sizzler, good luck to you on your trip. A lot of us totally feel your anticipation. We'll look forward to your trip report. As far as tournaments go, go to the tournament pages for each of the rooms you mentioned to see what they have available. Some of the casinos will also have tournament info. on their web sites. I'm not much of a club hopper so I can't really help you there. There's great shopping everywhere you go, so your wife won't have any problems shopping. The forum shops in Caesars are nice. There's the Fashion Show mall on the strip, near City Center I think. Check out http://www.lasvegas.com/activities/shopping/ for more ideas.

I can fully relate to the anticipation. I have going to LV for over 30 years and I still get excited about it. I think the Fashion Show mall is closer to TI and the Wynn, but still not far from where you are staying. Also, there are a number of great shops around the Aria, so shopping will not be a problem. Bueno suerte.

Sizzler.... enjoy the anticipation! I love going to Vegas to play poker, but I have many weeks or months of enjoyment anticipating the trip, too.

Flamingo is very central to poker on the strip, so you'll like the location. The room itself is kind of dingy but unpretentious. They tend to spread 1/2nl and 2-4limit. You'll find some good locals there at 1/2 but also a lot of casual tourist players. I like both Bellagio and Aria (1/2nl and 1/3nl, respectively) for the room quality. Play tends to be a little tougher there, imo, than Flamingo, Ballys, Planet Hollywood, Harrahs (which are all close walk for you), but if you're patient and choose good tables you can get very juicy games there, too, and there's more money on the table, typically. My advice, play Aria, Bellagio, Wynn, Venetian (category A) when you're ready to concentrate and be patient.... if you're tired, bored, or want to drink a lot, then Flamingo, Ballys, PHo, Harrahs, IP/Quad, TI and Mirage (category B) might be a little more forgiving. Of course those are just the places within an easy walk for you. I'd say that most other places in town (e.g., downtown: Binions, Golden Nugget, Mandalay Bay, Excal, MGM, Monte Carlo) will be similar to category B.

For tourneys, it really depends on what you're looking for in terms of buy-ins and structure (i.e., starting chips, and level length, and tourney length, basically). Generally, under $80 or so you're going to get "fast" tourneys (small starting chips and 15/20 min levels). These tend to go fast (3-4 hrs) and become "shove fests" pretty quickly. For a little more money ($100-$250), you'll find some longer structure tourneys at Aria, Bellagio, Venetian, Wynn, and at least one at Mirage (again, mostly category A places). Others will have < $80 tourneys. Check the AVP app.

Those are just my opinions. Your milage may vary!

For bars with craic--Try Nine Fine Irishmen at New York, New York, or off the strip, mcmullansirishpub (.com) near the Orleans is about the best.
ncidentally, Orleans has one of the largest poker rooms in town as well). Slainte!

With shopping your wife can't go wrong with the Fashion Show Mall and it might be easier on your pocket book than other places. Otherwise she would enjoy the Forum Shops at Caesars, Grande Canal Shops at Venetian, Shoppes at The Palazzo, Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood, or Crystals at City Center. I'm sure I'm missing several good options.

Decent restaurants are every where. Many are far, far more than decent so it again depends on what you are looking for and what you can afford. Staying at the Flamingo, I would recommend at least one evening meal at Mon Abi Gabi at Paris if the weather allows you to sit outside. Great ambiance when the Bellagio fountains shows are in progress. I also would recommend Sinatra at the Encore. If money is no object, try Picasso at Bellagio. There are also many lower cost options and people on this site will have plenty of recommendations.

Lots of bars with a "bit of craic" had to google that....). Are you looking for nightclubs or simply fun bars?

Looking forward to your trip report!

You're going on my birthday! That's all the good omen you need.

You're in a great spot too; Flamingo obviously doesn't have the prestige of some of the other rooms, but the games can be quite juicy. I've also found the Bellagio games to be pretty good on the cash side of things as well. For tournies you can't go wrong with the Aria dailys. Caesar's has some good deepstack tournies on the weekend as well. As far as the quality of the poker room in general, there are some pretty polarized opinions in here, but I for one am a fan.

thanks guys for ur very useful and informative tips will be definitely taking them onboard now all i need is a few decent cards (not a lot just a few lol).all i can say is roll on the 12th

First piece of advice. When you arrive, despite all your built-up anticipation finally being realized, get some rest. Don't gamble, play cards, nothing. Take a nap, get something to eat, even walk around to get oriented a bit.

Second, check AVP for a forum thread about AVP'ers who are going to be in February. Maybe catch up with a regular local AVP poster and/or a regular visitor is going to be in town when you are. They will be good resources for your play.

Third, take in the free stuff. Bellagio fountains, Rio's Masquerade Show in the Sky, Mirage volcano, watching the hookers (always in pairs) work the older white guys at the Rio.

Fourth, I don't know what you are doing for transportation. If renting a car, use it to check out the non-strip casinos. While I'll probably rent one this year when I come out in May I historically use a bus pass to travel up and down the strip, go to the open air outlet mall at the north end of the strip bus route, hit downtown. Cabs will cost you a fortune, use sparingly!

Take in the cheap and cheesy stuff found downtown like deep fried oreos and the like.

Carry a small backpack with you when you are out and about. There are a couple of convenience stores on Fremont Street and on the strip, pick up some light foodstuffs there to carry with you.

Take advantage of the opportunity to learn and play a variety of games. Go to Sam's Town and play 7-Card Stud, hit a Orleans or Venetian or somewhere else to play some Omaha 8 or better, Sit in on the $4-8 mixed game at MGM to learn to play those games. As someone who hasn't played much, you won't find a better live training ground.

I don't like mentioning a competing site but for this it applies. To find European style roulette, use lasvegasadvisor.com to research casinos that offer it. Stratosphere used to be the best place to play but the last couple of times I've been there I haven't been able to find their table at all.

I have plenty more but that's a start.

Sizzler,

So far you've gotten lot's of good advice, take advantage. I happen to love the free shows on the strip -- the Bellagio Fountains and the Mirage volcano especially. Also, the Bellagio conservatory is always worth a look, they do some damn cool work in there.

Whatever you do, be sure to drink water. It sounds stupid, but Las Vegas is very dry and your body won't be used to it. So grab a bottle or two while you play and have a big glass with every meal.

Dave

P.S. If all goes well, I might be there around the same time (Feb 9-16); I've got a flight booked and a room reserved at the Quad/Imperial Palace , but there are still a couple things that need to happen first and the trip might fall apart.

Dave,

Excellent call on the water, particularly during the initial part of the trip. I've found that if I don't drink a lot of water early in my visits to Vegas I tend to get headaches until I get hydrated (with water vs. scotch, wine, or beer......)

There are two outlet malls that are great for shopping. I prefer the one that is outdoors (think its north of the strip). Also, fashion show mall north of TI is great. Forum shops at Ceasars is supernice but more expensive. You can buy all major brands at reasonable proces at the outlet malls.