Vegas On A Non-Poker Budget?

[threeup3down]

Every time I've been to Vegas it's solo or with other poker players so money has never really been an object. I have a couple friends who wanted me to go to Vegas with them & I finally agreed to go Memorial Day weekend but I realized now that I haven't done a single thing in Vegas that isn't outrageously expensive. Not looking to subsidize an entire trip for people so could use some for suggestions for shit that the salaried among us can afford. Tips for good places to eat that aren't $200 per person, cheapest place to book rooms, how to save on show tickets, whatever would be appreciated.

[chinamaniac]

first thing is rent a car to cut cab costs down A LOT

second thing to do is PM peterdc and get everything comped

[tommyt]

first thing is rent a car to cut cab costs down A LOT

second thing to do is PM peterdc and get everything comped

[DirtyB]

Every time I've been to Vegas it's solo or with other poker players so money has never really been an object. I have a couple friends who wanted me to go to Vegas with them & I finally agreed to go Memorial Day weekend but I realized now that I haven't done a single thing in Vegas that isn't outrageously expensive. Not looking to subsidize an entire trip for people so could use some for suggestions for shit that the salaried among us can afford. Tips for good places to eat that aren't $200 per person, cheapest place to book rooms, how to save on show tickets, whatever would be appreciated.

If you're impressed by a 600 foot thick chunk of concrete, go to the Hoover Dam. I love the tour, but I'm a big nerd who digs that kind of crap.

Mystere at TI is the cheapest Cirque show, and I think it's tied with Ka for the best one.

I stayed a Bally's a few times and enjoyed it. It's not technically on the Strip, but it still has a great location.

What kind of food do you like? I'll recommend some reasonably priced places.

[Dan Druff]

Some good suggestions here.

YES, rent a car. Cuts way down on transportation costs, and parking is free at every hotel.

Mystere is definitely the best Cirque value, since it's both well-liked and cheap by Cirque standards.

As far as inexpensive places to go, my parents just went to the new mob museum and told me they enjoyed it. I haven't been there yet myself.

I'm not sure if the Luxor is still operating that big IMAX theater, but I went there like 10 years ago, and it was pretty cool, and not expensive.

One often-overlooked area of Vegas is Mt. Charleston. You definitely need a car to go there, but it's only like 45 minutes away, and has some nice views and mountain scenery. It's especially interesting because you can leave the summer heat and desert scene of Vegas, drive 45 minutes, and get out of your car to 68 degrees and pine trees.



Another neat place to visit (and it's like $5 per car to get in) is Red Rock National Park, just outside of Vegas.



I took Benjamin's mother here on the first afternoon she came to see me in Vegas -- the first time we had seen each other since 1993. Despite the fact that we were braving 100-degree heat (it was August), we had a good time there and it started off the weekend really well. I took her to an expensive dinner that night, to dispel any suspicions that I was a cheap Jew.

You also might want to go to the top of the Stratosphere tower, especially if you haven't done it yet. The "Big Shot" ride (the one that shoots you up in the air) isn't nearly as scary as it looks once you're actually on it.

[ajfsports]

Might be worth it if youre just going to rent a car to stay downtown at the Plaza hotel. They completely remodled not only casino area but every room was redone and they got all of the fixtures and things from a project that ran out of funding somewhere midstrip though i cant remember which one

Always recommend ellis island casino for BBQ as cheap yet good. They dont have a ton of seating but they brew their own beers there and only charge 1.50 for them at the bar. Get there early to put your name in and when youre done eating well you can walk down the street to where tupac was shot so win/win

[Mad Dad]

You can stay at the Flamingo. As low as $29 per night and the location is perfect. It's a little tired, but for $29 what can you expect. I just checked on-line. May 28,29,30 - $26.50 per night.

[Fergie72]

You can stay at the Flamingo. As low as $29 per night and the location is perfect. It's a little tired, but for $29 what can you expect. I just checked on-line. May 28,29,30 - $26.50 per night.

This.

I also highly recommend renting a car. I think I read a post here recently from somebody who said they are a genius at finding cheap rental rates. Perhaps they will chime in with some info.

Earl of Sandwich at Planet Hollywood is my favorite inexpensive place to eat. Do yourself and your buddies a favor and hit Estatorio Milos for their popular 3 course lunch for $20.12 special. This is arguably the best food value in town and is sooooo friggin good!

