Joie de Vivre Las Vegas!
Written: Oct 21 '00
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| Liffey's Full Review: Paris Las Vegas |
Review Topic: Accommodations
Ah, the City of Lights... within the City of Neon. Do you find a certain appeal in visiting France, but without all the $5 coffee and shame of being an American tourist? Then consider Paris Las Vegas, where the drinks are free and American tourism is what it's all about. Why, I declare it's one of the loveliest places I've never been.
You might think it takes a lot of nerve to write a travel epinion about a place you've never laid eyes on. Nerve, or stupidity. I know that would be my first reaction.
But there's more than one way to skin an epinion. I think of all those travel guides, you know, the kind people plunk $14 down for, and how in so many cases you read "we did not get to sample the delights of XYZ for ourselves, but fellow travelers assure us..." And that's just when they'll even admit that they didn't write an entry based on promotional literature and a few glossy photographs. For the record, I hate this. I paid for the horse's mouth and not the nephew of the stall cleaner's best friend, right?
So where do I get off writing this epinion? Let me explain. I have mentioned in several reviews here that Mike and I are going to Disney World, right? A big mega trip, stuffed with obsessive planning. But did I also mention that we're going to Las Vegas immediately afterward? Yep, we are. It will be Mike's first trip to The Meadows, and my first trip since being old enough to gamble. Er, gamble legally.
I come from a family of Vegas-hounds, veterans from the "old days" who still make several annual trips, which naturally means I've held a longtime aversion to the place. Frankly, until we decided that it would be fun to see both of America's most popular tourist destinations, I wasn't planning on returning soon. Or ever. (Ask me about the miserable time I had during Comdex about 10 years ago. Or don't.)
But when we made that decision to visit, I started planning my little heart out. And Paris was one casino which made the finals in our grand tabletop pageant called "Where to Stay." (Other realistic contestants include the Luxor and Treasure Island, in other words, there's no question that we're going for theme and Strip location. Remind me to write an epinion on this year's Super Casino by Pete Earley.)
I noticed this category is strangely sparse. Before I submitted this, there was only one epinion here. I hope to see the category fill up with many personal accounts of visits to this hotel-casino-resort, but in the meantime I think those considering a visit to Paris Las Vegas will enjoy what I'm about to present.
My motivation here is to give you the benefit of all of my research on the Paris casino. Consider it a portal to the best Paris Las Vegas information available online. No other casinos, no generic information, just Paris Las Vegas information, photos, and links. Sure, you could read 18 months worth of Deja News and crank through the search engines. But, believe me, wading through several hundred sites and finding that 90% of them are tired old blurbs put out by travel agencies and half of the rest are keyword-abusing online gambling scams is no fun.
I'm not claiming that this epinion will cover everything, that's impossible in a world where new sites are available daily and some are never promoted, but I hope it gives you a solid foundation for choosing which resort to stay at.
Paris Palace? Paris Flamingo? Paris Hilton?
Do you ever feel like there are about five old guys in the world and they own everything? You want to feel like you have several different opportunities to patronize different businesses, and sometimes it's frustrating to realize all roads lead back to one CEO.
That's the case with the new breed of Las Vegas casinos. You have your Wynn properties (still Steve Wynn creations even though ownership has changed hands), your Circus Circus properties (Oh pardon me, I meant "Mandalay Resort Group"), and your Park Place properties. There are other choices, but these are the dominant tourist destinations on the strip.
Paris is owned by Park Place, a Hilton spin-off. What else is owned by Park Place? Caesar's Palace, Bally's, the Flamingo (think Bugsy Siegel), and, of course, the Hilton. And that's just in town.
Why do I tell you this? Because although the properties are maintained individually, the management methods of one are echoed across the others. If you don't like the way they do things at Caesar's, such as specific house rules for some games, then there's a reasonable chance that you won't be happy at Paris, either. Or maybe you once had a terrible time at Bally's and swore you wouldn't give their powers that be another dime. In which case, stay away from Paris. Naturally it all works the other way, too. Thought that the service at the Flamingo was great? Paris could be a good choice for your next trip.
