The Aladdin has a great location. Hotel rooms in Vegas are tacky as a rule, so personally, I think location is the biggest factor. Agree with the above poster's recommendation of Luxor, too. Also try MGM Grand, New York New York, or Treasure Island -- all usually have reasonable rates (on Expedia, at least) and a good, central location.

Luxor elevators are a pain. Certain elevators go to certain floors and they are on the outside of the pyramid for obvious reasons.

MGM very big and good. NY,NY if you want a basic hotel, it is fine. Bally's can't answer to been too long. Was run down then.

Aladdin more than basic room and nice restaurants. PF Changs is in the building for a reasonable yummy meal.

Golden Nugget is friendly and good value but downtown.

Barbary Coast, great in college.

Hello tdelano,

Not sure if I caught your post too late and you have already made reservations, but thought I would share my Vegas experiences with you on the chance that I could be of some help.

I have been to Vegas a few times:
The first time I went has been so many years ago that I can't even remember if it was the Flamingo or the Tropicana that we stayed at?? (The memory really IS the first thing to go!) I seriously cannot remember the accomodations...The only thing that I DO remember is that it seemed to take a long time on the elevator and hallways to get from our room to the lobby.
The second time we stayed at the Hawthorne Suites about a block or two off the strip (simply because I had my children with me and this was literally a 2-bedroom, 2-bathroom accomodation with a kitchen!)These were not up to the luxurious Vegas specs, but they were nice and clean and for a family it was wonderful!
The third time I stayed at the Luxor (the above-mentioned pyramid). I am not sure if you are familiar with how the Luxor is built, but it is literally totally open inside like a pyramid. SO...my memory of that is looking down from the balcony outside my room and thinking "Gee..they should really clean the dust and trash off the tops of the shops down on the ground floor."
My fourth (and most recent time) in Vegas we had a small family reunion and stayed at the Excalibur. These rooms were clean and OK, but again, not exactly the luxurious Vegas specs. I accidentally found out when I was checking in, though, that I could pay like $10 more a night and have a "view" room, in which I did. My room had a view of New York New York and its (scary...let me tell ya) roller coaster right across the street.

My reason for posting to you, though, is that I have found where I will stay the next time I go to Vegas, and this location may be of interest to you. Not sure if you are familiar with www.ebay.com but on ebay there are listings for the Fairfield Grand Resort. (Go to www.ebay.com - travel - vacation rentals - and then put "las vegas" in the search box) and you will see many listings and different available dates for this resort. This is a timeshare in which the owners are trying to sell their dates on ebay. This resort is not on the strip (however, there is a shuttle service to the strip). It looks wonderful to me, though, and it is where I will be staying when I go to Vegas again.

Sorry, accidentally hit the post button before I was done...

If the Faifield Grand Resort does not work out for you here is another trick:

Go to the websites of all the nice places you would like to stay at in Vegas and sign up to be on their email list, and I guarantee that you will get many emails with seasonal and other discounts.

Hope that I have been of some help..If you have any more questions feel free to email me at [email protected]

If you're just looking for a place to get away and do some gambling, I'd pick South Coast...brand new, large rooms, plasma tvs (no pool yet)...they have a shuttle from airport and to the strip but the times aren't too convenient, you'd probably need to rent a car.

If you want to be on the strip Aladdin and Bally's are fine, and well-located.

Have you made your reservations yet? We're planning a Vegas trip for March so I've been on several forums and hotel websites, too. Have heard that Golden Nugget is currently undergoing some renovations so you may want to check on that.

Even if you stay on the strip, make sure and go downtown one night just to check it out.

Would not recommend Stratosphere--it's too out of the way from the action. Tropicana--no no. We know people who have stayed at Alladin and we've eaten/gambled there in the past. I like it and the location is perfect. Bally's also has a great location and of the hotels you mentioned, would be your best bet. Just ask for a renovated room (all of their rooms are huge, by the way). As another poster mentioned, it's connected to Paris by a walkway, which puts you in prime location for some of the best dining/bar areas on the strip. Pre-dinner champagne at Paris' Napoleon's. Bliss.

I can personally recommend Mirage, Paris, Bally's, Flamingo and TheHotel at Mandalay Bay. Also from personal experience, I would NOT recommend Imperial Palace or Tropicana :-). We liked Rio but it was just a bit too far from the action on the strip.

Let us know what you decide!

