Las Vegas - Hotel recommendations

[lys]

We will be staying 2 nights in Vegas this spring as a sideline from our main vacation since we have never been to Vegas.
I would be interested in your recommendations for a hotel  - and why.
Moderate pricing (not $300-400/ night)

The choices are a bit overwhelming.
Also - if you had a bad experience with a hotel, that infor would be helpful as well.

TIA

[starryfish]

I stayed at aria, it was nice and good location but it was too $$$ for me (eating there was outside my budget).

I prefer planet Hollywood, great location, lots to do, good restaurants.

MGM was nice and I enjoyed it too, just not as central location

[maddiepaddy]

I went to school in SoCal and we went to Vegas a lot , so I've stayed at quite a few of the hotels.

I've found prices can vary widely based on dates, etc... I've never paid even close to $300 a night at any of the following. My favorites (in order) are:

- Encore at the Wynn (very nice/comfortable rooms, good service especially for such a large property)

- Palazzo at Venetian (good location, nice/spacious rooms)

- Caesars Palace (almost perfect location, room quality can vary widely though)

- MGM (Lots of restaurants, etc.., okay location, room quality can also vary here)


I also like Mandalay Bay, but it feels even farther from everything than Encore does. Vdara is also pretty nice (especially if you prefer a non-gaming hotel), but despite being near mid-strip it is rather challenging to get into by foot. Monte Carlo is okay, and usually quite a bit less expensive than the other options.

I was forced into staying at Excalibur once and it was just as awful as you would think.

The Cosmopolitan is on my short list of where to stay next time I end up back there. 

[mrsd2006]

Bellagio all the way. We stayed at Cosmopitan last time since DH had a conference there and his work was paying for it, and when I pulled down the covers to go to bed there was paper towels and wadded up paper with writing in my supposedly clean bed. Then it took an hour for someone to come change the sheets (it was a Saturday night)

[babsbunny]

Room prices go up for Friday and Saturday nights, but if you avoid these two days you can get some great deals.

If you need a fridge, go with Vdara, otherwise I suggest Paris since the location is perfect and it has a great Vegas feel to it. All hotels have resort fees so add about $30 per room per night to your estimate. If you need to spend less, I suggest Bally's and Flamingo since the location is still perfect. With just two nights, you will be spending nearly all your time simply exploring every hotel - go inside all of them and catch the free stuff some have.

Watch out for the hotels that aren't near all the others like Stratosphere, Circus Circus, Riveria, Rio, Palms, and frankly, Encore, Mandalay Bay and Luxor are quite far.

In the last ten years I've stayed at Stratosphere, Paris, MGM, Bellagio, Tropicana, Planet Hollywood, Signature, Luxor, Vdara, and am about to try Aria.

[zitiqueen]

www.vegasmessageboard.com

[mdgirl]

For your first time I think it's a good idea to stay central, which means near the intersection of Flamingo and Las Vegas Blvd. The hotels are all enormous and a lot farther apart than you think they are. As Babs mentioned rooms rates fluctuate a lot, both by day of the week and if there's something happening at a particular hotel, so compare prices. I have a blog post with reviews of the hotels I've stayed at, but of the central hotels I liked Aria. The Bellagio is nice but pretty much everyone staying in Vegas wanders through there at some point, so it's always a zoo downstairs.

[v]

Most of the time, even a very fancy hotel will be under the $300-$400 range you mention.

The Wynn is my favorite.

[mcsangel2]

Jan 31, 2015 10:56:59 GMT -5 mdgirl said:

For your first time I think it's a good idea to stay central, which means near the intersection of Flamingo and Las Vegas Blvd. The hotels are all enormous and a lot farther apart than you think they are. As Babs mentioned rooms rates fluctuate a lot, both by day of the week and if there's something happening at a particular hotel, so compare prices. I have a blog post with reviews of the hotels I've stayed at, but of the central hotels I liked Aria. The Bellagio is nice but pretty much everyone staying in Vegas wanders through there at some point, so it's always a zoo downstairs.

Keeping this in mind, I'd recommend Harrah's. I know some people like to give it the stink eye because it's not fancy/doesn't have a 'gimmick', but it's usually super cheap AND it's in the center of the strip. I've always had a clean, quiet room. And the thing I like most about it (aside from location on the strip), is that it's very quick and easy to get from your room to outside the hotel, to the street. Some of the hotels, it's really complicated to figure out where the exits are, and they are often far away. And then most of them (not Harrah's) are set far away from the street, so you have to walk a ways to get off the property.

Next time we are going, we are staying at The Mirage, though. Still same vicinity, nice hotel, not expensive.

[pinkpeony6210]

I loved the Flamingo. We had an updated room, and a wonderful view of the strip. The location was awesome, too!

I stayed at the Excalibur when I was in my early 20s, and wasn't a fan. It served it's purpose, but it's definitely not the greatest...a bit outdated.

[neonpink]

I work out in Vegas often and always stay at the Vdara. I was there last week.

It's very central and the rooms are spacious and really comfortable. I also like that it's a non gambling/non smoking hotel but it is quick to get to Aria or the Bellagio to gamble.

[killercupcake]

We get rooms comped or really discounted, so we stay on the Strip every now and then for fun. We've stayed at TI, Mirage, MGM, Hard Rock, & Bellagio. H stayed at Aria.

I'd stay at all of them again, except the Hard Rock. The HR was awful and it's in a crappy part of the Strip that is out of the way. All of the other places, the rooms were comfortable and clean.

Cosmo is on our list of places to try.

[osumelissa]

I've stayed at Luxor, MGM Grand, Planet Hollywood, Treasure Island, Palazzo, Mirage, Aria, and Cosmopolitan. Cosmo, Aria, and Palazzo are my three favorite hotels. Mirage and MGM Grand are actually good moderate priced hotels. I would stay at either again.

[dulcemariamar]

Vdara hands down. I love that it is non smoking and it is connected to the bellagio.

[love1999]

We've stayed at Mirage and Bellagio and both were nice. Mirage is normally very reasonable and the location on the strip is pretty good.

[mags]

Vdara is my favorite by far. I love that there is no casino and no smoking.

[mx27]

cosmopolitan - great location on the strip; fun, trendy décor and vibe, tasty restaurants

[mcfelix]

I am a huge fan of Palazzo and Venetian. I love the over the top-ness of the decor but it's also still very nice.

We normally stay at Wynn (we go twice a year for work) and while I think it's a fabulous hotel, I don't think it's Vegas enough for your first trip!