Sin City and Beach Loving

[NDiddy]

Seats were allocated based on weight so I guess I should be flattered being up the front:


Seat map on the right for reference.

Some pics inside the plane:


A little cramped but great entertainment unit


Great view of the coughpit:


I was a little concerned with a warning light on the instrument panel but the pilots were laughing and smiling the whole time:

 

[NDiddy]

Great timing! Starting to review options for our X-mas break.

Let me know if you need any specific info amaroo - Always happy to help!

 

[NDiddy]

Once in the air we had some amazing views of Hoover Dam, Lake Mead and the Colorado river:

 

[NDiddy]

We landed in GCN and transferred to our helicopter flight:

Disembarkation:


Waiting area at the gate for our helicopter flight:



Our ride:


It really was an amazing day with so many unforgettable memories. This is a must do and something off my bucket list which I was really grateful to have checked off.

 

[MadFairlane]

I loved our HC trip when we went last year... It was amazing.

The wife, not so much, considering her fear of heights she spent most of the flight with her eyes closed or in tears.

At least she went though...

 

[NDiddy]

A few obligatory "strip" photo's from a night out on the town:

Paris Hotel

Bellagio fountain show


The Venetian (permanently in daylight)


Who needs Venice?


Replica of St Marks Square

 

[NDiddy]

For our 6 day stay in LV we decided on the Vdara Hotel & Spa after much deliberation about whether to stay in a Casino hotel or not. Part of me wishes we had done so but it was a nice respite away from the throngs of people crowding the lobby and every inch of available space. The Vdara is connected to the Bellagio and is directly opposite the Aria and for it's part is well positioned for people to enjoy everything LV has to offer without offering it directly.

This is an all suite hotel so space is not an issue but it worth sussing out the views from the room before committing to a particular suite. We ended up in an Exec Corner Suite which afforded views of the Bellagio fountains from a strategic gap in between the Bellagio and the Cosmopolitan:



The room itself:

 

[NDiddy]

Well to say I loved Vegas would be an understatement. It just had so much to offer entertainment wise (aside from the gambling) and you just couldn't be bored in this place. The best thing I did though would have to be the racing supercars at the Las Vegas speedway. I foolishly did not take pics myself but do have some on a mates camera. Now for those of you who aren't into cars I understand the trepidation of spending the kind of money to drive them around a race track. But tbh I just can't find a cheaper way to experience this and everyone should have an opportunity to experience these man made marvels.

For those interested, this is the mob I used: RACING SCHOOL, Exotics racing school is the ultimate driving experience at Las Vegas Speedway with Ferrari, Lamborghini and Porsche.

Very friendly staff and very experienced driving instructors who can quickly work out your skill level and ensure that you push your own envelope while staying safe.

Our 6 days came to a close all too soon for this Diddy's liking and we said farewell to our friends and prepared ourselves for the second part of our trip to HKT.

 

[jetlagger]

I'm enjoying the journey.. Look forward to the rest..

 

[amaroo]

For those planning a grand canyon trip, be aware that there is the Grand Canyon West Rim and South Rim. Big difference. The cheaper option is the West Rim and you can easily get there by car, bus or even chopper. However for an authentic grand canyon experience you can't beat the south rim for that postcard perfect picture. To get there and return in a day requires a plane trip from LAS or from BLD (Boulder City) which is where I start this post.

In 96 we did the fixed wing flight - always regretted not doing the chopper option and tried to do a late booking a couple of years ago but bombed out due to lack of planning on my part.

This time I'm booking early and getting it done. Interesting comment about the west/south rim.....what company did you use?

Did your tour include the skywalk? (It's west rim so probably not)

 

[NDiddy]

This time I'm booking early and getting it done. Interesting comment about the west/south rim.....what company did you use?

Did your tour include the skywalk? (It's west rim so probably not)

We went with Papillion and can highly recommend them. Found some good discounts they were offering directly and even managed to hunt down some discount vouchers online which dropped the price further.

Skywalk was for West Rim only so we didn't do it. Read a fair bit online and on TA that West Rim is a bit off a rip off in terms of the fees and the no photos on the skywalk was a bit fresh as you had to buy the photos off the photographers who run the show there. Not cheap either IIRC.

 

[amaroo]

We went with Papillion and can highly recommend them. Found some good discounts they were offering directly and even managed to hunt down some discount vouchers online which dropped the price further.

Skywalk was for West Rim only so we didn't do it. Read a fair bit online and on TA that West Rim is a bit off a rip off in terms of the fees and the no photos on the skywalk was a bit fresh as you had to buy the photos off the photographers who run the show there. Not cheap either IIRC.

