Las Vegas is more than just casinos - if you know where to look

From above, the fantastical playground of Las Vegas shoots up towards us, glinting and gleaming, from the red earth of the Mojave Desert. The gold-infused glass of the Trump International Hotel flashes in the desert sun, an Eiffel Tower rises from a cluster of Europe's greatest marvels and a futuristic dome flickers visuals across its wraparound LED screen.

There is plenty to marvel at on the ground, but the bird's-eye view of the infamous resort city is a sight to behold.

I am nearing the end of a whirlwind tour of Vegas when I set out on this helicopter tour to the Grand Canyon with Maverick Helicopters.

Like everything on this trip, it is a carefully crafted experience. Our helicopter pilot, Levi Silz, has curated his own playlist for the tour, a soundtrack which punctuates the breathtaking views of Lake Mead - the largest reservoir in the United States - the stretching desert and then the Grand Canyon itself.

We land in the canyon for a short picnic stop, during which most of us wander around, dazed by the ancient rocks rising around us and the cool green of the Colorado River stretching out below.

Las Vegas has never been at the top of my travel list, and I'm a little worried when the flashing lights of pokies greet us in the terminal as we roll off the plane. But I have resolved to not make up my mind about anything until I've really had a chance to look at Las Vegas from all angles.

From the airport, we rush headfirst into a whirlwind five nights, sampling sumptuous food and drink, bouncing between experiences and meeting people along the way. On the bus to our helicopter tour we meet a mother and son who have come to Las Vegas to mark her first year free from cancer. They are heading to see the illusionist David Copperfield later that evening. "Then we leave tomorrow morning, back to life," she says, in a remark that sums up the kind of escapism this place represents.

We seem to eat our way through Vegas, constantly stuffed but too intrigued to turn away a dish. Tucked away in the city's maze of monolithic resorts are hundreds of restaurants, all trying to offer something different.

Inside the Venetian, we find Wakuda, a restaurant helmed by chef Tetsuya Wakuda. Cherry blossoms stretch overhead, and two Sumo statues face each other, as we gorge on plates of modern Japanese cuisine. The wasabi caesar salad, topped with parmesan chips, is a memorable twist on an American favourite. The sashimi looks almost too good to eat, while delicate bites of crisp rice provide the perfect vessel for a generous helping of spicy tuna. On another night, at the Wynn, the warm glow of coastal Mexican restaurant Casa Playa welcomes us in, with dozens of strands of marigold flowers adorning the entrance and restaurant, and fresh plates of tapas arriving in front of us.

Australians in Vegas can also melt into the familiar comfort of a brunch culture, but be warned that there is nothing laidback about it. The plush furnishings of Lisa Vanderpump's restaurant Pinky's envelop us in a dreamy experience, as we tear into the buttery pull-apart bread, lobster rolls and mini pink pancakes. We pass by the restaurant later in the evening and spot the reality star herself, hovering in the entrance, clutching a customary tiny dog.

My favourite is Diner Ross, a 1970s-inspired diner with warm lighting and comfortable brown booths that fold you in. The steelhead trout with rice pilaf is warm and flavourful, but it still saddens me to think of the enormous slab of chocolate cake that arrives, which I only have room to nibble on.

Remarkably, between feasts, we have time to experience Vegas's live entertainment offerings, including Magic Mike, where the eponymous character is played by talented Australian Blake Varga. It's the typical Vegas experience, but we couldn't be further from the typical when we set foot into Omega Mart. It took three years for the team of artists known as Meow Wolf to create this immersive experience, and it quickly becomes apparent why. Customers enter bemused as to why they've paid for tickets to a quirky re-creation of a supermarket, only to discover a tangle of concealed doorways and Easter eggs leading to vibrant rooms and installations, all of which are tied together by wacky yet compelling storytelling.

As we are driven around the city - never waiting more than 10 minutes for a rideshare - we become accustomed to catching glimpses of one of Vegas's newest creations, the Sphere. This massive entertainment venue encapsulates what Vegas is best at, but also what makes it divisive. It's spectacular but also unnecessary. A huge dome that features ever-shifting graphics on its external screens - including giant eyeballs and emojis - the Sphere is a massive entertainment venue. We climb a steep set of stairs to our seats to watch a movie on a 14,860-square-metre video screen that rises above and wraps around us - a viewing experience like no other (currently showing: The Wizard of Oz).

It's true that Vegas excels at curated experiences, but one can wander and discover, too. Locals tell us that the Arts District is the true Vegas to them, and we quickly come to adore the cultural hub and its many sprawling vintage stores, boutique galleries and cocktail bars. I spend a few hours sifting through the vintage records, postcards and extravagant dresses, looking for gems. There is plenty to eat in this district, too, with tours run by Lip Smacking Foodie Tours, and Italian restaurant Esther's Kitchen a particular local favourite.

We drive out to Hoover Dam, a visually stunning concrete arch-gravity dam with an epic tale. Drifting down the Colorado River on a raft, our guide tells us of the massive effort to build the dam from 1931, which brought tens of thousands of workers to nearby Boulder City. The complex and arduous engineering feat was all carried out in the heat of the desert sun, without modern technology or comforts. That painstaking effort seems to speak to the city that sits alongside it, where locals work so hard to create the perfect playground for visitors.

The writer was a guest of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority