Book a ticket to Las Vegas for great restaurants, nightlife and canyons

DEEP IN THE heart of the unforgiving Mojave desert, built on the site of a former Mormon settlement, lies an oasis of freedom where, as the city’s tagline suggests, anything goes.

Las Vegas’s reputation as a city of vice and dice is long established having sprouted from the ruination of prohibition and Nevada’s early adoption of legalised casino-style gambling.

Having been the last western state to outlaw the same practice in 1910, the roulette wheel that locals feared would be forever stilled had, in just 21 years, come full circle and created the “what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas” city we know today.

Or at least, the city we think we know.

Its reputation as the ultimate escapism destination where everyday realism slides into obscurity in preference to surrealism is well deserved as the 24-hour mega casinos relentlessly purr with gamblers, bars serve a steady stream of booze and curious travellers explore the Strip.

Below the surface, however, another city exists — one where surprises abound.

A particularly curious example of the lesser-seen side of Vegas are the ski slopes that adorn the Spring Mountains on the western outskirts of the desert town.

Taking in the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, the ski resort boasts 385 acres of alpine skiing, snowboarding and a fully-fledged ski slope.

Downtown Vegas, two or so kilometres from the infamous Strip of casinos and bars, is another forgotten part that offers a more authentic city feel.

Its origins, after the Mormons, lie in the 1931 construction of the mammoth Boulder Dam which was later to be called the Hoover Dam after President Herbert Hoover.

The project which was completed in 1936 drew thousands of workers to a site just east of the city originally incorporated in 1911 as a midway oasis on the railroad stretching from San Pedro, Los Angeles to Salt Lake.

Casinos and showgirl venues opened up on Fremont Street to attract the project’s workers.

The original Vegas was born and development continued apace for decades until the mega-casinos that form the modern day Strip took over.

Ever since, Downtown has been somewhat of a neglected artefact with high unemployment and a range of accompanying social issues.

However, things are changing. Zappos, the online shoe store bought by Amazon in 2009 for $850m (€764m) has moved its headquarters to Downtown Vegas and set up shop in the former City Hall.

Of more significance, however, is the $350m pet project its chief executive Tony Hsieh has undertaken, known as Downtown Project.

As urban renewals go, it’s as unusual as the city itself. Every last cent is private money directly from Hsieh’s pocket, as opposed to the State or Federal coffers, or even the cash pile at Zappos.

A quick reconnaissance mission suggests limited progress to date for a programme that since its inception at the beginning of 2012 has attracted as many detractors as supporters.

Container Park, an outdoor shopping centre constructed from old shipping containers and guarded in typically flamboyant style by a 17-metre, fire-breathing praying mantis is the centrepiece of the project to date.

The outdoor experience is complemented by a café and bar, a live music stage and centred around a large play area complete with four-storey slide which is conveniently built to accommodate fully grown men and women so that playtime need not end once the children are fast asleep.

A morning trip is, in truth, somewhat mundane. The admirable focus of the park is to afford smaller scale retailers set up at reduced cost and while some of the stores are nicely presented, most are pretty niche and the whole area maybe suffers from the absence of a single, big-time retailer as an anchor tenant.

The surrounds of Container Park are far more interesting, however. A short stroll along Fremont Street past the long-standing Cortez Hotel and Casino and towards Ogden Avenue where Mr Hsieh has taken up residence offers an enviable array of street art.

Striking murals adorn almost every building-side, some clearly influenced by comic book art; another of a prone woman draped in a towel and surrounded by bunnies is apparently intended to encourage passers-by to contemplate the conflicting concepts of dice — the city’s bedrock in many ways — and paradise.

A clear Irish influence is visible too through US-exiled street artist Maser who has transformed a derelict site into the ‘Maser Motel’ in similar style to a previous project in Limerick city which saw an unused petrol station given a dash of colour as part of the City of Culture designation last year.

A short bus journey away lies the Neon Museum (neonmuseum.org/), another typically Vegas institution. The “bone-yard” is home to some of the more famous signs to have adorned the city’s casinos and hotels over the years.

As museums go, it’s not exactly teeming with culture but once the seemingly endless list of health and safety announcements are made and long list of forbidden activities are listed (Do Not Touch The Signs), it’s a reasonably interesting way to pass an hour as the knowledgeable tour guides walk you through not only the history of each artefact but the city’s evolution too.

At $18 day admission and rising to $25 for the presumably more impressive night tours, it’s about as pricey as is reasonably acceptable.

A far more enthralling experience is a jaunt to the world famous, 450km long Grand Canyon carved by the nearby Colorado River. At $350 the ‘Grand Celebration’ helicopter tour with Papillion (papillon.com/) isn’t cheap but, if you’ve got it there’s surely few better ways to blow it.

Papillion’s Boulder City base is about a 30- minute drive from Vegas and a further 20 minutes or so once in the chopper to the Canyon. Needless to say, the latter journey is the more enjoyable.

Along the way the Colorado River appears and disappears as you cut your way through the sky above desolate desert; Lake Mead and the Hoover Dam.

A curious little settlement perched high above the lake — Mead View — is also visible but ridiculously has no actual view of the lake.

