America West Arilines Flights from Bakersfield (BFL) to Las Vegas (LAS)
Orbitz is pleased to offer airline tickets on America West Arilines, which operates a non-stop flight Thursdays, Fridays, Sundays from Bakersfield (BFL) to Las Vegas (LAS), regularly scheduled to depart at 9:10pm and arrive at 10:15pm. Usually a Canadair Regional Jet is flown for this route. The average travel time from Bakersfield, CA to Las Vegas, NV is 1 hour and 5 minutes.
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During your Las Vegas vacation, don't miss these great establishments and attractions:
Cupid's Wedding Chapel
"The little chapel with the big heart." Well, it just might be. The manager explains that, unlike other chapels on the Strip, they schedule weddings an hour apart; this gives them time for the full production number. The folks at Cupid's pride themselves on offering "a traditional church wedding at a chapel price." This includes a bridal processional, dimmed lights as the minister introduces the happy couple, and then a tape of the couple's favorite song, so they can have their first dance right there at the pulpit after their "first" kiss. They also offer family weddings for those couples blending preexisting families; the children become a part of the service, and as their parents exchange rings with each other, the kids are given their own small token, to let them know the parents are marrying them as well. The chapel is pleasantly low-frills and down-to-earth, with white walls and pews, and modern stained glass with doves and roses. (Kitsch-phobes will be pleased to know that the cupids are only in the lobby.) It seats 60 to 70. They recently added a classic banquet hall (and by that we mean, think New Jersey banquet hall) so you can have your reception and wedding all in one place. And, yes, if they don't have something already scheduled, they will take walk-ups.
Secret Garden of Siegfried & Roy and Mirage Dolphin Habitat
Siegfried & Roy's famous white tigers recently became rather infamous when one of them either did what tigers all do, eventually, and attacked his beloved owner/trainer, or -- depending on whether you buy this story -- helped said beloved owner/trainer when the latter was having a medical emergency. Either way this story is played, it explains why this attraction is still up; no matter what, the tiger is not to blame. We hope this attraction, a gorgeous area behind the dolphin exhibit, stays put for a long time. Here, white lions, Bengal tigers, an Asian elephant, a panther, and a snow leopard join the white tigers (the culprit, Montecore, is not exhibited any longer). It's really just a glorified zoo, featuring only the big-ticket animals; however, it is a very pretty place, with plenty of foliage and some bits of Indian- and Asian-themed architecture. Zoo purists will be horrified at the smallish spaces the animals occupy, but all the animals are rotated between here and their more lavish digs at the illusionist team's home. What this does allow you to do is get very close up to a tiger, which is quite a thrill -- those paws are massive indeed. Visitors are given little portable phonelike objects on which they can play a series of programs, listening to Roy and former Mirage owner Steve Wynn discuss conservation or the attributes of each animal, and deliver anecdotes.The Dolphin Habitat is more satisfying. It was designed to provide a healthy and nurturing environment and to educate the public about marine mammals and their role in the ecosystem. Specialists worldwide were consulted in creating the habitat, which was designed to serve as a model of a quality, man-made environment. The pool is more than eight times larger than government regulations require, and its 2.5 million gallons of man-made seawater are cycled and cleaned once every 2 hours. It must be working, as the adult dolphins here are breeding regularly. The Mirage displays only dolphins already in captivity -- no dolphins are taken from the wild. You can watch the dolphins frolic both above and below ground through viewing windows, in three different pools. (There is nothing quite like the kick you get from seeing a baby dolphin play.) The knowledgeable staff, who surely have the best jobs in Vegas, will answer questions. If they aren't doing it already, ask them to play ball with the dolphins; they toss large beach balls into the pools, and the dolphins hit them out with their noses, leaping out of the water, cackling with dolphin glee. You catch the ball, getting nicely wet, and toss it back to them. If you have never played ball with a dolphin, shove that happy child next to you out of the way and go for it. There is also a video of a resident dolphin (Duchess) giving birth underwater; her fourth calf (30 lb. and 3 ft. long) was born just before Mother's Day in 2003. You can stay as long as you like, which might just be hours.
Marjorie Barrick Museum
Formerly known as the Natural History Museum (as opposed to the existing Las Vegas Natural History Museum, and now you can see why they changed the name), here's a cool place to beat the heat and noise of Vegas, while examining some attractive, if not overly imaginative, displays on Native American crafts and Las Vegas history. Crafts include 19th-century Mexican religious folk art, a variety of colorful dance masks of Mexico, and Native American pottery. The first part of the hall is often the highlight, with impressive traveling art exhibits. Children won't find much that's entertaining other than some glass cases containing examples of local, usually poisonous reptiles (who, if you are lucky -- or unlucky, depending on your view -- will be dining on mice when you drop by). Outside is a pretty garden demonstrating how attractive desert-appropriate plants (in other words, those requiring little water) can be. You just wish the local casinos, with their lush and wasteful lawns, would take notice.
