Last week we had to head to Las Vegas very last minute for just one night.  Strangely enough, almost all the flights we looked at were completely sold out.  We managed to snag two seats on Jet Blue, not my usual carrier of choice, but it would have to do.

We weren’t seated together, and, as luck would have it, we managed to each be next to germ infested passengers.  My husband was wiping down every surface with Clorox wipes, I was just hiding my face in my sweatshirt.

The flight was much more pleasant than the last Jet Blue flight I took.  They had a little self serve snack bar next to the lavatory, kind of like the bar on Emirates (thats a stretch, but if you imagine real hard).  The plane was new, and the flight attendants very friendly.

We were on time out of JFK, so that was great.  As soon as we landed, we hopped in an Uber and went straight to lunch at what we think is one of the best Thai spots in the US, Lotus of Siam (https://lotusofsiamlv.com/).

The restaurant has relocated from its original somewhat sketchy location, to a very large and newly renovated spot off the strip on Flamingo.  Even on a Wednesday at  1 pm, the restaurant was very crowded.  My husband placed an order of his favorites- 5 dishes should do it, and we placed our drink orders.  The waitress had to be reminded several times to bring those drinks, but the food came right out.  By the way, the wine list at Lotus of Siam is very extensive!

If you do head to Lotus of Siam- be very sure to order the Garlic Prawns- they are insanely good.

The Prawns are removed from their shells and then the two are fired separately so you have double the fried and (not too) greasy goodness.  That coupled with Fried Soft Shell Crab Salad, Mee Krob, Moo Yang, and Drunken Noodles with Sea bass made for the perfect welcome to Vegas lunch.

 

Vegas is not my idea of a fantasy destination, and the whole hotel situation makes me a little nervous- just the idea of having one of those black lights to expose all the stains….

In any case, my travel agent found a fabulous rate at the Wynn (www.wynnlasvegas.com/).  It was just $220 for a king room with a view of the Strip, and included a $50 resort credit, a $50 Spa credit, and a $60 breakfast credit.  They were practically paying us to stay!  He also promised it would be clean. We were able to get an early check in, so we left Lotus of Siam and headed right over.  We ended up checking in on the Encore side, and while on the very long check in line managed to meet all kinds of nice people who were thrilled to be in las Vegas!  Everyone was exceedingly friendly.

The check-in went smoothly, and we walked between the hotels (there are actually even more sub-hotels – the Wynn Suites, the Encore, the Encore Suites),  but we didn’t feel we needed anything more than a room for the little bit of time we would spend in the hotel.

 

When we arrived at our room on the twelfth floor, we were very pleasantly surprised.  It was very clean and bright, and did not smell at all of disinfectant- a particular pet peeve of mine.  The bathroom was very spacious, and the mechanized blinds opened to a great view.  For $220, it was a steal!

We did some roaming around in the Wynn Shops, and did a lot of satisfying people watching- one of the best activities there is.  We did not gamble, as thats not our thing.

For our evening activity, and the reason we headed out to Vegas, we took a cab over to the relatively brand new  T Mobile Arena (really quite nice)  for the first night of the PBR World Championships.  If you have never experienced a PBR event  (https://www.pbr.com/) – you should!  It is really quite something.

The lead up to the event was some great music outside, and then inside to a full house of Professional Bull Riding Fans.  It was terrific.

 

We left the arena at around 10:30, headed back to the Wynn, and fell promptly asleep- but not before setting up a room service order to be delivered at 5 am in order to make our 6:40 am flight.  This is what sealed the deal for me at the Wynn.  The food came exactly at 5 am, and the coffee was perfect! Very hot, and very strong.  The Egg Sandwich was also monstrous- and delicious.

in reality, I think that 18 hours in Vegas is the perfect amount of time!