Alright. I'm in Vegas. FOCUS: Vegas. What to do/not do. Where to go/avoid. Special haunts you always check out here. Hookers that are can't miss. Best blow dealers in town. How to stash a body.
While we may be a little late to help dchavok here, the strip is always BUMPin'. Vegas is a fascinating city to me, and I always seem to find a way to entertain myself there. Lots of tips and tricks for getting around. One of my favorite sites on the subject is Cheapo Vegas, run by a group of people that includes The Filthy Critic, Matt Weatherford. As of a year or two ago, my tip would have been to save money and have a good time staying at the South Point, which is off the strip by a few miles but only a couple minutes' drive if you have a car (it's no good if you don't have a car). Low table limits, a nice casino, and good rooms for the price. Now the rooms have gotten pricier, though, and so it's shifted the balance somewhat. Also, one of the best meals I have ever had was the pork tenderloin at Bobby Flay's Mesa restaurant at Caesar's. I'm normally against celebrity chefs with restaurants in hotels, but that's some damn good food.
Go to Ellis Island (Just off strip). Ask for the steak special (not on the menu). Enjoy. Never pay for a taxi ride to a strip club, they get up to $50/person to take you there. At worst, take the free ride. At best, negotiate free entry/drinks and even a cut of his share. Midnight 'til 8am at Bills Gamblin' Hall has $6 steak an eggs. It is right in the middle of the strip, next to the Flamingo, opposide Caesars. Do it. Don't forget to sign up for loyalty cards wherever you go, even if you don't plan on gambling too much. A lot of places will give you free bets/sports bets/drinks/food just for signing up. Some places give up to $100 free slots credits. Sit at a penny slot and put a dollar in, spin when the cocktail waitress is around (.1c spins are fine). You now qualify for comped drinks! Tip $5 on your first round and then a buck or two each subsequent round. Your cocktail waitress will bring you whateverr you want, everytime she does a loop. (I had 5+ beers and 5+vodka redbulls stacked under my craps table because she was so damn quick.) Google the $20 trick. Try it. Vegas is an amazing town and for the savvy drinker/eater/gambler amazing deals can be had. Don't be a rube, do your research and save!
I'll be flying in Saturday and was wondering if anyone knows anything about the sportsbooks that service live bets?
10 years ago I went to Vegas, stayed on the Strip at the NY NY and had a blast! Everything was cheap or comp'd. Fast forward to this summer. I was there for a wedding and stayed at the Trop. Drinks were titty-bar prices, buffets were $25 per and the crowd was of the lame "Vegas, Baby!" ilk. The best time I had was on Fremont St downtown. Cheap drinks and food. The Strip is fun for the touristy crap & if your friends are staying at the MGM or something for the pool. Otherwise, the Fremont area is the place to be. If you enjoy airport prices, then the Stip is for you.
I'll have to bookmark this topic as I'm going to Vegas in November for 10 days and can not wait. Being from the UK, I only plan to go to Vegas once as it's quite a distance and there's other places I want to go.
