Family Fun at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas

This summer, families flocking to Las Vegas will want to visit The Forum Shops at Caesars for myriad attractions. Just the sheer number of stores at The Forum Shops will keep kids’ eyes roving. Below is a list of additional attractions for families:

• The Atlantis Aquarium: The 50,000-gallon saltwater aquarium stocked with colorful tropical fish located in the Roman Great Hall. Of heroic proportion, the hall is 160 feet in diameter and 85 feet high with more than 300 fish. Be sure to watch the aquarists feed them during dives scheduled at 1:15 p.m. and 5:15 p.m. daily. Families can take a complimentary below-the-scenes guided tour of the support facilities Monday through Friday at 3:15 p.m.

• The Atlantis Show: In this same hall is one of two locations where guests can see awe-inspiring statues that come to life. The gods unleash their wrath in this animatronics extravaganza of epic proportions. Fire, water, smoke, and special effects tell the tale of Atlas, Gadrius and Alia, who struggle to rule the undersea city. Today, these statues are a “must see” for Las Vegas visitors of all ages. The Atlantis Show has more than 400 moving parts in each of the characters. Shows are daily on the hour.

• The Festival Fountain Show: Behold the morning sun and evening stars in a sky that changes from day to night and back again. Then see Bacchus, Venus, Apollo, and Plutus regale the visitors with a magnificent sound, light, and laser shows daily on the hour.

• Houdini’s Magic Shop: The magician in all of us comes out at this unique magic shop. Kids can try out their new bag of tricks. Shhh… in the back, there’s a special room where Houdini’s magicians train visitors on how to do their own tricks.

• Kid’s Kastle: Need a baby or kid-sized signature Elvis white sequined jumpsuit, complete with a gold pair of sunglasses? Or how about Las Vegas emblazed t-shirt with cartoon characters? No problem. Kid’s Kastle carries children’s apparel, infants to size 14, as well as toys, gifts and other unusual and unique accessories.

• Max Brenner, Chocolate by the Bald Man: The worldwide phenomenon with a menu primarily made from chocolate debuts this summer. Max Brenner’s location at The Forum Shops will hold the distinction of being the largest at 9,400 square feet. Also to catch the guests’ eyes: enormous white vats mixing chocolate that will flow into pipes running throughout the entire space. The décor will also feature huge bricks, candles, pralines, colorful toy tines and crates overflowing with cocoa beans. Currently, including Las Vegas, there will be 29 total locations, with two in the United States: New York City and Philadelphia.

• Telling time becomes fun: At Swatch, kids learn how to tell time with Flik Flak, a watch brand that developed a method of teaching children to tell the time as young as three. Meanwhile, at Tourneau Time Dome, kids of all ages can turn this watch store into an adventure. At 13,400 square feet, it is the world’s largest watch store according to the Guinness World Book of Records. More than 100 different watch lines are represented in this two-level venue.

• Field of Dreams: For the sports enthusiast, this is the perfect spot for a walk through sports history as well as recognizing hall of famers. Notorious for featuring guest appearances and autograph signings by Dan Marino to Smokin’ Joe Frazier to Pete Rose.

• NIKETOWN: While we’re on the topic of sport stars, NIKETOWN features a sports collection of memorabilia as shoppers walk through two levels of retail. The store is divided by sport’s themes. Autographed collectibles are encased in display units throughout the store where celebrities from Michael Jordan to Andre Agassi are represented.

• Three-level freestanding escalator: When the Phase III expansion debuted in 2004, a three-level, freestanding spiral escalator became the first of its kind in the United States and was designed exclusively for The Forum Shops by Mitsubishi.

• Unique ambience: Perhaps it is the cobblestone streets and the Mediterranean sky. Or the numerous magical touches, such as the ornate fountains, spiral escalator and the intricate mosaic tile. The Forum Shops at Caesars has been paralleled to the likes of Via Condotti, Rodeo Drive and other prestigious shopping venues worldwide. With 160 specialty shops and restaurants The Forum Shops is unlike any other shopping experience in the world.

ABOUT THE FORUM SHOPS AT CAESARS
The Forum Shops at Caesars opened 283,000 square feet in May 1992 to immediate success. An August 1997 expansion to 500,000 square feet continued the momentum. The third phase of The Forum Shops’ growth was a three-level expansion extending from the existing retail, dining and entertainment icon to the famed Las Vegas Strip adding 175,000 square feet, with completion October 2004. A grand pedestrian plaza entrance on Las Vegas Boulevard further validates The Forum Shops as one of the finest luxury shopping streets in the world. The Forum Shops is recognized for its unique combination of top retail, dining, entertainment, excellent location and exciting ambiance featuring 150 specialty shops and 15 restaurants. Additional information may be accessed at www.forumshops.com.

