How to entertain 80 yr old Mom

I just got back from Vegas with my DH, and shows/dinner are not an issue with us, because we usually just drink and gamble. I'm going back this weekend for a small slot tournament, and decided to bring my Mom. She hasn't been to Vegas in at least 20 years and is the polar opposite of me (non-drinker, non-gambler). Other than shopping and site-seeing, I need suggestions on some of the best shows and restaurants to go to.
Two things we already have planned are Breakfast at Mon Ami Gabi, and high tea Sunday afternoon at Mandarin Oriental. Any suggestions?

 

Have her play the penny video slots. More for entertainment than to try to win money. Play minimum like 9 lines at a penny a line. Just for the graphics, bells and whistles.

Maddam Tussaud's wax museum then go shopping in the Venetian's canal shops.

If you have a car take her to Red Rock to play Bingo. Then maybe take in a movie and have dinner at the buffet.

I would say go view the Fremont Experience Downtown but right now it's a mess with the construction of the new Zipline.

Well, if you do find yourselves Downtown go over to the craps tables at the Cal and have her play with a bunch of old Hawaiian men (and ladies too!).

Say "Mom, just grab the dice and throw them to the other side of the wall".

Knowing the Cal's craps crew, they'll do the rest!

 

Thundah from down undah?

But seriously, Jeff Civilico is always worth seeing, no matter the age.

 

I'd take her to watch Jersey Boys at Paris.

Go to the early show and then have dinner on the patio of Mon Ami Gabi. The food is decent and the view of the Bellagio fountains at night will be excellent. You'll be able to watch as many shows as you'd like without having to stand up the whole time. See if the bartender can whip up a non-alcoholic cocktail for her and just sit back, relax, and watch the shows. Because of the fountains, I'd say saving Mon Ami Gabi for dinner instead of breakfast would be a good idea.

Replace that breakfast with breakfast at Bouchon (Venetian) or Tableau (Wynn). Bouchon would be the more "famous" place to go since it's a Thomas Keller restaurant, but I personally enjoy Tableau more. The lobster and shrimp frittata with salmon roe is an amazing dish that I crave often. Alternatively, Border Grill does a tapas-style buffet for brunch and is a great deal. You can even purchase a Restaurant.com certificate to use and it cuts the already reasonable price down by almost half.

Other ideas:
-Jubilee would be a good show. Classic Vegas showgirl show.

-The Smith Center has all kinds of shows going on from touring Broadway shows to Yo-Yo Ma to ballet dancers. They also have two other performance spaces that do more intimate shows. Their Cabaret Jazz room seats no more than 100 or so people and has great events going on all the time. Check www.thesmithcenter.com for events happening while you're in town.

-You could also spend an hour or two sitting at that piano lounge by the Bellagio check-in area and listen to the live music.

-if you mom loves food and wants to see where the world of gastronomy is heading, check out "e" by Jose Andres. It's a secret restaurant within Jaleo that offers a tasting menu of 25 courses featuring the playful and technically brilliant dishes of Jose Andres. There is a single communal table for eight guests and all dishes are plated at the table. Three chefs and two wait staff cater only to the eight guests during the course of the three-hour meal. It's very exclusive and you even get a "Golden Ticket" in the mail when you reserve here. They take reservations up to two months out, but sometimes they will have last-minute cancellations. Email them and see if they might be able to accommodate you. It's a great time, but it comes with quite a price tag. Last I heard, the price was $195 per person. Since it's a three-hour meal, you probably wouldn't also see a show that night, so that justifies the cost for me a bit.


If she's up for something different and adventurous, why don't you see about getting in some gun range time? Can you imagine your 80-year-old mom firing a machine gun on full auto? Depending on the person, it might be a new experience she'd be hesitant to do at first and then realize how much fun it was. It'd be your one "only in Vegas" sort of event. The Gun Store is pretty touristy, but they're very good at having a staff person for each group the whole time, so I'd actually recommend going there so your mom gets full attention from an experienced staffer. The staff person loads the gun, positions it correctly, and then hands it to the shooter. Shooter shoots until the gun is empty, hands it back to the staffer, and staffer handles the reloading or the switching to another gun. Something like an MP5 should have very minimal vibration/recoil that anyone could handle.

