Sep 11
25
I’ve often advocated skipping organized ground tours within the city of Las Vegas, because from my perspective, they just aren’t necessary. You can easily get around Las Vegas on your own, and everything you’d want to see on your first trip is in two condensed areas: The Strip and Downtown. However, after reading Janice Miller‘s story of her experience on a three-hour Vegas City tour, I’m starting to rethink my position. Here is Janice’s take on the Champagne Night Tour of Las Vegas:
Welcome to Las Vegas, Janice!
I decided that kicking off my first trip to Vegas with a tour of the city would be a great way to see the strip and stop at a few places without having to walk to them all or take taxis everywhere. Celebrity Coaches Las Vegas has a champagne night tour priced at $69.99 at their website; I booked this tour through Viator and somehow also found a discount code that dropped the price down to $43. They have a list of hotels they will only pick up/drop off at, so book at the nearest hotel pick up location. Since I was staying at the Paris hotel, my pickup was at Bally’s.
I arrived at the shuttle location around 6:10pm for a 6:30 pickup, and the limo bus arrived between 6:15 and 6:20 pm. After everyone had been picked up at the various stops, Rick, our driver, made it a point to introduce everyone. We had people from Detroit, Canada, Australia, England, India, and of course, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (where I’m from).
We had a champagne toast on board our bus on the way to the Welcome to Las Vegas sign. Rick was more than happy to take pictures of everyone – which for a solo traveler like me was especially great! Rick then drove us to Fremont Street in Downtown Las Vegas. Our first stop was the Golden Nugget, where we saw the pool–including a slide that goes right through a shark tank. Next, we went to Binion’s where everyone had their picture taken with the $1 million dollar display of cash. Finally we were given about 45 minutes of free time to explore Fremont Street. Rick gave us the location where we would meet up afterwards and a phone number in case anyone needed it.
I explored Fremont street on my own. I saw a few people zip lining; that looked like a lot of fun! I absolutely loved watching the street performers. I did get busted trying to take a few candid pictures of impersonators. I suppose they don’t like that, because it’s how they make their money. Needless to say, I got talked into having my picture taken with “Michael Jackson,” “Bret Michaels,” and “Austin Powers.” They were fun to chat with.
Janice with celebrity lookalikes on Fremont Street
The whole group met up together to enjoy the light show, receive our “million dollar photos”, and head back to the Strip to check out the Bellagio. We watched a fountain show, and took some pictures with the Eiffel Tower in the background. We then walked through the the Atrium. The scent from all of the flowers just hit me immediately as soon as I entered. It was absolutely wonderful. If only cameras could capture smells….
We ended the tour by checking out the largest chocolate fountain at Jean-Philippe Patisserie. Again, our driver Rick, took some great photos here – making sure we all got one where it looked like we were drinking from the fountain. I loved it.
You can't get a shot like this using the arm stretch method!
I would definitely recommend this tour. For $43, I got a three-hour tour of Las Vegas, including a limo bus ride and champagne; I got to meet people from around the world; I have photos of myself from several spots around Las Vegas–photos I wouldn’t have gotten on my own, as a solo traveler. And along the way, we learned quite a bit about Vegas from Rick. My favorite thing about the tour was definitely the free time on Fremont street, though.
Thanks very much for sharing your experience on this tour, Janice! The reason Janice’s story has made me rethink my position on ground tours in Vegas is this: A small group tour can provide the solo traveler with a built-in opportunity to socialize with others. If you’re particularly shy, this can be very helpful. I also loved the fact that she was able to get photos of herself around town taken by the tour driver. I have hardly any photos of myself in Las Vegas from over 10 years of visits because I suck at the arm stretch method of self-photography and most of the photos I’ve asked strangers to take of me have turned out blurry. Paying someone else to photograph me around town might just be worth the price of admission right there.
Finally, when your time is limited, as Janice’s was, and you want an overview of Las Vegas, a tour might be the way to go. Someone else is doing the driving, so you don’t have to figure out where you need to go; just sit back and enjoy the ride. Now, I’ll add that the $43 Janice paid for 3 hours and all of these things seems totally worth it to me. I’m not sure I’d pay the usual rate of $69.99. But your mileage may vary, and the only one who will know if it’s worth it is you. (And for the record, neither Janice nor I were paid to promote this particular tour.)
What a great review! I’ve never even thought about doing a tour in Vegas–but now I most certainly will. I’ve been to Vegas twice and have yet to make it to Freemont St (sad, right?!?) I am returning in June (solo for part of the trip) so I’ll be sure to check out something like this. Thanks for the tip!!!
Oh, Tracy, you’ve got to check out Fremont Street. It’s so different from the Strip!
Fremont Street is fantastic!!! I could spend hours there just sitting and watching people! This was definitely a fun, easy and safe trip! I am still shocked at the amount of pictures I have of myself too. This was definitely a great way for to see so much in a short amount of time.
I’ll have to look into this tour if I make it to Vegas next year.
Fremont Street is definitely worth visiting. I stayed 12 days at the Four Queens Hotel beginning of September. It also attracts a different crowd. And indeed, it’s a great place for people watching. The only downside was, that I couldn’t find any nice restaurants in the area.
Marko! Where the heck were you? I thought you were coming to the meetup? Yeah, yeah, I know. You probably got a better offer.
Did you try Tinoco’s Kitchen at the Las Vegas Club? I thought that was a good restaurant. And I’ve heard good things about the steakhouse at the El Cortez and the one at Binion’s.
Hey Gray, I’m sorry, but I was so jetlagged, that I missed the meet up. But I’ve seen the chandelier bar at the Cosmopolitan. Actually The Cosmopolitan was one of my favorite spots in the strip. I haven’t been to any restaurants Downtown, because all the places were so busy around dinner time. I’m currently preparing my travel journal, which you can then maybe post on Vegassolo? My trip was a huge success, thanks to your site.
Nice pictures from Vegas, so thrilling to have a solo tour in an awesome city. Thanks for the review, I super like it.
No worries, Marko, I was just giving you a hard time.
I’m so glad to hear you had a great time!
Hey Everyone,
I am going to Vegas with some girlfriends but they will be leaving early and I’ll have about 3 days solo, this is my first time leaving Canada and I have no idea what I should do on my solo days, I was thinking of renting a car, but i dont know if I need to. Any advice? I’m 22 and I’m a bit nervous but so excited that I get some “me” time away from all the stress back home.
Thanks!
PS. if anyone is planning a trip early January email me
alisha.walji@hotmail.com
Alisha – If you want to rent a car to get out beyond the touristy areas of Las Vegas (off the Strip, maybe out to Red Rock Canyon or something), you certainly can, but you don’t need to rent a car in Vegas. In all my trips to Vegas, I’ve never rented a car, and I’ve never had trouble filling my days. If you’re wondering what you can do with those extra 3 days, click on the Things to Do tab above. Have a great time!
Thanks for the idea, Janice. I never would have thought of a Las Vegas bus tour but it’s a great idea for an introduction to the city, even if it didn’t go to Wayne Newton’s house like the bus Clark Griswold commandeered in Vegas Vacation.