Rave: First Trip to Vegas

[InvincibleCakeEater]

All of the new fancy casinos are pretty much the same. Huge, shiny, with some asinine gimmick like a roller coaster or a gondola in a fake canal. The newer/fancier places don't have cheap table games either, especially at night, which sucks. Go to one of the older, seedier

Don't do this. The old strip SUCKS. It's just as expensive, filled with exclusively unattractive people and instead of embracing old Vegas rat pack charm, they've all been refurbished to look as much like a new casino looked in the 80's as possible. It's lame. Also, Fremont street is bull [expletive]. Too loud, too many kids etc.

I agree, don't go to Fremont street, which is a tourist trap only without anything for tourists to do and is too far to walk from the heart of the strip, but not worth a cab ride. But I still think part of Vegas is going to a crappy run down casino and playing cheap blackjack with ugly people. That's America, dammit. The place with the leprechaun is O'Sheas, and it is a pit of despair, perfect to experience old Vegas. It's actually located in the newer part of the strip, too. Somehow it didn't get torn down.

Oh, some of the newer hotels have topless pools, but I hear you have to either be staying there or pay a stoopid fee to get in, like $30.

Yeah, if you want to experience old decrepit depressing Vegas, head across the street from Caesars and walk through O'Shea's, Flamingo and Harrah's.

[cardinalkarp]

Even though the flamingo is a dump I will always be thankful to that place. Some business (that was very short lived) set up shop there for an exotic car driving experience. Got to drive a Ferrari 360, Dodge Viper, Porsche 911 turbo convertible, Nissan GTR, and an Aston Martin Vantage out on a tour through the red rock mountains, with only my wife and I in the cars (all manual transmissions too, all except the GTR). It was one of the most badass things imaginable for a car lover.

[thrill]

Even though the flamingo is a dump I will always be thankful to that place. Some business (that was very short lived) set up shop there for an exotic car driving experience. Got to drive a Ferrari 360, Dodge Viper, Porsche 911 turbo convertible, Nissan GTR, and an Aston Martin Vantage out on a tour through the red rock mountains, with only my wife and I in the cars (all manual transmissions too, all except the GTR). It was one of the most badass things imaginable for a car lover.

Holy crap. That sounds unbelievable!

[Jocephus]

im guessing this was in vegas

[cardinalkarp]

Even though the flamingo is a dump I will always be thankful to that place. Some business (that was very short lived) set up shop there for an exotic car driving experience. Got to drive a Ferrari 360, Dodge Viper, Porsche 911 turbo convertible, Nissan GTR, and an Aston Martin Vantage out on a tour through the red rock mountains, with only my wife and I in the cars (all manual transmissions too, all except the GTR). It was one of the most badass things imaginable for a car lover.

Holy crap. That sounds unbelievable!

It really was amazing. The guys that ran the place were really cool about everything (although they definitely weren't strict enough w/ the cars & that's probably why they only lasted 4 or 5 months). They had just opened when we were there & they were asking us if we wanted to take the tour & we were wasted off our asses walking around at 3 in the afternoon. We were like we've been drinking all day I don't think you want us driving. But even the next day they didn't have a breathalyzer to make sure people hadn't been drinking.

It was no joke though, there was a group of 5 people (and their girlfriends/wives) that went out & we all took turns driving the cars, each one for about a 1/2 hr or so. Once we got out in the mountains they would let you open them up a bit...had the Porsche up to about 130...lol!

If you have any interest in doing something like this look up exotics racing. I did it last year & this place is alot more legit. It's held out a Las Vegas Speedway & you get to drive the cars around one of the road courses located in the middle of the oval. They've got some REALLY bad ass cars out there. Drove the Lamborghini Murceliago out there...somehow managed to spin the f'er out trying to push the [expletive] out of the thing.

[AWvsCBsteeeerike3]

O'Sheas might be the greatest place on earth. $50 buy in hold em tournaments every couple hours. Free drinks while playing. Something like $2 tallboys. Right next to Flamingo...actually I think is part of the Flamingo.

And, sportsbooks. I will be there next thursday-sunday for a bachelor party/wedding and I can't [expletive] wait.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

Of course we weren't able to keep that pace, but we typically would just walk from casino to casino w/ a 24oz bud light lime that we've picked up at one of the prob 100 ABC stores on the strip. They are actually pretty refreshing in the 105 degree heat (we were there in august).

They have those on the mainland? I had never heard of them until I went to Honolulu and there were 3 of them per block.

[cardinalkarp]

Of course we weren't able to keep that pace, but we typically would just walk from casino to casino w/ a 24oz bud light lime that we've picked up at one of the prob 100 ABC stores on the strip. They are actually pretty refreshing in the 105 degree heat (we were there in august).

They have those on the mainland? I had never heard of them until I went to Honolulu and there were 3 of them per block.

Yep...Vegas is much like Honolulu in that regard. We were actually in Hawaii in February & were happy to see ABC stores there!

Nice thing about Vegas is you can walk into the ABC store in the mall, grab yourself a tallboy and crack it open right in the middle of the mall.

[lukethedrifter]

I think the only way I care to go to LV is with my boys- and some amphetamines. Otherwise I say the terrorists can have it.

[G. Keenan]

The Flamingo is depressing? The Flamingo is sweet! I'm not sure if all, but a lot of the rooms have been renovated and they're badass. The pool is the best, even has one of those topless areas zeus mentioned, and it's got a great central location.

Anyway, Vegas is amazing. I spent four days there as the grand finale of a road trip that started in Vancouver. Reading this thread makes me want to go back sooooooo bad.