Cosmopolitan, Bellagio and Caesars Palace, 2021

At the heart of the strip are Caesars and the Flamingo (across the street behind another casino... strange), the center of luxury and the high end of gambling. Bellagio the king of elegance, Caesars the big roller capitol and Cosmopolitan the party castle, all on the same side of the strip, next to each other for people not wanting to wait an hour for a ride.

Arrival

I drove south down I-15 to the Flamingo exit and turned left, then right a couple times to the free parking at the Cosmopolitan. It was a weekend and they were going to lock the casino to only guests after 8 (but if you're already in, you're golden). The parking lot valet is something, marble all over everything. But I kept driving down levels to an open spot then over to the elevators (which were NOTORIOUSLY difficult to find at the end of the night) into the casino.

The Cosmopolitan

Definitely the place to party, be seen, and drink. I chose the Vesper Lounge to start with since well, I have a Bond thing going on.

This is an interesting take on an old cigarette machine

They have shops, but it was late and closed by that time

Hattie B's Hot Chicken, I got addicted in Nashville, and it tasted the same as there. So so so good, drunk or sober

Bellagio

The Fancy casino. Everything is up a couple notches from most in the entire area. Swank, elegant, low pressure, but for the most part, expensive at every turn.

Walkway that starts literally feet from the Cosmopolitan

Bellagio roulette. 3 green spots. Not great odds

The Bellagio shops. Mostly out of my price range

Very French styling that lasts throughout the property

And they have a fairly permanent flower display in the atrium. It was so fragrant and powerful, I could smell it through my mask. Amazing.

Flowers made out of flowers? Ok this is maybe a little over the top

And tons of eat and drink...

It wasn't what I had expected. Very sports, VERY expensive

This one is booked out in advance for a couple months. Plan ahead

My good friend of 17 years, Scott, who gave me some of the tips like Redrock and such to see

The view out the front of the Bellagio. Does not suck

Caesars

This is the perennial home of the high rollers. Pretty elegant, definitely geared towards a total experience with the Forum Shops to allow you to indulge in many things besides gambling.

The front desk, they can handle huge crowds here easily

The Colosseum, home of the best singing acts on the planet

Little old-school but still nice accents. Does scream Vegas though

And of course, food. Food. FOOD.

I'm not a huge cigar guy, maybe one a year. This was a temple to the cigar experience

And the amazing Forum Shops. High end is the starting test to get in the door. The most exclusive luxury brands are here.

Curving escalators? Not needed, but they did it anyway

Fountain and ceiling that never changes, permanently a blue sky

Ok, maybe Cheesecake Factory isn't the highest end

Summary

You want to be seen? You want to party? You want to drink? You want to spend 2 full days and nights in one area? This is your Vegas spot.

Bring your money though. The food is definitely $$$$ pricing. The shops are quite expensive. The gambling is about the same price as everywhere else unless you want more unique games with better odds, then the minimum bet is much higher ($100 a spin for European roulette).

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