So far I’ve made three trips to Las Vegas in the last year and a half — all by car. Yep, Mr. Frequent Flyer Miles has never actually flown into Vegas.

All three trips have been very different:

1st Trip: 12 Guys, 3 Girls (girlfriends of 3 of the guys)

2nd Trip: Me and Porscha — going to a family wedding on her side

3rd Trip: 3 Couples

It was definitely proper that the first trip was mostly a guys-only weekend. Yes, the girls were there… but you get my point. We hit up two night clubs (Tao and the Bank) and ran up excessive bottle service tabs, rented a cabana at the Hard Rock pool, ate steak for dinner, and gambled excessively. We stayed at the Bellagio, which was excessive considering our mental state the entire weekend, but it certainly felt necessary going into it.

The second trip was the complete opposite of the first. I got to see the slower, less expensive side of Vegas and walked away much less exhausted. We stayed in a suite at the Monte Carlo. Not quite as nice as the Bellagio, but still rather elegant. I ate at my first Vegas buffet — which was good but overrated. They aren’t even cheap anymore unless you stop somewhere off the strip. I taught Porscha how to gamble and was surprised by how much she got into it. She was content watching me play blackjack as long as she could sit and order drinks. The highlight of the weekend was heading to XC Saturday night. Porscha’s brother played high school basketball with a Shaun Livingston, who was a 4th overall draft pick in the NBA. NBA summer camp was going on while we were there, so we met up with him and his crew and got in VIP for free with bottle service all night. I even sat down to play blackjack in the club and made money.

The last trip was another mellow-style visit. We went with two other couples. They stated at MGM and we stayed at Planet Hollywood. Planet Hollywood was the most different of the three places I’ve stayed. The room had random film paraphernalia in it. Our room was Batman stuff. It was also a 650 sq foot suite, where over 200 of that was the bathroom. It had a big tub facing a flatscreen mounted on the wall. I did take a bath and watched college football Saturday morning. PH also had an area called the “Pleasure Pit” which is essentially blackjack tables with pole dancers behind them. The dealers were also easy on the eyes and were helped by their outfits. Blackjack in the pool is still my favorite, but this was a close second. I added another feather to my tourist cap when we went to a Cirque de Soliel show. The name escapes me, but it was just as weird as the show itself. The performers were extremely talented though, which made it entertaining. We took off very early Monday morning, which I regret doing. It always seems like a good idea in advance to squeeze things in, but it turns out more painful than it needs to be.