All the recommendation help. Spent quite a few hours online tonight with my wife checking out the Vegas accomodation. Of course, as it is with everything she does, she started at the most expensive & worked back!! At the moment the Mandalay is winning but the plugs for South Point have certainly made an impact. (it looks just fine to me but then a bed and a door & I'm a happy traveller!)

So, it was like when we put the pool in an renovated the enire back yard ......Kylee came home from a business trip to Queensland, walked out the back and said "let's renovate the back yard". 12 months later I am enjoying a swim every morning and enjoying my summers a lot more!..........The same with this trip. 2 days ago she looks up from the paper & says "flights to LA are only $1100". Today we're talking to travel agents!!

Anyway, the plan looks to be Aus to LA for a few days, fly to San Fran (we both love San Fran), then drive through Sacramento (maybe), over to Yosemite NP, stay a night in Fresno & then onto Vegas. A few days in Vegas then out to the Big Hole for a look, back to Vegas and then onto LA. We'd have a car from San Fran onwards so no issues about getting around.

As to your question Jim, what dates do you think I casually slipped into conversation? "Hey honey, the end of June looks nice, somewhere around the 22-25th would be a great time to hit Vegas" Took her all of 3 seconds to know something was up! Problem with that time is that it falls right near the end of financial year and Kylee doesn't think she'll be able to get away. I suggested we can always go from Vegas straight to LAX & fly out an she'd still be back with a few days to spare! Option 2 is somewhere between May 18 & June 14 (massive airfare discounts if you travel between these dates for some starnge reason?)

So, an Aussie & his family cruising California & through to Sin City.......what can we "just not miss?"

And Eric, it would be my second time in Vegas. Kylee & I went on our first OS trip together in early 1995. Stayed at the Luxor when it was brand spankng new. I still remember the cabbie excitedly talking about them building a "mini New York".....how time flies! It would alos be my 5th time to the US. Worked in he music industry for 14 years & did the Winter NAMM show in Anaheim 3 times and the Summer NAMM show in......blowed if I can remember?! Somewhere where the twang of a banjo can be heard every minute of the day. During those trips I've also been to Mississippi, Louisiana, New York & Hawaii.