AccessVegas.com Insider Vibe

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AccessVegas.com Insider Vibe

Welcome to the Insider Vibe! This is the official newsletter of AccessVegas.Com. We talk about the Las Vegas activities you really care about.

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Newkirk's Notes - comments on Las Vegas from AccessVegas.Com publisher Ted Newkirk:

Hello From Las Vegas! Christmas was sunny but on the chilly side. We hope you and yours had a great holiday. New Years Eve is in the air and slated to be another huge year. Winds permitting, The Strip with light up with fireworks from the MGM to Stratosphere. The Plaza downtown is putting on their own fireworks show at 12:30 AM as to not conflict with the massive celebration taking place under the Fremont Street light show canopy.

Local TV station KLAS has streamed the fireworks show live in years past. No indication if they are going to do so this year, but you can try their link just before midnight Pacific and see.

It is unfortunate that most of you can't watch the full 2-3 hour coverage that our local stations do. Short of being here in person, there is really no way to describe the excitement and festivities. The ball drop in New York City is about as exciting as watching paint dry in comparison.

The networks would love to do New Years from Las Vegas. The problem? Midnight on the east coast is only 9 PM here, a time when the party is barely getting started.

Do you have a few people you missed giving holiday Best Wishes to? Co'mon... we all had a couple of people we heard from that we didn't get a card or note to. It isn't too late: Pick one of the great holiday photos from our Bellagio Gardens Christmas 2007 Pictures area and send it as an E-Card right now!

Flying Etiquette - Delta Airlines has created a number of short online videos about air travel etiquette called Planeguage. Frequent fliers will find them all too humorous. Those that fly less regularly will enjoy the travel tips.

Mac King Is Everywhere - If you've been to Applebees during this season and had kids with you, odds are they were handed a "Holiday Hocus Pocus" with crayons and a little color book with simply magic tricks kids can do. Your local Applebees may still be handing them out. Give them a call and take the kids!

He's also put out a couple of cool products perfect for kids (of all ages) who want to have fun with magic. Mac King's Great Big Book-o-Magic contains over 50 very cool (and mystifying) tricks that are easy to learn and available at Barnes and Noble (stores or online). Also available is his Magic In A Minute Truck-o-Tricks with monkeys, cards, balls, strings and other props, jokes, and gags. Available at toy stores nationwide or Mac King Magic Shop. We just may be giving some sets out in the near future.

Also, you can't go wrong checking out Mac's afternoon show at Harrah's. By far the best bargain and a show everyone will enjoy. Check out Mac King Tickets

New Las Vegas Photo Sets - We took a trip down Las Vegas Blvd. South recently. And we mean South. Starting at the west side of the airport at the Las Vegas sign... and heading SOUTH. Everyone is watching the massive construction on The Strip, but the next wave of resorts, gaming, and development is already in planning and progress. Get a good look now. It won't look like this much longer. (Click photo for complete photo set)

We also added a few photo to reflect the remodeling and upgrades at the Golden Nugget. (Warning... these were taken in early fall when the weather was still very warm. Don't bring your swimsuit this time of year).

Golden Nugget Las Vegas Photos

Passing along a couple of "must know" tips...

Skip the casino ATM fees. You know that pulling money out of a casino ATM is obnoxiously expensive. Fees for casino ATM's are approaching $5, then your bank hits you for another few bucks.

The solution? Buy something negligible at one of the drug stores along The Strip and use your ATM debit card to get cash back. A pack of gum or bottle of water will cost around a dollar (cheaper than any ATM fee) and most stores will give you up to $100 cash back. This also may work at the many independent sundry/liquor stores. We haven't tried it yet at hotel gift shops, but never hurts to ask if they will give you cash back with a debit card.

