Paris Las Vegas has teamed with Georges Duboeuf, one of the largest wine merchants in France and well known his product of Beaujolais wines, for a special Beaujolais uncorking package.  This is a perfect getaway for the wine enthusiast to enjoy a 5-day celebration full of Beaujolais Nouveau tastings, special events, and celebration.

Here’s what the package includes:

• Accommodations at Paris Las Vegas (up to 5 nights, valid November 18th – 22nd)
• 2 tickets to Wine 101:  Celebrate the Harvest (wine tasting seminar)
• Bottle of Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau and 2 commemorative wine glasses
• VIP passes to Risqué nightclub

You can check out the full Beaujolais Nouveau festival schedule to learn all about the special events that are planned.  You must be at least 21 years of age to book this package.

Package prices depend on number of nights accommodation, and do not include taxes or gratuities.  As with all travel packages, be sure to do your do diligence as to what is and isn’t included, as well as the cancellation policy.

While it would be great to be in Paris, France for this celebration, Paris, Las Vegas may be the next best thing.

Photo credit: personal collection

Post from: Blisstree

Beaujolais Festival at Paris, Las Vegas

The Signature is a slice of heaven, located just of the famous Las Vegas Strip, and is part of the MGM Grand resort complex.  It offers a non-smoking, non-gaming atmosphere, rather different than the usual Las Vegas experience.  The hotel offers all-suite, very luxurious, accommodations, and access to top notch dining, amenities, and personalized guest services.  All that, and you only steps away from the MGM Grand and its spa, nightlife, shops, and gaming.

It’s easy to be convinced of the luxury of the Signature, but how about that affordable part?  Right now the Signature is offering a couple of great promotional packages that can bring a stay within your budget.

• Fall for Vegas – Room rates include a $50 golf credit, $50 resort credit, $25 Grand Spa credit, 2 complimentary admission to Studio 54 or Tabu, and a complimentary bottle of wine after arrival.
• Stay 3 Nights – With a 3 night stay you’ll get a $75 resort credit.
• Stay 5 Nights – With a 5 night stay you’ll get a $150 resort credit.
• Stay 7 Nights – With a 7 nights stay you’ll get a $300 resort credit.
• His or Her Getaway – One bedroom suites (starting at $209/night), with champagne and strawberries on arrival.  Or pop and beer.  Package also includes four cocktails at Signature poolside, admission for four to Studio 54, 25% off spa services, and a $25 credit to Walter’s golf courses.

I was at the Signature about a year ago, and it lived up to its billing.  I loved the ability to get away from the hubbub of the casino part of the property, having a quiet place to work and sleep.  I think it makes a perfect location for a business trip.  The suites provide plenty of room and comfort to work, you have space for a quick meeting if you need time with you colleagues, the MGM Grand is on the monorail line, and you have everything you want within reach.  It would also be great for a romantic getaway.  With luxury like that you may not ever want to leave your room.

Photo credit:  Courtesy of Signature at MGM Grand

Post from: Blisstree

Affordable Luxury at MGM Grand’s Signature

Image: VisitLasVegas.com

Summer isn’t quite over yet and Las Vegas has plenty of great deals going on for those looking to have a little fun in the sun before the cool fall weather hits. Check out VisitLasVegas.com for great hotel and travel deals, as well as all of the remaining summer concerts, pool parties and other Vegas events.

Here at Blisstree, we want to help you get to Las Vegas. This week, we are giving away a $250 Southwest Airlines gift card and a $150 AmEx gift card to shop!

To enter the contest, just leave a comment here and let us know what you did for fun this summer. You can also get another entry into the contest by Tweeting this post and leaving a link to your Tweet in the comments section below.

Your comment (and/or Tweet) will automatically enter you into the giveaway, which ends on Monday, October 5, 2009 at 11:59pm ET.

We will select one random winner from all the comments to receive the SWA and AmEx gift cards.

Be sure to check out VisitLasVegas.com for more information on everything that Vegas has to offer.

Image: VisitLasVegas.com

Post from: Blisstree

Giveaway: Girls Getaway Trip

Stay like a high roller at the Wynn Resort, Las Vegas

Still not in your budget?  Then you’ll want to enter Encore’s Vegas Baby Sweepstakes, a chance to win a high roller Vegas vacation for two.  Read the rules and special requirements, then fill out a form answering a few questions, and you may find yourself winging your way to Las Vegas for a fun filled vacation.

