For this Perfect Stay, we booked at Caesars Palace.  We chose this hotel because of the strip location near things we want to do, the entertainment options at the resort, the proximity to awesome shopping, and awesome food and drink options throughout the resort. I chose it over the Venetian, Bellagio, Palms, and Cosmo, which are similar price-range hotels because of the more modest price point, access to awesome shows, awesome pool complex, the best-rated buffet, and great club scene.

Caesars Palace (book now) is a good choice for nearly any type of trip based on location, budget, and access to all the things to do in Vegas.

Things to Do at Caesars Palace During Our Perfect Stay

• Buffets: Bacchanal Buffet (44%+ Off), Buffet of Buffets
• Breakfast/Brunch/lunch: Pronto by Giada ($34.99 breakfast buffet + unlimited mimosas) HEXX ($30 groupon for $50 to spend), Mon Ami Gabi (Paris), Mesa Grill, Forum Food Court, Pronto by Giada, Gordon Ramsay Pub & Grill
• Dinner: Rao’s, Hell’s Kitchen, Old Homestead, MR CHOW
• Day Activity: Grand Canyon Tours, Horseback through Red Rock, Caesars Pools, Casino Hopping, Pool Party Crawl ($46 – 3 parties w/transportaion), Caesars Sports Book
• Shows: Absinthe, Jeff Dunham, Wayne Newton Up Close & Personal
• Nightlife: Omnia Nightclub, Casino, Nightclub Crawl

Editors Note: Our Perfect Stay series takes you through our perfect stay at our favorite hotel around the world. We take you through our optimal agenda, reasons for choosing the destination and accommodations, and what we would do each day of our perfect trip. 

Daily Agenda

With our daily agenda, we wanted to give you a bit of the insight into our planning process and what decisions we actually made while on this perfect vacation vacation trip. We will discuss each of the 4 nights and focus on what we did in and around Caesars Palace over a long weekend in the fall (October time frame). Because some options can be seasonal, when we chose a seasonal option, we give you other potential non-seasonal options that we could have chosen also.

Day 1: Thursday Travel + Dinner + Settling in

We will arrive in Vegas on Thursday evening around 6:00pm local time after flying from the eastern timezone after work. This means we’re only taking 1 day off from work for the trip, but getting a full night in on Thursday!

For this trip, we chose a standard king room, but always consider upgrades. Caesars has a wide variety of rooms, from standard tower kings to upgrade Nobu rooms, to amazing suites. Because we will be visiting in the fall and will be spending less time in the room, we went the economical route and as Diamond members the resort fees are free!

Since we’re arriving in the evening already, we quickly drop our bags off at the room, quickly get ready, and head off for dinner. We considered options like Hell’s Kitchen or Old Homestead but ultimately decided to do Bobby Flay’s Mesa Grill for Dinner. I had this for brunch last time in Vegas and it was one of my favorites, so we wanted to try dinner.

It lived up to the high expectations. We decided to get a few apps and split a meal, so we went with with the Sophie’s chopped salad ($15), the rough cut tuna “nachos” ($19), and the crispy lobster tacos ($24). Everything was great, but the nachos really stood out, with plenty of tuna and an interesting take on the dish. And boy was it tasty!

Because it was the first night, we didn’t go crazy on the drinks, but did get a margarita ($14) which was very nice (and their specialty) and a cherry and bourbon drink (~$15), which was also quite tasty.

We stuck with the seafood theme and split the Ancho Chile-Honey Glazed Salmon ($33) and it was OUTSTANDING. A touch of spice from the black bean sauce and the jalapeno crema really helped make this a special dish. This is one I will definitely get again! The cilantro pesto mashed potatoes ($12) were the smash hit of the meal! I can’t recommend them enough, even after I was a bit hesitant to try them over some of the other amazing sounding options.

Overall, the meal was about $150+tip. Because of our recent Diamond status upgrade, we used our welcome to diamond $100 discount, so overall we paid about $80 our of pocket for an outstanding meal!