God, I hate the site of the "20 dollar bribe". I post on a travel forum, and every other topic is someone asking about this. Hotel workers can get into big trouble for accepting this, and most hotels are really cracking down on it. Just try being nice, and asking if there is something nicer available. I have gotten many upgrades by being nice. Focus: I am heading out in about a month to Vegas. Got a pretty wicked deal, 178 bucks a person, non-stop flight from Monterey and 3 nights at the Riviera. A lot of people decry the Riviera, but it is a step up from a shitty motel if you get a revamped room. The main problem is that it is kinda far from the main part of the strip (though it is really close to the Wynn/Encore, which are really nice places to get a drink) I will spoiler the following roughly by section. Transportation: Spoiler The Deuce is a great way to get around during the day when it isn't too crowded. At night though, you are best avoiding it. It gets packed tits to asses, and there will always be some jackass who pukes, and they have to stop the bus. The last time this happened they said that it would be an hour to get us all on other buses, so my friend and I walked from below the Bellagio to the Tropicana at night in January without proper attire, and I ended up getting sick and not being able to work at CES. So try not to take the Deuce at night. If you are at the north end of the strip you are best off making the short hike to the monorail. It is fast, but on the expensive side. It starts at the Sahara, which is Old Vegas, but it is worth a visit for their Dollar days, where they have dollar hotdogs, dollar beers, but most importantly dollar blackjack. Hotels/casinos: Spoiler Visit the MGM. Try not to get lost. It is huge and overwhelming. They have lions on display most days there, which is nifty, and if you are lucky they have cubs you can hold and get your picture taken with for like, 25 bucks. Worth it if you have a chick with you. Near the lion cage, look for the Sigma Derby game. It is a game that is way old school, it is mechanical horses that gallop around a race track. It is probably the only game in the casinos you can still use real coins in, and it tends to have a lot of camaraderie with people cheering for their horses. Good way to kill time during the day. Excalibur/luxor you can miss. Excalibur has some cheap games, but that is about it. Luxor is trying to be luxury, and lost the Egyptian theme so there is no point in going. Maybe for the club. Bellagio is a must see, and Caesars is really just meh these days. It is so far back from the strip, and full of guys who saw The Hangover. Also, asking "this isn't the real Caesar's Palace" will probably get you punched by an employee. They do have a high roller area that is pretty open so you can watch Asian men bet and lose more than you make in a year. The old school center strip hotels are kinda meh though as well. Nothing special. They all seem to pump smells into them, and in some places it is disgusting. The Flamingo smells like old people covered in Banana Boat sunscreen. The Venetian is really impressive, though the smell can be overwhelming. Sign up for the players card. I had a buddy put 60 bucks through the slots the day he got his card while just sitting and getting drinks, and came home and within days was offered 3 comped nights. This is pretty common with them from what I understand. Wynn and Encore are pretty insane. They have cheap slots, and the hotel is beautiful. You must see these. Drink Service in the Casinos: Spoiler This is one thing I am an expert on for sure. In general, watch the waitresses patterns, and sit where you know she will be frequently. Always already have money in the machine, or else the likely won't serve you if you are just sitting down as they pass. Tip 5 on the first round, and they will take care of you. Also, unless it is an all alcohol cocktail, such as a Manhattan, or a Gin Martini try and avoid it, as you can't be sure how strong it is. Get straight liquor or beer to know exactly how much you are getting. Luxor and Excalibur are pretty weak even if you are at a table. MGM is so big it can take forever to get a drink. NYNY isn't bad. They have great Manhattans. Aria at City Center, the new place has great service, and the best looking waitresses on that end of the strip. Caesars is again huge, and drink service is iffy. Bellagio has the best service. They are pretty constant about coming around, and they have quality liquor. When I was there with a friend right after the girl he was going to ask to marry dumped him, we were killing time in the afternoon at a poker machine, and the waitress noticed my friend looked a little sad, and asked. He told her, and she couldn't stop bringing us drinks. We didn't even have to ask for more, and often weren't done with the first. Wyyncore is also great for drinks plus some smoking waitresses. Riviera/Circus Circus are pretty weak. You are best off getting beer. Clubs: Spoiler Bottle service is the only way you will get a table. The only time I went to one someone's dad bout us 3 bottles for around 2k. Fucking rip off. Everyone will come and try to be your friend and get as much to drink out of you as possible. Also there will be people trying to sell you VIP passes to clubs on the strip. Very often they will be imposing black men. My friend got ripped off for 20 bucks for 2 of them. Turns out the guys just go and pick up stacks of them at the hotel, and try and scam people. Strip clubs: I recommend what was said above. Never pay a taxi. Also, try and have a girl or two with you. You get a lot more attention, and you can get your cover cut if you are lucky. Gaming: Spoiler Most casinos have the same usual games. Daytime is the cheapest of course, with 5 dollar table minimums at most casinos. These tables fill quickly, and often you are surrounded by dullards and people who make shitty plays at games like blackjack. I've seen split tens against a dealer's tens way too many times. Also look for hand shuffled games. They are slower, and thus you can play for longer. A special note about the above mentioned dollar blackjack at the Sahara blackjack isn't a gimmick where they have one packed table, but they have several. It is a good way to cut your teeth if you are new to the tables, but note that blackjacks pay even money plus a one dollar slot coupon. If you like riff raff, it is a great place to go. Avoid rapid roulette. It has lower minimums, but the faster play really can eat up your bank roll. Plus you don't get the satisfying feeling of playing with your chips. If you like poker there are plenty of low buy in tournaments and sit and gos. These are often full of douchebags trying to look like the pros on ESPN with their hats and sunglasses and iPods in. It is fun to make fun of them. The only redeeming feature of Circus Circus is the carousel of slots that spins. They seem to have the higher payouts in the casino. Buffets: Go for Bellagio, but the must have is the Wynn Champagne Brunch. 32 bucks, all the champagne you can handle. They have bacon carved to order there. Need I say more.
