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Cabana Day at the Luxor
Today, we rented a cabana at the Luxor. Wow! They advertize it as an oasis and they aren’t kidding. It is our own little cabin tent with fan and misters. We lay on the padded lounges (there were four of them) and had water misted on us. And there’s more – towel service, stereo, flat screen TV, small dining table w/ 4 chairs, a fully stocked complimentary refrigerator, a gigantic bowl of fresh fruit, and 2 rafts. We also had cabana-boy Chris and waitress-Jess to take care of us. Their service was magnificent, complete with, on their own initative, getting a whole bucket of ice for Veni (making her their adoring, slobbering, happy puppy for ever). Veni even got a cool towel in the afternoon when we did! Well worth it. And the view was amazing.
Any complaints? Only that the pool itself is only 3ft deep and it closes at 7pm!!!!! This is Las Vegas and it is HOT. I don’t understand how a 3 ft. pool that closes early could be beneficial to a hotel. I’d sit out there all night! Hmm, maybe that’s the problem. We’d all be out by the pool instead of in the casinos!

View from Cabana #5 by the Luxor's pool
Eleven Hotels and Casinos in One Day
My feet hurt far too much to go into too much detail. We actually did visit all 11 hotels/casinos in a few hours. Ouch! In no particular order:
Luxor
Mandalay Bay
Excalibur
New York, New York – with its fabulous roller-coaster
MGM Grand – we DID see the lions
Circus Circus – where the bride and groom proceeded to win a BAG of prizes at the midway. And Renee HAD to go there because it was in a James Bond film
The Mirage – with its indoor garden
Caesar’s Palace – where we managed to get lost and couldn’t find an exit
Harrah’s
Casino Royale – which is NOT in a James Bond film but had tiny $1 margaritas (I believe were virgin)
The Venetian
I LOVE the Venetian, thus multiple pictures there. I’m particularly proud of the photo below. Friends have photos of me laying on the ground in the grand hall of the hotel trying to take a photo. I believe it was worth it. What do you think?

The Grand Hall of the Venetian (taken from the floor)
And from the Arcade…
I had to post this picture. Our friend Melissa is a marksman. Now lots of people claim to be good shots, but she really is!!! We were down in the Excalibur’s arcade and they had a crossbow shooting game. Basically, it uses a laser and you aim it at various targets. It is kind of like a giant diorama and when the laser connects with the target, it sets off various animatronics, sound effects and music. She played the game about 8 times. Each game, you get 10 shots, for a total of 80. She missed…twice. Managed to get a picture of her in marksman-mode with her first prize of the evening, the teddy bear. Totally impressive!

Melissa concentrating on a target
The Excalibur Hotel and their Fabulous Arcade
Today, we had friends start arriving in Las Vegas for the wedding, although the bride and groom weren’t due in for another day or so. We headed over to the Excalibur to meet up. The Excalibur is another themed hotel. This time, designed with to look like a medieval castle. It was pretty cool, complete with Arthurian-themed restaurants and an actual feast with jousting. And in the basement, was a fabulous midway and arcade. Of all the casinos and hotels I’ve seen this is the only one that really seems to live up to the sales pitch of “Vegas for the whole family.” With the exception of EVERYONE (staff included) wanting to pet the dog, I have to admit, I enjoyed the atmosphere of this hotel best. And I just learned that the castle is actually modelled off of a REAL castle in France!

Excalibur Hotel and Casino - the ziggurats in the foreground are part of the Luxor

Melissa, me, Jen and Veni inside the Excalibur

