Best Free Things to Do in Las Vegas (Part II)

There are so many free things to do in Las Vegas that I had to spilt them into two posts! Check out the highlights in my Y!CN article or catch up on Part I if you missed it, and then read on to discover even more attractions that are guaranteed to entertain without emptying your wallet (sadly, I can't say the same for the poker tables and slot machines):

Sirens of TI at Treasure Island: One of the more lengthy free shows, this display involves a lot of drama as a group of pirates, complete with giant, mobile Man-o-War, take on the Sirens of TI - a band of 'sexy temptresses.' It's a little more 'adult' than some of the other street shows and takes place in front of Treasure Island at 7pm, 8:30, 10 and 11:30pm each evening.

Best Free Things to Do in Las Vegas (Part I)

Our two weeks in Las Vegas left me with a wealth of travel tips, but this two-part post is for the budget conscious (or newly budget conscious, just in case you find yourself in Vegas and out of luck!). A visit to Sin City can be hugely expensive or surprisingly cheap, depending on how well you plan ahead and how you want to spend your time. The Strip certainly isn't just for gamblers and there are lots of inexpensive, family-friendly options as well. Here are a few sinfully inexpensive favorites:

Welcome to Las Vegas Sign: No visit to Vegas would be complete without a photo in front of this iconic sign. Located on the Strip just south of Mandalay Bay, the sign has been gracing photos and drawing crowds since 1959. It's a small drive from the usual Vegas attractions, but a new parking area makes visiting easy at any time of day, provided there aren't too many tour buses.

What Happens in Vegas...

....sometimes shows up on the Yahoo Contributor Network! I have my last two Vegas posts coming up this week - I think they'll be informative, since they deal with budget-friendly entertainment on the Strip - but you can get a preview of some of the information in my first YCN-published article: Best Free Things to Do in Las Vegas.

Today is Matt's birthday and we're celebrating with a friend across the border in Kentucky.  She has a real oven and, since Matt requested a giant cookie for his birthday, I might even get the chance to actually bake. I'm way more excited than the occasion warrants! Happy Birthday to Matt...and happy baking to me!

Our Fremont Street Experience

Fremont Bokeh

There's a lot more to Las Vegas than the bright lights and crazy crowds of the Strip - an assertion I've tried to prove positive with my ramblings about finding amazing Thai food in a dodgy-strip mall, taking a walk down wedding chapel alley and exercising my taste buds in a Las Vegas pizza showdown. Of course, if there's any place as well-known and well-traveled as the Strip, it's Las Vegas' Fremont Street.

Goin' to the Chapel: Las Vegas Wedding Chapel Tour!

What sort of Las Vegas blog series would this be without an homage to that staple of Vegas lore - the quickie wedding chapel? Not a very good one, of course, so I'm remedying this omission with a picture post. There's a whole street full of quirky, quaint and unusual chapels just north of the Strip - here are some of the highlights:

None of these catch your fancy? Well, what about these (note the drive-thru option and one of the many Elvis-officiated venues):

And for the picky, quickie bride, here are even more options:

Ahhh, Vegas is so romantic!

The 'Best of' Las Vegas Hotels

While most people spend their days in Las Vegas hoping to strike it rich on the casino floor, I spent my time pretending I was rich as I swanned through the fabulous hotels. I admit it, I love people watching and I'm entranced by pretty, shiny things - the famous hotels of the Las Vegas Strip have plenty of both.  During my three visits to Las Vegas, I've spent hours wandering through miles and miles of opulent hallways, discovering hidden features and making a mental list of my favorites.  What follows is my personal list of Las Vegas Superlatives:

Water feature at Mandalay Bay

All-time Favorite: Mandalay Bay
Tucked away at the far southern end of the Strip, this hotel seems much less chaotic and harried than many of the others.  It's not cute (New York, New York) or gimmicky (Excalibur) or ridiculously lavish (Wynn or Bellagio), but it has an atmosphere of almost colonial elegance that, in my opinion, sets it apart from the rest.  It also has a free monorail service, connecting it to the Luxor and the Excalibur, which makes it more accessible than you might think.

Eavesdropping on a wedding at the Venetian - so romantic!

Best Theme: Luxor and the Venetian
These two hotels really trade on an element of fantasy.  The Luxor is dark and mysterious - obelisks tower over the lobby and the casino floor - while the Venetian works hard to create the outdoors indoors, replicating St. Marks Square and the canals of Venice, complete with serpentine alleys, countless footbridges and singing gondoliers.

Vegas is Sweet!

For all it's many and varied attractions, Las Vegas is also a sweet spot for sugar addicts. Cash and calories may have limited my hands-on experience, but that certainly didn't stop me from doing a fair amount of window shopping! Here are some of my favorite, sweet selections:

The wall o' candies at M&M's World!