Information courtesy of Caesars Palace

Five Ways to Make Family Travel More Affordable This Fall

By Barbara Messing, VP Travel-Ticker.com

Being a mom who works in the travel industry, I’m always getting questions from other parents about how they can plan a getaway with the kids that won’t break the bank. These questions range from “Where should I go to get the best value?” to “How can we save money on holiday travel?” to “What is a great family-friendly destination?”… just to name a few. And while the state of the economy has many families feeling stretched, there is a silver lining when it comes to travel. The travel deals out there are better than I’ve seen in years, making this fall a great time to take a family vacation.

I am seeing two interesting trends in the industry these days. First, people are booking their vacations closer to the actual travel dates, as they want to have the best picture possible of their life before they make the decision to book their travel arrangements. Second, I see the “power of the purse” in action, with more women making the majority of travel decisions and taking responsibility for booking family getaways. I call it the “anti-Clark Griswald effect.”

So how do you get the most for your money when booking travel for your family? Here are five ideas to make family travel affordable this fall:

1. Picking the right destination: Deals are abundant, but especially at family destinations this year, so now you just need to decide where to go. Occupancy levels at popular family resorts were already low, and with families back to school the hotels have even more empty rooms. If you can steal a break with the kids this Fall, San Diego, Orlando, Hawaii and Los Angeles all offer amazing value this season and plenty of entertainment for your family.
2. Finding flights: Prices are great right now as airlines are trying to fill seats with earlier and more aggressive fares than normal fall sales. Airline prices change constantly, so look for these low fares now and when you see a great fare, book it immediately. A handful of airlines still offer child discounts, but as a general rule, you will find a better deal if you look out for the lowest fares you can find online and special sales. These are inevitably lower than the full-priced child fares. You can sign up for sale and fare alerts with your favorite airlines and travel sites.
3. Consider All-inclusive resorts: All-inclusive resort vacations are a family’s best friend and are offering some of the best discounts I’ve seen in years. Perfect for a cross-generational family beach vacation – everyone can eat, stay and play at an all-inclusive with one set price. Plus, most resorts offer a “kids camp” so that the parents can enjoy some downtime with a fruity drink and a book by the pool—a rarity on most vacations.
4. Timing is everything: If you want to save even more money and score some incredible deals on flights or beach vacations, try between now and December 19th, when the demand and prices are low. The next few months before the holidays are a great time to visit Florida, Mexico and the Caribbean for some of the lowest rates of the year. Vacation packagers will often offer rates at 4-star All-inclusive resorts that include airfare for around $100 per day during these low-season times. Often children under 12 are able to stay and eat for free at these resorts, so check around for the best pricing.
5. Booking holiday travel: If you haven’t booked your holiday travel yet, I would suggest doing that now. October is a very good time to book travel because you will still see some good options on pricing and routes. I have a couple of recommendations to keep both your costs and stress in check. If possible, try to fly nonstop out of a popular airline hub. You will find more competition among airlines and thus better pricing. More importantly, by flying nonstop you will not get stuck at one of your connections with your tired and cranky family, nor will your luggage with all of the Christmas presents end up at the wrong airport. If you do have to make a connection, try flying on the off-peak days of the holiday and when picking your routing, avoid hubs that get frequent weather delays. Finally, treat yourself well. If you don’t want to sleep on grandma’s air mattress, check out the amazing hotel rates during holiday weekends. Business travelers who head home for the holidays leave empty hotels, which translates to great discounts to gain your business. Or even better, leave the kids on the air mattress and enjoy a hotel getaway for yourselves.

About Barbara Messing

An avid traveler with stamps from over 50 countries on her passport, Barbara Messing applies her passion for travel to her role as vice president of Travel Ticker® and new business development at Hotwire®. Barbara is responsible for overseeing the new Travel Ticker product, which delivers handpicked, insider deals to motivated travelers. Over the past seven years, Barbara has held a number of key leadership roles at Hotwire, including ownership of the Hotwire airline product, management and oversight of product development for the company’s airline, car, hotel, cruise and package products, and strategic leadership. Most recently, Barbara was vice president of customer experience. Prior to joining Hotwire, Barbara worked as a director at Ingenio and as a segment producer for the Travel Channel, a television network of Discovery Communications. Barbara received a B.A. from Northwestern University and a J.D. from Stanford Law School. You can also find Barbara’s profile on Twitter @Travel_Ticker, which was ranked by Condé Nast Traveler in its October 2009 issue as one of the Top 21 Twitterers to Follow.

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