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Erik Rates Las Vegas Hotels
I've had somewhere over 30 trips to Vegas over the
past few years, and found some favorite and not-so-favorite hotels along the
way. Here's what I recommend... and don't.
About the room
rates...
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Las Vegas hotel room rates range
wildly, as you'll see in my Rate column below. The lower value is what you can get by
shopping around for mid-week stays; the higher value is what you can find
for Friday and Sat. night stays. Occasionally use of Hotwire or
Priceline can lop off an additional 25%.
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Before you go, check the Convention
Calendar. Huge trade shows will eat up available rooms, either at
your favorite hotel or for the city in general, like when 100,000 dorks roll
into town for that geek Mecca known as Comdex.
E-ratings explained…
Diamonds,
stars... nah. We use E's.
EEE: A
tripEEE triple-E favorite, meaning that it’s an exceptional place at a good
price that’s never kicked out anyone I know. I stay at these places
whenever possible.
EE:
Good, dependable accommodations, but perhaps less of a value, and still
hasn’t kicked out anyone I know. I stay at these properties whenever
possible, too.
E:
Decent, but there are better choices, and they might have kicked out
someone I know. I only stay at these when I find an exceptional deal
there, or when my other favorites are full.
Ewww:
Bring your flea collar, gun, and/or black light. And good luck.
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Property
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Location
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Comments
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Rate
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E-Rating
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Aladdin
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Mid-Strip
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New, classy, and comfortable. Whenever I’ve stayed here, the desk
staff upgraded my rooms. Concierge
desk is very helpful in getting into sold-out shows.
Other good stuff:
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In-room, high-speed, Internet terminals
available (they run off a Citrix application server). Used to be free, now about $8 a day.
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Open, non-smoky layout.
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The Sushi bar (see under Restaurants)
Foreboding
sense of doom:
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$79 to $200
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EEE
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Bellagio
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Mid- Strip
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Fountains and fine dining and martinis and Renoirs
and so many swimming pools to choose from.
The rooms at the Venetian are bigger and better, but everything else
about the Bellagio is classier.
Other good stuff:
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Location is about as mid-strip as you can
get. Park your car and leave it here, or don’t get one at all.
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Restaurant selection.
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Those aqua-pyro-technic fountains that use
compressed air to blast water a couple hundred feet in the air. Double-paned glass in the hotel rooms
muffles the booms.
Not so good stuff:
The $10 sandwiches and $7 beers at the pool, and
general price-gouging all over. But
you aren’t at the Days Inn tonight, are you?
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$150 to your right leg and one kidney
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EE
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Circus Circus
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North Strip
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Avoid this dump, particularly the
Manor rooms, which were probably once low-rent efficiency
apartments. Never found the hooker's body
stashed in the box spring, but the smell suggested as much. And lots of screaming kids…
but what did you expect to find at the circus?
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$29 - $100
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Ewww
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Courtyard by
Marriott
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East of Strip, near Paradise Road and
Desert Inn
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Marriott’s “Hotel Built for Business Travelers” is
a good place to stay when all the fun places are booked up. But first check the Embassy Suites.
As you head out for fun,
note that Desert Inn Road not only ducks beneath
the Strip, but also entirely misses the 15 freeway, dumping you off somewhere
in industrial NW Vegas. Take Paradise
to either Sands or Convention Center for Strip access, or you'll get the
not-so-scenic tour de Vegas.
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$100-$150
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E
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Embassy Suites
Convention Center
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East of Strip on Paradise Rd
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New, clean, spacious rooms with beautiful indoor
courtyard; will be easier to access The Strip once the monorail gets running.
Other good stuff:
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Every day, complimentary cocktails from
5:30-7:30pm. They also don’t check if
you’re actually staying there.
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Refrigerator and wet bar in the room.
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Free breakfast.
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Butt-kissing staff.
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Complimentary cocktails… OK, it was worth
mentioning again.
Not so great stuff:
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A little haul to The Strip.
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Tiny pool.
