My husband and I will be going to Las Vegas for the first time March 4-7. We are staying at Mandalay Bay. I've heard it is a great hotel but am now second guessing our decision. We are in our late-20s/ early-30s and are looking for a party scene. We are also huge sports nuts and will be looking at doing most of our gambling at sports books. What are your thoughts on our hotel choice, sports books not to miss, and the best ultra-lounge to see celebs (this is more for me than him :o)?
Thank you!
Holly
(North Dakota)
You're in a good situation, Holly. Mandalay Bay might not be quite 100 percent of what you're looking for, but it's not terribly far away from that mark. Figure it might rate at about 80 percent on your scale. Here's where it matches up with what you're looking for: It has an excellent sports book — probably one of my three or four favorites on the Strip (the Las Vegas Hilton and Caesars Palace hold the top two spots) — and the crowd is usually heavy with young party types who don't mind dropping a chunk of change to have a good time. Visiting in early March you'll miss out on this, but the party quotient is even higher in the summer. Mandalay Bay's pool may well be the best in Las Vegas and the scenery on the beach — that's right, a real sand beach — is spectacular.
Here's where Mandalay Bay falls a little short of what you ideally want: There are several very good bars and clubs in Mandalay Bay (MIX, especially), but none of them are THE nightlife hotspot of the moment. Today's hippest of hip places are found at the other end of the Strip, in the Venetian (Tao), Palazzo (Lavo), Wynn (Tryst, Blush), Encore (XS) and Caesars Palace (Pure). Those clubs are where the partiest of the partiers drink and sweat until the morning.
Those clubs are the most likely Strip candidates for celebrity spotting (add in the Palms and the Hard Rock, if you venture off the Strip), but even if any reality show bullies or sex-tape-leaking actresses are in the club at the same time as you, you're not likely to see them. Vegas clubs keep VIP areas for these folks, and they're off limits to commoners like us. So if you're really hoping to see Britney Spears stumbling drunkenly across the dance floor, let me prepare you for likely disappointment now.
March 10, 2010, 10:33 pm
Thanks for reporting back, Holly. It's always good to get first-hand word from other recent visitors.
Now it's time to start planning your next trip…
March 8, 2010, 12:52 pm
I was definitely not disappointed with Mandalay Bay and everything they had to offer. Their beach is SPECTACULAR! Their selection of pools, the lazy river, the big wave pool, comfortable lounge cars, outdoor bar and grill with TVs airing ESPN meant their was something for everyone. This was one of my favorite places I saw the entire vacation.
I am glad we decided to stay here. I may not try another hotel when we go back because I was so pleased with our trip. During outings to other hotels, I found most were definitely not as nice, but the people who worked their were rude.
Overall, it was a GREAT vacation!