The End of Summer is Here! What are Your Labor Day Travel Plans? Part 1

By Alana Amber

The end of summer is here. Time to get your last minute vacations in. You better take advantage of the hot summer Rays before the cool air of autumn sets in. Labor Day for many is the last hoorah of summer! So where will you go? So many places , so many places….
Here are some places to explore at every budget….

Las Vegas

*As Alana discovered there's an exciting and evolving food scene happening in Vegas.*

Las Vegas can be pretty inexpensive to get to from most parts of the United States. Las Vegas has become an adult playground. Once known just for high roller gambling, it now is known for its amazing restaurants, nightlife, pool parties, and of course the shows.
I’m a foodie so when I go to Vegas I have to hit up a new restaurant. Bardot Brasserie & Sage in Aria Resort & Casino are really hot right now. Some of the best food joints are off the strip so if you have time to venture off the strip try Crave Restaurant, Vic & Anthony’s, Rollin Smoke, & Pot Liquor CAS are a must.
I personally love Tao at the Venetian Hotel. It’s been around for awhile but it’s always a good time. It’s like a two for one special! Good food and great partying! One year I went to Vegas for my friends birthday party in October. I booked the reservation for dinner because you could enter the club complimentary afterwards. We entered the cavernous entry with rose petal filled tubs on either side of the walkway and wouldn’t you know! The tubs were filled with a naked woman in each tub!! The hostess walked us through the sexy chic Asian fusion restaurant and low and behold, sat us right next to Kim Kardashian’s dinner party. It was her 30th birthday and all her friends were there. Jonathan Cheban, Lala Anthony, Khloe & Kourtney Kardashian, Malika, Trina and even Kelly Rowland. Kelly Rowland even leaned over to our table and said our food looked so good and ordered the same. LOL! The party was like a rave! More naked dancers in flower filled tubs in the middle of the dance floor. People were dancing so hard the floor literally vibrated! It was pure hedonism…
Try Marquee at the Cosmopolitan Resort & Casino, Hakkasan at MGM Grand , Drai’s & Drai’s After hours, XS & Encore in the Wynn Hotel & Hyde at the Bellagio Resort & Casino.
If nightclubs are not your thing try a explosive day pool party. Rehab at the Hard Rock, Wet Republic at MGM & Tao Beach at the Venetian & Drai’s Beach club at the Cromwell are the best options.
Cirque Du Soleil is a graceful acrobatic show filled with imagination while The Blue Man Group is a scientific mixture of art and music if that makes any sense!
The tomboy in me loves an amusement park so the roller coaster at New York New York and the Stratosphere Thrill Rides definitely will give you a rush. For the roller coaster to be in the middle of a strip of hotel resorts its a really good ride, not cheesy at all. The Stratosphere’s X-Scream is sooo scary. Make sure you go BEFORE heading to your dinner of choice, you don’t want any accidents. LOL!

Miami

Miami is also another affordable option. I’m bias to Miami as I have lived there for the past 4 years in between my world travels. When I first moved to Miami, I went temporarily insane! The party life and year around warm weather and beaches can spoil the best of us, lol! However be careful, I have seen people come for 6 months and get burnt out. It can “really”get the best of us. Miami and South Beach do not have a shortage of places to party. When visiting Miami, LIV nightclub is a must. It’s a massive space. One night, friends from London came to town and picked me up in a limo. We first got a bungalow at the Delano (an oldie but goodie), and then drove over to LIV. They were ordering Big bottles (6 liter) of Moët, there was so much champagne I started to hand out glasses of champagne to the crowd.I felt like I was with a bunch of sheiks! LOL! The crowd went crazy! After waking up exhausted, I thought I should of chosen a relaxing evening with a nice plate of pasta at Scarpetta instead. Scarpetta at the Fountainbleu is an amazing Italian Restaurant, (Vegas also has one at the Cosmopolitan Resort & Casino). Its a must try. If you like steak and seafood try Prime 112, Mr. Chow’s, Joe’s Stone Crab & The Forge.
A good day party is Nikki Beach. If your looking for a more relaxed vibe, the W hotel has a beautiful pool and the new One hotel next door is cool too. Great fresh exotic fruit like rambutan in the lobby…I like things like that. Jetskis, scooters and parasailing are great day adventures. Shopping is plentiful on Lincoln Road and if you are a fellow fashionista like myself, make your way up to Bal Harbour Shops for the latest luxury designer goods.

Alana Amber is a world traveller, fashionista and foodie. Visit her website at: www.alanaamber.com