Enter from the casino escalators and be sure to look up while you're doing it. The artwork on the walls and ceiling were hand-painted by craftsmen (and women) from all over the world and while they may not be actual masterworks they sure do fake it well.

Once you get into the mall itself the first thing you're going to notice is the canal. Yep, I said canal. This being The Venetian they have created a Venice street scene with the storefronts designed to look like old Italian buildings and an actual canal with gondolas running up the center. If you are so inclined you can ride in one although be prepared to have your picture taken by a lot of tourists.

The mall ends at a recreation of St. Mark's Square, another Venice landmark, where you'll find lots of street performers and artists roaming the big space that is mostly surrounded by restaurants.

Oh, and you can shop, too. The stores here aren't quite as high-end as most of the other malls on The Strip - there is no Dolce and Gabbana, no Versace, no Tiffany's. And in fact there are fewer familiar brand names on the storefronts than you'd expect. But that's okay because in the end you'll probably wind up paying less money for the stuff you buy than you will at one of other luxury malls.

But as mentioned, this is more about the experience, anyway. Frame your photo just right and you might be able to convince your neighbors that you were in Italy instead of in a mall in Vegas.

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