It was time for a drink. Or for my girlfriend and me to check out who was sitting on our other side. Oh, wait. It was another topless woman with her husband.
An hour later, we were used to it. My friend had taken off her bathing suit top (not me, nope, not happening); dozens of women were standing around half-naked, chatting as though they were at a cocktail party - and in truth, they were; and we were ready to move on to what would turn out to be a series of European-style pools around town.
This is the new Vegas, baby, so get used to it.
Casinos? Just another way to lose money. Nightclubs? Just another place to dance. Pools, though - that's where it's at.
Not only has Sin City gone adults-only at many of the hotel swimming holes - they've pushed nightlife into "daylife," creating a party atmosphere for at least one pool on each property. Many of them charge an entrance fee and push the noise and dress-code limits with late-afternoon, DJ-led pool parties and servers and guests wearing as little as they can get away with.
Many of the hotels have remodeled or added sections with submerged bars, swim-up gaming, or slides and lazy rivers to entice all ages.
For instance:
The pool area was part of the Tropicana's recent $125 million renovation.
Encore spent part of $68 million opening the Beach Club.
The Palms put $30 million into renovations that include two-story bungalows and canvas-topped cabanas.
The two new pools at the Hard Rock Hotel - HRH Beach Club and Skybar - were part of the $750 million in renovations the hotel finished this year.
And to showcase their expensive new toys, the properties added adult-oriented parties - Liquid at Aria, Ditch Fridays at the Palms, and Sunset Sundays at the Venetian's Tao Beach Club.
