Vegas hotel questions from a novice..
 

We are planning to visit Las Vegas for 3 nights in January.

Last time I visited was 20-plus years ago!

Hotel priorities are: Good location for exploring the strip; good heated pool for lap swimming; nice rooms; hoping to pay not much more than $200 per night

I have just started looking at places including Bellagio, Wynn, Venetian, etc. Rates seem to be lower on third-party sites such as Expedia. Although I am a very experienced traveler, I have never used one of these sites, preferring to book directly with the hotel.

What are the downsides/negatives to using these sites? Is it possible that the hotel would match the price on Expedia, etc, if I contact them directly? Is there one site that is better than others for booking hotels?

We will be booking airfare separately, as I have credit for an unused Frontier airlines ticket..

Also, please comment on the pools--we care only about lap swimming,not hanging out at the pool. Will we be able to swim in January?

Do hotel rates ever come with breakfast?

Should I be thinking about renting a car?

Thanks!

Not sure of any major strip hotels with indoor pool. However, depending on the days of the week, you should be able to find a room at any or all for $200 or less: Caesars, Mirage, Bellagio, Venetian, Paris. These are the hotels I like based on ameneties and location. If you go Sun-Thurs you should be able to geat room at any on these hotels for $125-$150. You'll need to sign-up on-line to get these rates but it's free and not much of a process. Enjoy!

PS: Unless you plan on going downtown or out to Hoover Dam, I'd skip the rental car and take Cabs or ride the Duece on the strip.

Definitely book directly with the hotels. Rates tend to go down as your date approaches whereupon you can phone the hotel and have them match the current rates on your reservation. If you book with a third party, you're stuck with those rates.

There's lots of information for specific hotels on TripAdvisor in the reviews and the forum is chock full of excellent tips and recommendations.

well, lap swimming might be all you could do to stay warm. it's pretty cold in vegas in january - the high for the next week is 47F/6C. you don't need a rental car while in vegas - buses/monorail/taxis are the way to go. if you want to venture outside of town for a day (which i'd recommend) to red rock canyon, valley of fire, hoover dam, lake mead, etc then i'd rent a car but you can arrange that when you get there. the wynn hotel is off strip i believe. bellagio or venetian are good locations.

Vegas has huge deficit of tourists and tons of vacancies, in every capacity.

I could get most of those hotels you mention (not Wynn)on the strip at any of the discount online broker sites for less than $200. Wynn too now, maybe.

I would never book directly with the hotel.

Vegas also has the best package deals for any vacation for 3 days in the USA. They are not any different than if you booked a room yourself- and you are not treated any differently.

I think you have not gotten the best advice on this thread.

Do a search here for discount sites.

www.hotwire or www.quikbook.com - either of those, just off the top of my head will give you choices where you KNOW the name of your hotel and that will be much less than booking the hotel directly.

If you give me your 3 dates- I would even tell you myself what the differential costs would be.

Or do a search here for Vegas hotel and read some of those threads.

I have gotten Paris for $69 when people here said you could get it for less than $239 per day.

Thanks! It sounds like we can skip the rental car. Are taxis pretty cheap?

I remember swimming at a heated outdoor pool at Caesar's in January the last time I was there..they used to heat them so high that it was ok to swim even if the air was cool...do you think that has changed?

I will sign up with a few hotels and book directly with one of them. I will take some time with the TA reviews.


We can go during the week; for the week we want to go (MLK week) it looks like the best rates are Wednesday through Friday..




Paris and Mirage do not guarantee that their pool will be open..and Caesar's entire pool area is closed for renovation, so those are out..

So I will look into Bellagio, Venetian and Wynn..any others?

Expedia's reservations are legit, valid, I would go for it... BUT what appears to be lower price may be increased by "resort charges" or whatever charges added upon check-in.

Do they still offer $50 gas card on Expedia? Worked for me perfectly, not doubt this is valid.

Now a warning. As with all reservations, call the hotel directly maybe 2 weeks before arriving to make sure your reservation is there, at the hotel.

Happened to me once, there was a mix-up when I reserved 2 rooms for 2 couples with different last names. This was resolved within one hour with 800 helpline on Expedia.

No, you will not get the worst room, they will ask you if you want smoking or not, 1 bed or 2.

Pools may be closed in December, I would confirm with the hotel.

Sign up with all hotels for e-mail promotions if you have time. They may beat Expedia's price. Check also Quikbook. Also check if your airline offers packages.

Your hotel may have the airport check-in, don't know the (dis)advantages, if any.

There is no included breakfast, not even coffeemaker in the room! But there are 24hrs food places in every hotel/casino, so don't worry about your cup-of-joe (or bring your own coffeemaker LOL).

Pools may be closed in December, I would confirm with the hotel.

Of course I meant January :)

I don't know of any pools that are open in winter but if they were, I don't think you'd be particularly welcome to lap swim in them but if nobody else is floating around drinking beer in there...more power to ya. Most certainly aren't deep enough to kick turn. Maybe look for a local Y to train in? Maybe slip into UNLV somehow?

