The official Random Discussion For TPBM Photo's and Photographers Thread (1)

Will definitely show my brother the chucker clip. We do hedgeapple rolling. We get to the top of the hill and see who can roll one down the road the furtherest before it rolls off to the side. It takes a lot to keep us entertained.

Calling Cat and Lonnie...

Curt and I are starting to talk about our 2007 vacation trip. He wants to fly into Las Vegas, rent a car, and use it as our center point to go see the Grand Canyon, Hoover Damn, etc. We want to consult with you regarding logisics to other points of interest, especially photographic interest. Neither of us are gamblers, so we will have plenty of opportunity to explore the sites of the city as well.

Cat, how far is Bryce (sp?) from LV?

Becky N wrote in post #2458856
We want to consult with you regarding logisics to other points of interest, especially photographic interest.

My favorite side trip from Vegas is to Valley of Fire State Park. There's also Hoover Dam and Red Rock Canyon pretty close by. Death Valley is a little more of a drive, but still doable as a day trip. Two places I haven't been to yet but I've heard are nice to visit are Lake Mead and Mount Charleston.

Exactly what we are looking for, thanks Lonnie. Also, which casino/hotel do you recommend that isn't so pricey, or are they all about the same, hoping to get your dollars at the tables?

Becky N wrote in post #2458856
He wants to fly into Las Vegas, rent a car, and use it as our center point to go see the Grand Canyon, Hoover Damn, etc. We want to consult with you regarding logisics to other points of interest,

I did that in 1998 I was at a conference in Florida, as soon as it finished we flew to Las Vegas jumped in the car and headed off to :- Hoover Dam, Grand Canyon, Monument Valley, Four Corners then to Fresno (via Bakersfield, not a highpoint) for several days in Yosemite and then back to Las Vegas via Death Valley. A FABULOUS trip. The key logistics are getting booked into accommodation at both Grand Canyon and Yosemite. I have always booked nearly 12 months in advance on all my trips there.

Have fun planning as well as doing

N

That depends on how important it is to you to be on the Strip. On the Strip, I'd recommend Excalibur or Luxor for being pretty nice but not too pricey. If you don't mind being just a few blocks from the Strip, stay at the Gold Coast.

Avoid Bellagio and Wynn (and to a lesser extent, Paris and the Venetian) unless you have a lot of money you really want to get rid of. You may be able to get a decent deal at New York New York, MGM Grand, Monte Carlo, Treasure Island and Caesar's Palace, but I'm not very familiar with those ones, so I couldn't say for sure. Oh, another expensive one is Mandalay Bay and their new The Hotel. Tropicana would probably be cheap, but it's old and rundown, as are Imperial Palace and Circus Circus (though Circus Circus has a great steakhouse I'd definitely recommend). You also could probably get pretty good deals at Sahara and Stratosphere, but again, I don't know very much about those properties.

Is this going to be your first time in Vegas?

Becky, check the conference schedule for LV before you book and avoid going when the larger conferences are happening. I booked into Ballys for $100 less a room by putting our trip off 1 week, there was a huge Kitchen & Bath show that weekend, and though I am in the industry, did not care to partake. I have friends that pick a non-busy time and wait until a couple days before to book everything and they get some great prices.

Definitely haggle for good room prices, they will come down for sure if they are not full.

While Vegas is not a place I would go as often as many, it still is fun to explore once in a while, especially if you take in some of the trips Lonnie recommended. My next trip there will include lots of these side trips.

BearLeeAlive wrote in post #2458970
Becky, check the conference schedule for LV before you book and avoid going when the larger conferences are happening.

And don't even think of going in the middle of March! During March Madness the entire town is booked solid, and even rooms at the Motel 6 a couple miles from the Strip will run $500/night...

Not my first time, went there yearly for about 5 years for the BBSI convention the end of July beginning of August. Stayed the LV Hilton, next to the convention center. Spent the days in our booth, but; did a lot at night. This will be Curt's first time. Did not venture outside of town which is what I am looking forward to. Thinking late spring or early fall might be good weather (heat) wise.

Thanks for the recommendations, I'll let Curt know to get all these listed.

Becky N wrote in post #2458856
Cat, how far is Bryce (sp?) from LV?

Zion is closer. We live about 1.5 hours from Vegas, and its about 45 minutes more to keep driving through to Zion.
Add another 3-4 hours to keep going to Bryce, depending on the route you take. (We always take the sceninc route through Brianhead and Cedar Breaks...BEAUTIFUL!)

Ditto all Lonnie's info. If we ever stay in Vegas (RARELY), we will usually stay at the Excalibur. If we are not in the 'casino' mood, you can usually find something relatively close in price at a HoJo, or the like. But you need to be careful about the areas. Some are.....icky.

When are you planning this? (Sorry, I missed that if you said already)
If you decide to go to Zion (HIGHLY recommended) you can drive your own car into the park till Springtime. After that, it's a shuttle system. Which is nice, but it's hard to carry all your gear around on all the hikes.
We always make sure to take lots of off-season trips through there... a lot more photo ops when you can stop anywhere you want to, rather than being at the mercy of the shuttle stops.

Oh...and you DO realize, don't you, that you have to drive right past my house to get to Zion from Vegas, right??

I'll be going to Vegas the start of Feb, and will have to spend a lot of 'down time' at the airport. I'll grab you a bundle of those tourist flyers, and mail them off to ya.

Thanks, Cat, that would be great. We are in the very beginning stages of planning, you know..."What should we do for vacation?"

I'm flitting in and out today, since I am at work, with all but a handful of others. My year-end stuff was completed yesterday, so it is pretty darn quiet today.

Cat...of course as we finalize plans, we hope to be able to connect with some of our POTN friends where ever and whenever our travels take us.

Sounds like fun Becky, I've never been to Vegas.

Cat if you want to keep an eye out for inexpensive RAM try looking at ilikecheapstuff.com, they have good stuff on occasion.