Vegas Blogs

A Las Vegas and Casino Design Commentary Blog. The Las Vegas Strip, casinos, restaurants and more. The weblog focuses on the gaming industry and how it works.

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Mark and Sazzy give you an insiders view on almost all things tourist in Las Vegas

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Last news: September 6, 2010 23:09:36

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International Travel and Dining Blog

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Las Vegas Restaurant News & Reviews

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With 5000 people moving here each month, somebody had to spill the beans.

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Las Vegas's Favorite Idiot Tells You How It Really Is

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Last news: June 25, 2009 23:21:24

Restaurant Reviews and Culinary Miscellany

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Real Life in the Shadow of the Strip

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If you’re a film lover, the CineVegas Film Festival is for you. The yearly event, held June 10-15, 2009, pushes the boundries of cinema.

The regular ticket price is $250. But Locals receive $100 off. The $150 package ($100 for Local Students) includes access to 16 films, all official parties, including two exclusive after-parties and access into CineVegas Headquarters at the Palms, where there is a daily happy hour with complimentary food and cocktails.

To purchase call 702.952.5555. Don’t forget your Local ID.

Marta Becket is about as driven and eccentric as they come. Arriving in Death Valley Junction in 1967 after a dancing career in New York City, Becket opened an opera house and began performing one-woman shows for whomever would stop by. Now 84, shes been singing, dancing and telling stories in her desert theater for more than 40 years. I recently caught her show. Vegas, its not. What it is is some kind of love story. [Read more] - [Read more]

All my fantasies have turned to ashes. One afternoon at the Atomic Testing Museum shattered my illusions, and even a clicking Geiger counter couldn’t find all the tiny pieces of my dreams. [Read more] - [Read more]

Heres a rundown on whats new on the Living Las Vegas blogs this week. From reggae and real estate to job searches, nightlife and swimming, a lots been going on. [Read more] - [Read more]

If Saturdays your day off and you live in Las Vegas, youve got just a couple of hours to unwind in peace before the tourists and crazies come out to play. I have my Saturday routine down pat, and it doesnt involve any blackjack or pole dancing. Join me for a lazy afternoon of bike riding, cigars and sweet music in Sin City. [Read more] - [Read more]

Shakespeare, strippers, sodas and sluts.... these are a few of my favorite things... Seriously, you need to read this weeks posts... [Read more] - [Read more]

"Shes Back!" So shouts the poster in the lobby of the Bootlegger Bistro on South Las Vegas Boulevard. Yes, Kelly Clinton is back, hosting her "Open Mic Cabaret" every Monday night. Its the best show deal in town, and the pizzas not bad, either. [Read more] - [Read more]

In an espresso culture, could tea be the next big thing? A trip to the World Tea Expo at Mandalay Bay certainly gave me that impression. In a whirlwind afternoon, I found myself steeped in all things tea. I left feeling enlightened, educated and more than a little stimulated. [Read more] - [Read more]

Imagine the scene. Kings, queens and bishops lined up by the thousands in the Grand Ballroom of the South Point Hotel and Casino. Hundreds of battles waged simultaneously – gambits offered, attacks mounted, kings endangered. How is it possible that a major chess tournament has been held in Las Vegas for the last 25 years and I have known nothing about it? [Read more] - [Read more]

In need of a girl’s night out or have girlfriends in town? Then Chippendales at Rio is a must. No girls night out is complete without a male revue. Chippendales is a fun, rowdy show that really gets the crowd excited (no pun intended). It’s a great start to a night out on the town. The best part? If the theatre isn’t full (which it usually isn’t), the attendants will move you closer to the stage. When I went, we bought peanut gallery tickets and ended up sitting fourth row center!

Now, Chippendales is offering locals tickets for $20 (regular priced tickets start at $39.95 plus taxes). To purchase, call 702-777-7776 and mention the Locals Offer.

One of the few shows that I really want to see but haven’t yet, is Le Reve. The show’s director used to work with Cirque du Soleil and supposedly Le Reve is ripe with Cirque-like acrobatics and choreography. For an in-depth review, check out this one.

Needless to say, I was very excited when I discovered that Wynn is offering 2-for-1 tickets to Le Reve. When I called and asked, the deal was described as “ongoing” and can be booked up to 90 days in advance.

Call 702-770-9966 and mention “Locals Offer” to buy tickets.

We’re 30 hours away from the March 2009 Living in Las Vegas Podcast Listener Meetup.  That’s the good news.

What’s the bad news?

Well, I’d say it has to do with the attendees.  I don’t really know how many people will be joining us at the Red Rock Casino and Hotel tomorrow at 6PM, but from the few folks who’ve contacted me, it could be a rough crowd.