Order the American casino guide's coupon book and cruise around town using the match plays and 2 for 1 food coupons. I think it costs about $12 and will pay for itself many times over. Its kind of a fun way to see some of the off strip properties you otherwise would never visit.

Also, take a look at Druff's blog on bonus whoring and throw that in the mix too.

http://www.americancasinoguide.com/a...es-report.html

Check the above link right before leaving for Vegas to see the latest promos and deals around town.

[cmoney]

Every time I've been to Vegas it's solo or with other poker players so money has never really been an object. I have a couple friends who wanted me to go to Vegas with them & I finally agreed to go Memorial Day weekend but I realized now that I haven't done a single thing in Vegas that isn't outrageously expensive. Not looking to subsidize an entire trip for people so could use some for suggestions for shit that the salaried among us can afford. Tips for good places to eat that aren't $200 per person, cheapest place to book rooms, how to save on show tickets, whatever would be appreciated.

I would only rent a car if you plan to leave the strip. I actually think it is nice to walk up and down the strip after being in a stuffy casino for 24 hours straight. I usually stay at the Wynn or Palazzo and between walking and taking the various trams you can get around to the different properties pretty easily.

Maybe I am wrong but on the strip there seems to be only expensive food and non expensive food. So you can either go to SW in the Wynn or Panda Express in the Venetian. Vegas is just expensive and if you want to eat something other than fast food you will have to pay premium prices. I am usually too lazy to go find a place to eat for lunch so I usually pack bunch of protein bars. If you did something like that you could save on meals. Also bring a bottle of booze for your room. That alone will save you 100 bucks.

I thought jumping off the Stratosphere was fun but may be a little bit pricey. I want to say it was over 100 per person.

A must see is a tour I like to call the "hotels of broken dreams." These hotels consist of Circus Circus, Imperial Palace and others in that area. Or you can go to Fremont street and tour those hotels. This wont cost a thing and make you instantly feel better about your life after seeing the worse degens imaginable. This is of course assuming you are not staying at one of these hotels in which case you should just not go to Vegas and re look at your life.

Hope this helps.

[threeup3down]

second thing to do is PM peterdc and get everything comped

I was wondering how long before peterdc got dropped. First post, way to not disappoint.

If you're impressed by a 600 foot thick chunk of concrete, go to the Hoover Dam. I love the tour, but I'm a big nerd who digs that kind of crap.

I'm also a huge nerd and have actually never made it outside of the city to see it or the Grand Canyon. Friends don't really seem interested in either though I think I'm going to pull rank on the Grand Canyon but the Hoover Dam will have to wait for another trip. Was thinking about treating them on one of the helicopter tours to it. Anyone have experience with these?

Mystere at TI is the cheapest Cirque show, and I think it's tied with Ka for the best one.

I liked that Ka was more structured but will definitely save a few bucks here and go with Mystere and save a few bucks. When I googled it most people who have seen both actually seemed to prefer Mystere & I even enjoyed Mama Mia when I saw it so I'm sure I'll enjoy either. Thanks for the tip.

What kind of food do you like? I'll recommend some reasonably priced places.

The food in Vegas is really the only thing I like about the town as for the most part I think it's a miserable hell hole of a town that sucks for anything more then one night. This trip really isn't for me so I'm going to defer to whatever their tastes are but made a rough list of some things I thought would be in their budget:
Lotus of Siam
Bachi Burger
Holsteins
Ping Pang Pong (apparently super authentic & lots of people don't like it but I'd like to give it a shot)
Bouchon for brunch
Enoceta Otto as a lunch possibility though it didn't really get great reviews but it's cheap and I was thinking about staying at the Venetian.

Was also looking @ N9ne which isn't so much I couldn't pick it up.

Open for other suggestions though and don't really know what my friends like. I'll probably end up bailing on them for the Sterling Brunch on Sunday and hopefully Joel Robuchon if I can find someone to go with.

As far as inexpensive places to go, my parents just went to the new mob museum and told me they enjoyed it. I haven't been there yet myself.

Don't know how interested they'll be in this but I will definitely try to get there even if it's just by myself.

Another neat place to visit (and it's like $5 per car to get in) is Red Rock National Park, just outside of Vegas.

Was unaware of that. Unfortunately, I don't think any of them have been to Vegas & I think they're all looking forward to the kind of non-stop party everyone thinks about as Vegas before they go so I doubt I'll have much luck getting them out there but I think I might stick around for an extra day or 3 and check it out myself. With a different crowd it would definitely be a homerun suggestion.