If you're into stocks (who isn't, these days?), you can get a quote for Park Place at http://quote.yahoo.com/q?s=ppe&d=t.
Rooms: "Luxury Relaxation Pods" or "Just a Place to Sleep"?
When I think of Paris, and I speak from the limited (read: nil) experience of once having seen a bit of southern France across the water while touring the Basque country, I picture only what I've read in books. Dingy but fashionable cramped apartment rooms stuffed near the Left Bank, where lovers, wearing Polanski-esque green pea coats and chain smoking furiously, meet for stolen afternoons before walking around the corner to gnaw scenically on a baguette, taking their smoldering glide along narrow, twisted streets, and still chain smoking furiously.
Are those the accommodations in Paris Las Vegas, or are we talking about something a little closer to Versailles? Please, this is Las Vegas. Rooms may be tacky, but they always sparkle.
Paris Las Vegas (let's just call it PLV) has 2914 or 2916 rooms, depending on who you ask. Ditto for suites, where the number is either 295 or 300. There are four concierge floors. The 34 story building was modeled after the Hotel de Ville in Paris, France. The usual amenities for this class of resort are present, plus a few more: dataport on phone line, in-room safe, iron and ironing board, pay-per-view, movies-on-demand, cable television, room service, and hair dryers.
No pets are allowed to stay in the hotel, but children are fine. (Don't roll your eyes - the Bellagio's policies may be spreading, after all.) The shower and tub are separate. Definitely a bonus if you consider that many of the pyramid rooms in the Luxor are shower-only. There are photos of the marble bath below.
I scoured the Web for photos of rooms, the URLs of which are below. (Yes, I am relying on other people's work here, that's entirely what this "portal epinion" is about. Me finding all of these scattered bits of Web info so you don't necessarily have to. Sorry for the repetitive disclaimers, but don't you just know someone is going to NR/SR this epinion solely because I haven't been to PLV?)
http://www.vegas.com/resorts/paris/parisimages/image43.htm
(Room with king bed, settee - Vegas.com)
http://travel2vegas.com/noind/paris08.html
(Bathroom, standard room - Travel2Vegas.com)
http://travel2vegas.com/noind/paris09.html
(Separate shower and tub, standard room - Travel2Vegas.com)
http://travel2vegas.com/noind/paris10.html
(Armoire with television - Travel2Vegas.com)
http://travel2vegas.com/noind/paris11.html
http://travel2vegas.com/noind/paris14.html
(Two double beds - two views - Travel2Vegas.com)
http://travel2vegas.com/noind/paris13.html
(Writing desk and chair - Travel2Vegas.com)
There are many, many people who will tell you that your room is just for sleeping in, and you should just get the best rate in the best general area and visit other casinos if you're so hung up on theme.
I see the wisdom in this, but I like the idea that if I don't want to leave my resort, I can spend all of my time in the preferred theme of my choice.
The official PLV site has this sparse page for room information: http://www.paris-lv.com/pages/hotel.html. Don't be frightened by the rates. I signed up for "Special Offers" via their site at http://www.paris-lv.com/guestfs/guestfs.htm, and was recently offered a $59/night rate.
Food: Moments with Julia Child
One thing I admire about Julia Child and her cooking is that she has become vocal about the defense of fatty foods. True, you may not want to eat them at every meal, but let's not pretend they don't taste good. I'm typing to you from the midst of a reduced fat diet (five months to date) and even I believe that it's best to practice moderation and common sense and not slash everything down to skim milk and margarine. Go ahead and put three pounds of butter in a pastry recipe, just don't eat the whole plate. I hope that someone writing a review of PLV after me will comment on whether the food was "sanitized from fat for our protection," or if the chefs have no fear of authentically rich cooking. After all, we all know that French cuisine is divine, whether we like it or not!
