It's been a few years, but when we went in the middle of the week, we got a suite at the Venetian for $99 a nite.

It was our first trip also . . we went to a couple of performances and strolled around the place

Given the choice of Paris at half the price of Bellagio, I would pick Paris (whose location I prefer to NY, NY). Bally’s is o.k. too, if the price is right. We do not like anything about Planet Hollywood.

It is nice to have a view of The Strip, but a view of the mountains is good too.

We like to take a day trip when we are in Las Vegas for two nights. Our favorite is to Valley of Fire—a really beautiful and State Park. However, since this is your first visit, you may want to spend the day checking out the various hotels and casinos.

HTTY

Location mid-strip is most important. Paris, Bellagio, Mirage, Venetian, even Treasure Island are better locations than NYNY. Check out this site: smartervegas.com for promo codes for hotels and shows. We really enjoy the Cirque du Soleil shows. A friend saw Terry Fator and said he was terrific.

Closer than the Valley of Fire is Red Rock Canyon park - only about 20 minutes from the Strip.

If you can get a room at Paris with a view of the Bellagio fountains, great, or keep googling and see what special deals are offered. It changes all the time.

One of our favorite Cirque shows is O at the Bellagio - and La Reve at Wynn's is a similiar production.

The most spectacular set is Phanthom of the Opera at the Venetian.

There are also some good/bargain afternoon shows. Check out the websites ahead of time, the local tourist mags when you arrive and the Tix 4 Less kiosks along the strip.

And my wife likes to play the penny/nickel slots - and if you are at a primo resort such as Wynn - you can order complimentary champagne/drinks while "gaming" and their house champagne was fairly decent.

Coming back from Zion, get off I-15 at exit 95 and drive through Valley of Fire State park. When leaving the park, head south and east to the lake shore road on the west side of Lake Meade. You will hit US 93 about 3 miles west of Hoover Dam.
Go down to see Hoover Dam driving across the dam to one of the free parking lots on the Arizona side. You can also now walk on the walkway on the new bridge high above the dam.
You can save a lot on lodging by staying at the Hacienda Casino which you will pass on the way to the dam on US 93.
I also like the Fiesta casino in Henderson. The Fiesta upgraded me to a suite when I had reserved online in the morning. We had a suite for less than $100 for the night.

We (non-drinkers, non-gamblers) went to Vegas on a whim to see some shows, but otherwise our goal was to spend as little money as we could. We stayed at the far end of the Strip in a modest hotel. (How much time are you going to spend in the room when you aren't sleeping?) Yes, we had to walk a lot, but it gave us a chance to see everything (and lots of interesting people!) It also was a great way to get our exercise without going to the gym! BTW, we were in our early 50's.

We thought Bally's had a great location, the hotel was nice, our room was large with a beautiful bathroom, and it was quite reasonably priced.

We loved the Hoover dam and hiking the Red Rock Canyons. The Atomic testing Museum was interesting, and seeing the classic cars at the Imperial was fun.

It you haven't had the good fortune to look at the Bellagio fountains dancing outside of your room - or viewed them from your room - tres mal.

rethinking the itinerary a bit and may cut the national parks to 2 nights and stay 3 nights in vegas

Also have booked the platinum which is non-casino, suite hotel off strip by 1.5 blocks...but rethinking the hotel choice too...may just stay on the strip in a full casino hotel

but would welcome comments.

<<<rethinking the itinerary a bit and may cut the national parks to 2 nights and stay 3 nights in vegas>>>

Bad idea. (But then, 1 day in Vegas every 10 years is enough for me).

I agree with sf7307.

I prefer two nights in Las Vegas.

Distances in Las Vegas are extremely deceptive. You say you booked a hotel 11/2

I prefer two nights in Las Vegas.