Fremont Hotel & Casino
When it opened in 1956, the Fremont was the first high-rise in downtown Las Vegas. Wayne Newton got his start here, singing in the now-defunct Carousel Showroom. Step just outside the front door and there you are, in the Fremont Street Experience. Rooms are larger (the bathrooms, however, are the opposite of "large"), more comfortable, and more peaceful than you might expect. (Though up until midnight you can hear, sometimes all too well, music and noise from the Fremont St. Experience show. But then again, if you are in bed before midnight in Vegas, it's your own fault.) The staff is shockingly friendly, partly because you actually can have personal service with hotels this size (another advantage of staying Downtown), partly because they just are. The hotel encourages environmental awareness by changing linens only every other day; upon request, it can be more often, but why not help out the earth a bit? For that matter, why not help out your wallet a bit and stay here?The Fremont boasts an Art Deco restaurant called the Second Street Grill, which is reviewed in chapter 6 along with the buffet. Guests can use the swimming pool and RV park at the nearby California Hotel, another Sam Boyd enterprise.
TI at the Mirage
Huh? What happened to Treasure Island? What happened to the pirates? Why, Vegas grew up, that's what. Or, rather, it wants the kids it once actively tried to court to grow up, or at least, not come around until they are able to drink and gamble properly.Originally the most modern family-friendly hotel, the former Treasure Island was a blown-up version of Disneyland's Pirates of the Caribbean. But that's all behind them now, and the name change is there to make sure you understand this is a grown-up, sophisticated resort. There might still be the odd pirate element here and there, but only because someone absent-mindedly missed it in a recent ruthless purging of the last remnants. The latest victim is the pirate stunt show out front; it's been revamped so that the pirates, and you have no idea how much we wish we were making this up, now "battle" scantily clad "strippers" -- er, "sirens."To be fair, none of this matters a whit, unless, like us, you got a kick out of the skulls and crossbones, and treasure chests bursting with jewels and gold, that originally decorated the place. What remains, after they stripped the pirate gilt, is such a nice place to stay that in some ways, it even outranks its older sister, The Mirage. The well-sized rooms pretty much follow the pattern of The Mirage's last phase of room decor -- modified French Regency with a mélange of patterns, but the monochromatic color (many shades of gold) tones it down, and overall, while not distinctive, per se, they are much nicer than most in their price range. Good bathrooms feature a large soaking tub -- a bather's delight. Best of all, Strip-side rooms have a view of the pirate battle -- views are best from the sixth floor on up. You know, so you can see right down the sirens' dresses.The hotel offers a premier restaurant, the Buccaneer Bay Club, a hotel buffet, and the new branch of Los Angeles's Canter's deli that just opened. The Battle Bar, in the casino near the race and sports book, is being redone as we write this, but does provide patio seating overlooking Buccaneer Bay; for the best possible view of what's now going to be called "The Sirens of TI," arrive at least 45 minutes before the show and snag a table by the railing. Treasure Island is home to Cirque du Soleil's Mystère , one of the best shows in town.A free tram travels between Treasure Island and The Mirage almost around the clock. For a good photo op, sit in the front of the first car: As you leave the loading dock, note how The Mirage, palm trees, and a bit of the New York-New York skyline are framed in an attractive, and surreal, manner.There's a full-service spa and health club with a complement of machines, plus sauna, steam, whirlpool, massage, on-site trainers, TVs and stereos with headsets, and anything else you might need (including a full line of Sebastian grooming products in the women's locker room). There's a $20-per-day fee to use the facilities.The pool is not that memorable, with none of the massive foliage and other details that make the one at The Mirage stand out (so blah is it that the staff didn't even bother to check room keys when last we swam here). It's a large, free-form swimming pool with a 230-foot loop slide and a nicely landscaped sun-deck area. It's often crawling with kids, so if that's a turn-off, go elsewhere.Facilities: Casino; showrooms; 11 restaurants; outdoor pool; fitness center and spa; concierge; tour desk; car-rental desk; business center; shopping arcade; 24-hr. room service; laundry service; dry cleaning; nonsmoking rooms; executive-level rooms.
Bourbon Street
Just a few steps (well, okay, more than a few, but not by much) down from the main Strip action, Bourbon Street is a bargain. It looks like a dump, but it's not. Adequately sized rooms, while hardly comparable to those in the luxe establishments on the Strip, are surprisingly nice -- brighter, cleaner, and more cheerful than you would expect, with small but sweetly attended-to bathrooms (including some nice grooming amenities). Given price and location, it's a heck of a deal overall.