PLV must agree, for there are ten restaurants in their resort, and several of them are French-style offerings. (Compared to other resorts which tend towards generic steakhouse, cafe, buffet, and a few popular international offerings.)
The most gourmet of the restaurants is the one located in the Eiffel Tower, 11 stories above the Strip. The cuisine is all French elegance. Hours are 6pm to 11pm.
For more broad French dining, there is La Rotisserie des Artistes. Hours are 11 am to 3pm for lunch, and 5pm to 11pm for dinner. Las Vegas Tourism offers a photo at http://www.lvtourism.com/LVTParisRest.jpg.
You cannot envision Paris without a Parisian cafe, a brasserie? Visions of thin curling moustaches and the scent of flowers drifting across the square... The PLV cafe is Mon Ami Gabi, and is located in a replica of the Louvre. Hours are from 7am to 10:30 am for breakfast (opens 30 minutes later on the weekend), noon to 2:30pm for lunch, and dinner is served from 6pm until 2am.
Breaking from the French theme momentarily, Le Provencal is described as "Italian style with a French flair." Lunch is served from 11:30am to 3pm, dinner from 5:30pm until 11pm. Restaurant reviews may be found at http://www.lasvegas-nv.com/restrevs/proven.htm.
Le Village Buffet is the name of the obligatory buffet dining room in the resort. I consulted http://www.a2zlasvegas.com/food/buf-list.php3 for information, where they say that dinner begins at 4 pm. However, other sites give the dinner start as 5:30pm. Big difference if you want to try that old trick of arriving at the end of lunch and eating through dinner hours and offerings, but only paying lunch prices. (Hours of operation are something which really need to be on the official PLV site. It's astonishing how forgetful some large corporate web sites are.) After reading several posts in the alt.vacation.las-vegas group, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that 5:30 is the time most people are stating.
The buffet is French-focused, country French this time, featuring cuisine from five different provinces. A2ZLasVegas.com states that prices are $9.95 for breakfast and lunch, and $19.95 for dinner. Geoff Fox has a photo of the breakfast buffet at http://www.bobshack.demon.co.uk/PARISUP.JPG.
And just as every casino resort must have a buffet, they must also have a coffee shop. PLV gives a turn-of-the-century setting at Le Café Île St. Louis. Las Vegas Tourism has provided a photo of the restaurant at http://www.lvtourism.com/LVTLeCafeIleParis.jpg.
There is also an outdoor cafe, this time by the pool. It is called Le Café du Parc but only operates seasonally. Hours are from 10:30am until 5:30pm.
After opening, Paris Las Vegas added two restaurants which have not yet received much write-up. One is Trés Jazz, with a menu billed as "New World Caribbean". The other is a Chinese restaurant, Hong Kong style, called La Chine. It is open from 10:30am to 3pm for lunch and 5:30pm to 11pm for dinner.
I have saved the bakery for last. Can you imagine Paris without its hot, crusty loaves? PLV has Jean Jaqué Boulangerie, aka JJ's. Open from 6am until 11pm, it also offers light fare such as sandwiches and soups.
There are also five lounges, including a sports bar and a cigar and pipe lounge with microbrews. Appetizers are available in the latter, Napoleon's, pictures here: http://pwp.value.net/klm/paris/psn00095.jpg. (Kev)
Casino: Why We're Here, Right?
Not me, I'm too stingy. My mother threw her head back and laughed when I shared our proposed gambling budget for this trip. (I'm not going to tell you; you'll all laugh at me too.)
Despite the Disneyfication of Vegas, casinos are still where management expect to make, take, and stake the money. Themery is wonderful, but the average guest still needs an inviting place to try the proverbial luck. (Me, I'm happy to watch the Bellagio fountain show and ride in the Venetian's gondolas, waiting until I'm ready to hit those nickel slots again.)
