Las Vegas Travel Forum

hi everyone,
we are wanting to visit vegas for the first time . any suggestions on a decent hotel , what to do and what not to do !!
is it best to book with a company or sort it ourselves ?
thanks for any help.

Vegas offers vacations for all budgets and visitors. I go visit at least once every year, so I can hopefully give you some accurate advice.

What are your interests?
What is your hotel budget?
What month will you visit?

A good general information site, with many links: www.a2zlasvegas.com. Gary

Last August I visited Las Vegas, for 3 nights.

The first night i stayed in the Plaza hotel which is dowtown, and ideal to visit the casinos round Fremont street, and of course to se the fremont experience

the other nights I stayed in the Excalibur casino, and from there I did the Strip.

I booked everything myself via internet.

For hotels I would say avoid the Stratosphere, Circus Circus and the Sahara. These do tend to have cheap deals but they are at the top end of the Strip and you’ll need to do a lot of walking - you’ll do a lot of walking in Vegas anyway so take comfortable shoes. For convenience try for mid Strip around the Mirage, Caesars Palace, Venetian, Flamingo area. I recently stayed at Harrah’s and it was good value in a good location. Bill‘s Gambling Hall is another good value good location option or if you are looking for luxury try Caesars, the Venetian or the Bellagio. You could also consider the many hotels on Fremont St Downtown, the prices are cheaper, they are closer together so it’s easier to hop from one to the other and if you are gambling the table limits are lower. I’ve stayed at the Golden Nugget, The Four Queens and Fitzgerald’s and can recommend them all.

There’s loads to do in Vegas even if you don’t gamble and you‘ll be spoilt for choice. I would say plan in advance and don’t be too optimistic. Here are some of my suggestions,

Go up the Stratosphere Tower for the great views, go at dusk if you can just as all the lights are coming on.

Watch the Bellagio Fountains then take a stroll along the Strip for the other free evening shows, the Sirens at Treasure Island and the Volcano at the Mirage.

Take a trip Downtown for the amazing lightshow and the party atmosphere on Fremont St.

Go to the Rio and watch the free Masquerade in the Sky show

Stroll around the Venetian and see the canals, gondolas, St Mark's Square etc.

Go to the top of the Eiffel Tower at the Paris where you can look down on the Bellagio Fountains.

Visit the Wildlife Habitat at the Flamingo

Go see the lions at MGM and the tigers & dolphins at the Mirage.

Have a look around the Gamblers Museum at the Tropicana.

There are also plenty of tours and shows that you can book either before you go or when you get there. I have tended to book flights, hotels and shows myself rather than go for a package but that’s personal choice. There is certainly plenty of information available on the internet.


Have a good trip, you'll love it.

Cheers
Clive

I would recommend staying on the strip. I have been to vegas many times and don't find the freemont experience to be very exciting. Plus the strip is safe to walk around at night. Downtown may have cheaper casinos but it is very seedy at night.

When I book my hotel in vegas I have a three step approach.
1. Get a baseline idea of how much the hotels are going to cost for your given dates at www.vegas.com
2. Go to the website www.cheapovegas.com they have a comprehensive list off the major casinos. Go to the website of the individual casinos and get the room rates. You will 80% get a cheaper room rate directly from the hotel website.
3. You can gamble at the casinos in vegas. They have many posh bars and clubs to go to in all of the major casinos such as venetian, ceasers treasure Island, You can watch shows at different casinos. I watched cirque de soliel at the ceaser last time I went. YOu should definitely walk around the casinos. As their decor is a sightseeing as well.
Hope this helps

Well theres certainly some very good pages here on VT from other Vegas lovers. I too go every year and adore it! How long are you going for? On our first visit we divided the Strip into easy sections and did 2 or 3 hotels a day. The hotels in themselves have more than enough to keep you occupied and you shouldnt really miss any of them altho obviously there are some that a so much better than others.
I would definitely recommend a visit to(starting at the south end of the Strip)the Mandalay Bay then get the monorail to the Luxor next door. Onto NewYork,NewYork then cross over the walkway to MGM. Stay on that side up to Planet Hollywood then cross back over to Bellagio and Caesars Palace next door. When I say next door it could take up to 20 minutes to walk "next door"!

Over from Caesars is the Venetian and its new Palazzo Hotel. Opposite is The Mirage and then Treasure Island and onto the famous Fashion Mall. Hotel Wynn is up there too.

All of these mentioned have not only the sheer luxury of the place to see but offer great, free entertainment, whether its white tigers in their habitat or dancing fountains, shooting vulcanoes, real canals with real gondolas INSIDE the hotel.

Why not spend a couple of hours browsing the pages on VT and the deals, but we have always booked our own hotels online and got some very good deals. If you subscribe to their website they send details of deals to you. Another good site for deals is www.i4vegas.com

Wherever you go and whatever you see, have fun and enjoy!

Hey there!
Total vegas lover and agree with most of what has been said here. I would definitely stay on the north end of the strip, there is more going on and in closer proximity. DONT stay at Excalibur. If you need to go cheap, the Flamingo or Harrahs is a much better bet. If you are going all out, I looooove the Venetian (new Palazzo). I highly recommend a visit to the Red Rock if you have a car. I would stay on the strip if I were you, but if you do end up staying off, I would go with Green Valley Resort or Red Rock, they are the best for sure. Have fun!

Try this trip planning site: www.thetripgeek.com. One of their main specialties is Vegas.

I just returned from Las Vegas and it is as busy as ever. Just want to correct the last post, You want to stay mid or South end of the strip. The North end is where the Stratosphere Hotel is located. I stayed at New York New York (South Strip) and I was very impressed. I am in Las Vegas at least 3 times a year and I have to say that the service was excellent at New York New York. Right now is a great time to visit as the higher end hotels have some great deals. If you stay during the week, you can get some VERY good deals. Oh, and by the way, at the Rio, the Sky Show is closed down for the next month or so for renovation and the Volcano at the Mirage is being reworked, so it is down for a few months.

If you are into shows, there is the Hot Tix booth across the street from New York New York. You can save up to 50% on shows in Las Vegas.

Hope this helps.