We had a great time in Vegas, saw some shows, went to the World Market Center and worked a few days. Then it was time for our red eye flight home on Allegiant Sunday night.

We flew Allegiant out of Lansing, Michigan. It’s a direct flight and we have flown it a dozen times without delay…….not this time. This was unusual and just the way it is. We checked in at the regular time and found the flight to be delayed. We checked our bags and got our boarding passes at about 10 pm.

The excuse for the delay was that the pilot was over extended and had to get some sleep before we flew…..sounded like a good idea to me. It was not too bad for us, the flight was a red eye and supposed to take off at midnight and was delayed until 6am.

We always get a room for the last day, because I do not like checking out at 11 am and then having no where to rest until midnight. So, we just called the Golden Nugget and they said it would be no problem to get out room back and after checking our luggage and getting our boarding passes we went back to the hotel. I went to bed and George went to the video poker machines!! I slept for 3 hours and then went back to the airport.

They only bad thing was that we had returned our rental car and had to pay for a cab both ways to the Golden Nugget. On the way downtown we got a female driver and I thought….”good” she will be fair and not try to lang haul us—-WRONG! She drove us right through the tunnel and on to the highway and continued to drive at 50 MPH all the way downtown. It took forever to get to the hotel. I didn’t say anything until we were at the Nugget and then I told her I was not paying the $32 on the meter and that what she did was illegal. She called the “office” and they told her to charge us $23.40. I gave her $23 and told her she was lucky to get that. I was Pissed! (more…)

Destination: Las Vegas
Start date of trip: July 16 to the 24th 2005
Traveling companions: My husband Mario and son Mike
Goal of trip: FUN! And showing Mike the sights

Day 1

I had promised my son that I would take him to Vegas as soon as I came into a little money that I was inheriting. In spite of my husband’s declarations that only CRAZY people go to Vegas in July, I went ahead and booked…. Saturday and Sunday night at the Golden Nugget, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday nights at the Mirage, and Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights at MGM Grand. I figured my 17 year old would get a good look at least 3 different areas that way. Of course it would turn out to be record-breaking temperatures this week and so we experienced the first 117 F day we have ever had in our lives. But oh well……hot or not…I was going to have fun!

We flew out of Detroit on America West at about 7 AM and landed in Vegas around 9 AM. Taxi to Golden Nugget cost $30 with a $5 tip. (Too much, I know, but WHO CARES…I AM IN VEGAS AGAIN!!!) Can’t check-in to the Nugget so early so we went and had breakfast and came back at 11AM. Received a very nice standard room in the South Tower. We took our son for a bit of a walk around the shops downtown and bought some cheap pop and beer. ( A bottle of Diet Coke cost $1.39 downtown and $2.25 in Mirage’s gift shop and $3.00 in Mirage’s vending machine!) Went back to check out the Nugget’s pool. Very hot…very crowded. The water in the pool needs ice cubes or something. Coming from Canada, swimming in water that warm is like swimming in pee. It was not very refreshing…so we gave up after a short while and went back to the room and cleaned up. At check-in the Nugget gave us a book of coupons which included a 2 for 1 dinner/lunch buffet and a 2 for 1 breakfast buffet. We used the dinner buffet one and found it to be very tasty and a good value…even without the coupon. Walked down to the Plaza to take in the Larry G. Jones show from 6 to 7. You get in for the price of an (over-priced) drink. An entertaining way to spend an hour. He is very good. My husband went back to the room and my son and I spent most of the night walking in circles under the canopy, taking in the light shows and bands and street performers. Also shared a football of beer with him and he was quite impressed with the entire Fremont atmosphere and the fact that no one seems to care about how he was drinking underage! I attempted to gamble for a while after he went to bed but I couldn’t get anything going with the Nugget slots so I called it a night. (more…)