I can give you the standard spiel about the Paris Las Vegas casino, and spare you searching through 300 websites which are all going to tell you the exact same thing. The casino is 85,000 square feet, and the ceiling has been painted to create the effect of a Parisian sky overhead.
You'll find 100 table games, with all of the usual favourites. (Poker, Pai Gow Poker, Caribbean Stud Poker, Roulette, Baccarat, Mini-Baccarat, Let it Ride, Blackjack) There are over 2200 slot machines, and there is a race/sports book. There is also a high roller area. (I'm giggling. You've seen Vegas Vacation when Randy Quaid takes Chevy Chase to the low-ball casino? Rock paper scissors? Still gets me...)
Because photography inside casinos is discouraged, there are not many online photos of the Paris Las Vegas games. (Those who like to take photos should note that unobtrusive photography is permitted in many places, but video cameras are less tolerated.)
http://pwp.value.net/klm/paris/psn00070.jpg
(Slots - Kev)
http://certexpo.com/paris.asp
(Table games plus two other photos, minimal quality - Certification Expo, Inc.)
Romance. Or Marriage. Maybe Both!
When you think of Las Vegas, you think of...? Well, sure, Elvis, but what else? Yes, yes, casinos too, but what else?
Quickie Weddings! Yet nowadays when I hear of people flying to Las Vegas to get married, they seem to be more likely to be throwing a grand celebration in a gilt-and-crystal ballroom than slunking into a "matrimony and pants pressing in 10 minutes or less!" type establishment.
Even if we don't stay at Paris Las Vegas, we're going to make a stab at being there for Valentine's Day. Paris is the City of Love! (Pronounced "luuuv!") It's corny, but you must admit it's romantic too.
By the way, after this I'll come back here and update this epinion, in particular the star rating which was very difficult to determine for what I've focusing on writing about.
We will not be availing ourselves of the wedding facilities, but rest assured the PLV is ready if you are. There are two mural-painted chapels for your nuptial pleasure, the Paradise (Chappelle du Paradis) and the Garden (Chappelle du Jardin). Paradis is the larger and accommodates 100 guests. (One online source says 158, but be aware that the official site says 100.) Garden houses 30. (Again, that same other online source says 80, but 30 comes from the official site.)
I have not been able to find an online account of someone marrying here, but I think you can safely assume that, like other resort chapels, reservations are necessary. This page on the PLV site, http://www.paris-lv.com/chapel/index.htm, describes the six packages available. If you're single, have $35 for a license, and have nothing better to do, why not get hitched at the PLV then come back here and let us know how it went? All in the glorious name of scientific research, you know.
...And Other Attractions
As if eating, gambling, and making bold commitments to other human beings weren't enough, the new Las Vegas demands sights to see.
Paris Las Vegas has a formidable number of replicas. Of course there is the mighty Eiffel Tower, 50 stories high, and only $8 to see the top. (open from 10am until 2am) I was watching a show on television the other day, and learned that when the PLV opened in September of 1999 and lit up its half-size Eiffel, the real Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, agreed to turn off its lights at that moment.
The Eiffel Tower seems to be the most photographed icon at the casino. A few photos may be found at: http://www.geofffox.com/vegas2000/5/pics/PIC00009.jpg (Geoff Fox), http://www.geofffox.com/vegas/thumbs/PIC00047.jpg (Geoff Fox), and http://www.bobshack.demon.co.uk/OPEN1.JPG (Bob - shows fireworks).
I already mentioned the recreation of the Louvre, and there are also replicas of the Arc de Triomphe, the Pont Alexander III bridge, and the Paris Opera House.
Shopping plazas are a big deal in today's casinos. PLV has 31,500 square feet of shopping, surrounded by charming cobblestone paths. At least I think they're charming. Look at these photos and see if you agree: http://pwp.value.net/klm/paris/psn00093.jpg (Kev) and http://www.lvcpn.com/ParisShops.jpg (Las Vegas Conference Planner's Network).
