Strip Tips: Conservation, flowers and spring

Spring break is here and with it, a spring display. It's also time to honor the Earth and environment by turning off the lights. Check out what's happening on the Strip:

Lights out

Several resorts on the Strip will honor the environment tonight by turning the lights off Saturday.

From 8:30 to 9:30 p.m., marquees will go dark all along the Strip in observation of the fifth annual Earth Hour. The idea behind turning off nonessential lights for an hour once a year is to raise awareness of climate change and encourage people to be mindful of the Earth. The people behind Earth Hour, the World Wildlife Fund, hope the effort extends past an hour and inspires people to make lasting change in the world.

Visit earthhour.org to learn other ways to get involved in conservation.

Garden display

Check out the spring show at the Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Gardens. The theme this year is "Dutch village." There's a 20-foot-tall windmill, wooden clogs, parasols, fresh flower carts, a "dancing horse carousel" and thousands of flowers. The whole thing looks a lot like an idyllic Dutch village. The show is free, as always, and is open around the clock through May 13. Harps and violins will be played live from 5 to 6 p.m. daily.

Spring break

Spring break season is upon us and with it comes some good deals at Strip resorts. MGM Grand, Mandalay Bay, Monte Carlo, New York-New York, Luxor and Excalibur are offering special room rates and privileged access through April 30.

For instance, MGM Grand's spring break package includes rooms starting at $52. Some of the amenities include a $99 deal at Wet Republic (admission, seating and one pitcher of mojitos) and a CSI: The Experience dinner package for $60. To book your reservations, visit www.mgmresorts.com/SpringBreak2012/.

Question

How long does the Strip celebrate Restaurant Week?

Restaurant Week, a fundraiser for Three Square Food Bank, gives people the chance to eat at some fancy Strip restaurants for a fraction of the normal price. Alas, Restaurant Week is over. It ended earlier this month. But organizers said it was a success. The fall installment is scheduled to run Aug. 27 to Sept. 9. For more information, visit threesquare.org.

Contact reporter Sonya Padgett at
spadgett@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4564.
Follow @StripSonya on Twitter.