Are you heading to Las Vegas this year? Maybe it’s on your 2015 “Bucket List”, or maybe you’re planning a New Year’s Resolution to visit this famous desert town. Or maybe you’re heading back for yet another visit.
After years of stagnation, The Strip is still struggling with it’s year on year numbers (according to the Nevada Gaming Board, gambling revenue in November was flat with the state’s casinos racking up $876 million during the month. Gambling revenues on the Las Vegas Strip were softer by 4% year on year to $508 million -although the more budget focused downtown revenue was 13% higher than 2013 at $43 million for the month).
But the feeling is, that things are on the turn with the US economy continuing to pick up- this could be a great time to head over for that Las Vegas break – the town seems to be back in vogue and things seem to be hotting up.
There’s More to Vegas than Gambling.
There are a few Las Vegas casino tips that have withstood the test of time and continue to be true today. For example, don’t play the slot games at the airport because they can officially pay out less often than the ones in town. Bored transit passengers are seen as easy fodder.
And of course, set yourself a limit, and stick rigidly to it. By that we mean a loss limit and a win limit. If you hit either, stop playing and do something else. There’s plenty more to do in Vegas! And at least have a go on the multi-million dollar jackpot machines. They don’t pay out that often, but hey- it could be you.
And when you are done with the tables and the slots, try these out:
Play Golf
Are you a budding Justin Rose? If so, you are going to love this town. There are more than fifty courses to choose from, including, of course, The Royal Links Golf Club where you can play the best holes from 11 different British Open courses, all in the Las Vegas sunshine!
The Hoover Dam
Constructed from 1931-36 as a huge economic shot in the arm for the USA during the Great Depression, this massive engineering feat on the Colorado River resulted in Lake Mead, the biggest reservoir in the US. It’s only 3/4 of an hour’s drive from Vegas. You can stay in log cabins by the lake and rent a speedboat to go check out the dam from the water side.
The Grand Canyon
This Wonder of Nature isn’t far away, particularly if you head there by plane or helicopter. If you walk down from the Canyon’s edge, remember to leave 3 times as much time for climbing back up as it takes you to walk down. And take lots of water! Or if you fancy a more leisurely visit, fly by helicopter to the canyon floor and have a champagne picnic at the bottom. The best Grand Canyon helicopter tour from Las Vegas? We’d say the Dream Catcher Sunset Tour from Maverick Helicopters. Outstanding!
Go Camping
If you have never seen the night sky packed full of stars with the Milky Way spread out above you, then we’d recommend going camping in the Nevada desert. There are loads of hiking, biking, and other action tours available- just book them at your Las Vegas hotel. Our pick for the best camp-site near Las Vegas? We’d go for the Hilltop Campground in Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest.
As we said, there’s a lot more to Las Vegas than gambling!
