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{play} ShoppingYour Heart Out
For shoppers looking for a good deal, Las Vegas offers a dazzling array of factory outlets to suit every fashion preference. Spread over three outlet malls, they bring together a comprehensive range of well- known and sought-after labels.
Lying just north of the Strip, Las Vegas Premium Outlets is the mall closest
to the hotels and tourist attractions. A
few miles south of the Strip is its sister establishment, Las Vegas Outlet Centre. Each mall has over 120 stores, packed
with familiar names such as Calvin Klein, the Gap, Banana Republic, Tommy Hilfiger and Perry Ellis. Beyond clothing outlets, there are brand-name shoe stores such as Nine West, Kenneth Cole and Timberland, not to mention specialist stores for jewellery, watches, fine leather and luggage goods.
The third mall, the Fashion Outlets at Las Vegas, is located about 58 km southwest
of the city, in the town of Primm near the border with California. With over 100 stores, it prides itself on premium stores such as Versace, Neiman Marcus Last Call and Williams-Sonoma Marketplace. You can find all sorts of bargain-price items here, at even one-third of their original retail price.
Bring Out the Chips
Enjoy a roll of the dice
or the shuffling of cards? There’s a table for you somewhere in Vegas, whether you’re a newcomer to the table or a seasoned player, whether you’re after a light-hearted round or
a serious session. Casinos continue to be the main tourist draw in Las Vegas and the gaming possibilities just keep growing.
The casinos along the Strip are opulent and sophisticated, as one would expect, and offer the full range of games: blackjack, poker, baccarat, roulette and so on. They also have rooms for sportsbook and racebook wagering. Some games have high minimum bets – not for the faint-hearted! For those who shy away from private high-stakes games, there are penny slots, friendly “kitchen table” games and even free gambling lessons.
getting there
Fly to and from Los Angeles or San Diego. Both are about a six-hour drive from Las Vegas; a connecting flight will take slightly more than an hour.
McCarran International Airport is served by international and domestic airlines which connect to most major American and Asian cities. The airport
is at the southern end of the Strip, about 8 km from downtown.
distances to other metropolitan areas
Los Angeles – 435 km Phoenix – 470 km
Reno – 725 km
Salt Lake City – 675 km San Diego – 550 km San Francisco – 920 km
climate
Las Vegas enjoys a warm desert climate, including about 300 days of sunshine a year. Summers can be scorching, but most of the year is comfortable and dry.
Average daily temperatures • Summer (July) – 34°C
• Winter (January) – 9°C
casino restrictions
Most casinos are open round the clock. While gambling is legal, only those who are 21 years of age and above are allowed to enter casinos. Some casinos will not allow children to remain on the premises after 6 pm, unless their parents are guests at the hotel.
Curfew laws also apply on the Strip. Those under the age of 18 are not permitted there without a parent after 9 pm on weekends and holidays.
getting around
Most of Las Vegas’s attractions are centred on the Strip, so it’s easy to
get around on foot. Just remember that the mega- hotels are just that – mega – so distances between them are further than they appear to be. Local Citizens Area Transit (CAT) buses are also readily available (US$1.25 per trip), including a 24-hour double-decker service called the Deuce which plies the Strip (US$2 per trip or US$5 for a 24-hour pass).
10 I MARCH-JUNE 2008
travel tips