Mardi Gras World Tour

Your Hot Air Balloon adventure begins when you meet your Pilot and Flight Crew. The flights meet approximately a 1/2 hour before sunrise. At the launch site, your flight crew will brief you on your upcoming balloon adventure. Then, you will watch with awe as your balloon takes shape before your eyes, ultimately standing more than 10 stories tall. Once fully inflated and ready for take off, you climb into the gondola and begin the adventure of a lifetime. During your flight you will get a spectacular bird's eye view of the gorgeous Red Rock Mountains and the famous Las Vegas Strip. You will drift silently over the Vegas Valley with 360 degree, unobstructed views of the world famous Las Vegas Strip, Red Rock Conservation Area and surrounding suburbs. After drifting serenely for approximately an hour you prepare for landing. Once on the ground, you will indulge in the oldest of ballooning traditions, a champagne toast, and revel in the peace, tranquility and beauty that you never before knew existed. For ballooning light winds are required, good visibility and no precipitation. You will fly at approximately 1000 feet. The flights are approximately one hour in length, however you are required you for up to 4 hours in total for the entire adventure. Since you will fly with the prevailing winds, the flight patterns and landing sites vary due to the changing wind directions. There is very little feeling of movement or sensation of height. Our Safety Pledge Your safety is our main concern, so we reserve the right to cancel a flight due to adverse weather conditions or safety reasons. All flights must adhere to all FAA safety standards for passenger-carrying commercial balloon operations. We don’t anticipate flight delays, however if the pilot requires more time to see how the weather is developing, it is possible that your flight might be put on hold. If that happens, you will be instructed to phone back at a later time that day for an update. *Please note all passengers must have a signed liability waiver in order to fly.  **Please also note that ballooning is extremely weather dependent.  We require less than 8 knots of wind, in addition to no impending storms.  Safety is our number one pirority.  Vegas Balloon Rides reserves the right to cancel a flight due to weather conditions or other safety reasons that could affect the safety of the flight.   Passenger Limitations:  Passengers must be in good physical condition.  All passengers must be able to climb in and out of the basket, stand for the entire flight and walk out of a field if necessary.  We cannot fly any passenger who has had recent surgery, injuries, hip, back, or knee problems.  Health concerns, physical limitations, is/or may be pregnant or has severe auditory restrictions.  Please note:  Children must be a minimum of 10 years of age and accompanied by an adult. 

Menu "Decouverte"* Starters Assortment: Fried scallops, artichoke cream, lemon crumble Salt and pepper butterfly prawns, candied vegetables with cumin Duck foie gras, lightly tangy apple éclair Verrine of lentils and crispy vegetables with raw and cooked tomatoes       ** Main course at choice: Chicken supreme, creamy risotto with green asparagus, thyme sauce Hake pie with lemon cream, crushed potatoes with seaweed Slab of beef, potato patty, oyster mushrooms and yellow carrots (+) ** Desserts Assortment: Chocolate cream, caramelised biscuit crunch and fresh banana Salted butter caramel macaroon and seasonal fruit Mini shortbread with orange meringue cream Verrine of chestnut cream and vanilla mousse with hazelnut flakes ** Vegetarian Menu: Pumpkin soup, baby salad greens with pine nuts and marinated artichokes ** Fried seasonal vegetables, risotto with green asparagus, oyster mushrooms                ** Coconut rice pudding, seasonal fruits, black and white chocolate mikado       Child Menu:  