There is also a spa (25,500 sq ft) and of course a swimming pool. (Apparently just the one.) The spa is run by Mandara Spa, and they maintain a website at http://www.mandaraspa.com/. The pool is 2 acres and located on top of the roof. Try to leave the wedgies alone when a helicopter whirs by. Yet another photo from the Las Vegas Conference Planner's Network shows the pool at: http://www.lvcpn.com/Paristoppool.jpg
When the Chips are Down
Turn to eBay. This may seem a little odd, but I often use eBay as a research tool. If you can't find what you want online when planning your PLV trip, see if someone is selling it on eBay. PLV souvenirs are slim pickings at the moment, but if you're one of those weirdos like me who likes to check out casino chips, slot cards, and so on, all from the comfort of your living room, there is always a decent selection of this sort of item on eBay for any casino. Just go to http://pics.ebay.com/aw/pics/navbar/browse-top.gif and use something like: +paris +"las vegas" +casino +chip* as your search terms. (Don't forget to check off the box to search item and description.)
More Photos, We Need More Photos
When you're excited about planning a trip, you can't have too many photos. All of the following are direct links to Paris Las Vegas photo pages. It's a mix of professional/media photography and tourist snaps. In a few case there will be some non-PLV photos on the page as well, but I figure you can live with that.
I omitted three photos because their URLs would have turned this epinion into an unacceptably horizontal scroller. If you would like to dig for them yourself, I can give you the main URLs. There is a tourist photo of the PLV Eiffel Tower deep down on this site: http://www.kestan.com/, and two excellent photos showing the Check-In desk and the Shopping Promenade at http://govegas.about.com/. As for the rest:
http://pwp.value.net/klm/paris_01.htm
(Kev - 58 photos)
http://www.vegas.com/resorts/paris/parisimages/index.htm
(Vegas.com [new] - 48 photos)
http://travel2vegas.com/noind/paris.html
(Travel 2 Vegas - 14 photos)
http://www.vegas.com/resorts/new/hotels/paris.html
(Vegas.com [old] - 9 photos)
http://www.fortogden.com/lasvegaspictures_1.html
(Fort Ogden Design - 6 photos)
http://www.chris.sannes.net/photos/vegas/index.html
(Christopher Sannes - 6 photos from September 1999)
http://www.geofffox.com/vegas2000/5/PIC00014.jpg
(Accordion Player - Geoff Fox)
http://www.geofffox.com/vegas2000/5/pics/PIC00017.jpg
(View from Bellagio - Bob)
Why stop at photos when we can have video too? Vegas.com has eighteen, you heard me right - eighteen, streaming videos on the Web which focus entirely on the Paris Las Vegas. The URL is http://www.vegas.com/video/hotels.html#paris
And in the Department of Half Picture Half Video, there are webcams. The official PLV site maintains a webcam at: http://www.paris-lv.com/pages/webcam.htm
You Forgot the Shows!
I forgot the shows? Non, non, not moi. In addition to entertainment in the five lounges, there is a 1,200-seat theatre called Le Théâtre des Arts. If the PLV site is to be believed, nothing is happening there until December when Don Rickles plays. I say it's Paris that forgot the shows!
Is stageshow Notre Dame de Paris defunct? It was hard to tell at first. A review from late February may be found at: http://www.igoshows.com/reviews/review04.html. I went to ShowVegas.com from here and it did not seem to be available. So I consulted good ole Deja.com and, sure 'nuff, this show went to the big stage in the sky in late July 2000.
Transportation
As is typical for this kind of Strip hotel, there is no airport shuttle. (Not for us regular folks, anyway.) But there is a monorail to Bally's next door. (It's not the airport, but you didn't really want to go home, did you?)
Paris Las Vegas Sites You Can't Miss
Beyond the obvious proper site, http://www.paris-lv.com, there are just couple of others you shouldn't miss. One is the PLV entry at A to Z Las Vegas, found at http://www.a2zlasvegas.com/hotels/strip/paris.html. It includes visitor ratings on rooms, service, casino, value, and location.
