I'd appreciate some help on selecting a Las Vegas hotel for next week (Monday through Thursday). A buddy and I are heading over to celebrate his getting a new job (after a year of unemployment). The rates I've found so far in our budget are ad follows:

Rio: $69 a night
NY NY: $80 avg per night
Aladdin: $79 per night
The Palms: $99 per night

How inconvient is it to stay at the Rio or The Palms? Any shuttles to the Strip?

Is the tram to the Bellagio shut down right now?

Have I missed any great deals?

Thanks for any advice.

The Rio has a free shuttle.

I just got a promo from the Bellagio but the rates are $139-

I think you might be better off on the Strip. I think I would choose Alladin over NYNY

The shuttles are free--but they're a huge hassle and bigger waste of time.
The Palms is worth a visit to be sure, but I wouldn't stay there unless you have no plans to hang out on the strip.
For the price Aladdin is worth staying at. Location is tops, laptop computers in every room, plenty of great food in the immediate area. The place is only 2+ years old, though it appears it will be sold soon (pending approval of bankruptcy court).

I second the recommendations to stay on the Strip, either NY/NY or the Aladdin. For candid, somewhat irreverent reviews of these and other Vegas hotels, please see cheapovegas.com.

For room quality and location, I would choose Aladdin.

Aladdin's location (center strip) is much better than NYNY.

http://off2vegas.com/hotspecials.html

these are last minute specials posted on the la times website.

that is a great rate for alladin, ny ny and aladdin woudl be where i'd stay. rio is off strip, no shuttles, sort of away from teh action. also check out hotwire for last minute deals.

Rio is off the strip but does have a shuttle. If you are two single young guys, I would choose The Palms or Rio.

I don't particularly care for the Aladdin, although its location is good.

If you're looking to party, stay at Rio or Palms. When I stay on the strip, I go there frequently just to party. You can walk from one to the other. Rio has good rooms and you'll get good future offers if you play there. Definitely go to Ghostbar, Club Rio, Bikini's, Voodoo Lounge, Rain. I'll be staying at Rio in July with 2 free nights from playing there before.

TiminLA - sounds like you two are guys. Not sure how old. But if you want a boob-a-liscious party time, stay at Palms. The shuttle won't be too much of a hassle.

If you don't want the aforementioned boob-a-liscious party atmosphere, then stay at Aladdin.

If you want cheap rates, crappy pool, and a loud room near the roller coaster, NY NY's your game.

The tram to Bellagio isn't shut down. It's the MGM/Bally's Tram that's closed.

Good deals? I think the rate for the Palms is fine. Have a blast.

-Darvy, the travel gal.

As of yesterday, the Bellagio tram is closed. There is a bunch of plywood up on the side of the pool and they started work on the new tower.

Mandalay - Excaliber and Mirage - TI trams are still functional.

Aladdin would be my choice for the Strip location and for every other reason already posted. NYNY's coaster noise just would bug the hell out of me after 10 minutes. The rates you got are pretty damn good.

Rio's rate is fantastic, and you're just off the Strip, so....

The Palms is supposed to be "all that and a bag of $100 chips", but it is trying wa-a-a-a-ay too hard to be Cool and Hip. The owners have managed to get all the LA area Clear Channel diskjockeys to shill for it, and it just feels icky and almost desperate. And the "Portable Stripper Pole" amenity is just silly. Still, they say the rooms are really swank, so it might be your speed!

Thanks for the replies. My buddy's never been to Vegas (former East Coast guy), so it looks like we might stay at the Aladdin to take advantage of the Strip location. Also thought about splitting our time between 2 nights at the Aladdin and 1 at the Palms. Thanks again.

One day at a hotel - that's kinda a pain. I'd just stay put. Now if you have 2 days in one hotel and 2 days in the other, then I'm with ya. That's enough time that's worthy of switching. But 2 days in one hotel and only 1 day in another, by the time you've repacked and checked in, you'll need to check out. And who wants to deal with the front desk more than they have to?

Darvey has a point there, you will waste time moving from one hotel to another, the Palm is fine for nightlife, but it would not be worth moving to for one night. Just go hang out if you want to see it
Good luck!

Rio is not convenient, despite the free shuttle to Harrah's (a hastle in my opinion) Palms is essentially adjacent to the Rio. (Both offer some particularly favorable nightlife, but I've found both also to be especially disfavorable gaming wise)...The only strip tram still running is Mandalay Bay to Excaliber - all others are closed down. You've gotten some pretty good deals - I visit LV frequently and often change hotels to take advantage of favorable rates. It can be a hastle, but it can also be very advantagous - don't rule it out...From your choices, my advice: go with Aladdin, and take advantage of its great strip location by visiting other casinos - including Rio and the Palms..Check any poor attitudes upon arrivla in Las Vegas, and it'll be a afford you and your buddy a great time...

Palms is "adjacent to Rio"????
Ummm...not.
The Palms is 1.6 MILES from the strip.
It's a mile from Rio to Palms.

Hey you can get rooms at the Paris Hotel for the same price *plus* bonus deals! They have two diff packages one is $79 and the other is $89 a night. I think you have to have at least 3 days reserved, but you also get 50% off tickets to shows, $50 casino match credits, $50 dining coupon, etc. Its a much nicer hotel than the ones you mentioned, and its smack dab in the strip!!

Having stayed in both recently, I have to say that the rooms in Aladdin were actually much nicer than those in the Paris.

I looked into Paris, but there are no rooms available on the night of our arrival. Seems like the rates all are higher for May 5th. Not sure if there's a big convention in town, or maybe some Cinco de Mayo partiers in town.