Chicago Helicopter Nighttime Tour The City lights experience takes you on a magical night-time helicopter ride over Chicago. This tour is the ultimate way to take in Chicago's beauty. Your total helicopter experience with the pre-flight briefing and customer experience center will be about 1hr. Photography is allowed throughout the flight experience. Guest Pick up is available from Chicago downtown hotels for additional charge. All tours depart from and return to Chicago Helicopter Experience 2420 South Halsted Street Shedd Aquarium UNDERWATER BEAUTY – A SPECIAL EXHIBIT Our living world is full of wonder. Celebrate with us the unbelievable beauty living in our oceans, lakes and rivers in a new special exhibit at Shedd Aquarium: Underwater Beauty. Get a glimpse of the grandeur beneath the waves as 100 species from around the world come together in an evocative new space. What is beauty? Spark your curiosity as you see all the ways beauty moves and coexists. Watch sea jellies pulse, eels ribbon and a rainbow come alive with reef fishes. Feel the rhythms, embrace the colors and savor the patterns found only underwater. Experience a world worth celebrating – and saving. AMPHIBIANS! Get ready for a toadally ribbiting experience! Shedd’s new special exhibit, Amphibians, included with admission. ​In Amphibians, you’ll meet 40 species of frogs, salamanders and rarely seen caecilians. Learn how amphibians’ lives are full of change, from their life cycles to their adaptations to live in nearly every environment on Earth. Find out how too much change can spell trouble for amphibians — and how you can help them cope with big changes in our world today! Waters of the World Travel the world in 80 habitats. Dive into Oceans, from coastal kelp forests to the seafloor. Explore the self-contained ecosystems of Islands and Lakes. Visit Rivers—big and small—and learn more about our local waters in the new At Home on the Great Lakes exhibit. Meet hundreds of amazing animals, from tiny mantella frogsto a a giant octopus, from a Grand Cayman blue iguana to Nile knifefish, and from moon jellies to sea stars. We even have map turtles, in case you get lost. Caribbean Reef Take a 360-degree tour of an underwater reef community. Follow a green sea turtle. Peek at a moray eel in a rocky crevice. Watch regal rays glide by. Get eye-to-eye with parrot fish and sharks. Visit Caribbean Reef, Shedd’s award-winning 90,000-gallon circular habitat in the grand rotunda. Amazon Rising Take an exotic journey in the Amazon, home to one-third of all living things. Watch out for anacondas and piranhas, spiders, rays and a camouflaged caiman. In churning river channels, still lakes and even flooded treetops look for tetras, turtles and fruit-eating fish called tambaqui. See how the region’s animals, plants and people adapt to the water’s dramatic annual rise and fall. Abbott Oceanarium The Abbott Oceanarium immerses you in the vibrant coastal ecosystem of beluga whales, Pacific white-sided dolphins, sea otters and sea lions. You’ll also find a host of fishes and invertebrates that make their homes where freshwater flows into the ocean or where tides turn seascapes to landscapes and back again each day. Use our self-guided map to discover how animals are linked to each other, their homes and you. Polar Play Zone Kids have a place at Shedd that they can call their own—Polar Play Zone. It’s cool as ice and twice as nice! The penguins think so, too. Play! Splash! Pretend! What would you like to be? A sleek sliding penguin? A deep-sea explorer? How about both? In Polar Play Zone, you can slip into a penguin suit and try being a bird in the Icy South play area. From there, head to the Icy North to explore the belugas’ Arctic waters in a kid-sized submarine. Don’t forget to shake hands—or is it arms?—with colorful sea stars in the touch pools. In Polar Play Zone, you’ll learn about polar opposites—big and small, fast and slow, shallow and deep, even north and south—while you play. The Oceanarium Aquatic Presentation​ is included however based on available seating and remaining show times at the time of guest arrival. (2018 Aquatic Presentation Schedule) Stingray Touch (seasonal experience) is included. Open late May through October. 4D Experience is not included however the 4D experience tickets may be purchased at the theatre for $3.00 per -person Pets are not allowed in the aquarium

Tour Stops Bus Route: 1. Central Station 2. Amrath Hotel 3. Windmill/East 4. Artis Royal Zoo 5. Gassan Diamonds 6. Jewish Historical Quarter 7. Royal Theatre Carré 8. Heineken Experience 9. Museum Square/Rijksmuseum 10. Vondelpark 11. Westermarkt Boat - Blue Line: 1. Saint Nicholas Church 2. National Maritime Museum 3. City Hall 4. Golden Bend/Herengracht Boat - Green Line: 1. Central Station West 2. Passanger Terminal 3. Gassan Diamonds 4. Hermitage Museum 5. Albert Cuyp Market 6. Rijksmuseum/Leidseplein   Passengers can hop-on and hop-off at any of the tour stops along the three routes. If you’d prefer, stay on the tour for a full loop: Bus Tour – 60 – 75 minutes Boat Tour – 60 – 120 minutes Additional Information: Vouchers must be printed to be exchanged for a City Sightseeing bus ticket in location The audio commentary is available in the following languages: English, Spanish, German, Italian, French, Portuguese, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, Catalan, Dutch, Arabic, Hebrew, Swedish Buses are wheelchair accessible  

