Sin City, high class: beyond sex and gambling

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This was published 12 years ago

Sin City, high class: beyond sex and gambling

Skip the queue ... Vegas VIP packages can get you into top clubs like Pure at Caesar's Palace.

Skip the queue ... Vegas VIP packages can get you into top clubs like Pure at Caesar's Palace.Credit: Getty Images

Las Vegas's seedier side seeks out Jamie Pandaram, but he opts for a classier lads' weekend.

They have a particular sense for those who are weak or easily led. They will circle, wait, and then pounce with precision.

The prostitutes on the Las Vegas Strip have enormous competition and must continually elude vigilant casino security staff, so to watch them in action was a lesson in tactical engagement.

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I noticed one short-skirted girl as we left the bathroom of a major casino around 4am. She sat at a poker machine alone, directly in front of the bathroom, with an ideal view of those who were then heading to the exit doors.

As it transpired, one of our group - the most inebriated - wandered from the herd and to the front of the taxi rank where suddenly two women, one the short-skirted girl spotted earlier, had approached him.

"We want to party with you," said the other woman, which to the blind drunk can sound like the greatest idea of the modern era. As I went to shepherd the isolated prey the woman called out: "$500 for both of us".

Highlight ... the spa at the Encore.

Highlight ... the spa at the Encore.

They had deliberately waited until he was about to get into a cab. They had marked him out as the most suggestible. They had clearly done this before.

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Of particular interest to them are recent recipients of a windfall, and those so drunk they could fall in wind.

Of course, many men go to Vegas for precisely these kind of escapades.

But is there more to Sin City than sex and gambling?

We three married 30-year-olds, approaching discussions of parenthood and relishing a final blowout lads' weekend, discovered that many highlights lay in tamer pursuits.

The key is planning - as I found on my first visit to Vegas during which I flew blind and left underwhelmed.

Probably the easiest way is to jump on visitlasvegas.com.au and put a rough itinerary together. Walking aimlessly along The Strip in the searing heat is no picnic.

Given the last-hurrah nature of this weekend, we embarked on a no-expense-spared, live like kings bender.

Australians have become the second largest overseas market for Vegas behind the Brits, and Vegas types recognise the value of our patronage.

South Australian lobster in the middle of the Nevada desert? You can find it at the Lakeside Grill in the Encore hotel - our plush base for the weekend.

The brown towers of the Wynn and Encore, both casinos owned by billionaire Steve Wynn, are leather wallets housing the elite - those whose fortunes are largely recession-proof.

And they reward themselves in one of the most luxurious and tranquil spa centres in the world. After two nights of solid drinking and dancing, the $365 two-hour massage at The Encore Spa proved to be the highlight of the weekend for an ageing fool.

We had time for just two shows but both exceeded expectation.

The brilliant water acrobatic ballet La Reve, where dancers leap from great heights into the watery stage, splashing some in the front row of the dome arena, was mesmerising. The Viva Elvis production put on by Cirque du Soleil combines jaw-dropping gymnastics and even hip-hop dancing with Priestly's classics.

Our final evening was reserved as a boys' treat.

Dan Nunes, a co-owner of VegasVIP, is a sharp-suited and well-connected figure in the Vegas scene.

In his previous life as a high-roller host, Nunes would sometimes look after the late Kerry Packer's requests - when he wasn't turned away at the door by fearful casino bosses. Nunes has fielded the most outrageous requests from some of the wealthiest men in the world, including midnight orders for helicopters on rooftops, and the rarest food and wine delivered to suites costing $27,000 a night.

Nunes decided to create a company (vegasvip.com) where the average man could get a small glimpse into such opulence. Top-end Bucks party packages like 'The Hangover' or 'The Charlie Sheen' cost around $360 each (excluding tips), and gets you a four-course meal and beer, limousine transfers and VIP entrance to a strip club and nightclub with bottle service.

Factoring in the high cost of food, alcohol, and entrance fees in Vegas, it was worth the extra cash simply to bypass the 90-minute queue for entrance to Pure nightclub, a sprawling expanse of white architecture, as Nunes led us to a buzzing rooftop party overlooking The Strip lights. Truly spectacular.

The pick of the clubs in Vegas - Pure at Caesar's Palace, Studio 54 at the MGM Grand and both Tryst and XS at Wynn - can require patience if you're not on a guest list.

It was depressing to visit parts of the "old town", just off the main Strip, where some casinos have been forced to shut. But if you're after cheap liquor or a local SIM card you can find it at Fremont Street, after taking a Flightline Z flying fox ride over the once-famous row which has been earmarked for redevelopment.

At the very least you can grab a $US14 lunch buffet here if you've blown your dough, or pick up some unique graffiti artwork.

On the way back to the Strip you'll pass a number of large billboards along the freeway: "Been arrested? Need a lawyer? Call us now", and "Need a quickie divorce? $20 discount. Call us now", and even "Need a paternity test? Call us now."

It is a town like no other. But also more than its cliche.

Just remember to look both ways after your final pit stop.

Read: Guide to Las Vegas

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