Here’s what the winner will receive:

• Round  trip coach airfare on US Airways to Las Vegas (OK, to be a high real high roller vacation if would need to be first class, but still. . . . )
• 4 days/3 nights in a Tower Suite at the Wynn Las Vegas Resort & Country Club (I haven’t stayed here, but the suites are supposed to be terrific, this is a Mobile 5-star resort!)
• Round trip limo transportation between the airport and Wynn
• Dinner at the fine dining restaurant Daniel Boulud Brasserie (at the Wynn)
• VIP Indulgence tickets for two to see Le Rêve, the live aquatic spectacle at the Wynn (includes a bottle of Perrier-Jouët champagne with bottle service, chocolate covered strawberries and lounge seating with video monitors)
• Tee time for two at the 18-hole Wynn Golf Club
• Spa treatments for two at The Spa
• $5,000 in spending money

NOTE:  You must be a legal resident of the United States (excluding Puerto Rico) and age 21 or older to win.

And remember — what happens in Vegas…only happens if you enter the Vegas Baby Sweepstakes from Encore.

Photo credit: Rob Young @flickr

Post from: Blisstree

Enter Encore’s Vegas Baby Sweepstakes

Based on the very popular CSI television show (and all of its spin-offs), this interactive attraction opens in its new permanent location – the MGM Grand Las Vegas – on September 13th.  This challenging and multi-sensory attraction challenges you to be assume the roll of crime scene investigator and solve one of three true-to-life mysteries by reviewing crime scene re-creations and using two state-of-the-art crime labs.

The 12,000 square foot exhibit is part entertainment based on the television show, and part real-life crime scene investigation techniques.  An introductory video will help guide visitors, but ultimately it is up to the individual to determine the perpetrator.  Visitors will investigate one of three crime scenes:

• A House Collided – a car and its driver appear to have crashed through the living room of a quiet suburban residence
• Who Got Served – a body of a young woman is found behind a motel
• No Bones About It – human remains are uncovered in the desert

CSI:  The experiences is location along MGM Grand’s Studio Walk and is open daily from 10 am – 10 pm.  The typical visit will range between 60-90 minutes.

Admission is $30 per person, and re-entries (for a new crime scene) are $26.  The attraction is designed for visitors 10 years of age and older, but parents should consider whether a crime scene (even a fake one) will be disturbing to their child.

Although I think I’m one of the few people who haven’t been caught up in CSI mania, this exhibit intrigues.  I’d like to see just how honed my powers of observation and analysis are.  I like to see if I can figure it out.

I’ve got several trips to Las Vegas planned over the next couple of months, and I’m putting CSI:  The Experience on my to-visit list.  I’ll be sure to fill you in on all the details then.  But don’t worry, I won’t be giving away any real secrets – you’ll still want to experience it for yourself!

Photo credit:  Courtesy of MGM Grand

Post from: Blisstree

CSI: The Experience Debuts in Las Vegas

Recognizing that not all traveler cannot afford dinnertime gourmet, restaurants are meeting the lunchtime dining needs of its patrons with creative menus and pricing, all the while still maintaining a very upscale experience.

In a city with dining choices ranging from cheap-o buffets to high end gourmet dining, food lovers can rejoice in an affordable (and yummy) prix fixe lunch offer at Payard Pâtisserie & Bistro at Las Vegas’s Caesars Palace.  For $19 (not including beverage, tax, or tip), you can savor three delicious courses from award-winning chef François Payard in the beautiful restaurant dining room, designed for an upscale French bistro experience.

The summer menu is still in effect, giving you a choice of a Caprese Salad or Taboule for your starter, a choice of Halibut Riviera Style or Flat Iron Steak for you lunch entree, and a choice from the delicious selection of French pastries for dessert.  Schedule a late lunch and you can skip dinner all together!

Payard’s also has a casual walk up chocolate and pastry shop featuring signature chocolates, desserts, sandwiches and pastries, along with made-to-order crepes, coffee drinks, ice cream and sorbet.  Stop off for a morning coffee and pastry fix (almost as good as if you were in Paris), as well as to pick up goodies for a picnic lunch.

Payard Pâtisserie is located in Caesar’s Palace on the energetic Las Vegas strip:  3570 Las Vegas Boulevard South.  Lunch is served 11:30 – 3 pm.  The pastry counter is open 6:30 am – 11 pm.

Photo credit: SXC

Post from: Blisstree

$19 Gourmet Lunch at Payard Pâtisserie, Las Vegas

The MGM Grand is offering special fight-worthy packages for the welterweight showdown between Floyd Mayweather and Juan Marquez.  The match up was delayed from July because of an injury Mayweather received while training.

