I have read so many posts about "The Strip" and all the fabulous places, but nobody mentions the "original" Las Vegas (aka Fremont Street, Glitter Gulch, Downtown). Face it, even with all the other attractions, the primary reason people come to Vegas is to gamble. Why blow your hard earned cash on a glitzy hotel rooms three miles from the casino floor and another mile from the next closest casino.

Rooms at the Golden Nugget can be had for as little as $40/night, rooms at Four Queens for $30, Suites for $69 and ten casinos within a three block covered pedestrian mall with a built in light show and (if you really want it, the strip is a 30 minute bus ride away.

Anybody else out there favor downtown instead of the strip?

Nope.
Downtown's a dump, sorry.
Hotels/casinos are old, dirty, MUCH smokier and there's very little variety. The Fremont Street Experience is neat the first time you see it, but that's about it. Then you're wishing you could walk around the corner and be at Treasure Island's pirate battle, or the volcano at Mirage, or the Bellagio fountains, or the Eiffel Tower, or NYNY or.....

And BTW, many visitors to LV gamble very little. Not the majority to be sure. But there is now SO much to see and do around the strip, you can fill a few days with activities and never even have TIME to gamble.

Unless downtown undergoes some type of dramatic transformation I think it's headed for oblivion.

I like downtown! To me, it's a lot "homier" and the people at the blackjack tables are so down to earth. Yeah, the Strip IS glitzier, but many times I feel like no one is really sociable when I'm gambling there. I am one who goes to LV to gamble, and while it is a serious business (hey, it's money!), I like it to be pleasant as well.

This fall will be my first time staying at the Mandalay Bay, though. Maybe it will be different because I'll be among friends.

Earlier this year I spent 3 nites at the Mirage and then 3 nites at Fitzgeralds Holiday Inn downtown. Sure, the room at the Mirage was nicer and more than twice the price. But who goes to Las Vegas to sit in their room? If I went back again, I'd probably do the same. I liked the variety, and I enjoyed walking around Fremont street in the evening, getting a cup of Starbucks and watching the show.

Who goes to Vegas "not" to gamble? You mean they go to see those overpriced shows? You gotta be kidding me.

I live in Las Vegas and would like to comment on this thread. Of the folks who love LV, there are three types of people: those who love the glitz and crowds of the Strip,those who love the hominess of Downtown, and the ones in between, who move back and forth between the two for tastes of both sides of the tourist LV. Downtown has its merits, and i go there frequently. But just as frequently I go to the Strip for the excitement it offers. If you want to gamble you can do it anywhere in town, including well off the Strip or Downtown. If you want to "do things", go to the Strip, with its volcanoes, fountains and Star Trek Experiences. If you want to people-watch with a little bit of extra, go to Fremont Street. You won't be disappointed. And, Ron, by the way, it's not quite correct that "nobody" mentions Downtown. I've recommended the Fremont Street Experience more than once on this board, and always recommend it to friends and relatives who visit me from out of town. To me, no visit to LV is complete without seeing it.

Joy, you're seeing the world 'through your own eyes'.
I've been to Vegas at least 20 times in the past 10 years (though I live 2000 miles away) and I virtually never gamble. Nor do most of the friends I go with.
We sometimes go in the spring or summer to hang out at a nice pool, go to some of the world class shows like "O", Mystere, EFX, etc, I've been to Vegas to see sporting events and concerts, and for conventions on 3 occasions.

If you stay downtown, the Golden Nugget appears to be the nicest hotel there. I usually stay on the strip at one of the new hotels, but always make an evening trip downtown for the Fremont St. Experience, a cheap shrimp cocktail, and $2 blackjack!!

Ask any dealers where the best blackjack games are and they will tell you at the off Strip casinos(where the locals gamble) or Downtown at Binions.

Stay on the Strip and gamble downtown. Those are pretty good words of advice- IMHO

Aloha, I have to say I'm an "in-between" type. Although I always stay at the Main Street Station, I enjoy outings out to the Strip. Downtown is comfortable, lower minimum bets, perhaps looser slots and just kind of easy-going. We usually rent a car and make trips out to Lee Canyon, and my favorite, Red Rock Canyon. Getting back to the Main Street, I enjoy staying on the side of the railroad tracks...it's nice to see a train go by every so often. My friends had difficulty sleeping because of it, but I can sleep anytime/anywhere so noise is never a problem. The Main Street also has an excellent buffet for cheap!