SPEED - The Ride and other Las Vegas, NV Things to Do Tips

Wow! Not for the faint of heart. This ride starts inside the Sarah, at the Nascar Cafe, but I don't recommend eating before you go! The acceleration at the beginning is so fast you have no time to catch your breath or psyche yourself up for the corkscrews and loops. I admit it - I screamed my head off and then closed my eyes. I only opened my eyes when it eventually stopped - only to find myself looking straight up into the sky, hanging at a 90 degree angle 224 feet in the air. After what seemed like an eternity in that position the ride rocketed us backward at the same speed the way we came (accompanied by more screaming). Apparently the ride goes along the strip. You are warned before you go off to remove all lose items, bags, etc. before getting on the ride. There are even 50 cent lockers for the purpose. My husband got on the ride and was told to remove his glasses. He complained that he wouldn't be able to see properly without them but after the ride started he soon realized that seeing the strip while on the ride wasn't really possible due to the speed (up to 70 m.p.h.).

Open from at least noon until 9 pm each day, some extended hours on weekends. It costs $10 a ride or you can get a pass for $19.95 which entitles you to go on as much as you want (once was enough for me) on both Speed The Ride and the Cyber Speedway, which was quite fun.

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Phone: 737-2471
Address: Sahara Hotel & Casino
Directions: Top of the Strip, accessible by monorail.

Open 11 am to 10 pm daily, no charge. Would not have wanted to pay for this. This is simply an indoor habitat - looks like a steep rock formation with some foliage. The five lions were pretty sleepy (as lions tend to be) and I felt kind of sorry for them.

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Phone: 891-7777
Address: MGM Grand
Directions: The MGM is at the bottom the Vegas Strip

The Wildlife Habitat in the grounds of the Flamingo hotel and casino are quite beautiful and relaxing. In addition to the flamingos, you can spot penguins, giant koi and a variety of birds.

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Phone: (702) 733-3111
Address: 3555 S. Las Vegas Blvd
Directions: The Flamingo is located on the East side of Las Vegas Blvd., between Barbary Coast & Imperial Palace.
Website: http://www.parkplace.com/flamingo/lasvegas

Freebies (in no particular order):

Lion Habitat at MGM Grand
Wild Habitat at the Flamingo
Bellagio Conservatory
Bellagio Fountains
Fountain Shows at Caesar's Palace
White Tiger Habitat at the Mirage
Sirens of Treasure Island
Air Play at the Tropicana
Tropicana Bird Show
Volcano at the Mirage

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At the Tropicana casino guests can gamble the slots and be entertained at the same time. There are 6 free shows daily, featuring a wide variety of artists, acrobats, dancers and singers performing under the beautiful Tiffany glass roof. A couple of shows wee caught were both amazing acrobats/trapeze artists flying high above the casino. I guess they never fall or there might be some unhappy guests!

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Phone: (702) 739-2222
Address: 3801 S. Las Vegas Blvd.
Directions: Tropicana is located on the east side of Las Vegas Blvd., across the street from MGM Grand on Tropicana Ave.
Website: http://www.tropicana.net

Big kids and little kids will love all the activities at Circus Circus. There is a Big Top Show all day and night, a carnival midway with loads of games, and the Adventuredome - a theme park with all the expected rides. Rides cost $4-6 per ride or you can buy a pass for about $22 (adult - children are less). If you have kids let them burn off their energy on the trampolines or rock-climbing walls.

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Phone: (702) 794-3939
Address: 2880 S. Las Vegas Blvd
Directions: Circus Circus is located on the west side of Las Vegas Blvd., between Slots-o-Fun and Sahara St.
Website: http://www.circuscircus.com

The Freemont Street Experience is a four block pedestrian promenade downtown. There is a very cool light and sound show in this enclosed overhead area, beginning at dusk through to midnight every night. Apparently it is the largest LED screen in the world, coupled with a huge audio system to create the effect.

Vegas has a small walkable downtown area and it was a nice change from the vast Strip. Lots of casinos and old-fashioned neon everywhere.

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Address: Downtown on Freemont Street

The basement of the Excalibur contains a number of attractions including the Fantasy Fair Midway, which is carnival games and video games, and Merlin's Magical Motion Machines. The Magical Motion Machines are basically a variety of different adventures involving motion simulators and film where seats move in sync with onscreen action. We went on one where we were on a large barge going through an underground canal with lots of twists and turns. It was pretty lame really but the kids would probably have loved it. $4 per ride.

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Phone: (702) 597-7600
Address: 3850 Las Vegas Boulevard South
Directions: Between Luxor & New York, New York (south end of the Strip)
Website: http://www.excalibur-casino.com

At the Hilton. Including Borg Invasion 4D and Klingon Encounter. What's 4D? Apparently people dressed up as star trek characters and involving the audience in the simulator ride (sounds more like a Star Trek convention to me). Sounded peculiar - we went by to take a look but didn't go. $30 for both rides but apparently the 2-for-1 outlets offer cheaper tickets.

There is also "Quark's Bar and Restaurant" where you can get "hamborgers" and "talaxian turkey wraps", as well as a full range of appropriately named bar items, from McCoys martinis to phaser shots.

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Phone: (800) 732-7117
Address: 3000 Paradise Rd.
Directions: Located east of the strip next to the convention center.
Website: http://www.lv-hilton.com