[censored][censored] car stranded with little or no cell service...and they don't give crap
If your rich go to Sedona...its epic
If your poor go to flagstaff, it epic also, just make reservations...make them...just make them
Being drunk after enjoying the flagstaff night life is cool, being eaten alive by the fleas in your bed is not.
Rodeway Motel..eat !@#$ and die.
Lesson is: While going where the wind takes u might sound sexy...some times it just sounds like fleas eating your flesh in bed.

Kingman AZ is also cool; An honest side of the road town. Hampton inn rocked on this one...I almost got screwed over by a bus tour of old folks, but I was smart enough to reserve a room (see above notes). If you can get to the Dambar, do it. Its an un-pretentious bar where u can get u a steak and beer reasonably. Life is for the living.
Lesson is: your here, try to do it

Hoover Dam. Go, do, spend for the big tour...be a man. Lesson is: Just Do it.

Las Vegas: So this is where we will all diverge. I will give my opinion and you can work from there. Caesers is big; its not just big its huge. You can walk for 10 minutes and still be next to Caesers. That being said it is not worth it in my opinion. I was given an "non-smoking" room...it stank of smoke; I gambled there...it was boring, it was like spending time in a old-age home. My place was at O'Shea's, live music, low limits; you do the math. Before you judge and inflict your opinion, just spend some time at O'Shea's when they have live music...its electric and to me was the full experience. Back to Caesar's, first day I did not have a "do not disturb" sign on my door, so I did the logical thing the next morning and called the front desk and ask for one, they said "someone will be up shortly to place one on your door"...Great! i thought...only to comeback to a room with the "do not disturb" sign on the door and a room that had been clearly made up...aka disturbed. Next day I figure I have the immutable power of the "do not disturb" sign and should expect to come back to my room exactly as I left it. Things were not to be, Upon my return the sign was not on my door, my room had been made up, and further the sign had been permanently removed from my room. So, in all honesty I just gave up, I put the valuable belongings I could not carry in the safe, and tried to carry the high value stuff on me at all times...but laptop etc. it isn't always is so easy. Lesson is: yeah if it is that important don't bring it


Lets talks security...as I person I have harbored several impressions growing up that had been terribly shattered as an adult. 1 was any plane diverging from course over Wash. D.C. would immediately be shot out of the sky...not sure who told that to me but I believed that growing up. 2, I also believed that Casinos considered their patrons holy and no one could mess with them...fast forward to reality, I am walking through Caesars and get attacked by what I can only describe as a crack head lady of the night. So feeling empowered I crossed my arms and sidestepped the crack [censored] expecting the elite Caeser security shock troops to whisk her way in seconds...unfortunately this did not occur. Rather, she followed me and started grabbing at parts of my personal anatomy which are very...well personal. So there I was side stepping and waiting for the Caeser SWAT team to rescue me from the much maligned advances of those who can see the word STD and claim ownership. It was not to be...men in black never appeared, pit bosses who I looked to with yearning eyes of escape just looked away. Caesers ignored my crys for help, after what seemed like 10 minutes, I finally got extremely rude and told her to "F-off" and her response was "so you really want me to go?"...Lesson is: the casinos don't care about you.

Red Rocks is worth seeing, as far as I can tell its the only thing worth seeing to justify having a rental car in LV, other than that, you would be better off cabbing around. So if your on a budget take note.

As I said before if you have an inclining to gamble O'Sheas is my place of choice. If you get to pick your hotel, Venetian is my place of choice, I understand not all budgets can work that but I figure I'd throw it out there.

I attended an "EMP" talk while I was there which made me very distrustful of my Photon micro...I need to carry a bic or old-school lighter in such cases (yes, those EMP cases which I can foresee)...take note. If you want to be hard-core be ready to respond to EMP!!

The Casinos seem to have poor cell coverage, either by design or circumstance, SMS messages are the best option for communication. Lesson is just be aware of your texting plan.

LV airport seems to be slightly better than average. No idea why, but they seem to be the testing grounds for experimental passenger management techniques; I moved from taxi door to clear of security on a post-conference monday in 30 minutes. I had arrived 3 hrs. ahead of departure.

Caveats: I know everyone's experience is different...

Marc

Thanks for a good AAR. It has good info from several points of view.

Good report. Understandable perspective. It seems like most attractions these days are so tourist-wired commercial that the commotion is a bigger deal than the actual purpose for being there. Ever since the big corporations ran off the syndicates in LV, the customer service has waned. Back in the day, you'd have never seen such behavior in the casino. The syndicate always knew how to take care of the clientele, even the nickel and dime group weren't bothered as long as they were spending money. Nowadays, it is like going to a McDonalds.

Most likely the reason your DND door hanger didn't work is the person cleaning the room doesn't understand english, so next time take a few feet of police tape with you.

Sounds to me like the road trip was still a better offer than the plane ride. Good for you.

Good report on travel,seeing as I am going on a road to Il. I se alot in your report that I can look out for.

I've been laughed at a couple times for stopping when we were getting off the highway to top off my 3/4 full tank before heading of on the back roads to our destination but I don;t want to be caught in a situation where its 130 miles to the next gas station with anything less than a full tank.

Yep. I had a coworker who liked to say, "The best off-road vehicle around is any rental car." He proved it on more than one trip, too.

-Blast

"I also believed that Casinos considered their patrons holy and no one could mess with them..."

Now THAT'S funny! It hasn't been that way in Vegas since about 1959. Funny thing, when the Mob was in (obvious) control of the town, it really was like you thought. The locals pray for them to come back, because current management really sucks.

Today, the casinos and the pickpockets fight each other to pick you clean. You really can't tell them apart. I don't know what casino security is really for, unless it's just to protect the cash once they've got it.

The crime there is one of the best-kept secrets. There's LOTS of it, but the paper and TV only give a few snippets to make the place look normal.

Water, water, water. Carry it on your waist and it doesn't feel quite as heavy.

Hat and sunscreen. And hat doesn't mean a baseball cap.

I like it. Lots of places I never went to, despite growing up 4 hours from Vegas. speaking of which, never had a problem in 20 or so visits. Aside from being hussled to call escorts in the street (which was great when I was about 15 - the handouts, not the women).

So you never mentioned if you got the number off the single mom in the cave? or your light back, I suppose.

Off topic on the Caliber but I am not a fan. For me, and this is just me, either I felt like I was sitting to low and the window too high or (shrug shoulders) the window were just too high for me to get good side viewing.

In full disclosure both my family vehicles are Dodge.

I love Vegas but the next time I go I doubt I will be in the casino much. I have planned out a bunch of trips.

Two things 1) No curb too high; no ditch too deep. 2) Drive it like you stole it!