Rhumbar - I am a big fan of the Mirage. We stay there several times a year. I knew I wanted to go to Rhumbar one night before the wedding. We rolled in with about 15 people around 11:00. Right away, they moved furniture around and asked a couple
to relocate to accommodate our group (before we tipped them). We had great service as always. We started the night with bottles of champagne while we watched the last volcano eruption and went from there. It was a great night. We didn't have any problem with a large group of people.
Margaritaville - On Thursday night, we went to Margaritaville. We had a group of 20 and we knew we were going to have to wait. Some people hung around the bar that overlooks the strip and some ventured in to the Flamingo to gamble while we waited. After two margaritas, I could have stayed at the bar all night, but they seated us as two groups of 10 at tables next to each other. I was actually surprised how easy it was to show up with a large group.
to relocate to accommodate our group (before we tipped them). We had great service as always. We started the night with bottles of champagne while we watched the last volcano eruption and went from there. It was a great night. We didn't have any problem with a large group of people.
Margaritaville - On Thursday night, we went to Margaritaville. We had a group of 20 and we knew we were going to have to wait. Some people hung around the bar that overlooks the strip and some ventured in to the Flamingo to gamble while we waited. After two margaritas, I could have stayed at the bar all night, but they seated us as two groups of 10 at tables next to each other. I was actually surprised how easy it was to show up with a large group.
Craftsteak - Order the tasting/chef's menu. Seriously, you won't regret it. The food is
fantastic. Plus, a while ago, I left my phone and a friend left his wallet in the restaurant. The restaurant turned both in to the lost and found at the MGM where we picked them up the next day. My friend had a bunch of cash in his wallet that was all still there the next day. He went back to thank them and to offer a reward, but no one accepted it. Its a great
restaurant with good people working there. We try to go every other time we're in Vegas.
Cabo Wabo – We went across the street to Cabo Wabo right after the rehearsal with our parents and the wedding party. We didn’t have any problem getting seated with a large party, but the bill was really messed up. I’m not sure what happened, but they charged us twice for some of the buckets of beer and I’m fairly certain there were a bunch of extra
margaritas and tacos added (unless they added those twice too). Whatever happened, I’m sure it was accidental, but it was still a hassle. With a large group that had been there for a while it was impossible to figure out what we actually should be charged for. They took off some of the duplicates and we just decided to suck it up and pay for the remainder. Again, I’m sure it was accidental, but I still prefer Margaritaville.
Absinthe - This is more of a rant than a review because we didn't actually see Absinthe while we were there for the wedding. Absinthe is Groom's and my favorite show in Vegas right now. Our original plan for the rehearsal dinner was to go to Joe's and then take everyone to Absinthe. We contacted their sales department regarding the group rates they advertise on their website. They quoted us at $84.04 per person. When we pointed out that we could do better with an internet code, their only response was: "well, you should probably do that then." In the end, it didn't matter because the room we wanted at Joe's was already booked so we ended up going a different route for the rehearsal dinner. I was just surprised they couldn't give us a better rate since we were looking to buy 30 tickets.
Prime - We took a hard look at Prime for the rehearsal dinner. We were thisclose to buying out the patio, but, in the end, decided against it because we felt that a steak dinner with the fountains was a little too similar to the wedding. I still wanted to mention Prime because they really went out of their way to work with us. So much so that I felt pretty guilty telling them we decided on another restaurant. If you are looking for good food, good service and an amazing view, you should check them out.
Bellagio and Mlife - We paid for the hotel rooms for our wedding party. Because you can't use Mlife offers for multiple rooms (or rooms for other people), we had to use an internet code and book online. After I booked all of the rooms online, I had to call the hotel for each room individually and ask them to charge the room fee to my credit card in advance. Even after doing this, our wedding party was still charged resort fees on the rooms (apparently the fees accrue daily and I didn't specifically request to prepay them). $25 per day plus tax adds up over 4-5 days. Everyone was really nice and insisted it wasn't a big deal and the casino took care of one or two of the them, but it still pissed me off. The entire process was a huge pain in the ass. If I had to do it again, I would give everyone a prepaid visa card and the internet code and let them book their own room.
