THE BEST AND WORST OF THE BELLAGIO ...

What I like the most about my hotel here in Las Vegas, the Bellagio, is that they go all out to make every guest feel like a celebrity. Just this morning, I felt like Augustus Gloop when I stumbled across a genuine Chocolate Fountain in the lobby. It's filled with 2 tons of white and dark chocolate rising nearly 27 feet above the Jean Philippe Patisserie and is, according to the Guiness Book of World Records, the largest chocolate fountain in the world.

Later, I felt more like the victim of a con job in The Grifters when I realized just how much the Bellagio charges its guests to connect to the Internet. I don't mind the $14.99 per day connection fee. Most hotels charge a daily rate for high-speed Internet access and I would expect the Bellagio to charge more than most. What I do mind is the creative way they further jack-up the price. Unlike most major hotels, they don't offer Wireless Internet Access. Instead, they tell you to "use the Ethernet Cable near the minibar" to get connected. What they don't tell you -- unless you look very closely at the Minibar Menu -- is that the Ethernet Cable is, in their opinion, a "Souvenir" for which they charge you an additional $12.99. Yes, that's right, the cable -- which every other hotel I've ever stayed at provides for free -- comes in a shrink-wrapped "gift box" and the minute you open it, the Bellagio charges you an additional $12.99. Now that's what I call an ISP (Indecent Superfluous Price) ...!