If you don't have one already, get a player's card no matter where you go. Vegas resorts are really struggling right now, and are offering some insane comps. My fiancee and I stayed at the Aria back in March (part of the MGM family). The hotel is amazing (brand new, 5-star), and has free tram service to the Bellagio and MGM. We did very little gambling over the 3-day period (<$300 total). For the past 5 months, we've been getting monthly invites to come back. The latest offer was 3 free nights, 2 buffets, discounted show tickets (Elvis I think), and $100 gambling credit. The rooms alone usually go for between $200 and $250 per night. It doesn't cost anything to get a player's card. I really can't think of any reason why not to get one.
If you have a car, drive a little off the strip to the new M Casino for the buffet. It is phenomenal for breakfast and dinner, and the gambling isn't that bad either because it's not always as crowded so your free drinks come quicker. The Imperial is a kind of trash casino right in the middle of the strip that often gets overlooked, but if you're hurting for cash and want low table limits, cheap drinks and crazy people, it can be a fun time.
I was in Vegas about a month ago for 4 nights as part of a road trip I did with a buddy (we're both 22 year old college students from Scotland). We didn't gamble much as we were too busy going to bars/clubs/recovering so the following info is only really useful if that's what you're into. Accommodation: We stayed at the Tropicana purely because we wanted to be on the strip and also because it was insanely cheap. The reason it was so cheap was because they're in the middle of a refurbishment phase at the moment (which I think is about half done). We stayed in one of the recently refurbished rooms and it was awesome, very good for the price (they have new photos up on their website). The downside to staying at the Trop is that only one of the pools is open at that moment and half the gaming floor is closed off. This didn't bother us as we were only using it as a place to sleep. As far as other hotels go, I woke up with a girl in the Hard Rock one morning and the room there was pretty cool, the girl said that the pools are insane there. Clubs: We did a bit of research online and chose Moon @ the Palms on Tuesday night (I think it's their industry night). Awesome place, great views from the outdoor decking (great for escaping the packed dance floor so you can hear each other speak), good music, drinks were steep but the guy to girl ratio was good and it was easy enough to find a girl to go back to the hotel with. Wednesday night we went to Studio 54 in MGM but it was pretty boring (it was very easy to find free passes which may indicate that it's never that popular). Thursday night we went to Tao @ the Venetian for 'Worship Thursdays.' I have never seen so many hot girls in one place in my life. They have some pretty talented dancers on podiums all over the place and almost nude girls writhing in bathtubs as well (sensory overload). Again, good music, steep drinks, ratio was good. The line to get in was massive but we got into the express queue by talking to one of the bouncers guarding the main line. If you don't ask you don't get I guess (we waited 15 minutes instead of over an hour, we didn't even slip him money). Check out this video for an idea of what Tao is like: <a class="postlink" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wx6H8rLHY9I" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wx6H8rLHY9I</a> Bottle service/VIP looks like an expensive waste of money, mostly groups of guys surrounded by whores who bailed on them once the booze ran low. Strip Clubs: Didn't bother going to one as picking up in the clubs was beyond easy. Did hear a lot of horror stories about getting ripped off if you get a taxi to one (as others have mentioned above). We checked out the Fremont Street Experience one night, it was swarming with trailer trash/everything is old and run down. We were noticeably overdressed in most places (nice shoes, jeans, shirts, nothing fancy). We gambled for a bit then escaped back to the Strip. Number one tip for those on a college kid budget = pregame in your room a lot, by doing this we got the proper Vegas club experience without bankrupting ourselves. Apologies for the long winded post. I realise this info is of limited use to gamblers.
What's the best way for a group of say, 6-10 guys to do Vegas? I.e cheapest time of year for flights and hotels, is it better to get a massive suite or a few rooms etc. Looking at organizing something in 2011 for some friends.
Big thumbs up for this thread. About half of my department is going out there in December for one of the guys birthdays and those of us who have not been there were looking for some information and opinions on what to do. Thanks guys.
Hope you mods don't mind me linking the site. I have been the last two years to Vegas for nye. This forum can provide much information. http://www.vegasrex.com
In my opinion, multiple rooms are always a better option. I'm not sure how old you guys are or what your marital status is, but trying to hook up with chicks when 5-6 dudes are sharing a 1 or 2 bedroom suite is never a good time. Neither is sharing 1 or 2 bathrooms amongst 6 dudes. A 12 hour bender, followed by a heavy brunch at the Bellagio usually results in 6 dudes dumping out for the next 3-4 hours. Just sayin. Vegas is usually a little cheaper in the summer when it's hot as balls. You can also get pretty good deals the week before Christmas. Also, I'm not sure of your budget, but I never understood why people were willing to stay way off the strip or in a shitty hotel to get a room for $79. Vegas is the one place in the country where you can stay in a 5-star hotel/casino for under $200. IMO, if you're only going to do 2-3 nights in Vegas, you should do it right.
If you want a great hotel room for an awesome price, check out the Trump. It's across the street from Wynn/Encore so at north end of the strip and has no casino, but you get a huge, very nice room with living area (couch folds out if you're looking to cram people), giant bathroom, and kitchenette. All for $89/night depending on time of year. Also has a pool and spa, if you're into that. Similar deals, for slightly more money, can be found at MGM Signature and Palms Place - same style of rooms in separate buildings a little separated from the action, but certainly not too far to walk for a good price! Rolling a little more fancy? Be sure to check the Four Seasons website. No promises, but my husband and I stayed there for $170/night in early November a year or two ago. It's at the top of the Mandalay Bay, so every room has an amazing view, and you get access to everything at Mandalay Bay while at the same time having the privacy and service of a Four Seasons. If you're looking to impress a lady and you happen to be going at a cheap time of year, this is worth looking into. A big second to Mesa Grill, Bobby Flay is one of the most commercialized chefs there is but his guys really know how to make tasty food. Also, the best mashed potatoes I've ever had in my life were at Stripsteak. No, it's not cheap, but they sure know how to cook a steak and you literally can't miss with the sides. Want to feel like a baller without paying? Daytime gambling at the Wynn! They have $10 blackjack tables that were very kind to me one day. Not that you need to do any of these things to have fun, but if I had to choose one retardedly overpriced Vegas experience, I would pass on the bottle service in the club and head straight to a poolside cabana at one of the nicer resort pools. They aren't cheap, but they are soooo awesome. Nothing like sleeping off your hangover on a nice comfy padded lounge chair with breaks to watch TV in your cool shaded cabana and order from the waitress that comes by every 5 seconds, while the rest of the idiots fight over plastic chairs and waitresses. If you are a girl, Vegas is the best place on earth to shop. They have every store you have ever heard of at every price range, and usually the biggest store in the country with items you can't get anywhere else. If you're saving money to shop, save it for Vegas, trust me. In particular, if you're a shoe girl, go pay your respects at the Barney's in the Venetian. I never buy, but I always go to look and drool! Finally: don't go with a giant group. No one will ever want to do the same thing and you will literally spend half your time trying to figure out what to do next or how to get there. A solid 4-5 people should be your max unless you're the type of people to either a) not give a fuck and do your own thing whenever (and do not overestimate the ability of your friends to do this unless you have traveled with them before, people get touchy when out of their comfort zones) or b) schedule the big stuff ahead of time (which pool parties, restaurants, and clubs to hit which days) and stick to that schedule with minimal bitching. Ah Vegas... I've been at least 6 times, and can't wait to go back!
Also, as an addendum to drink service in my above post, the Venetian has the biggest pours I have ever seen. I ordered a Johnnie Walker, and I got a glass willed with about 3.5 shots. I can knock back shots like nothing else, but that had me struggling. It was awesome.