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$100-$150
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EE
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Excalibur
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South Strip
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Before the MGM came about, this was the biggest
hotel in the world, with 4001 rooms spread throughout the four counties of
this kingdom.
Things to know…
Never elegant, but always efficient, made even
better by repeating Monty Python and the Holy Grail skits to yourself and the
staff. Much better for families;
everyone else might want to look elsewhere. It's got a reputation of
being a massive Motel 6, but you can do much worse.
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$30 - $120
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E
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Harrah’s
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Mid-Strip
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Good
sized rooms, usually cheap, and in a great
location right across from Caesars, Mirage, et al. Ask for the
new tower to get
better rooms. Carnival Court, a big circus-top bar usually with a band,
is nearby.
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$50 - $150
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EE
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Imperial Palace
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Mid-Strip
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A decaying dump that has a great location.
Good stuff:
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One of the only Strip hotels with balconies.
Property probably has a higher-than-average suicide rate.
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The Champagne 21 Pit (as of Sept '03, see
Gambling page)
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Hearing the staff make cracks about the
former owner’s love for Adolf Hitler.
Not so great stuff:
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The former owner’s love for Adolf Hitler.
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Dirty carpets, stained bedspreads.
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Cinder block and linoleum décor in some of
that hallways that will remind you of the Green Mile.
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$30-$100
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Ewww
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Monte Carlo
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Mid-Strip
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Clean, decent rooms, the pool area, and the
casino, brewery, and fabulous restaurants make the Monte Carlo a great place
to stay and an exceptional value.
Other good stuff:
The wave pool, while not exactly featuring
breakers and a white-sand beach, is a fun way to cool off in the 120F
heat. The Lazy River is another fine
alternative for that.
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$50 - $150
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EE
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Orleans
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West of Strip
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New, with good size rooms, and an excellent value.
Other good stuff:
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Free shuttle service to the Strip, though
it’s not 24 hours.
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Pools aren’t crowded and $2 beers are
available at the bar. Even some fun
locals like hanging out here.
Not so great stuff:
Wherever you roam in the
property, that damn horn-blowing alligator mascot of theirs
gives you the stink-eye.
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$60-$100
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EE
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Rio
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West of Strip
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Big rooms, including large L-shaped sofas. A great deal, especially if there’s more
than two cramming into a room.
Excellent fresh-cooked buffet and beautiful views from the roof.
Haven't tried the beach/pool, but I've heard it's fun.
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$60 - $200
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E
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Sahara
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North Strip
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Book a tower room! These were renovated in 1996; rest of
hotel was renovated in 1976 or so.
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$30 - $120
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E
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Some crappy Motel 6
by Boulder Hwy
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East of Strip
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Had to stay in neighborhood. All other stuff full. Never
again.
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$30
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Ewww
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Treasure Island
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Mid--North Strip
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Currently in the process of going from
kid’s-Pirates-of-the-Caribbean theme to adults pillage-and-plunder
theme. We’ll see how that pans out;
up to now, this has been an dependably clean, efficient, but not overwhelmingly
exciting place to stay.
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$60-$200
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E
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Venetian
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Mid- to north Strip
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Massive rooms have a split-level design. Sofa folds out into another bed, and a
comfortable one at that!
Other good stuff:
· Canal ride is fun, and gondola captains
sing better than the guys in Capri, Italy’s Blue Grotto (OK, the guys at the
Venetian are wearing radio-mikes, and their boats are on a track).
· Sushi Bar / Asian restaurant, in Canal Shops
is good (see under Restaurants)
Not so great stuff:
· Hookers in the lobby. Really.
Guys, go hang out in one of the casino bars at about 3am, plug a few
bucks into the video poker, order a drink, and wait not longer than two
minutes.
· Pool isn’t impressive for a property of this
stature. Plus it’s cold. $8 sandwiches, etc.
· It takes forever to get from your room to
the street or to your car. Original
street planner for Italy’s Venice must have designed the floorplan here.
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$79 – five figures
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EE
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Questions?
Comments about your own experiences? Mail them to es (at) cpkv.com.
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