Welterweight Matchup: Floyd Mayweather will fight Juan Marquez in Las Vegas

Special VIP packages are available for the fight, and include:

• One night accommodations on fight night, September 19th, 2009
• Roundtrip airport limo
• VIP check in
• 2 tickets to the fight at the MGM Grand Garden Arena
• Food and beverage credit
• Spa credit
• Access to Spa Fitness Center daily
• Admission to Studio 54 and Tabu (must be 21+)
• Admission to Wet Republic (adult pool, must be 21+)

Package prices are $1,200 for the VIP room package that includes two $600 tickets to the fight and $75 food and beverage and spa credits and $2,000 for the VIP suite package that includes two $1,000 tickets to the fight and $100 in food and beverage and spa credits.  In other words, for the price of a premium ticket to the fight (if you could even find one), you can get room accommodations, airport transfers, and lots of little extras.  That’s a GREAT value-added.

There’s lots of fine print to read about deposits, refunds, and additional nights, so be sure to do your due diligence to determine if this package is the right one for you.  And remember, the package price does NOT include airfare.

Photo credit: Bauer Griffin

Post from: Blisstree

Ring-Side Las Vegas

Desert in the summertime?  Well, with so many special promotions to choose from, this may be the best time to get out of your kitchen and into the heat.

Planet Hollywood, Las Vegas

Planet Hollywood hopes to lure you with an offer of a free bottle of booze.  Offering a bottle for each night of your stay, this in-room bottle service promotion is aptly titled, Drinks Are on Us.

All you have to do to receive this special promotion is to book your Planet Hollywood room online.  This special add-on still allows you to take advantage of lots of low room rates.  This is not some teaser promotion that really isn’t available.  I checked availability for a variety of dates, promotional prices, and room types, and found lot of availability.

You select your complimentary bottle from Planet Hollywood’s specialty menu, and can choose from wine, champagne, or spirits (vodka, gin, tequila, run, or whiskey).  I couldn’t find the specialty to determine what brands are offered, but would be interested to know if they’re offering a quality product or just getting rid of some cheap stuff.

Photo credit: kimberly marie lawson @flickr

Post from: Blisstree

Book a Room, Get a Bottle of Booze at Planet Hollywood

Suite decor was designed with Mattel, manufacturer of Barbie, and is done in pink – same as the iconic Barbie’s Dream House.  Pink walls, pink tables, pink chairs, pink poodle statues, and of course, a pink bed.  You’ll also find 65 replicas of Black & White Bathing Suit Barbie, the 1959 doll that launched the Barbie franchise, incorporated into a special mirror display, along with a display of bikini Barbie’s (it’s Vegas after all).

The Barbie suite has 3 queen sized bed (two beds are located in an adjoining suite), a Jacuzzi tub, two-way fireplace, full bar, plasma TV’s, steam shower, sound system, and lots of high end pink amenities.  For parties and special events the suite can accommodate up to 50 people.

Just like its namesake, this Barbie has a busy schedule and doesn’t come cheap.   I checked random dates and pricing, and the suite has become popular already.  Pricing looks to be $3,000/night.  What a fun location for a girls event!

Photo credit: pocheco @flickr

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Barbie Does Las Vegas in Her Own Special Suite

If topless tanning in your thing, here are 3 hot spots for a little adult summer indulgence:

• Rio’s Sapphire – A combination gentlemen’s club and pool, boasting three cascading waterfalls and two jacuzzis.  The phrase “gentlemen’s club” seems to connote rather ungentlemanly like behavior, so you’ll have to be the judge for yourself.  Admission is $10 for women (any time), and $30 for men.  On weekends, rates shoot up to $50, and $60 for holidays. 
• Mandalay Bay’s Moorea Beach – Sounding a bit like something from the South Pacific, the Moorea Beach Club is an exclusive (wrist band only) private club.  You’ll find it on the second floor of the beach tower, away from non-exclusive prying eyes.
• Mirage’s Bare – With its combination of pool and party deck, Bare has a poolside DJ that infuses relaxation with a hip vibe.  They claim that the music isn’t so loud that it disturbs relaxation time, though.  Admission is $10 (Monday – Thursday), $20 (Friday – Sunday ) for women; $20 and $40 for corresponding days for men.

Although I’m long past my ogle-worthy prime, topless pools aren’t shocking to me.  I’ve spent enough time in the other countries where a topless beach doesn’t raise an eyebrow.  It’s no surprise that the concept has finally come to Las Vegas.  After all, sex always sells – even if it’s poolside.

Photo credit:SXC

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Topless Tanning in Las Vegas