We wanted Mlife tier credits for the wedding expenses. We were unlucky to get married right before Mlife was overhauled in October which created a good deal of delay and confusion. We sent multiple emails to Mlife and the Bellagio throughout the process, but we ended up getting our points. Actually, to date, I don't think we ever got a straight answer as to whether you get credit for amounts paid to the wedding department. It didn't matter, though, as the money to catering department was easily enough to make us Platinum. Anything after that doesn't really matter anymore because all points are now wiped out in October.
Delta - We live in Atlanta, we both travel for work and we both fly almost exclusively on Delta (for better and for worse). Delta has a hub in Atlanta and it seems that everyone flies through Atlanta regardless of where they are going. We know its tough to get an upgrade to Vegas on a holiday weekend. However, we flew out on Tuesday night, we are gold medallions and were still like 8th on the upgrade list. We didn't get upgrade to or from Vegas, but we did get upgraded to and from St. Lucia.
We sent all of the dresses to Fit for Bride before the wedding via second day air so no one had to fly with their dress. It was pricey, but worth the cost. When we flew from Vegas to Atlanta, Groom took my dress as his carry on. Frankly, it took a beating. Since it was after the wedding I didn't care, but i would have been stressed if we were traveling with it before the wedding. I'm glad we mailed it in advance.
Feldmar Watch - I knew I wanted to get Groom an Omega Seamaster for the wedding, but, for whatever reason, I decided to wait until nearly the last minute. My go-to watch dealer
did not have the particular model I wanted in stock. I didn't want a gray market watch so I considered buying it from the Omega dealer in the Bellagio, but I figured they would mark up the price. A coworker recommended Felmar in LA. I was nervous completing a large transaction over the phone with a dealer I hadn't worked with before, but the process was simple and easy. I contacted him over the phone, he gave me an extremely competitive quote. I gave him my credit card number and he sent me the tracking number for the package via email before my credit card was charged. The only issue was that they wouldn't ship it to my office; they would only ship it to the billing address for my credit card. I completely understand why - this was my first transaction with them - but I didn't want Groom to find the package at home. So they shipped it to my house, but after receiving the tracking number, I indicated online that I wanted to pick up the package in person. I chose the date and location for the pickup, presented my drivers' license and signed for the package without any problems. Groom was actually smarter than me - he had the jeweler ship my present to a Fedex location in Vegas. He picked it up before the rehearsal dinner without worrying about traveling with it in his carry-on. Overall Feldmar was great - I got an watch with a full Omega warranty for close to a gray market price (and avoided sales tax with an out-of-state sale).
fantastic. Plus, a while ago, I left my phone and a friend left his wallet in the restaurant. The restaurant turned both in to the lost and found at the MGM where we picked them up the next day. My friend had a bunch of cash in his wallet that was all still there the next day. He went back to thank them and to offer a reward, but no one accepted it. Its a great
restaurant with good people working there. We try to go every other time we're in Vegas.
Cabo Wabo – We went across the street to Cabo Wabo right after the rehearsal with our parents and the wedding party. We didn’t have any problem getting seated with a large party, but the bill was really messed up. I’m not sure what happened, but they charged us twice for some of the buckets of beer and I’m fairly certain there were a bunch of extra
margaritas and tacos added (unless they added those twice too). Whatever happened, I’m sure it was accidental, but it was still a hassle. With a large group that had been there for a while it was impossible to figure out what we actually should be charged for. They took off some of the duplicates and we just decided to suck it up and pay for the remainder. Again, I’m sure it was accidental, but I still prefer Margaritaville.