M&M's World: In short, this is a four-story paradise on the Strip for fans of the beloved "melts-in-your-mouth-not-in-your-hand" candy. The store boasts every kind of M&M merchandise imaginable (think toys, pillows, bedclothes, kitchenware, jewelry and even undies!) but it's much more than just a retail location - there's also an in-store movie theatre, which shows shorts featuring the M&M's characters, and lots of information about the history of M&M's. Even if you're not a candy lover (or you're saving your cash for the casinos) a walk around the shop floor is entertaining and the wall of bulk colored candies is impressive. This is also a great place to take the kids for an hour or two - just don't let them get too hopped up on sugar!

Ethel M's Chocolate Factory and Cactus Garden: After visiting M&M's World, you can see where it all started at Ethel M's Chocolate Factory. Located away from the Strip, in nearby Henderson, NV, this factory was started by Forrest Mars Sr. and named for his mother, Ethel. As all good chocolate lovers know, Mars is the company responsible for bringing us a wealth of tasty treats, including Mars Bars, Snickers, Dove and...M&M's!

The factory offers free tours (and free samples!) every day of the week. Due to their 'small-batch' philosophy, I've visited twice and never seen the machines in operation, but it's still worth a visit.  The whole factory smells wonderfully of chocolate and the quality of their product is great. The site is also home to the Ethel M Botanical Cactus Garden, which boasts the one of Nevada's largest collections of cacti, with over 300 species of plants. There are paved paths meandering through the garden and the plants are labeled, with a bit of history and information for the amateur botanist. It's surprisingly entertaining and I think Matt and I spent more time with the cacti than we did in the factory!

The Good, The Bad and The Tasty: A Tale of Three Pizzas

Settebello, Las Vegas: Four Cheese? Yes, please!

The title of this post was suggested by one Matt's favorite movies, which is appropriate since the subject happens to be one of his favorite foods. In fact, Matt is so fond of The Good, The Bad and The Ugly that I had to promise to watch it with him when we got married (I made him watch A&E's 5-hour Pride and Prejudice in return!).  I'm ashamed to say that I've yet to fulfill this promise, but we have shared countless meals of this favorite food. It's amazing to me that no matter how many times you eat it, pizza almost never gets old.  We indulged in this favorite meal a few times in Las Vegas and this post is the story of our experience.

Lotus of Siam, Las Vegas

If you're a fan of Thai food and have ever been to Las Vegas, you've probably heard of the Lotus of Siam. Tucked away on the back side of a particularly unpromising-looking Sahara Avenue strip mall, this unassuming restaurant has been heralded, by Gourmet magazine, as the "single best Thai restaurant in North America."

I discovered the Lotus on a visit to Las Vegas a few years ago, after reading rave reviews online. My sister and I searched out it's remote location and waited in line, with an assortment of locals and sharp-suited businessmen, for their popular lunch buffet. The restaurant was so small and the food so good that the line of eager patrons stretched out into the parking lot for the duration of our stay. Buffet philosophy seems to run in favor of quantity over quality, but the Lotus breaks with this tradition, offering a limited selection of excellent dishes.  I was particularly impressed by their Pad See Ew (rich, flavorful and not too oily) and their Green Curry (perfectly spiced and slightly sweet), and it's a testament to their food that the memory of this meal brought me back all these years later!

TKO (Thomas Keller Oreo) at the Bouchon Bakery, Las Vegas

A few weeks ago, I tempted you with the mention of the famous Thomas Keller Oreo (or TKO, as it's commonly called). Well, our trip to Vegas is over, so I can officially say that I've been there and bought the cookie, and here are my thoughts:

The TKO is essentially marketed as an upscale rendition of the American junk-food classic - two thin wafers of rich, dark, chocolate sable dough sandwiched together with a filling of thick, creamy, white chocolate ganache. The cookie is a product of the amazing Thomas Keller (of French Laundry, Bouchon, Per Se and Ad Hoc fame) and has garnered rave reviews all over the web, so I knew I had to add it to my list of Las Vegas indulgences. Just one day into my Vegas adventure, I wasted no time in tracking down the tiny Bouchon Bakery outpost on the gaming floor of the Venetian Hotel.

I expected a little more than small sweets counter with a to-go cafe attached, but I was soon distracted and easily appeased by the beautiful array of baked goods in their glass-fronted cases. For a moment, I was tempted to scoop up armfuls of their giant cookies and artfully frosted cupcakes, but then I remembered my reason for searching them out in the first place and walked away with a lone TKO. I found a quiet place in the upper floors of the Venetian (which, in itself, is quite a remarkable feat) and prepared myself for an indulgent and transformative experience.