Oh, Las Vegas. Where else can you visit Lake Bellagio, the Empire State Building and the Eiffel Tower within the same day? Adhering to its founding principle, “spare no expense,” this is a town where over-the-top glitter and beyond-the-imagination glamour are unabashedly applauded. Las Vegas is where you feel you’ve trespassed a velvet rope line onto a red carpet that is never ending. Sin City's streets are enhanced with world-class restaurants and one-of-a-kind entertainment. Whether you're a first timer or have acquired a lifetime of (classified) stories from Las Vegas, there's always something new to be experienced. Here's some of the city's newest, best and/or must-do events:
Accommodations
The Delano's lobby boasts a fashion-runway-like carpet that was the setting of
the hotel’s 2014 fashion show opening. Floor-to-ceiling Grecian-style fabric columns
line my way toward the floating stone artwork suspended above the aisle.
Check-in is effortless, for within minutes I’m standing in my suite (all rooms
are suites), surrounded by white and enjoying my window framed view of the
Strip. A Mae West quote, “Between two evils, I always pick the one I’ve never
tried before,” is imprinted on a black card sitting atop my crisp white bed.
Presidential references are found throughout this hotel named for the
nation’s 32nd leader, Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Franklin is the hotel’s sophisticated drinking spot, is known for
its craft cocktails, one-and-only spirits (from a Woodford Reserve Double Oaked
Bourbon to a custom Glen Moray scotch), more than 30 craft beers and a
selection of wines by the glass exclusive to this bar. Breakfast at Della’s
Kitchen serves up such specialties as Portuguese pastrami hash, spiced pumpkin
pancakes and mimosa trois (a mix-your-own champagne cocktail with your choice
of three juices).
Just around its corner, 3940 Coffee + Tea offers s’more lattes.
All are reflective of Chef Jay Calimlim’s edict: “Create something a little
different.” The soon-to-be-unveiled addition to this delicious line-up is an Alain
Ducasse Mediterranean-inspired restaurant and lounge called Rivea that will sit
on the 64th floor, showcase 180-degree city views and feature
creations of this world-renowned, multi-Michelin-star-ranked chef.
Tasting Dinner
Las Vegas is known for its collection of top-dollar
events. But the Cognac Tasting Dinner at Sage, one of ARIA Resort & Casino’s
premiere restaurants, is an experience found in limited edition. Featuring a
five course menu, each beginning with a cognac tasting and followed by a
champagne pairing from the prestigious Hardy house, Benedicte Hardy guided
guests through the feast that began with foie gras custard brulee and ended
with “Perfection” cognac, an extremely rare, 150-year-old cognac expression at
the cost of $25,000 per bottle.
Celebrity Chefs
Wolfgang Puck started the celebrity chef trend
more than two decades ago when he opened Spago in The Forum Shops at Caesars. Following
in his footsteps are such luminaries as Chefs Mario Batali, Bobby Flay and
Michael Mina. Fleur by Herbert Keller (celebrated Top Chef Masters’ finalist) features an unexpected, innovative wine-versus-beer
pairing dinner. The Chef’s Table at Buffet Bellagio (a hotel known as a
top-choice of millionaires and for its Chihuly sculpted glass ceiling
and musically choreographed dancing waters) is an elaborate spread complete
with stuffed quail eggs, tableside carved prime rib, a weekend caviar station
and a white and dark chocolate fondue finish. Chef Robert Ferris’s comfortable approach:
“It’s casual, I’ll be in and out.” Veranda at Four Seasons (so exclusive Mandalay
Bay’s activities are available to Four Seasons’ guests, though not the reverse),
is an Italian inspired trattoria, showcasing such Chef Antonio Minichiello
creations as la pasta cotta nel vaso (handmade artichoke pasta cooked in a jar
with assorted seafood) and his signature sharing dessert – tiramisu cake,
espresso gelato and orange-flavored cotton candy.
Daytime Activities
Whether it’s spa-ing, sunning or secret
gardens, Las Vegas-by-day teems with selections. Vdara is home to the city’s
first ESPA-branded spa, a pamper facility found in prestigious around-the-world
locations on five continents – from Hong Kong’s Peninsula Hotel to Cabo’s One
& Only Palmilla. Described as a “private, sophisticated, European bathing
experience,” adults only are allowed to enter Mandalay Bay’s Moorea Beach Club.
Summer features a Toptional Beach (yes, tops optional) and winter offers s’mores
served around the fire pit. But it was my VIP tour of The Mirage hotel’s Siegfried
& Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat that presented my favorite surprise
– an interactive experience called “Painting with the Dolphins.” Easiest
explanation: Personally picked paint selections are loaded into buoy brushes that
dolphins hold in their mouths and swipe onto your hand-held canvas. Final
result: modern art.
Action seekers have the Las Vegas High
Roller, the world’s tallest Ferris wheel at 550 feet found in the LINQ outdoor
promenade. The Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art, which appeals to art aficionados
is currently showcasing “Picasso: Creatures and Creativity” exhibit (until
January 10, 2016) – a collection of more than 43 pieces of the prominent
painter’s work, including a portrait that has never been seen in public.
Nightlife
When the sun goes down, the curtain
comes up in Las Vegas. Mandalay Bay’s Michael Jackson ONE by Cirque du Soleil is
a musical and acrobatic tribute to the legend. Its unforgettable highlight, the
clever use of a hologram, all too realistically transports the audience back to
the time when the King of Pop reigned and was “the One.” Continuing the Cirque
du Soleil theme is nearby LIGHT Nightclub, another Mandalay Bay entertainment
enticement. Complete with headlining DJs, pulsating music, a packed dance floor
and frenetic energy, each night is different, each night is a happening and
each night is an effervescent party.
Photos by Cynthia Dial
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