You can also try the Westin Casuarina (http://www.starwoodhotels.com/westin...ropertyID=1448). It's on Flamingo about a block off the strip but you're between Caesar's Palace, The Bellagio, and Bally's/Paris. It's reasonable to walk from there to most places and it is a nice alternative to the big hotel-casinos because you don't need to wait a long time for elevators. If you are a Starwood Preferred member you can earn or use points and they have the great beds there. (Their spa there is great too - surprised me when I was there in early November but I liked it better than previous experiences at Canyon Ranch spa at The Venetian and the spa at TI.)

And don't forget to make dinner reservations early - my fave has been Bradley Ogden at Caesar's Palace.
Have a great time, wherever you decide to stay!

I appreciate all the helpful replies. I decided to compromise by booking Friday at Ceasers (rate of $160 which was close to my budget with a great location), Sat. at the Hilton ( rate of $115. Sat rates anywhere on the strip were way too high and we are going on a day trip on Sat anyway), and Sun. night at Paris ($129.00)

I advise not to stay at the Aladdin unless you're sure the contruction is finished (doubtful). We were just there 2 weeks ago and it was a waste of our Starwood points. The room was nice, but our bath towels had holes in them - too disgusting for words. And the the construction was a total drag and very obstructive in the casino.

Oh boy, I think you'll really regret changing hotels every day. Weekend check in/check out lines can be very long and chances are you'll waste at least 2 hours every day packing/moving/checking in.

Unless you're locked into it, I'd reconsider and move twice at the max. On the plus side, all three hotels sound nice. :-)

Oh, that packing and unpacking, do you realize it will be like on a tour?

I would pick only one hotel. Even Hilton - it's on the monorail, it means great connection to the strip.

Have you checked hotels.com? I found the Monte Carlo for the dates you want at an average of $159 a night. That's a nice hotel in a good location--much better than wasting valuable vacation time moving hotels.

Also checked Expedia and found the same rate for Monte Carlo plus the Flamingo AT $147. The Hilton was dirt cheap at $87.

We stayed at the Southcoast last month and it had the largest room and bath. It was beautiful. Got a special on Travelzoo since it was new. No pool. It was quiet and they have a shuttle, but it's not very convenient times if you want to see evening shows, etc, but you can always take a taxi back.

My personal favorite is the Paris hotel.

Keep checking the travel websites, they might have specials, or get something off the strip.

Changing hotels every day ?? It is not worth it to save a few dollars. You will spend more time going back and forth with your luggage when you could be having fun. Remember, also, rooms are sometimes not ready when you want them to be. I'd simply stay put in one place for 3 nights, easier all the way around and you will not regret it later.

Will be staying at the Flamingo early May. I've never been before but went to www.cheapovegas.com and checked many hotels thru that site. Flamingo won out as it is in a great location, has one of the best pool complexes of all hotels and is very reasonably priced. When I called there to book rooms, I was told that the hotel had been completely renovated year before so that sold me. Try the above website (easy to use and very detailed) and see if Flamingo fits your needs. L

Oh my goodness, reconsider all that moving!! Remember, most hotels check out is 11 or 12 and then you cant get your next room till 3 or 4. A huge waste of time. In the scheme of things is it really worth saving that money or is it better to relax and spend the time for your husbands' 40th? I think one of the most "memorable" parts of this kind of trip will be the packing and unpacking and standing in lines (often long) to check in.

You realllllly need to think about this and perhaps find one hotel and stay there. I also reccommend the Flamingo.

You're making the reservations too late to get a great deal. I would highly rec the Monte Carlo for close to this price range and good location.

Alladin is changing over to become a Planet Hollywood and I think the construction would be a negative.

If you are a gambler I would go to hotwire.com and guess which one to pick from the amenitities and location and get a strip location for much less money, if I was on a budget. You won't be in your room at Vegas much at all anyway.

I agree changing a hotel every day will be more hassle than benefit. You might run a search on travelaxe. Among pricer hotels there is an attractive $169 a night rate for the Venetian and you might beat that on priceline (consult www.biddingfortravel.com)

If u can get the Venetian for $169, that is a great choice.

Station Casinos are a great spot! They have good food, good prices, but you'll need to plan shuttle time or pay cab fare to get anywhere.
Otherwise, I'd take Aladdin from your list. If you stay there and like Asian cuisine, they have good food a little pricey. Make sure you get sowntown for the best deals on good food.