Day 3 in Las Vegas was another pretty chill day—which, honestly, is exactly what we wanted from this trip.
We started the morning slowly. I worked for a bit, Lucia worked "out" for a bit, and neither of us was in any particular hurry to get anywhere. After a couple of days of letting ourselves just be instead of trying to cram as much as possible into every waking hour, I think we're getting pretty good at this whole leisurely vacation thing.
Eventually, we headed off the Strip and stopped at Ellis Island on our way to the Sphere, where we had a fantastic salad before the main event of the day. I highly recommend the Apple Pecan Salad at Village Pub inside the Ellis Island Hotel & Casino. Its a fresh spring mix tossed in an AMAZING citrus vinaigrette, topped with sliced apples, dried cranberries, candied pecans and blue cheese crumbles. SO GOOD!
The Wizard of Oz at Sphere
We had tickets for the 2:00 p.m. showing of The Wizard of Oz at Sphere, and this was easily a 10/10 experience! I would absolutely recommend it.
I knew going in that the Sphere was going to be impressive, but I don't think I fully understood just how immersive the experience would feel until we were actually inside.
And I will admit: at first, it was a little scary.
If you're afraid of heights, be prepared for that when you're making your way to your seats. The steepness combined with the enormous screen surrounding you can be a little overwhelming at first. Once we were seated, though, the theater began filling up, the lights went down, and that initial fear pretty much disappeared.
Then the movie started.
The size of the screen, the clarity, and especially the colors were absolutely incredible. It's one of those things that's difficult to describe because your brain knows you're looking at a screen, but it doesn't really feel like you're looking at a screen.
And then there are the effects.
During the tornado scene, wind actually blew throughout the Sphere and papers flew. Later, snow fell on us. Those were two of my favorite interactive parts of the entire experience. Instead of simply watching Dorothy's journey, there were moments when it felt like the environment of the movie had spilled out into the theater around us.
One thing I was worried about beforehand was motion sickness. I've done other immersive and 4D-style experiences where EVERYTHING on the screen is moving at once, and my brain quickly decides it would like to exit the situation immediately.
This felt different.
We noticed that throughout much of the movie, there seemed to be a central focal point you could keep your eyes on while the scenery and other elements moved around it. For us, that made the experience much easier to tolerate than some other immersive attractions I've done.
That said, if you're someone who gets motion sick easily—or you're particularly uncomfortable with heights—it's definitely something to keep in mind before you go.
But the technology itself?
Absolutely amazing.
Seeing a movie that has been around for generations presented in such a completely different way was pretty incredible. It's familiar and nostalgic, but at the same time you're experiencing it through technology that feels almost futuristic. Lucia says "It was like I was seeing it for the first time."
I'd go again.
One cool thing to note: We were randomly gifted 2 apple magnets when we entered the inside of the sphere which was a nice surprise! So although we didn't catch any apples that fell during the show, we still got a memento of being there for the one year anniversary of the showing of the Wizard of Oz. These are special edition gold colored apples.
The Part I Would NOT Recommend
What I wouldn't necessarily recommend?
Walking to and from Sphere from Hilton Elara when it's 108 degrees outside.
On a normal day, a 20–25 minute walk wouldn't even register as something we'd need to think about.
At 108°F, it is a VERY different 20–25 minutes.
The second we stepped outside, it felt like our skin was burning. Las Vegas had only about 10% humidity, so yes, it was an extremely dry heat—but let me tell you, we still managed to sweat out whatever remaining water our bodies had been holding onto.
By the time we made it back to Elara after the show, the heat had completely drained us. There would be no wandering the Strip or finding dinner.
We stayed in for the rest of the night and were perfectly happy about it.
And then, because apparently our bodies still have absolutely no idea that we're in Nevada, we were in bed by 8:00 p.m. and awake again at 4:30 a.m.
We're still living on Eastern Time, I guess. 😂
So Day 3 wasn't packed with activities, but it didn't need to be.
We ate a great meal, experienced something completely new, nearly evaporated on a Las Vegas sidewalk, and were tucked into bed before some people here had even decided where they were going for dinner.
I'd call that a pretty successful day.
Day 3 lesson: Sometimes the best vacation days only need one really memorable thing.
And maybe an Uber.
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