Also, distances in Las Vegas are extremely deceptive. You say you booked a hotel 1.5 blocks from The Strip, but the actual distance is 1/2 mile. From that corner of Las Vegas Boulevard, it is a one-mile walk to New York, New York. It all adds up. Even if you stay in a hotel on The Strip it can be a surprisingly long walk from your room to Las Vegas Boulevard.

HTTY

Stay on The Strip,it is the reason people go to Vegas. The Paris, Ballys, Bellagio area is the most interesting.
Everyone I take to visit the dam is amazed. About half a mile before you reach the dam there a parking lot on your right with a path up to the bridge.
The bridge experience is first rate, over eight hundred feet above the river with spectacular views, but not for the acrophobic.

For location Paris Hotel/Casino is more central than Bellagio which I find to be too far down the south end of the strip for easy walking to other hotels. if you are going in the hotter months location will save you getting too hot and tired while sightseeing. Hoover Dam is punishing in the heat of the summer, almost unbearable really, I think it is all that concrete.

Bellagio is across the street from the Paris.

Hoover Dam blew me away, but The Valley of Fire was more astonishing--I want to go back there.

HTTY

Do they still do an under-belly tour at Hoover Dam? I've been to the dam twice, and took the tour once, about 15 years ago (or more) and it was incredible. You really just cannot believe the enormity. I've also been the the Aswan Dam and it didn't even "register" compared to Hoover Dam.

I did that same tour in 1996. Not sure if they still do it after 9/11. I agree, it is spectacular and so interesting.

I was in Vegas in Oct for the first time. Stayed at The Mirage which is mid way on the strip and found it great to get around. The Venetian across the street, Caesars next door, Wynn close, so very convenient. The Mirage has a lot going for it..great location, decent prices, The Volcano out front, good food (and lots of places to eat in the hotel), nice pool, the Secret Garden, Terry Fator, trolley to Treasure Island..I could go on and on.
For what it is worth I believe that to enjoy the total experience of The Strip you need to be on The Strip, but everyone is different.

We did the extended tour at Hoover Dam in January; highly recommend it.

I agree ... stay on the strip. Distances are really quite far between hotels and casinos, even though it might appear that it's just a few minutes' walk. The casino hotels are so huge, they take up what would be many blocks in any other city.

If you want to go to Valley of Fire, just make the stop on your way back from Zion. You don't say when your trip is but if it's summer it will be very hot there so you won't do much hiking.

Whether you stay on the strip or not really depends on how much money you want to spend. It's really not that hard to stay off strip, drive to a central location and walk from there. Avoid driving on the strip itself, just use the intersecting streets to get to a casino lot.

If you are going to be in the Bryce Zion's area I would highly recommend stopping in Cedar City to attend the Utah Shakespearean Festival. They have received a Tony, have been around for nearly 50 years and put on wonderful productions. We travel to see their shows from Az. every summer. The outdoor Globe replica at night makes it a magical experience. ( be sure to buy tickets for the Adams theatre as there is also an indoor theatre) You could hit this between Bryce and Zion for an evening, sleep one night there, then be on your way.

As far as Vegas goes my personal favorites are the Bellagio fountain show (free out front every 15 min or so), after dining at their really great Italian restaurant (don't remember the name). Cirque Du Soliel is a must if you have never seen one. Also, I much preferred the David Copperfield show over Chris Angel, for magic shows. We alway stay at the MGM Grand, great location, great pool, nice rooms, good prices. There is a last minute tickets booth right outside the MGM, where you can purchase tickets to shows for a discounted price. I think you have to go there at 10am for any matinee shows and 2pm for evening shows. We always hit the booth and get tickets for shows that day. Cirque shows can sell out though, depending on the time of year. One of the best things about Vegas is the many fun and delicious places to eat at all of the different hotels. I love just walking through all the Hotels, they are all so different and interesting. Personally I have seen the Dam, it is really not worth taking time out of your vacation to see, it's just a really big dam.
Have a great trip and enjoy Zion's and all it's breathtaking beauty!