You also might want to go to the top of the Stratosphere tower, especially if you haven't done it yet. The "Big Shot" ride (the one that shoots you up in the air) isn't nearly as scary as it looks once you're actually on it.

I thought jumping off the Stratosphere was fun but may be a little bit pricey. I want to say it was over 100 per person.

The rides definitely won't do it for me but I know one of the girls is afraid of heights so she might be into that. That jump of the Stratosphere had interested me but when I looked at it, it appeared to be a really controlled to descent as opposed to a real freefall or was I misinformed?

Always recommend ellis island casino for BBQ as cheap yet good. They dont have a ton of seating but they brew their own beers there and only charge 1.50 for them at the bar. Get there early to put your name in and when youre done eating well you can walk down the street to where tupac was shot so win/win

Yes, I saw Ellis Island recommended by a lot of people but forgot to write it down so nice reminder. Very good chance we end up stopping in there depending on what their budget is.

You can stay at the Flamingo. As low as $29 per night and the location is perfect. It's a little tired, but for $29 what can you expect. I just checked on-line. May 28,29,30 - $26.50 per night.

Where do you look for hotel bookings at? I clearly am looking in the wrong places I'm clearly looking at the wrong places because even going by that being price per person that's half of what I found.

I would only rent a car if you plan to leave the strip. I actually think it is nice to walk up and down the strip after being in a stuffy casino for 24 hours straight. Maybe I am wrong but on the strip there seems to be only expensive food and non expensive food.

Yeah, everything is expensive on the strip but there's still plenty of stuff that's not 100/pp. I agree I enjoy walking the strip as well but there's supposedly a few good places to eat that are really good quality but much cheaper since you're not paying for the real estate so might rent a car to hit those up at the very least.

I usually stay at the Wynn or Palazzo

I was thinking about the Venetian and as far as I know there's virtually 0 difference between that & the Palazzo aside from Palazzo having a smaller casino. Is there any difference?

Lotta good stuff so far guys, thanks.

[Mad Dad]

You can stay at the Flamingo. As low as $29 per night and the location is perfect. It's a little tired, but for $29 what can you expect. I just checked on-line. May 28,29,30 - $26.50 per night.

Where do you look for hotel bookings at? I clearly am looking in the wrong places I'm clearly looking at the wrong places because even going by that being price per person that's half of what I found.

The price I mentioned came straight off the website for the hotel.

Vegas.com is a good first pass to find the general price level for most of the hotels, sort by price. You have to play with dates becuase prices change dramatically with dates.

Once you nail down a place with reasonable prices, go straight to the Hotel website and try again, you will almost always get even lower prices. It can be a little tricky sometimes to find the best prices / navigate the reservation system, but it is worth a little effort to save the dollars. fyi - No need to have a loyalty card account in most cases, although sometimes you might have to sign up to something or other to get "best deals" - but that is ok, you might get an extra email or two down the road and you can always opt out of future mailings after you receive the emails if you don't want them.

[Sandwich]

Was thinking about treating them on one of the helicopter tours to it. Anyone have experience with these?

Yes! I did the helicopter tour with the family a couple of years ago. Leaving from McCarran Airport, it was an awesome narrated ride by the pilot, gorgeous views of the Colorado River, canyons and flying over Las Vegas city skyline. I forget which tour we used, but remember it being a fun way to see the area.

As for other budget tips, there are already lots of good ideas in this thread. One thing I've done on solo poker trips to vegas (where I wasn't concerned about luxury) -- Do you have Total Rewards points from Harrah's, Caesars or any of those related properties? I'm not platinum level or anything, but I do remember staying at Imperial Palace for free and spending my days and nights between the Rio WSOP tourneys and Venetian LHE games. Also, if you stay away from the high end restaurants and night clubs, cheap food and drink seemed to be plentiful.

[shortbuspoker]

If you have a Harrah's total rewards card with any point balance whatsoever you can book a room online for really cheap. Most of the time, they will comp you for free Monday-Thursday and some weekends depending on what's going on in town at Harrah's, the Rio, or the IP(please Lord no). I barely have enough points to get a buffet comped in Tunica, but this is what they are offering me for a room in Vegas. Proof that you don't need to be a baller for them to try to get you.

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