Vegas Baby

[MinnieLove]

I have always wanted to say that. Sister is getting married in Vegas mid-April. And we would like to go if we can do it economically. I am not experienced on setting up traveling plans. What sites should I check? Any helpful hints?

 

[Kae]

a great site is www.cheapovegas.com it has reviews & links to hotels in Vegas. Sign up at the hotel websites & you will start getting emails with great deals.

I got Vegas fever bad right now, I want to get back to Vegas.
Kae

 

[At World's End]

You can get some great deals at off-strip hotels, if you get a rental car. The Orleans is about a block off the strip, has large rooms and offers great deals. You can park for free at any of the hotels. Count on MAJOR traffic on the strip, so cabs can get really expensive. Give yourself plenty of time to get to the wedding site! Some of the hotels are like mini-cities with amusement parks, movie theaters, bowling alleys. There's plenty of free entertainment - Freemont St. Experience, the Forum shopping area at Caesar's Palace, the lions at MGM grand, the dancing fountains at Bellagio, the pirate show outside of Treasure Island. Be prepared for lots of walking, the hotels are huge and the blocks between hotels are really long.

 

[antmaril]

Just want to give you a heads up -- there is a huge convention in Las Vegas the week of April 10th -- National Association of Broadcasters. This convention draws about 100,000 people into Vegas. If you can, avoid that week. Hotel rates are very high and it's very, very crowded.

Have fun in Vegas!

 

[MinnieLove]

We are looking at April 16 or 17 thru the 22nd. Just missed that convention! But thanks for the heads up.

 

[bear_mom]

Check out several different travel websites. On our first trip I found a great deal through Spirit for Planet Hollywood which is pretty centrally located on the strip for $70/night and that included a fountain view (Bellagio). On our next trip we stayed at the MGM (southern end of the strip) through a deal on their website $80/night but it included a $70 food credit, 2 free drinks by the pool and $50 in slot play(we don't go to gamble, so this was plenty for us). Both times I spent a lot of time comparing deals to find the best one for us.

As for getting around, the only time we take a cab is to/from the airport. Other than that we walk (beware, things are A LOT farther away than they look) or take the deuce which is the bus system. You can buy a cheap bus pass and they are pretty easy to figure out, I want to say it was $5/24 hours or something like that.

Emily

 

[antmaril]

We are looking at April 16 or 17 thru the 22nd. Just missed that convention! But thanks for the heads up.

Perfect!

 

[klacey1]

Definitely stay on the strip! Traffic is so bad that it's best not to rent a car in Vegas-- the strip is huge (everything looks close to each other but they're not), but the bus stops everywhere. (Deuce)
Your best best is to sign up for emails from the hotels that interest you to have them alert you of specials. Also, if you find a cheaper rate on Cheap Tickets or another website, you can usually call the hotel, book it through them, and get the cheap rate. This assures you get the safety of booking through the hotel directly-- i.e. if you have to cancel, there's usually little or no penalty, as opposed to booking through a third party. That being said, we got an AWESOME package rate through the Virgin America airline website and went with that. Good package rates (airport to hotel transfers, flights, hotel, buffet coupons) can be had!
I don't know if your children are going with you-- that would change the hotel I'd recommend. If they are, they'd probably like Excalibur or Circus Circus, which are both super-budget. They both have plenty of activities to keep kids occupied. Mandalay Bay also has a phenomenal pool (practically a water park), but it's pretty expensive.
If they're not-- Caesars is an amazing hotel! The Flamingo is also really nice, and budget-friendly.
Food can get really expensive in Vegas-- if you're not picking, there's plenty of CS options, though (including Earl of Sanwhich at the Planet Hollywood hotel!). Mon Ami Gabi is a not-so-expensive table service option-- it over looks those gorgeous Bellagio fountains.

 

[pink_fins]

In Dec we stayed downtown at the Golden Nugget. walked out of it to fremont street lights. It was nice. the one thing I want to tell you is we used the city bus to get to the strip each day. No car needed. Even walked to the pawn stars shop (only do this during the day)

It was great. It was very clean and we could check out other people (love people watching). You can get on it just outside the hotel.
Just an idea if you stay down town.

gail

 

[MinnieLove]

No kids traveling with. Praise the Lord!

I have been to Vegas once before and absolutely loved Caesars! Did not stayed there but just love the idea of staying there. Gorgeous place. I dont know if I can suck up the additional cost compared to the lower budgets on the strip. We stayed at the Imperial Palace last time. It was another budget trip. And you get what you pay for!

 

[sk!mom]

Chiming in to say, definitely sign up on all of the hotel websites. Last trip we booked Paris for $80 a night, we've gotten New York, New York for $59 a night. Both are nice and good locations. We always stay on the strip and walk most places. Cab from the airport and occasionally take a cab if it's really late, far, or we're tired. I'll have to try getting DH on the bus, next trip.

If Southwest is a convienent airline for you, watch airfare with them. They often have great deals on flights to Vegas.

 

[SPBendersky]

Check some of the Hotels down town and Harrah's in the middle of the strip for lower rates. The Flamingo is also moderately priced. If you have points from Dis still left there is a condo complex that you can use points at down across from the Riv. Good Luck

 

[tweedlemom]

We stayed at the NY NY and enjoyed it. Check out the Las Vegas board here on the Dis, or go to www.vegas.com for lots of great info!

 

[MAMA GRAVE]

I would recommend Main Street Station in downtown Vegas. They have nice rooms and a great restaurant.

 

[Dewy]

If it hasn't been said already....research as much as you can about the hotel. Some are not very nice. My first trip(business) a few years ago I stayed at the Sahara. It had what I thought was a good price but what a DUMP!!

 

[ChisJo]

Personally, I've been to Vegas 5 times, and to be honest, if you stay at one of the better resorts, you can't go wrong. I have found though, that the best places are in the centre of the strip. I loved the location of Planet Hollywood, Bellagio, and Paris. Last time we went, we stayed at the MGM because we got a really good rate. To be honest, all the rooms were essentially the same. You are hardly in your rooms anyways.

Recommendations:

Mandalay Bay, Luxor, and Stratosphere are farther than they look on the map. Hard Rock is off the strip and although they advertise that they are close, they really aren't.

Stay away from Excalibur, Tropicana, Circus Circus (is this even still open?), Riviera and Imperial Palace.


There is a GREAT wine bar in the basement of the Rio. Totally recommend it.

We rented a car when we stayed at MGM and we went hiking in the Red Rock Canyon and we went shopping at the outlet mall in Primm Valley. However, basically our car was incredibly cheap, and worth it for us. That was the 5th time we went. For the first couple of times, I didn't want to leave the strip.

You can always take the skytrain as well. We took it more than we thought, and it was completely reasonable.

Have fun!