Do all fellow readers a favor: If you find a certain hotel gift shop or independent sundry store on The Strip or Downtown that lets you use your debit for cash back, drop us a line at allvegastv@aol.com and we'll start creating a list for all members to access.
Avoid the car rental traffic jam. The new car rental facility guides everyone out of the building and sends them south on Gilespie, west on Warm Springs, then north on Las Vegas Blvd. The problem? An almost constant traffic jam once you turn on to Las Vegas Blvd. because you are just south of where it intersects with our Beltway freeway and a major shopping area.

Simple solution? Make a left turn out of the car rental lot. Take that road (Gilespie) north until it ends at Sunset. A quick left (west) on Sunset leads to Las Vegas Blvd. and you just zoomed past the entire traffic mess. Google map of suggested route. You'll save yourself 10-15 minutes. We know. We use this shortcut all the time doing our local business in the area.

Enjoy This Issue!

Associate Editor: Amy Rayner-Cooley
News Researcher/Editor: Mark Jacobs

Ultimate Fighting Championship Presents UFC 81: Breaking Point; Showdown Set Between Brock Lesnar And Frank Mir Saturday, February 2 At Mandalay Bay - Former UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir will put former World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) Champion and world-renown superstar Brock Lesnar to the ultimate test as Lesnar makes his move from the ring into the Octagon™ to prove that he is "for real." This will be a feature fight of the night at UFC 81: BREAKING POINT (Tickets) set to take place live from the Mandalay Bay Events Center Saturday, Feb. 2. Click to Read The Full Story ...

War At The Flamingo - Multicultural Crossover Phenomenon With Comedian George Wallace January 15-26 - The legendary funk band WAR has been tapped by resident comedian headliner George Wallace to share the stage for two weeks in January 2008. (Tickets) Following up the hugely successful visit by Sly and the Family Stone earlier this year Wallace personally chose WAR to extend an invitation to continue the excitement on stage at the Flamingo Showroom. Performing January 15-26 at 10:00 p.m. WAR will rock audiences with their eclectic fusion of rock, funk, jazz, Latin music, R&B and even reggae. This combination has given the band an enduring musical career and sales in excess of more than 50 million records. Click to Read The Full Story ...

Sonny Charles & The Checkmates To Ring In 2008 At The Rampart Casino - New Year's Eve Performance Will Honor Sweet Louie - The Rampart Casino will ring in the new year with a New Year's Eve concert by Sonny Charles & The Checkmates. This show will pay tribute to the late, great Sweet Louie. The show will be held at Addison's Lounge inside the Rampart Casino on Monday, December 31. The show begins at 9 p.m. $10 admittance at the door. Click to Read The Full Story ...

Sassy And Brassy Babes Of Hogs & Heifers To Host New Year's Eve 2008 Bash - Hogs & Heifers Saloon will ring in 2008 with live entertainment provided by rockers Southern Stue on Monday, December 31, 2007 Doors open at 1 p.m. There is no cover for the biggest party on Third Street that includes midnight champagne toast and party favors. Valet parking and on-street motorcycle parking is available. Guests must be 21 years of age or older. Click to Read The Full Story ...

Golden Nugget Completes $60 Million Expansion - The Golden Nugget has raised the bar again with the opening of its newest addition. The Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino unveiled its $60 million expansion at First and Fremont Streets just in time for the New Year's Eve festivities. The addition, just west of the current property location, offers a large multi-purpose events center, expanded gaming floor, new sushi restaurant and an exciting nightlife venue unheard of on Fremont Street. Click to Read The Full Story ...

Members Mania - We Love Our Readers!

Reader Submitted Photos:

This was taken on Jan 14th 07 - the Tropicana's water fall, yes its frozen. It was real cold the entire 4 days we were there. We were married on the 15th. The other picture is of the Stardust (well the sign) I know it came down a few weeks later.

Enjoy the pics!
Sandy & Steve

Thanks for the great photos! I saved them for the end of the year because losing The Stardust was certainly a big story of 2007. Also, a good reminder for people coming during the winter: It is sunny almost every day here, but not always warm. Average highs for January are 57 degrees, but average is the key word. As this newsletter goes out, we are facing 2-3 days where the low will be around freezing.