Absinthe - This is more of a rant than a review because we didn't actually see Absinthe while we were there for the wedding. Absinthe is Groom's and my favorite show in Vegas right now. Our original plan for the rehearsal dinner was to go to Joe's and then take everyone to Absinthe. We contacted their sales department regarding the group rates they advertise on their website. They quoted us at $84.04 per person. When we pointed out that we could do better with an internet code, their only response was: "well, you should probably do that then." In the end, it didn't matter because the room we wanted at Joe's was already booked so we ended up going a different route for the rehearsal dinner. I was just surprised they couldn't give us a better rate since we were looking to buy 30 tickets.
Prime - We took a hard look at Prime for the rehearsal dinner. We were thisclose to buying out the patio, but, in the end, decided against it because we felt that a steak dinner with the fountains was a little too similar to the wedding. I still wanted to mention Prime because they really went out of their way to work with us. So much so that I felt pretty guilty telling them we decided on another restaurant. If you are looking for good food, good service and an amazing view, you should check them out.
Bellagio and Mlife - We paid for the hotel rooms for our wedding party. Because you can't use Mlife offers for multiple rooms (or rooms for other people), we had to use an internet code and book online. After I booked all of the rooms online, I had to call the hotel for each room individually and ask them to charge the room fee to my credit card in advance. Even after doing this, our wedding party was still charged resort fees on the rooms (apparently the fees accrue daily and I didn't specifically request to prepay them). $25 per day plus tax adds up over 4-5 days. Everyone was really nice and insisted it wasn't a big deal and the casino took care of one or two of the them, but it still pissed me off. The entire process was a huge pain in the ass. If I had to do it again, I would give everyone a prepaid visa card and the internet code and let them book their own room.
We wanted Mlife tier credits for the wedding expenses. We were unlucky to get married right before Mlife was overhauled in October which created a good deal of delay and confusion. We sent multiple emails to Mlife and the Bellagio throughout the process, but we ended up getting our points. Actually, to date, I don't think we ever got a straight answer as to whether you get credit for amounts paid to the wedding department. It didn't matter, though, as the money to catering department was easily enough to make us Platinum. Anything after that doesn't really matter anymore because all points are now wiped out in October.
Delta - We live in Atlanta, we both travel for work and we both fly almost exclusively on Delta (for better and for worse). Delta has a hub in Atlanta and it seems that everyone flies through Atlanta regardless of where they are going. We know its tough to get an upgrade to Vegas on a holiday weekend. However, we flew out on Tuesday night, we are gold medallions and were still like 8th on the upgrade list. We didn't get upgrade to or from Vegas, but we did get upgraded to and from St. Lucia.
We sent all of the dresses to Fit for Bride before the wedding via second day air so no one had to fly with their dress. It was pricey, but worth the cost. When we flew from Vegas to Atlanta, Groom took my dress as his carry on. Frankly, it took a beating. Since it was after the wedding I didn't care, but i would have been stressed if we were traveling with it before the wedding. I'm glad we mailed it in advance.
Feldmar Watch - I knew I wanted to get Groom an Omega Seamaster for the wedding, but, for whatever reason, I decided to wait until nearly the last minute. My go-to watch dealer
did not have the particular model I wanted in stock. I didn't want a gray market watch so I considered buying it from the Omega dealer in the Bellagio, but I figured they would mark up the price. A coworker recommended Felmar in LA. I was nervous completing a large transaction over the phone with a dealer I hadn't worked with before, but the process was simple and easy. I contacted him over the phone, he gave me an extremely competitive quote. I gave him my credit card number and he sent me the tracking number for the package via email before my credit card was charged. The only issue was that they wouldn't ship it to my office; they would only ship it to the billing address for my credit card. I completely understand why - this was my first transaction with them - but I didn't want Groom to find the package at home. So they shipped it to my house, but after receiving the tracking number, I indicated online that I wanted to pick up the package in person. I chose the date and location for the pickup, presented my drivers' license and signed for the package without any problems. Groom was actually smarter than me - he had the jeweler ship my present to a Fedex location in Vegas. He picked it up before the rehearsal dinner without worrying about traveling with it in his carry-on. Overall Feldmar was great - I got an watch with a full Omega warranty for close to a gray market price (and avoided sales tax with an out-of-state sale).