjoyed reading it. So sorry you were sick but glad you could enjoy the last part of the trip. After 15 years of just Disney trips we are ready to do something different and you gave me some good ideas to think about.

 

[hsmamato2]

enjoying the trip report, it brings back memories of our somewhat similiar plans.... (sorry you got sick tho) we only use Vegas as a place to fly into or out of,otherwise I just don't like it there- our itinerary was Vegas,rent car and start driving asap, stop at 7-11 for lunch,and head straight to Zion. What a wonderful place that was! We hiked Emerald Pools and some other (but no angels landing) and LOVED the Narrows....if anyone goes,you shouldn't miss it!! we rented the 'jello boots' and poles and were glad we did, we ended up staying in there for about 7 hours at least.... (the crowds lessen a LOT the farther you go) We drove that crazy beautiful road heading east out of the park, it was my DS favorite place at Zion,that road. We kept stopping so he could climb all over the wavy rocks....Then we hit GC North Rim to stay in a log cabin on the rim (love) then we headed to Bryce which was the most fantastical place I've ever seen...then to Arches for a few days to hike and climb (and get myself stuck a few times)...then we flew home out of Salt Lake City. I'd like to go back to the area again,it was one of my favorite trips. (in spite of our dismal camp cabin in Moab lol) When we went we split the cost with family so it wasn't overly expensive.

 

[kymom99]

enjoying the trip report, it brings back memories of our somewhat similiar plans.... (sorry you got sick tho) we only use Vegas as a place to fly into or out of,otherwise I just don't like it there- our itinerary was Vegas,rent car and start driving asap, stop at 7-11 for lunch,and head straight to Zion. What a wonderful place that was! We hiked Emerald Pools and some other (but no angels landing) and LOVED the Narrows....if anyone goes,you shouldn't miss it!! we rented the 'jello boots' and poles and were glad we did, we ended up staying in there for about 7 hours at least.... (the crowds lessen a LOT the farther you go) We drove that crazy beautiful road heading east out of the park, it was my DS favorite place at Zion,that road. We kept stopping so he could climb all over the wavy rocks....Then we hit GC North Rim to stay in a log cabin on the rim (love) then we headed to Bryce which was the most fantastical place I've ever seen...then to Arches for a few days to hike and climb (and get myself stuck a few times)...then we flew home out of Salt Lake City. I'd like to go back to the area again,it was one of my favorite trips. (in spite of our dismal camp cabin in Moab lol) When we went we split the cost with family so it wasn't overly expensive.

That sounds like an amazing trip!

 

[hsmamato2]

As I mentioned earlier we did the drive through all the parks. The drive into Zion from the east is so beautiful!! I didn't think that part was too scary. My DH doesn't like heights and I think he did better driving since he was looking at the roads and not the drop-offs. The worst driving part for us was driving through the Grand Escalante Staircase. There were portions with drop offs on both sides. My DH decided to get a nosebleed during one of those sections while driving!! He and my DS had multiple nosebleeds the whole trip, but that one was really bad timing! We had to pull over as soon as we could, but that is easier said than done in those parts. We saw tons of motor homes and tour buses and every time we passed them up I was like you could NOT pay me to be in one of those on these roads. Just something to keep in mind @FQLover . I had originally looked in to renting a motorhome for the trip, I am so glad we did not. I think being higher up in the bus/motorhome plus being "heavy" I would just feel very unsafe. But lots of people do it so I guess it is up to your comfort level.

COnsidering Grand staricase escalante on a future trip

That sounds like an amazing trip!

it was.... so great I want to do it all again!

 

[Ngwira]

Here we go with day 6:

We woke up at a fairly early hour. After showering and getting dressed I said let's go get breakfast. My original plan was to hit the pool first thing but I wasn't feeling it. We decided to go to Denny's which is directly across the street from the Mirage. As we were walking along towards the restaurant, I stepped wrong on an uneven section of sidewalk. It was painted yellow but who is looking down when walking the vegas strip? I fell and landed on my right side. My palm is still a little bruised where I put my hand out to catch myself. I also hit my right hip when I went down. If it makes sense, I actually fell kind of smoothly and got myself right back up, but I was so embarrassed!

Breakfast with tip was about $40. It was crowded but we were seated right away. After we ate, we decided to do some walking. We went into the Flamingo and saw the little wildlife area. Then we walked through the Linq and crossed over to the Bellagio. We went in and saw the conservatory plant display. It was pretty but I liked the one they had on my first visit better. We went into Caesars and walked through the forum shops. Somewhere along the line we bought my son a tshirt. By this time my husband was getting tired of walking so we headed back towards our hotel. we decided to cross back over to the Walgreens across from the Mirage to get a few Mountain Dews and Diet Cokes. It takes forever to get across there. While we were in walgreens my husband had words with a young adult girl because she and her friends were spread out at the register counter and we couldn't even get to the card reader to pay for our order. There were literally 4 girls buying one bandana at the register next to ours. I said excuse me a number of times. The cashier just stood there. Finally my husband told them a little less politely to get out of the way. One of the girls told him he was rude and started mouthing at him. I was just afraid the police would be called. Thank goodness we left and never saw them again. My husband felt bad for the scene but he just felt they were being very inconsiderate.