Normally, we wouldn’t take in a show on the first night because of the time difference (10 start time is 1am EST), the small potential for flight delays, and just wanting to take in the scene first, we wanted to see Absinthe again and got an awesome deal (here) to compare to Atomic Saloon Show (tix) which we saw on a previous visit.

It, as usual, was absolutely incredible and I can never recommend it enough. Absinthe is still my favorite Vegas show, but there’s something about Atomic Saloon Show that stuck with me also. I don’t think you can go wrong with either!

After the show, it was time to call it a night… well, right after an hour of blackjack. The wife bit the hay and I hit a nice run of cards, leaving me up a couple hundred on the first night. Overall, an incredibly successful trip with great food, entertaining show, and a hot streak at the tables.

Day 2: Friday Fun

Typically, we would grab some brunch (at Mesa if we hadn’t eaten it the night before) at Giada (breakfast buffet + unlimited mimosas groupon for $34,99) or bacchanal buffet ($88 VIP breakfast w/drinks groupon for 2), or at the new spot at Bellagio (Sables), but today, we rented a BMW convertible from Sixt and decided to take in the Grand Canyon. We just grabbed a quick bite and a coffee and headed out early to make sure we had plenty of time.

This was our first trip to the Grand Canyon and I honestly had low expectations, as I can be hard to impress with some of these tourist traps, but the Grand Canyon was out of this world. We went to the west rim, which is much closer to Vegas, but acording to most, it is not quite as impressive as the South Rim. I thought it was amazing! The drive with the top down and a perfect 78 degree day was also a huge highlight. The views throughout were stunning and my favorite part of the drive was looking in the rear view mirror to see the beauty we just passed.

I loved the convertible, but I also see the allure of taking a bus or other tour to allow you to take in the views without worrying about driving. It was a nice, fun drive, but you can’t take it in like you could as a passenger. Some of the best tours of the west rim (with skywalk, which is CRAZY) and the south rim here. I’ve been to Vegas many time over the past few years, but never got off the strip or Fremont street. This was a new adventure that I will do much more often now!

Day 3: Saturday Morning Adventure, Pool Time, & Club

Saturday was a pool day, but we loved the Grand Canyon so much, we made a quick trip to Red Rock National Park and drive the 13 miles scenic tour after taking in lunch at a Vegas staple, Hash Hash a Go Go. The portions were HUGE and the food was great. It’s not necessarily someplace we would have gone if we were just doing the pool, but because we had a car, we made the pit stop and it was definitely worth it!

Red Rock National Park was amazing and was a much quicker trip. We only spent about 2.5 hours including the drive and breakfast, so we were back in Vegas before noon. The views at Red Rock are stunning and the drive shows you many different sides of this natural wonder. And at just $15/car, it’s a great value that everyone would love!

We spent a few hours at the pool, but honestly October is not typical Vegas pool weather, but with the heated pool, it scratched the pool itch.I didn’t get a chance to play, but I was intrigued by the pool-side blackjack. Something definitely on my list for next time.

Next, we went back to the room for some relaxation and getting ready for an early dinner since we wanted to see Calvin Harris at Omnia (or Tiesto or Steve Aoki, or one of the other amazing acts coming through)!

We decided on Rao’s Italian for dinner and it didn’t disappoint! We started with the fried green tomato caprese ($18) and split a Caesar salad ($16). For the pasta dish, we split the penne vodka ($31) and went with the Chicken Marsala for the main ($44). Overall, it was a top-notch meal.

After dinner, we headed to the room to have a couple pre-game drinks and around midnight, headed to Omnia. If we weren’t Diamond, we would have gone earlier to Omnia because the lines were already wrapped around the casino.

The prices are Omnia are not for the faint of heart and our large vodka tonic came in well over $100 for 2. But they are pretty large and lasted us the night. I love the outside area at Omnia and allows you to get out of the main room and into the fresh air, especially on a beautiful fall night. There’s always a mass of people at the huge events, so it’s nice to be able to catch your breath for a minute outside.

If we wanted a more mixed nightclub experience, we would have done one of the nightclub tours. This allows you to hit up multiple clubs, with VIP access, and luxury transportation. This is a perfect option for groups that can’t decide and for nights were you don’t have a preference for the performer.