For example:

• A Germany from Hong Kong: Huh?  Is that even possible?  Are there no direct flights from Berlin?
• A Couple of Foreigners: Have you ever been to Michigan?  It’s too damn cold there.  How can somebody with any sense live there?  What could possibly be on their minds?
• Two Podcast Hosts: Okay. . .these two folks are pretty nice.  Buy them a drink. They’re thirsty.
• A Birthday-Boy Web Stud: Into HTML?  Dig CSS?  Then a good time will be had by all you.
• A Real-Life Ph.D.  And believe me when I say Ph.D doesn’t stand for what you think it does.  Oh sure, it’s “official”.  But I’m pretty sure it should stands for Pretty hard.  Drinker.

Frightening, right?  Who knows what kind of craziness will ensue.  So, if you want my advice, I’d say. . .join us.  Not so much because it’ll be a good time.  I just need a witness in the event things get a little out of hand.

MGM MIRAGE just launched a new website specifically for locals. The site, mgmmirage.com/locals, features deals from all their properties spanning from Hotel, Dining, Entertainment, Spa and Others.

Many of the deals are 2-for-1 offers or 20% off your entire bill. If you have friends in town or just want to be a toursist for a weekend, make sure to check the site for a plethora of savings.

I’m a Henderson kind of gal, so of course, I love Green Valley Ranch (GVR). I love it even more that they totally cater to locals and always seem to have local specials. One of their constant local specials is 20% off any spa treatment Monday - Thursday.

So… you have two options: Call in sick or leave work an hour early (their spa is open til 8pm)

To make a reservation call 702-617-7570 or browse the spa menu. Their signature treatments sound quite alluring.

PS - Don’t forget to bring your Nevada I.D.

I received a bunch of excited calls from Melissa this morning.  She was up in Centennial Hills (NW Las Vegas) and it was snowing!  She wanted me to get some video of it (as I promised her I would in our last podcast) so I headed out there with my Flip video camera to take [...] - [Read more]

I’m a huge fan of pop art and am quite excited that Lichtenstein, Warhol and friends are currently showing at the Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art. I’m even more stoked that Wednesday nights from 5:00pm - 7:30pm admission is just $8 for locals. That’s a $7 savings! I guess you know where I’ll be on Wednesday… I’m marking it on my calendar now

Can’t make it on Wednesdays? The gallery offers $3 off their regular price ($15) any other time for locals.

For more information or to purchase tickets in advance, call 702.693.7871. As always, a Nevada ID is required to recieve the savings.

I know, I know, I recently wrote about a LOVE deal. But, this one is even better! And, it’s a true locals offer.

Now through May 31, Locals can purchase LOVE tickets starting at $60. That’s 40% OFF the original price! I don’t think you’ll find a deal better than this one, so purchase your tickets today by going here.

Tickets are limited to 6 per person and upon pick up you must show your local ID. For more information about the offer, visit Ticketmaster.

I’ve been lucky enough to see almost every show on the Strip. Far and away my favorite show is LOVE by Cirque du Soleil. No matter how many times I see it, I always notice something new. While you don’t have to be a Beatles fan to see the show, the music is so fantastic that you’ll probably become one after watching LOVE

Now through March you can get LOVE tickets for 25% OFF by going here. While this specific offer is available to everyone, the 25% off for Locals is available indefinitely. Just make sure to bring your Local ID when purchasing.

The hottest vacation these days is a Staycation. Forget the worry and hassle of airport security, additional baggage fees and flying and enjoy what your town has to offer. Luckily, we live in one of the #1 Destination Cities, so having a fun, “real” vacation is extremely easy.

New York - New York Hotel and Casino makes your getaway even easier with their amazing Staycation package. In addition to low room rates, the promotion includes deals on dining, entertainment and spa. It even has a special deal for golf enthusiasts!

What are you waiting for? Use some of your vacation days and have a quick getaway!

The Las Vegas job market continue to be challenging for those out of work.  The State of Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation (DETR) released reports on December 2008 unemployment levels on Monday this week.  Nevada’s unemployment level jumped to 9.1% unemployment.  This is the highest it has been in over 25 years.

To shed more light on the matter…. if you take into consideration the 5,200 jobs that Wynn Encore added in December, the situation looks even more bleak.  If you remove that job creation, Nevada would be over 10%.  So…… it is pretty bad folks.

However, there is some hope on the horizon.  It appears President Obama’s stimulus package will improve the employment outlook in Nevada.  Nearly $1 trillion will be pushed out to the states to stimulate the economy.  A large portion of that is dedicated to job creation.  The areas where you will see growth will be in Public Works project such as roadways, bridges, telecommunication infrastructure, health care and education. 

Nevada supposedly has some 300+ ’shovel ready’ projects that will be presented for funding.  These projects will create many new jobs in Nevada.  The money will flow from the feds to the states and then down to the counties and agencies performing the work.  I anticipate the majority of the initial work will be outsourced so there will be a substantial amount of job creation in the private sectors as well as the public.