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Not Your Father’s VegasBy Dave ShultzThought you knew Las Vegas? You don’t!
Gone are the hotels of the fifties and in their place is Disneyland, Las Vegas style. The strip remains but the transformation makes it unrecognizable from the adult vacation city your parents visited but don’t talk about much. Casinos are still predominant and you are still going to lose money but you won’t mind as much because you’ll be constantly entertained. The first thing you notice is the families. No blue haired ladies with cigarettes dangling out of their mouths sitting endlessly at slot machines. We’re talking young families with lots of kids. The new hazard in the casinos is the strollers being pushed by mom and dad with several siblings toddling along behind. Young, happy families! And speaking of cigarettes, there are still lots of smokers but the new casinos have perfected the art of smoke removal. No more hazy layers of smoke! The new order is clean, well lit and fresh. Most of the casinos have large arcade areas for kids, huge shopping areas for mom and dad and endless food courts and restaurants to please the entire family. Everything from national burger and fry chains to world class, five star dining at it’s very best. Wrap it all up in a themed fantasy world and multiply it by fifty and you begin to get the picture.
The shows are still there and all the top entertainers still play Vegas on a regular basis and yes, there are still topless reviews but the crowds are different. There are no leering drunks making rude catcalls to the showgirls. The nudity is almost an afterthought that doesn’t really seem necessary and you come away remembering the quality of the entertainment and the professionalism of the performers. The vagrant on the street corner handing out flyers to the strip clubs for wine money has been replaced by the clean cut, blazer jacketed young people handing out flyers to the latest time share condominiums. The strip clubs are still there but have moved to the edge of the action, away from the high priced real estate on the strip. I doubt they will ever go away, but I think they will shrink from significance and become no more prominent than any other big city in America.
Even the big movie conglomerates are getting into the action. The most visible of which is the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino that has the normal entertainment and headliner shows plus a 33-acre amusement park.
I think pretty soon, they’ll have to change the nickname of Las Vegas from ‘Sin City’ to ‘Fun City’. This is truly not your father’s Las Vegas. Entertainment Guide: http://vegasguide.com/ by Dave Shultz and Mary Saxton How to get thereFor travel to Las Vegas, the best fares can be found at Southwest Airlines. Southwest Airlines |
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Las Vegas, Nevada has survived for decades with a rather seedy reputation. Kind of like the black sheep of the family that everyone asks about in whispers at the family reunion. Well move over Aunt Sally, Vegas is out of the closet and you won’t believe your eyes.
You can spend an entire week in Las Vegas without visiting the same place twice and not begin to cover the range of entertainment. Medieval, Hollywood, New York, country, the jungle, Europe, ancient and modern civilizations are all available in almost endless varieties. Attend circus performances, visit the rain forest and ride a roller coaster on top of a casino that is guaranteed to leave you breathless all in the same morning.
Speaking of wholesome entertainment, big corporate sponsors are taking up the slack and vying for space on the strip. You can now visit M&M World where the 3D giant candies cover the front of the building and can’t be missed by anyone under the age of 12. In the New York New York Casino, the graffiti on the faux subway walls aren’t gang signs but rather Pepsi slogans and logos spray painted in prominent positions. Pepsi commercials run non-stop on the overhead monitors as you wait in line to ride the Manhattan Express Rollercoaster (this alone is worth a trip to Vegas) that is high atop the casino and surrounds the high-rise hotel.
Day trips abound! Hoover Dam is only 20 miles out of town and even after 60 years is an engineering marvel from the Depression Era that will inspire and educate. The Red Rock National Conservation Area on the west edge of town includes a 13 mile scenic loop that demands to be photographed. The Grand Canyon is accessible by car or treat everyone to the air tour that offers unique views that won’t be forgotten.
The volcano explodes, the pirate ship sinks, the dolphins frolic, statues come alive and magic is truly everywhere as you stroll down the clean well lit streets. Castles, pyramids and European villages mingle with the Statue of Liberty, Bourbon Street, and good old-fashioned American Rock and Roll. So, pack up grandma and the kids and head southwest to see the world.