Would I be right in saying you did the Grand Canyon Connoisseur with Helicopter?

Did you land in the canyon and walk around?

Cheers.
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[NDiddy]

Would I be right in saying you did the Grand Canyon Connoisseur with Helicopter?

Did you land in the canyon and walk around?

Cheers.
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That's the one amaroo we did the Grand Canyon Connoisseur with Helicopter although there are other options.

We didn't land in the helicopter but the bus we had took us to the Bright Angel lodge which had incredible views of the canyon. Here's a tip if you do chose this option, instead of going into the Bright Angel and fighting the crowds on the viewing platform there, walk about 5 mins towards the shuttle stop and up the track for about 1 min. A much better view and we had only 1 group of 4 stop for photos in the 30 mins we were there.

IIRC the helicopters are not allowed to land in the National Park but the native owners of the West Rim allow Papillon to land in there. Depends on what's important to you but I still liked the option we chose.

 

[NDiddy]

After spending an incredible 6 days in LAS it was time for the second part of our trip to HKT. This part of the journey was going to be quite long as we had 4 flights to take with a 7 hour layover in BKK (arriving at 1:00am) with lounge access only for about 2 hours. Nevertheless we were quite looking forward to our first Asiana FC experience and with that we had an early night in preparation for our 7.45am flight from LAS to LAX.

We checked out of the Vdara quite effortlessly at about 5.45am and grabbed a quick coffee in the nearby cafe before hopping into a cab for McCarran airport. Arrived in about 15 minutes and was surprised to see quite a few people flying out this early on a Sunday.

Flight Details:

Flight: LAS-LAX
Aircraft: 737-300
Seats: 15D/15E

Scheduled Departure: 07:45
Actual Departure: 07:55

Scheduled Arrival: 08:50
Actual Arrival: 08:50

Check in took about 5 minutes but again it was surprisingly very easy to ourselves the BP's and bags checked in:



Security however took about 20ish minutes to get through but we were well versed with the lines now:


Once through security we meandered our way through the departure gate via a quick starbucks pitstop. Plenty of options to still get your gambling fix though before getting on the plane:


While waiting at the gate, there was an announcement that our flight had been oversold and they needed 5 people to come forward and be put on alternate flights. It was a bit touch and go but 5 people did end up redeeming their travel vouchers as compensation. I prepared myself for another full flight right down the back as the Diddy' were designated to group C again. Some snaps of the boarding procession:

 

[NDiddy]

Being in the last 30 pax to board the plane we resided ourselves to sitting down the back of the plane, however we were pleasantly surprised to see a number of spare 2 seats free starting mid plane. As with the flight to LAS I found the seats very comfy with plenty of leg room. Flight itself was uneventful and before we knew it we were wheels down in LAX.

Seat pics:


Old school tray table:


Doesn't it warm your heart to see a piece of home abroad:

 

[NDiddy]

Managed to get our bags fairly quickly and since we had plenty of time before the check in counters opened we decided to walk from T1 to TBIT. Took about 5 mins or so and it was nice to stretch the legs after an early start to our journey.

Arrived in TBIT and although the lines were building up the counters were still 20mins or so from opening.

Check in:
Y line


J/F line:


Always nice to be the first person in line:


The check in staff were incredibly polite and professional and even managed to change our seats from 3A/4A to 1A/K. Even though up until a couple of days before the flight, OZ seat map showed a full F cabin but as we soon found out there were only 6 pax out of 10 on the flight.

 

[NDiddy]

A quick spot of duty free window shopping and a "relatively" quick processing through imm and security we made our way to the *A first class lounge.

A less than impressive entrance:







Big Screen TV's at the front of the lounge:


Cozy lounge but not a lot of ambiance:

 

[NDiddy]

An OK spread on offer but nothing to write home about:



However the champagne was quite nice:


I stuck to the champagne and some sushi which was quite good:


Certainly not the great FC class lounge I've been too but was good for what we needed. Killed a few hours reading and sipping champagne whilst only a handful more pax joined us. The early start was starting to take it's toll and we stayed as long as we could before the nods started to occur. Luckily for us the gate wasn't far away and about 40mins before departure we packed up for the flight we were most excited about being on.

 

[NDiddy]

Couldn't resist the photo op on our way to the gate:


Boarding commenced as soon as we got to the gate so there was no waiting around and the Diddy's walked straight in.

Cabin:


My seat in 1K:

Closet:

 

[NDiddy]

More seats pics: