downtown Las Vegas
 

Hi there,
Going to Vegas next week for a convention and staying on the strip. My wife is joining me after the conventionand I was wondering if it was worth it to go downtown? Is tehre much to d/see there? Is it cheaper to gamble downtown (poker/BJ)? We will be staying in Vegas for 4 days by ourselves so we have some time.
Chris

First, on the way downtown, I would go up to the top of the Stratosphere tower at sunset. Downtown does have lower limits. Not all that much to see and do otherwise. Of course, check out the Fremont Street Experience light show overhead. Main Street Station has a good buffet. For good restaurants, you could try the Redwood Grille or Pasta Pirate at the California Hotel.

It's the kinda thing you do once...

We go downtown every time we go to Las Vegas. We've never seen the Light Show (we don't stay downtown after dark), but the odds are MUCH better downtown than on the strip and the table minimums are lower.

Definitely more bang for the buck.

There's also a new attraction at the south end of downtown called Neonopolis. There's a movie theater, bowling alley, restaurants, and old neon signs. I think there's also some art galleries. There was going to be a neon museum, but I'm not sure if that's completed.

It's kinda neat to walk around and look at the old neon, but if that's all you're doing, it probably won't take more than half an hour.

Actually, make sure you check on the odds. I played $5 double deck BJ at Binions this past summer and dealers were hitting soft 17 on all tables. Such a phony rule. The strip rules are starting to catch on downtown. You can find a decent $5 game at Monte Carlo. I wasn't impressed with playing downtown, and it's pretty much a dump compared to the strip. As for poker, I think Mirage has 3/6 games, Bellagio has a big poker room. Downtown will get a lot of pros, especially Binions. Phil Hellmuth was there while I was playing BJ.

Maybe it's better during the day when Leona goes. I'm pretty much nocturnal when in Vegas.

If you like single deck/non-shoe blackjack, about the only place you will find it is downtown. Yes, they all hit on soft 17. I did find that the table minimums downtown were usually lower, too.