When we got back to the room I went to the pool and my son went to the fitness center to lift some weights. I couldn't find an empty chair for about the first 30 minutes. Finally 2 people left so I grabbed their chairs. My son came out and joined me briefly. The pool was nice but just way too crowded. I liked the MGM pool much better last time I was out there. They have an adult pool that doesn't cost any extra. Mirage has one but there is a fee to use it. They also have the Bare pool but I wouldn't be caught dead there!

After pool time I went in and showered again. Since we had a red eye flight home, I decided to see if I could get a late check out for the next day. I knew it would cost me but I was beginning to dread the late flight. I went to the concierge to ask how I could request a late check out. The woman told me to just get in the priority check in line and tell them over there. The line was much shorter than the regular check in line. I was able to get a 3:00 check out for $40.

My son and I wanted to go to the High Roller to check it out. My husband decided to go too, since he had rested up. We first went to eat at Yardbird in the Venetian. They have gluten free fried chicken and a dedicated fryer for their fries. I had a BBQ sandwich. My son had a sandwich of some sort too. The server was very knowledgeable. After dinner my son and I got gelato in the Venetian by the canal. It was $14 for a scoop in a cup and a scoop in a waffle cone. It was good though.

After looking around the venetian a bit, we headed to the Linq. My son decided he didn't want to ride the high roller after all. We walked back to our room to rest a bit. Later my son and I went back out. We went into Planet Hollywood, MGM, and NYNY. We also went to the Coke store. My son rode the coaster on top of NYNY. It cost $15. He was interested in the fact that MGM now has a video gaming area. We talked about that being a good place for him and his friends if they ever decide to go out there together. There were lots of those scantily clad girls standing on the strip trying to get men to take pictures with them. My son is very shy and he was embarrassed.

I should also mention that the hockey team had a game that night at the arena. That brought lots of people to the strip wearing hockey jerseys.

After we finally made it back to our room that evening, I had a blister on the bottom of my foot and had walked 30,000 steps according to my phone app.

I'll comment here on my feelings about where we stayed. I liked the size of the Mirage. It's not too big so it doesn't take forever to walk through it to get places. My friends stayed at the Venetian recently and said it was way too big. However, I did not like the location. It seems like there were so many more people around making the sidewalks very congested. I also noticed for the first time how rude people can be in vegas. They walk right at you like playing a game of chicken. I have never done so much side stepping in my life. Also, I have never been out there on a weekend before. My previous trips were early in the week. It made a big difference in the crowds. I probably wouldn't do a weekend again.

I love vegas but enjoy it much more with my friends. My husband doesn't enjoy crowds so after the first little bit, he was tired of it all. I told him at least he can say he has been there.

We went to bed and slept pretty good after such a long day.

So excited. DH has agreed to go back in 2019. Zion and Bryce- here we come.

 

[2TxAgs]

We did Zion at the beginning of April last year for the Zion Half Marathon. (vacation races dot com if you'd like to look at races near national parks). It snowed the morning before the run. We flew into Vegas, stayed in Springdale, drove to just past the East entrance. Beautiful! The tunnel got a bit backed up going back (East to West). We saw mountain goats that morning. Then we drove back thru Vegas and headed west. Drove thru Death Valley NP (very unique, interesting) and up the highway to Mammoth Lakes, CA. Would have liked to drive into Yosemite but the road from the East was still closed. If you happen to be a WWII buff, or just interested in US history in general, we stopped at an amazing museum that was formerly a relocation site for Japanese Americans during the war. https://www.nps.gov/manz/index.htm We spent several hours there and learned a lot!
This fall we will head back to do Bryce, Arches and Canyonlands.

 

[kymom99]

We did Zion at the beginning of April last year for the Zion Half Marathon. (vacation races dot com if you'd like to look at races near national parks). It snowed the morning before the run. We flew into Vegas, stayed in Springdale, drove to just past the East entrance. Beautiful! The tunnel got a bit backed up going back (East to West). We saw mountain goats that morning. Then we drove back thru Vegas and headed west. Drove thru Death Valley NP (very unique, interesting) and up the highway to Mammoth Lakes, CA. Would have liked to drive into Yosemite but the road from the East was still closed. If you happen to be a WWII buff, or just interested in US history in general, we stopped at an amazing museum that was formerly a relocation site for Japanese Americans during the war. https://www.nps.gov/manz/index.htm We spent several hours there and learned a lot!
This fall we will head back to do Bryce, Arches and Canyonlands.

This is fascinating. I am sad to say That I had never even heard about this before. My sugar coated history education of the 80s did not touch on this at all. I asked my son and he said he knew about this and was interested to know this national site exists. I'd love to see it.