Amazingly timely thread, as I'm counting down to my second Vegas trip. Almost all the advice above aligns with stuff I've come across elsewhere, so it's pretty solid. One thing I will throw in that might not be for everyone is the American Casino Guide. You can get it for like $13 and it's got hundreds of dollars of coupons in it, from 2-for-1 meals to $25 free match play to free decks of cards to half-off entry to the Stratosphere tower etc. A lot of the coupons are for downtown shit (which is cool by me because I am a cheap and nasty sonofabitch) but there's some Strip ones in there too, as well as ones for other casinos in the US...but fuck those ones. Me and my buddy bought one each because they'll pay for themselves after one match play win or half-price meal. Can't do much better than that. Oh, and another tip I've read a lot about but not experienced yet: If it's your first time and the cabbie from the airport asks you if you want to go via the tunnel, say no. From what I can gather it's a fare-gouging exercise. And if you're tired of the glitz and feel like a real dirty dive bar, Stage Door on E Flamingo sounds like it's the bee's dick. Cheap booze, cheap take-out booze, weirdo regulars and take-no-shit bartenders.
I've been a few times, and have always found Treasure Island to have the cheapest rooms on the strip. It's also been renovated in the past few years, so doesn't look as dated as some of the others. Free entertainment in front of each hotel every night, just walk down the strip- Pirate show at TI, volcano at Mirage, fountains at Bellagio, etc. I was shocked at the distance between hotels, though. For instance, there's a shuttle from TI to Mirage, they're next door to each other. Skip the Cravings buffet at Mirage, it's dogshit. Shows haven't really been mentioned- Cirque du Soleil and Penn and Teller are awesome shows. But expect to shell out at least a few hundred, even for the cheap seats. Living in Georgia, I got used to not being surrounded by a cloud of cigarette smoke everywhere I go. Expect everywhere you go to stink. Leaving a table late night and walking back down to the same people, drinking scotch at 7 in the morning is quite a sight. Drinks are free if you're gambling, but unless you're on a hot streak, you'll spend more at the table than if you were at the bar. Not to mention tipping your waitress, and the fact she'll come around only so often. I don't know why we're hating on Ceasar's, it's one of the top hotels in my opinion. They release white doves everyday at the same time, and the statues and architecture are awesome.
There's this place a few miles from the strip where you can fire fully automatic weapons at targets. It's pretty expensive (like everything else), but they have M249s and shit. Definitely worth doing.
Do they still have the Mexican guys on every corner of the Strip that flip the sex cards at you? I haven't been in 5 years but was told that if I wanted an easy place to buy weed to ask them. We had to ask 2 guys but it worked for us. If you have a car I also recommend checking out Old Vegas. That is where they have the original casino's with the neon signs. On the plane to Vegas my friend and I were talking to an older woman next to yes and when she heard where we were going told us you have to go to old Vegas and she was right. Some casino's had $1 table limits (though if you play Blackjack on a table with that kind of limit you are playing with drooling retards who will destroy your hands. Honestly, the dumbest players play on the lower limit tables). Plus, they had so many different kinds of blackjack variations and weird games I had never seen (No, not like the casino from the shitty Vegas Vacation movie) Another thing is everyone who works at old Vegas is old. 70 year cocktail waitresses wearing cheer-leading outfits, how is this not amazing. It was sunday during football season so all the waitresses were wearing cheer-leading outfits and the dealers were wearing jersey tops. Since me and the friend I went with were pretty frequent gamblers at the time and we were going to be there for a week we also made sure that we spent most of a day seeing the Hoover Dam. Though we stopped at one of the shitty casinos that was in the middle of nowhere and it was hilarious. We stayed there for over 3 hours we were having so much fun. Some redneck, trailer trash bartender told his of his dreams to make as a bartender on the strip. An old man who we were gambling with was in town for a cow convention and his wife was in the room watching "her girlie movie." And two lesbian lovers got in a fist fight. But they were all so nice in that casino, well, except for the lesbians. Also, we had a whole day planned to go to Death Valley. Next time I go I would like to spend two or three days there. They have a hotel with a nice restaurant in the middle. So much great stuff to see.