Before we visited last summer, if anybody had mentioned ‘Las Vegas’, I would have immediately conjured up images of poker tables, scantily clad ladies, excessive partying and hardcore gambling. Considering I’m not a huge fan of any of these activities, you’d probably be surprised to hear that I was quite excited about going. Mostly because I love visiting new places and soaking up the atmosphere, but also because I had done a bit of research (who am I kidding, I spent hours searching the whole of the Internet), to plan our trip properly so that we could make the most of our time there without sinning.  

 We actually had an amazing time in Vegas and would relive our time there in a heartbeat. I have so much love for the place and I wrote about our time there here and here. I learnt that Vegas is such a deep character and your options are almost limitless!

I now present to you ten fun things to do in Vegas without becoming a crazed party animal/intense gambler:

1. Visit the Grand Canyon. Although not actually in Las Vegas (or even in the same state if we’re being picky), the Grand Canyon is a must see. We flew via helicopter and it was such an incredible experience. There are so many tours running from Vegas or you could even drive yourself. Either way DO IT!    
2. Shop. Vegas is perfect for shopping. It has everything from high end designer luxuries, right down to Topshop. There are also a couple of outlet centres a short drive from the strip. Seriously though, there are shops in every hotel. I loved shopping in Caesers Palace and the Venetian. We also wandered around Fashion Mall a couple of times.  
3. Check out the hotels. The hotels are insane and are really what makes Vegas. Each hotel has been crafted into a beautiful character in the story of Las Vegas. I’m always a fan of a theme and each hotel has fully embraced their theme and then taken it to a new level. You need to visit each one and see what they have to offer from jumping off of the Stratosphere right down to watching a medieval show in Excalibur. It’s incredible. You’ll also recognise some of them from the movies!  
4. Chocolate Factory and Cactus Garden. A friend recommended this place to me and it’s a lovely way to get away from the hype of the strip and chill for a couple hours. A short drive from the strip, you can have a look around the chocolate factory and it’s shop before perusing the beautiful cactus gardens. It’s also free!  
5. Shooting Range. When I came across this idea I mentioned it to my husband and he was quite excited to try it out. I also thought it would be a good thing to tick off my list of things I’ve done. Flash forward to us being in the range with some mega guns being fired next to us, shells flying around like food you’ve placed in front of a disgusted toddler, and I completely bottled it. It felt really serious and dangerous, so I just stood right at the back and the  hubby had two turns. I’m glad that one of us did something different though and the staff at Machine Guns Vegas were great.  
6. Visit the iconic sign. On our first day we walked from the Stratosphere up to Mandalay Bay and back in forty-two degree heat (which is over eight miles, not to mention we went into every single hotel for a wander too!), keeping our eyes peeled for the sign that litters all Las Vegas paraphernalia. We couldn’t find it! So the next day we programmed it into the sat nav and drove there. It’s actually only a stones throw from Mandalay Bay, we were so close! There’s always a queue to pose by the sign, but it’s such a great photo opportunity that it’s totally worth it. Plus it’s free!  
7. Cruise around. We loved driving around Vegas, the gigantic hotels enveloping us. It’s great to drive through during the day, but beautiful during the night with all of the bright lights like glitter thrown into the air.     
8. Check out the nice restaurants. There are so many great eateries in Vegas. Some of the hotels have gorgeous little restaurants. We liked the Italian restaurant in the Stratosphere because it was really authentic in taste. I also love The Cheesecake Factory because, well their cakes are blimmin’ gorgeous. But honestly, have a good look around because there are so many tasty places!  
9. See a show. There are lots of shows going on in the evenings in Vegas from Cirque De Soleil to Jersey Boys. Vegas puts on a variety to please all. We (well, I), chose for us to see pop legend Britney Spears perform at Planet Hollywood and Britters was amazing. It was my most favourite time of seeing her, so if you are a fan (or even if you’re not!), I would recommend seeing her.  
10. Have a mooch around the old strip. A short drive away from the main strip, the original hotels are retrotastic. I felt like I had stepped back in time to the 1950’s. It has so much character and you can even zip line across it like Superman.  

Have you visited Vegas? What was your favourite thing about Sin City?

L x