(Note to self... dig out really warm coat). Bring on summer... I so hate the cold...

Well I never made it to Vegas this past weekend. My daughter was sick and I felt I couldn't leave her, but she's fine now and it wasn't serious. I have to say that South Point was great in that they didn't charge me the requisite 1 night cancellation fee. The rest of the group went so I thought I'd let you know their reviews. They had good things to say about the hotel.

The staff at the hotel were very pleasant and check in was no problem. They had reserved King beds and were given double beds but when they called the desk, she promptly found them rooms with Kings and also all on the same floor next to each other. The rooms were spotless, and huge. The casino wasn't smoky and the pool was good. The only complaint about the pool was it could've been a little more secluded. Maybe more lush greenery(ala Mirage pool). The Del-Mar Deli was good and the breakfast buffet was good...especially at $6 with the discount coupon.

The liquor store on-site was a hit with reasonable prices. There is construction going on but the men in the group actually enjoyed watching the crane doing it's thing while they had cocktail in hand by the pool. They used the shuttle to and from Mandalay Bay frequently, but the complaint was that it stopped running too early. They got tickets to Love. 2 from the group thought it was absolutely the best show they've ever seen, the other 4 thought it was just good...not being huge Beatles fans and there was also a 45 minute delay due to technical difficulties.

They did a Red Rock Jeep tour which they all enjoyed. They had dinner buffets at the Mirage and Bellagio with Bellagio getting a slightly better review than the Mirage based on food quality. Dinner at Canaletto at the Venetian was just OK...the food and also a less than pleasant waitress. However, they thought the surroundings were great, along with the gondola ride they took. They spent a little time in the bar at Kahunaville which they thought was fun. And one person won $250 on a slot machine at Bellagio with a $5 chip they found on the floor. So overall they had a good time with lots of laughs -and I was home wishing I was there.

So, thank you for all your info, and I will be checking out the newsletters and planning my trip whenever that may be...hopefully sooner rather than later. Take care!

Denise

Denise had asked about the South Point and ended up not being able to make the trip with her group, but she did report on the experience her group had and we appreciate the trip report!

As our daughter is in Graduate School at UNLV, my wife and I (we live in San Diego) consider Las Vegas our second home (Love Las Vegas and the people). Having mentioned that, I would like your help.

I have a birthday coming up and will be in town to celebrate. I have been looking at many of the hotels gift shops for a embroidered black silk jacket or something else, that has the "Welcome To Fabulous Las Vegas" sign that is on Las Vegas Boulevard.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Love the newsletter and look forward to it every week. Keep up the excellent work.

Regards and thank you for your help in advance.

Paul Wittmann
San Diego, CA

Heck of a question. I'm not sure I've seen one. The Las Vegas sign isn't trademarked, so anyone can use it or variations of it. The hotels pretty much want to sell only stuff with their name on it. When in town, I'd check the Bonanza Gift Shop... it is huge. You might find something there.

Also, you may try Ebay. Try a search for

las vegas jacket

or similar.

Hope this helps!

I would just like to say what a great magazine you have, It is really great to read and it brings back at lot of memories as we came to Las Vegas last year and the year before.

Keep up the good work.

Thank you,

Sylvia Worden,
Lancaster, Lancashire.
England.

More Las Vegas News - Concerts - Events

Coming Hot Holidays - The following dates are huge times to be in Las Vegas, and rooms are in high demand. Booking in advance is the best way to save. Visit our friends at I4Vegas Discount Las Vegas Reservations and spend one of the following hot dates having fun in Las Vegas:

Christmas December 25 (4 day weekend - Christmas on Tuesday)
New Year's Eve-Day December 29 - January 1 (4 day weekend - New Years on Tuesday)

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All contents copyright 2007 Ted Newkirk. All Rights Reserved.

December 26, 2007 ISSN: 1529-2770 About Us Privacy Policy