Due to a very good gambling friend of mine who used to always get me !comped rooms! I have been to Vegas so many times i have lost count... so here are some comments I have about the various properties I have stayed in. (just for rooms - not for the entertainment, lounges and restaurants - which is a whole 'nother discussion) I will start from least favorite and end with the favorites.
Places i have not stayed yet, but knowing the casinos, would definitely check out their rooms: Paris, Palms, Stratosphere (just curious), Mandalay Bay, Four Seasons (who wouldn't?), the new Westin Casuarina
Rooms I would probably pasadena on: Circus Circus, Excaliber, Monte Carlo, Frontier, Stardust
Honestly downtown hotels have never caught my eye - but maybe i ought to give them a 2nd look?
THE LIST!
Day's Inn on Paradise
I don't care how cheap the rooms are - I wouldn't ever ever stay there again - it was dirty and scary.
Alexis Park
Stayed here during Mondo Tiki and it wasn't half bad - very roomy rooms which is good if you are crashing with a lotta people - and directly across from the H.R. is nice.
Imperial Palace
Location is great, rooms - typical "C" rating. but the walk into the hotel to get to the elevators always depresses me there for some reason?
Luxor
the spa may be 24 hours, but uh... i need to be nice here - 'cause i know some people like this place? although i have hung with friends by the pool and seen the rooms, i have never stayed there. and overall the hotel floorplan itself always confuses me.
Sahara
A classic, but obviously the rooms are very dated - ala late 1970s browns. you can't beat their price deals, but whatever you do - don't get in the older tower where you can't adjust the a.c.
Caesars Palace
After looking forward for years to staying here and planning a birthday around going there... what a huge disappointment this was. They just don't care about the rooms anymore. Gone is the old guilded decor and they have sold off the white and gold grand pianos from the suites. I heard great things about the pool - and it was just not "all that." The towels in our bathroom were ripped and i think there were issues with climate control and i swear they hadn't changed the sheets b4 we came. we left after one night.
Balleys
very nice standard "hotely" hotel rooms. good location but it did seem to take forever to get to our room.
Tropicana
Love the pool area and the rooms are more than adequate for normal hotel rates - they always seem to have internet specials - so check 'em out.
New York, New York
my all time favorite casino decor, so that's the only reason it rates a little higher. that said, for one of the higher end hotels, the rooms sucked. the first room was so tiny it really felt like new york - next to a very noisy service elevator shaft. after complaining we got bumped to a 1200 square foot mini suite - funny thing neither room was really detail decorated and felt just like a big empty unloved space. they do have the best shampoo and conditioner containers in town though - little tiny plastic buildings. it's almost worth it to stay there just for them.
Mirage
even though Wynn is no longer operating the hotel you still can't go wrong here. very nice tropical themed rooms - and an excellent location. the pool area is tropically delovely of course.
Flamingo
i have a soft spot in my heart for this hotel. i stayed in the old 2 story buildings behind bugsy's wing a long time ago. the location is great - if you ask - you can usually get a room with a view of caesars or the volcano. the pool, waterfalls and grounds may not be as big as the mirage - but i think they are actually more well thought out. and i love seeing the birds.
Treasure Island
i have not stayed here since they went from pirates to T.I. but when it was pirate driven - this was one of my favorite properties and i stayed here numerous times. the junior suites are immediately off the elevator shafts - which is good planning - i hate hauling luggage down long hotel corridors.
when money is no object, these are my 2 favs...
Venetian:
one of my all time fav hotels - no need for room service... just a quick jaunt downstairs for 24 hour cheesecake factory food. the all suite rooms are generally split level with a bed closer to the door and a sunken living seating area next a picturesque window - with a tv for both the bed and a tv for the couch area! marble baths...etc.etc.etc. the only thing about staying at this hotel is when we went the pool was very under-landscaped - had no full grown trees and it was very hot and uninviting.
Bellagio
pool area is like being in some kind of european dreamland with several smaller pools which far outways one big huge pool - it helps spread out the people and makes everyone feel more private. flawless room - if you get bumped to a strip front room, the music from the fountain show is piped into your room and you can sit and watch the choreographed shows in total comfort. very nice private commode and the large tub in our room had a view to south strip - which was freaky - taking a bubble bath in full view of vegas! but other girls have done worse i suppose :)
If i had to choose between Bellagio and Mandalay Bay - Bellagio would always win out - just from sheer location - I recommend staying at a property in between Flamingo and Spring Mountain. That way it's a short walk or cab ride in either direction to the other hotels or the Fashion Show Mall.
[ Edited by: Futura Girl on 2004-06-12 05:35 ]
