Las Vegas, Nevada, USA - Feb 21 - 25, 2025
How to get from Las Vegas International Airport to
Downtown
Other than taxi or shared
ride, it is very easy to get to Las Vegas Downtown using public transportation.
Bus route 108, 109 and Centennial Express (CX), all stop on Level Zero at
Terminal 1 and CX also serves Terminal 3. We took CX Bus from Terminal 3 to NB
4th after Carson station, which was minutes away from Fremont Street
Downtown Las Vegas where our hotel was located. The bus stop at Terminal 3 is
located on Level 2, where you have to exit the terminal building and walk
across the pedestrian crosswalk. The bus stop is across the exit door numbered
44. To find the bus stop at Terminal 1 you have to go to Level Zero, then exit
the building, walk across and the covered bus stop will be at the right.
Tickets cost 4 US$ and can be purchased either from a Ticket Vending Machine,
directly from the driver with exact cash or by just tapping on/off your credit
card. To move around the city, we purchased 3-Day Passes for 40 US$ each.
Rock ’n' Roll Half Marathon Las Vegas
The main purpose for our
trip to Vegas was my participation to the Rock ’n' Roll Half Marathon, which I
wanted to do for many years. I have seen many videos about it and the Run the
Strip at Night experience seemed fun, so this year I decided to give it a try.
The Health and Fitness Expo
To pick up my race number,
gear bag and t-shirt, I had to go to the Health and Fitness Expo located at the
Resorts World Las Vegas. The Expo was an experience in itself, featuring the
latest in running technologies, fitness apparel, health and nutrition
information and interactive displays. There was even a live DJ and fun
activities to pump us up for the next day race.
Rock ’n' Roll Half Marathon – the Race
Other than the Half Marathon, there was a 5K race and a 10K Race so there were more than 30K
participants, standing proof for the event’s nickname as the “World’s Largest
Running Party”. Two hours and half before the race the participants could visit
the Start Village outside T-Mobile Arena, a fun area with plenty of photo
opportunities, live entertainment, music and some free snacks and water to fuel
us before the start. The race was as amazing as expected, the party-like atmosphere,
the cheering crowds, the live bands along the course and the amazing lights
illuminating the Strip at night made me forget the pain of running for more than two
hours. And as a reward for our running effort, we were greeted with
champagne and Glow-in-the-Dark finisher medals at the Finish line.
Amazing experiences in Vegas
Other than my participation
to the race we visited also few of the amazing Vegas attractions.
Located downtown Las Vegas,
Fremont Street is a must see attraction that has it all. The Viva Vision light
shows happen daily between 6 pm and 2 am lighting the LED Canopy screen in
vibrant colours and images. For the adventurous people there is the SlotZilla
Zipline, an 11-story slot machine-inspired attraction. There are stages for
watching free concerts and live music, casinos for gambling, restaurants and
fast food places for eating and drinking and a variety of street performers,
some of whom may be quite “R” rated. It is an incredible place offering amazing experiences.
Bellagio Conservatory and Botanical Gardens
Located inside the Bellagio
Hotel this attraction is free and redesigned each season with different,
amazing flower arrangements and displays. At the time of our visit the place
had Chinese New Year theme displays and sculptures to celebrate the Year of the
Snake. You can visit this attraction again and again and it will always feel
like the first time.
This upscale Roman-themed
shopping mall in Las Vegas is always fun to visit. It houses a lot of high end
retail stores, there is a variety of dining options and you can also enjoy
featured free attractions, like the Atlantis Show or other immersive
experiences, while surrounded by an amazing Roman interior architecture, an
impressive sky-like ceiling and a “street market” atmosphere.
Hoover Dam Tour
On our last day in Vegas, after the race, we booked a trip to Hoover Dam. Never been there before, we were really looking forward to see this monumental structure close up. Our tour included pick up and drop off to the hotel, Government’s Power plant tour inside the dam, visit to the Visitor Center, a 45 minutes Walk On The Top Tour of the Dam and lunch. We booked the tour through Viator and paid about 125 CAD for each of us. The visit gave us insights into the history and importance of the Hoover Dam. It was constructed between 1931 and 1936, during the Depression, in less than five years in challenging conditions and barren land. We learned a lot of interesting facts about the Hoover Dam during that tour but one stayed with us, regarding its main purpose. More than controlling the flooding of the Colorado river, the main purpose was to provide a fresh water source to millions of people and a source of irrigation. The whole trip took from about 7:30 when we were picked up until a bit after 2 pm when we were dropped off back at our hotel. On our way there and back our guide also shared a lot of interesting information about the places we drove by and about Las Vegas.
We visited The Sphere to
see the one-of-a-kind show, Darren Aronofsky’s “Postcard from Earth”, a
multi-sensory cinematic experience that tells the story of Earth. During the
show you can feel the wind, smell the jungle and get the sensation of flying. This
entertaining venue is one of the newest Vegas attractions and was designed as a
massive sphere equipped with a 16K resolution interior LED screen and a
powerful sound system. Even before watching the show, the place is an
attraction in itself, with a futuristic interior architecture, welcoming
interactive AI robots and the largest ever 3D hologram powered by HYPERVSN (a
London based company specialized in holographic projections with the highest
resolution) and located in the Atrium.
Visiting Las Vegas is always a great experience and we will return for sure