Another, although technically dated, is the Las Vegas Sun's piece on the opening of the resort just over a year ago. Beautiful firework shot, a video, a 360 QuickTime photo, and separate pages on the rooms, restaurants, and shopping. (Please note that their link to "stores" seems to be broken.) The URL is http://www.lasvegassun.com/dossier/gaming/paris/
I also have a lot of fun at the Cheapo Vegas site. I believe the owner writes for Epinions, too. The entry for Paris Las Vegas may be found at: http://www.cheapovegas.com/paris.html. Whimsical and pulling no punches.
But Don't Take My Word For It
Ah, the best part. The end. And not because I think I'm about seven years older than when I started writing this epinion and shuffling through pages of bookmarks from a year's worth of research.
This is the best part because I'm going to end this with links to other people's trip reports covering Paris Las Vegas. Hey, until someone else sticks their head up and we get some more epinions in this category, two reviews just aren't going to be enough for the serious planner!
Almost all of the following travel diaries are from people who actually stayed at the PLV. I did find some trip reports where a brief but insightful visit to PLV was described, but I decided to be mindful of clutter and of you having to hunt for the relevant bit. I think you'll find the URLs below to be plenty.
Sidebar: A fun fact to impress you. Searching the Vegas vacation group via Deja.com for "paris trip report" yielded 438 posts. Yes, I read them all in order to pick the following ones out. Yes, I think I went blind. And yes, if you NR this epinion after all that just because it's unorthodox, then I will bite you. Worse, I will not remember you in my will if I should hit a multimillion jackpot on those nickel slots. Beware, Dorothy!
I also reported about 40 dead links in AltaVista, so if you search for PLV info on your own the results will be that much better. So, are you impressed yet with my dedication, my undying service, my beret which says "Rusty"? Or are you just ready to wrap this up? I thought so, here you go, and adieu, adieu, adieu!
Trip Reports, Backwards from Most Recent:
http://x73.deja.com/[ST_rn=ps]/getdoc.xp?AN=660874407
(Cheryl - August 2000)
http://travel2vegas.com/TR/june00e.html
(Sonya and Dan - June 2000)
http://x57.deja.com/[ST_rn=ps]/getdoc.xp?AN=639403709
(Frank Bigelow - June 2000)
http://x57.deja.com/[ST_rn=ps]/getdoc.xp?AN=618442926
(Scary Mary - April 2000)
http://x57.deja.com/[ST_rn=ps]/getdoc.xp?AN=608203988
(BigDog - March 2000)
http://x57.deja.com/[ST_rn=ps]/getdoc.xp?AN=584704980
(Cordero - February 2000)
http://thompsonfamilyweb.com/lv_trip_00/
(John Thompson - January 2000)
http://x57.deja.com/[ST_rn=ps]/getdoc.xp?AN=573502888
(Geoff Dawson - January 2000)
http://x57.deja.com/[ST_rn=ps]/getdoc.xp?AN=566949361
(Gary Smith - December 1999)
http://x57.deja.com/[ST_rn=ps]/getdoc.xp?AN=579530851
(Paul Cote - November 1999)
http://x57.deja.com/[ST_rn=ps]/getdoc.xp?AN=534265650
(Sam D. - September 1999)
http://x57.deja.com/[ST_rn=ps]/getdoc.xp?AN=522636012
(Tim Bernot - September 1999)
http://x57.deja.com/[ST_rn=ps]/getdoc.xp?AN=530199800
(Spencerdogg - September 1999)
http://www.cwmc.org/wwwboard/casino/messages/193.html
(Unclebob - September 1999)
http://www.everythingvegas.com/trips.htm
(Unknown - September 1999, part of a long page with several other trips)
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
Liffey
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Reviews written: 79
Trusted by: 71 members
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I like thinking.
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