When I was 19 and backpacking the U.S., Las Vegas was not on the itinerary.
It was 1986 and I was still two years' shy of Nevada's legal gambling and drinking age. I ended up on The Strip though, staying at the Imperial Palace because at $20 a night, it was cheaper than camping on the beach in San Diego. I ate like a king for under $10 a day, and I walked The Strip from end to end. Midweek during the heat of August, there were few cheaper places to stay.
Almost 30 years later, The Strip is unrecognizable. No one walks The Strip from end to end. Fifteen of the world's 25 largest hotels by room count are here, linked - barely - by a narrow ribbon of sidewalk that morphs into escalators and overpasses that seem to be designed to deter pedestrians at all costs. If you're walking, you're not spending.
Two parts of Las Vegas though, buck this trend: one on The Strip, and the other in downtown Las Vegas, sometimes known as old Las Vegas.
On The Strip, The LINQ Promenade is a pedestrian-only marketplace, fronted by stores, bars, restaurants and casinos. Yes, even on the hottest midweek night in August, it's busy, but unlike The Strip proper, The LINQ offers visitors the chance to stroll without worrying about falling off the curb into traffic, or being accosted by hawkers and celebrity impersonators.
Better yet, the area once home to the Imperial Palace is now anchored by two memorable attractions, plus a hotel that places you in the middle of it all. First, the High Roller - what people my age would call a ferris wheel - is the world's biggest observation wheel at 550-feet tall and 520 feet in diameter. Unlike a ferris wheel, you're not left dangling in a chair with a bar across your shoulders. The High Roller's passenger cabins or capsules will be familiar to anyone who has experienced the London Eye in the UK.
To ride a full rotation takes about 30 minutes and, day or night, the view is unsurpassed in Las Vegas. We boarded after dark and were treated to an everchanging perspective of the city, from the dazzling neon of Caesar's Palace and The Bellagio to a sight much grander as we ascended to the High Roller's apex - the outline of distant peaks in the west beyond Red Rock Canyon with Vegas itself looking all the smaller for it.
There's room for 40 people in a cabin, but avoid sunset hours like we did, and you'll probably be sharing with half a dozen others. Alternatively, private cabins are available, complete with bar service, for that special occasion!
A few doors down from the entrance to the High Roller is the Brooklyn Bowl, which mixes 10-pin bowling, live music, and comfort-food dining. Travelling with teens meant we had to exit by 8 p.m. when the venue becomes adult only, but until then we relaxed on the leather chesterfields, bowled for an hour and listened to musicians warming up. I drank a Rogue Dead Guy Ale but swore I'd return some day for a Bourbon Street Shake with Nutella and a shot of Bourbon.
The Roots and Elvis Costello opened the Vegas edition of Brooklyn Bowl (other versions are in London and Brooklyn - surprise!) last year. Its 2,400-capacity showroom makes it one of Las Vegas's more intimate concert settings.
The LINQ Hotel and Casino anchors the pedestrian-only complex, which is about half way down The Strip opposite Caesar's Palace. Not only is the location great, but the hotel offers welcome convenience, including the option of an automated check-in process that reduces lineups to a fraction of what's normal in some Vegas hotels.
Like many hotels here, there's a decidedly adult vibe about The LINQ, including its swimming pool, which is off-limits to under-21s. Guests with children can use the pools at neighbouring Harrah's and Flamingo.
No such restrictions exist at the Downtown Grand, which features a rooftop pool and is on the doorstep of Fremont Street -Las Vegas's other pedestrian-only area.
Known for years as Glitter Gulch, the Fremont Street Experience occupies five city blocks and is covered by an LED display canopy that blasts music and light extravaganzas every night, while zipliners zoom across the ceiling for $40 a turn. Roaming celebrity impersonators, near-naked showgirls, Chippendales, and several live music stages combine to make Fremont Street feel like a high-octane circus. Every cheesy T-shirt you've ever seen is on display here, from Kiss Me, I'm Irish, to One Tequila, Two Tequila, Three Tequila, Floor.
We lasted an hour before fleeing around the corner to the Triple George Grill on Third Street. Ranked one of the city's best steakhouses, Triple George didn't disappoint. Private booths, sumptuous dark wood, and brass fittings all conjure up a bygone era of triple-Martini lunches and deals sealed over a dinner of 16-oz Ribeye done just right. It might as well have been a million miles away from Fremont Street, or the Hogs and Heifers' biker saloon next door, for that matter.
Three of the Judds spent their last day in Vegas on the roof of The Grand, flaked out in a cabana by the infinity pool. It may have been the combined effects of the Triple George, plus an all-American breakfast at the Grand's SO Restaurant that eventually got me off my lounger and walking again.
I strolled across the street to Stewart Avenue and the Mob Museum. Once inside the former Las Vegas Post Office and Courthouse, I realized that I would need a day to fully explore this museum. The mob and its relationship with Las Vegas, the United States, and law enforcement are put into historical context via three floors of photos, movies, and compelling exhibits. The St. Valentine's Day Massacre is macabrely brought to life with the actual blood-stained wall on display, alongside an electric chair, a tommy gun, plus a numerous artefacts relating to the mob's involvement with gambling, drugs and prostitution. The world's first slot machines look a lot easier to figure out compared to today's versions.
Craving caffeine with little time before our departure, I found The Beat Coffeehouse and Records three blocks down Fremont Street. Vinyl for sale in one corner, free magazines and newspapers, and great coffee, The Beat is the perfect antidote for anyone craving life after the party. Like the Mob Museum, I wish I'd found it earlier.
I told the lady behind the counter I was worn out.
"It's only the tourists who insist on partying 24 hours a day," she said.
For a moment, I felt like a local. nevjudd.com
If you go: Between now and Dec. 31, The Downtown Grand will accept Canadian money at par when Canadian visitors stay and play the hotel's slots. The offer is up to CDN $500 a day, which is worth about US$375 - equal to $125 in free play. Visit downtowngrand.com or call 1855 DT GRAND for details, plus information about The Triple George and the SO. Rooms start from US$46 at The Linq Hotel and Casino. Visit caesars.com/linq for information about the hotel, the High Roller ($27-day/$37-night) and the Brooklyn Bowl ($100 per lane for up to 8 people).