The canyon though is simply stunning with gigantic golden walls stretching as far as the eye can see before the chopper dips into the Canyon’s embrace and lands deep within its bowels.

The excited impulse to run amuck and photograph every inch is patiently accommodated before breakfast in a charming wicker basket is presented. Of all the places to eat breakfast, it comfortably tops the pile.

Somehow, the return journey is almost more enjoyable as the excitement subsides; the smartphone remains safely holstered and you have time to absorb the natural beauty below.

For all the peace and beauty of one of the Seven Wonders of the Natural World it’s not what attracts most tourists to Las Vegas. That, of course, is The Strip and all it entails.

Our accommodation was the magnificent 43-storey Delano Luxury Hotel on the Mandalay Bay Resort complex at the southern end of the Strip.

Room rates vary but across Vegas they tend to be surprisingly cheap given the luxury that surrounds you — just beware of the mini-bar and other “incidentals” as that’s where the shortfall is made up.

A short stroll through the hotel brings you past Delia’s Kitchen where breakfast is on offer at reasonable prices as well as a range of sandwiches, burgers and a small selection of entrées for later dining.

Further on, the clicking of roulette wheels; chimes of slot machines and, on occasion, hollering of Lady Luck’s newest if fleeting companions emanate from the sprawling casino.

Were you to awake in the its midst, you’d do well to tell it apart from any other along the Strip with each hotel housing its own casino which, to the untrained eye at least, look pretty uniform.

One aspect that does differ however is the resident show in each of their theatres — many of which are creation of the world renowned Cirque du Soleil.

One such acrobatic performance is Michael Jackson ONE (www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/shows/michael-jackson-one/default.aspx) which immortalises the King of Pop through a selection of his most popular hits accompanied by some jaw-dropping choreography.

With tickets starting at $149, the show isn’t cheap and the lack of any coherent story line is a detraction but visually it is a sight to behold. Other similar shows along the Strip surpass it too, according to more regular visitors.

A short hop down the Strip in Harrah’s Las Vegas Hotel and Casino, pop is replaced by rock n’ roll as an extraordinary twist of fate saw Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins united at Sun Records studios in Memphis for an impromptu jam session in the winter of 1956 is recounted with exceptional aplomb.

Entering with little more than mildly optimistic expectations, it’s a show I can’t recommend highly enough.

The story moves along at a lively pace, the chemistry between the protagonists on stage is excellent and the talent of each performer in not only delivering strong vocal and instrumental performances but in imitating some of the most unique styles ever heard is exceptional and makes for an incredible show.

Booths at the venue range from $55 — $125 while general seats sell at $75 — $95.

Similarly, Vegas eateries fall into the same category of pleasantly over-delivering on expectations. Bardot Brasserie at Aria Las Vegas; Fleur restaurant at the Mandalay Bay resort and Lago at the Bellagio are all exceptional.

If steak and red wine is your weakness, none will disappoint and between them they offer a fantastic range of cheeses, seafood, fish, vegetables, pastas and salads.

Lago, perched alongside the spectacular Caesar’s Palace fountains which dazzle onlookers every 15 minutes, is a particular standout experience.

While not exactly cheap, prices aren’t unreasonable either given the quality with main courses ranging from $28 up to $60 and a 1lb rib-eye coming in at $50.

Having a few after-dinner drinks though isn’t quite as easy as you might think with a small enough selection of bars along the main thoroughfare, many of which close at midnight.

The casino bars stay open all night, and if you’re at a table, free drink is on tap to help lubricate the more optimistic side of one’s brain, but as far as one-off ‘regular’ bars go, the Strip is somewhat bare.

Then again, most are in town to party in casinos; penthouses and clubs so perhaps regular isn’t in great demand in this town.

During the day beware of prices of more mundane purchases. Stopping for a bottle of water at, for example, Caesars Palace’s outside bar while walking the length of the Strip isn’t advisable as it’ll come with a whopping bill over $6.50.

As if that’s not bad enough you’ll be pestered for ID no matter your age or that you’re simply looking for a bottle of water. Stick to the guys selling from fridges at a dollar a pop along the way instead.

Getting to the self-proclaimed city of sin is pretty straightforward with Aer Lingus flying daily from Dublin to San Francisco with onward connections to Las Vegas with partner airlines, United and JetBlue.

Fares start from €269 each-way including taxes and charges.

The airline’s revamped business class is a fantastic new string to its bow with impressive meals, good customer service and supreme comfort — including seats that recline to a fully horizontal position in what becomes your own little pod-like cocoon.

Unfortunately, wifi problems persisted on both legs of our journey and the entertainment system left a lot to be desired, especially on the return journey. Otherwise though, as you’d expect from Aer Lingus, the flight was made as comfortable and relaxing as possible.

As much as Vegas is, and will remain, a city built on the freedoms it affords visitors to its casinos, bars and clubs, it’s also a city full of surprises that caters for far more than the usual suspects.

Each casino hotel is as luxurious as the next, houses a great show and also has an outdoor pool complex that could just as easily be in Salou or Tenerife.

For more information, contact the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority or visit the website www.lasvegas.com