View from the Top - Eiffel Tower Las Vegas

No trip to Paris (either France or Las Vegas) is complete without a trip to the top of the Eiffel Tower. The Eiffel Tower Experience in Vegas at night without any discounts costs just a little less ($16.50/pp) than it does to go to the top level of the real La Tour Eiffel in Paris (~$20/pp). Considering the Vegas tower is half size, I'm not sure that's a bargain. With a discount, however, it was a no-brainer and besides … it was our anniversary and we were in Paris for the evening.  

The waiting line for the elevator to the top was about 15 minutes and there was enough to keep us occupied while we waited. We took an escalator to the mezzanine level and viewed the casino below with new eyes … a bird's eye view, as it were.

We crossed a replica of one of Paris' many bridges across the Seine which led to the elevator entrance.

We opted out of the staged, over-priced, quickie-photo and instead spent a few minutes appreciating all the details the creators of this themed hotel had thought of, including the padlocks on the bridge put there by lovers. We'd seen these padlocks on bridges in Paris, but forgotten all about them until we saw them again here.

The ride up in a glass elevator was fast and uneventful … the best kind. We rose nearly 50 stories to the observation deck at 460' (140m). The tower itself is 540 feet and was painstakingly built to scale according to Eiffel's original plans (so we read). We emerged on the observation deck midst a horde of people, all sweating in the hot Vegas night. The views, however, made up for the heat and congestion.

The entire observation area is enclosed in thick message, but small, square openings allowed a place to take relatively unobstructed photos. We positioned ourselves to view the famous Bellagio fountain and were rewarded with a great show.

The air was hot and dense. The elevator continually emptied more people onto the small observation deck. More came up than went down. We angled into position for the Mirage's volcano eruption. It was too far away for clear shots, but I clicked away anyhow.

Even our hotel took on a different perspective when viewed from this vantage point high above.

Once at the top, you're allowed to stay until 12:30 am when the last elevator descends to ground level and reality once more. We stayed for an hour or so, whispered Happy Anniversary to each other, stole a quick kiss and retreated to our room for champers on ice. The perfect ending to a perfect day in Paris.