I have a sad confession to make: for the first time in my 31 years of life and living in Southern California....I've never actually visited the Las Vegas strip. Like, I've driven past it a couple of times, but I never actually got to visit the Las Vegas strip. Well now I have finally righted that wrong. I got to spend a full three days there. Stayed at Excalibur. Of course I had to visit the Manhattan Express, Adventuredome, the Stratosphere, and Fly Over Vegas. I'll give my thoughts on them.
So the Manhattan Express....my first-ever Togo credit. I was honestly kinda dreading this coaster. I've heard all of the horror stories on how awful it was. I've heard some people go as far as to say that it's the worst coaster in America. I know that fairly recently the replaced the old trains with the new Premier ones so maybe that will help smoothen the ride. I rode it and shockingly it....was just fine. I sat in the center-ish car(?). While there were a couple of spots that were a little rough, it was nowhere near as bad as what people hyped it up to be. In fact, I thought it was really fun! I guess those new trains did wonders because, while it isn't perfect by any means, nor will it make anyone's top 10 lists, I had a good ride on it. I'll probably go on it again next time I go, but $25 plus the $1 to put your crap in a locker is a little steep. Next time though.
Adventuredome. Calling this place a piece of crap is putting it lightly $60 to be able to go on the poorly-maintained rides...Canyon Blaster is a freaking awful torture device, the El Loco was kinda rough, and the rest of the rides are just your standard flats you can find at any park in America. Well, at least they still have the Chaos, right? WRONG. They got rid of it. The only ride I actually enjoyed was their new Endeavor. That was a lot of fun! I really hope Knott's or SFMM seriously considers adding one because it's a great flat. Knott's could especially use it as it felt like a successor to Tampico Tumbler. Castle Park could really use one. But bring that ride to SoCal because it's great. The rest of Adventuredome should be gutted and start over from scratch.
Oh, I gotta talk about the Spongebob ride. Eh, it's fine. The 3D would've been nice, but wasn't necessary at all. The gameplay was a little unresponsive. I would clearly hit the target sometimes and it wouldn't register. Like, c'mon. The finale seemed kinda half-baked and "meh". It needed a motion base. Unless I go with someone who really wants to ride it, I'll pass on it.
Stratosphere was cool! I spent a good three hours up there not just to get my money's worth, but I waited around for the wind to die down so I could ride the Big Shot. Insanity looks like it's down for good, as any mention of it has been completely scrubbed. It's just sitting there, abandoned. I did get to go on X-Scream and then Big Shot (After waiting an hour and a half lol). X-Scream was fun but, intimidating. It was legitimately the first ride I was actually a little hesitant to go on. I decided to bite the bullet and go-all in by going on the front row. Man that was....thrilling. Lol. Big Shot was probably my favorite. Shooting up on top of the Strata with that incredible view was quite a rush! Had a good time on the Strata. I did not do the Sky Jump because that I'm not that insane.
Finally, I did Fly Over Vegas. Fun, but way overpriced. It was $40 for the full experience. If the screen resolution was crisper, I would say it's an improvement on Disney's Soarin'. The "4D" effects were a lot more realistic where they spray mist with the wind when you go over a waterfall, the motion is a lot more fluid, and it's a little longer! I had fun, but probably wouldn't pay that much to do it again.
Oh, and I got to experience the Zipline on Freemont Street. At first it was intimidating, but once the ride got going, it was quite the rush! You literally felt like you were flying like Superman.
But yeah, that's my Vegas experience. Didn't get the chance to experience Area 51. I'll do that next year when Universal opens Horror Unleashed....which I saw them building BTW! They're making progress! I enjoyed it! I think Vegas overall is a little overhyped, but the hotels were cool and I had a good time on the attractions there. Oh, and I highly, highly recommend the Wicked Spoon. That is an excellent buffet. It's $50, but it's worth it. Chinese pork is incredible. I stayed at Excalibur as it's one of the cheaper hotels on the strip. They have a decent brunch buffet as well.