 

The Nathan Burton afternoon magic show at PH is very inexpensive.

 

Great suggestions everyone - keep em coming! My mom's a real prim & proper lady - so Craps, and machine gun shooting are out! She's also not the kind to go to Thunder from Down Under (although my paternal grandmother went when she was 87!!!) Some shows/theaters that I've never heard of - I will have to check them out. Thanks & keep the ideas coming!

 

Here are some suggestions:
- Donnie & Marie Show at the Flamingo
- Bellagio fountains (free) and Conservatory (free)
- the Wynn is a beautiful venue too...bright and pretty...a virgin cocktail at Parasol Up is a nice spot to stop and catch your breath! The walk isn't too harsh over to the Fashion Mall from there either...
- Venetian is a cool place with all of the frescos et al plus you could take her on a gondola ride! lol

While Jersey Boys is fantastic the language is a bit rough...don't know if your Mom would find it offensive...

Everyone seems to say that Mystere (at TI) is the best Cirque show if you've never been to one before.

Have a wonderful time! No matter what you decide to do I'm sure the time you two spend together is what's really important!

 

I'd be inclined to suggest Human Nature at the Venetian. Chances are she'd know and love lots of the songs, be entranced by the four handsome singers, and enjoy the nice pretty new theater they've moved to.

 

Based on the description you've given of your mom, I think you may want to do more research on Jubilee. My understanding is there's naked boobies. IIRC, someone mentioned there's less/no nudity in their earlier show? May be worth looking into.

 

Donny & Marie would be perfect, but they aren't playing while we will be there. I'll check out the Human Nature show - never would have associated that with Motown! (I thought it was the "Bodies Exhibition") Has anyone been to the Titanic Exhibition? She may be interested in that.
As far as a Cirque Du Soleil show - someone mentioned Mystere. How does that compare to "Love"? She seems interested in the Beatles. Jeff Civilico looks good, but I think I'd rather take her to larger Vegas production shows. Will definitely check out the early show for Jubilee - That's classic Vegas! Thanks everyone - great suggestions!

 

My MIL (84 years old) has been with us many times and is coming again next month. Sorry Donnie and Marie are dark, we have tickets and she is looking forward to seeing it. Honestly her favorite show over the years has been Menapause the Musical. She liked Barry Manilow when we went but he isn't there anymore. My MIL loves to gamble so it isn't quite so hard for us. If she is interested in the Beatles, besides Love there is a Fab Four show at the Miracle Mile. Perhaps the Australian Bee Gees at the Excalibur. I'm in my mid 50s sounds like she likes my kind of music.

 

Menopause the Musical sounds good - but did you like it too?

 

Park her in the mansion. It's about as non Vegas as you can get. Sounds like her style.

 

All shows are topless EXCEPT Saturday at 7:30pm as of last year. I have only seen the topless version, but after the show my g/f (and even me just a little bit) questioned if the non-topless version would have been better. The costumes are quite something to see as well. Also starting May 11, the schedule is changing and there will only be the late show on Saturday. So you'll probably need to contact them about a show that isn't topless.

And make sure to use a place like Tix4Tonight or some other discount opportunity for this show. It's good, but full price is steep.

 

Any penny slots in there???:evillaugh,

 

Maybe I missed it, but where you are staying would have some bearing.

Also, how far can she walk?

 

My dad is similar in age and he really enjoyed Mac King.....kinda corny clean type humor. He also loved Jersey Boys and enjoyed the Titanic Exhibit. Don't think he was too impressed with Absinthe though!

 

She's a very young 80, and in great shape, she could probably outwalk me!!!
We are staying at NYNY, but plan on walking & trams when we can and taxis for downtown, etc. I think I can get any shows/dinners at MGM/Mirage properties comped, so trying to narrow my choices to those venues - but no problem paying full price for any shows really worth seeing!

 

If its still there the price is right at ballys could be fun

 

Nope, it's gone and touring the country instead; otherwise, I would highly recommend it.