Want an entirely different NightLife experience? Get involved in the VIP nightlife Tour Tickets include: Express entry into the Academy and access to NightLife event 30-minute private reception and two complimentary cocktails per guest Complimentary light bites  A one-hour, behind-the-scenes tour with private viewing of the Vault—home to highlights of the Academy's renowned gem and mineral collection Interactions with Academy researchers in the Project Lab A reserved pass for the 8:30 pm Planetarium show Anyone yearning to geek out inside a multimillion-dollar science museum with the added bonus of booze should head to Golden Gate  Park on Thursdays for NightLife at the California Academy of Sciences. Since 2009, the Academy has stayed open late once a week to give the 21+ crowd full run of the place, with an ever-changing series of themed events and several temporary bars spread throughout the gigantic building. Entertainment / Music Multiple DJs and/or live bands performing in a variety of styles tied to the night’s theme, from house to swing to everything else under the sun. One hundred thousand square-foot museum packed with incredible exhibits, aquariums, a replica of a rain forest, and the largest all-digital projection screen on the planet in the planetarium. Food / Miscellaneous Food stands offer a handful of snacks and entrées that can change weekly but usually include items like pork buns, chicken with fries, and vegetarian dishes. Private lounge available for rental. What to Wear / Dress Code Casual to trendy: everything from white t-shirts and jeans to dolled up duds. Hot Nights / When to Go Only open on Thursdays, but patrons should arrive early to avoid the lines and to check out the rainforest, which closes at 20.00.

Our first stop is the world famous Rock and Roll hot spot, “Guitar Center” located on the legendary Sunset Blvd. Guitar Center is the nucleus of the Rock & Roll World with hand prints in concrete and bronze plaques of all the music greats. Next we arrive at the one and only “Hollywood Boulevard’s Walk of Fame.” This is the “Center of Hollywood” where you have ample time to visit the Kodak Theater (Dolby Theater) & Chinese Theater (homes of the Oscars with movie stars handprints forever in concrete) as well as the stunningly ornate Roosevelt Hotel where stars and famous people are often seen having lunch; the Hollywood Wax Museum; Ripley’s Believe It or Not; Madame Tussauds; American Cinematheque & Egyptian Theater. Stars such as Tom Cruise, Madonna, Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Lopez, Jack Nicholson and so many others live in the magnificent mansions throughout this area and are seen regularly. Romantically stroll along Hollywood Boulevard’s Walk of Fame with the stars at your feet; find your favorite star and take a photo. You also have a wonderful view of the iconic “Hollywood Sign” from the Patio of the Kodak Theater. Don’t forget to pick up a souvenir at one of the many gift shops in this area. Most of our time is spent in the wonderful Hollywood Blvd., area but we still see great views of many famous film locations, the Landmark Biltmore Hotel, Magic Castle, Hollywood United Methodist Church, Warner Brothers Studios & Soundstages, Walt Disney Studios, where most of the classic animated movies were made such as Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs, Mary Poppins, Armageddon & the Pirates of the Caribbean, to mention only a few. We also see Pixar Entertainment and ABC Studios alongside Disney. Welcome to Hollywood, the Movie, Music and “Movie Star” capitol of the world! You will love this fun and fascinating day touring through the Hollywood Hills of Southern California!   What to Wear Hiking or athletic walking shoes Temperatures are cooler from October – February, so long pants and a warm jacket are appropriate March – September temperatures are warm where shorts, hats, and a light shirt are comfortable