Day 4: Sunday Travel

I love the ability to get to Vegas early on the first night, but hate the travel back towards the east coast. Because this was a fairly short trip, we decided to take the later flight that left Vegas around 6:00pm local time and arrived home just after midnight. It gives us the ability to still have some time on Sunday without dealing with any red-eye situations.

We started our day early, having the breakfast buffet and unlimited mimosas at Pronto by Giada. We saved 40% and spent just $35 each for this tasty breakfast and had PLENTY of mimosas to celebrate (or drown our sarrows) for having to leave Vegas. When we have to leave Vegas, getting a good buzz first thing in the morning is never a bad idea.

For the rest of the day, we just wondered through casinos, went to check out the Bellagio conservatory, and took in some favorite areas around the strip. We did a bit of shopping at the forums and headed back to the room to finish packing and leave for the airport after our late checkout.

What We Bought for Our Stay at Caesars Palace

• FEATURED Portable Battery Charger – 10,000 mAh, built in lightning, usb C, and micro usb cables BUILT IN. Plus, you can plug it directly into the wall. This is the portable charger you must own! Never lose charge or forget a cord again! – Buy for $38.99 with Amazon Prime
• Comfy Walking Shoes
• Car Rental
• Groupons
• Camera
• Travel Accessories

VEGAS SHOP

Why Las Vegas?

We love Las Vegas.  We will plan for a long weekend, arriving on Thursday evening and leaving on Sunday afternoon. This trips gives us the perfect timeframe to experience the full nightlife and entertainment scenes, as the pool parties, clubs, and shows will all be in full force during the stay.

Vegas is always towards the top of our list when choosing any vacation, but for a long weekend, it is usually the top choice. No matter what weekend, there are headlining acts, amazing restaurants, and a great nightlife scene. In addition, 3-4 days in Vegas is a good amount, as you can have:

• relaxing days by the pool
• adventurous tours amazing sites like the Grand Canyon (3-5 hours away) or Red Rock (30 minutes away) during the day,
• world class shopping everywhere from outlets to high-end fashion and everything in between
• exciting nights at amazing restaurants, clubs, casinos, or shows.

Vegas really does offer something for everyone!

Why Caesars Palace?

Caesars Palace is one of the most popular and well placed hotels on the Vegas strip. Its central location, wide variety of shopping options with the forum shops, amazing food options throughout the resort, iconic shows, and part of one of the largest and most popular rewards programs makes Caesars a great option.

Over a long weekend, Caesars offers a world class night club (Omnia) that hosts some of the best DJs in the world (Calvin Harris is there most weekends, as an example). The property has a number of famous chefs and amazing restaurants from brunch to lunch and dinner. The pool complex is one of the best on the strip. And the shows are headlined by our favorite show in Vegas, Absinthe in the tent outside of Caesars Place.

The rooms at Caesars Place are well appointed, the sports book is one of the best of the strip, and the casino floor has one of the widest varieties of games in Vegas. For the mix of budget, location, rewards, and things to do, Caesars ranks near the top of our rankings no matter what kind of vacation you want.

Some of the reasons we would choose Caesars is because of the cost to value, the rewards program, the sports book during NFL season, the pools during pool season, and most importantly the central location. It opens up areas like the Venetian and Wynn while still being close enough to events at T-Mobile Arena or MGM Grand.

Because we were status matched as Diamond Members (you can do this once, which allowed us to move from MGM Gold to Caesars Diamond for the rest of the year), we got a great rate on the room PLUS no resort fees! It’s one of the best perks for the Caesars Rewards program. Diamond can be hard to keep if you’re a budget traveler or don’t go often, but because there are local Caesars properties in Indiana and there are a number of properties to choose from (plus good promotions at times), it’s not as hard as it seems if you visit a few times a year like we do.

It also has a wide variety of room types and budgets, so it’s perfect for groups like bachelor/bachelorette parties and reunions, as everyone can be in the same hotel but still get a room type for their budget if desired. The Nobu hotel and Caesars suites offers a premium room option, while the traditional forum tower rooms are larger and well appointed for their lower price point.