JJ5: My post crossed with yours. Hmmm..what you write is interesting.

So far, the hotels with open pools seem to be the Wynn, Venetian and Bellagio so I will be looking in particular at those three hotels. I will write to each of them to double check. Since I am not a gambler, I would probably use the pools while my partner is looking for a lucky table! (This trip is really for him, as is probably obvious here)

We are thinking of traveling on Wednesday January 21 and departing on the 24th. I will take a look at Quikbook and Hotwire. Then, armed with their prices, perhaps I should write to the hotels and see if they will match the offers.

Most important question? When exactly is your trip. The Consumer Electronics Show is HUGE (even in this economy) and will mean few if any bargains that week.

Otherwise - you should have no problems getting deals any other time during the month.

OOPs - was posting the same time as you. Your trip doesn't conflict w/ CES . . . . .

Hotwire does NOT tell you which hotel until you hit "purchase". You can probably figure out which hotel it is using betterbidding dot com (or is it bidding for travel -- one of them does hotwire, the other only does priceline).

No, there is a section that lets you pick the hotel first, if you don't want to do the pig in a poke thing. The prices aren't like Priceline or other bidding sites but they are totally better than a direct call to Vegas right now.

Hotwire and all of the discount hotel sites or bidding sites change all the time. Hotwire has had that first rung new feature, picking your hotel when you know which by name you want, for some time.

The one or two ekscrunchy has his/hers heart set on, might not be in the mix, but you do not have to pay $200 per for a Vegas hotel right now or in January.

google discount hotel vegas and you'll get 10 examples of sites where you can get fab pricing, locked in- and most of them like quikbook, you can even cancel.

Now even Priceline has a link where you made reservations like on any other website without bidding. Don't know about the prices - I was peeking over a co-worker's shoulder while she was making air reservations on non-bidding Priceline. :)

JJ5, I still can't find that link on Hotwire -- what is it called? No matter what button I press, I get a list of unnamed hotels. (I'm not interested in Las Vegas particularly, but for future reference...)

Of those three, the Venitian has been on the lists I describe. I don't have time now- but when I have a chance I will post what I find here, eskcrunchy.

It may not be until late this evening- but I will not forget.

Don't forget in Vegas most of the pool experience is outside, not inside. And people when I have been there, are not swimming outside in January in great majority. Vegas has a hot climate, but hot is also relative and subjective to where people live and what their tolerances are.

I will not forget. I'll post what I find.

I have gotten the Palm for $49. I have gotten Paris at $69 and an entire suite at Rio for $59- when people said that it would cost be 3 or 4 times that much minimum.

Day to day- changes. Fridays are not like Mondays or Tuesdays. But I'll look and see what I find. And come back here sometime this evening.

We are having a snowstorm/blizzard and the commute is going to be miserable- so it may be late.

January is a bit too cool to be swimming although the pools are heated. I have been to the Venetian, Bellagio and Paris and none of them have a lap pool. All three of these hotels are great, you can't go wrong with any of them. Bellagio is a bit stuffier than the other two. Haven't stayed at the Wynn but it is more like the Bellagio, bit stuffy. Rooms are beautiful, I'm sure. All are in good proximity to each other and where you want to be.

Expedia and Hotels.com are great sites. Don't be afraid to use them. No downside at all. Just make sure you can cancel if you need to. Sometimes rates are nonrefundable.

Absoultely, NO CAR NEEDED. You walk everywhere or take a cab.

Thanks, everyone!! This is very helpful!

When I last stayed at Caesar's, in the early 80s I remember that there was steam rising up from the pool because it was heated so well. But maybe they do not heat them so high nowadays.. Even back then, I was the only one in the pool!

My partner has been wanting to return to LV for a long time. I had to cancel a flight last summer, so I have the Frontier ticket I can use (minus service fee)..

We could go anytime, preferably during the days right after MLK holiday, which is the 19th..when I checked, the rates were high for that Monday and the following day, Tuesday..

Those dates do overlap with the NAHB show--I hope that does not have too much effect on things..

I would just call each hotel that you are considering and see if they will match whatever price you come up with on the internet. I have done this several times in different cities and it works almost every time. They want your business.

I just checked three real quick and hotwire's known list does not appear for this market. But what does appear is a 5 star in Center Strip for $92 per night for each of those three nights. I'm 90% it is the Wynn. What else besides Bellagio or Wynn at center strip is 5 stars? Nothing I can envision- look at the map.

I would do that one, for sure.

But quikbook has several but the best one I found other than that was Paris on www.hoteldiscount.com for $183 and Wynn for $212 on those 3 nights.

The prices would be slashed 1/2 of that on those two if you didn't have that Friday in there. The Friday is the only night that has a high cost in any of the differentials, despite who is in town in convention or not.

I would go with the hotwire 5 star for $92 per day and pay now and be absolutely stunned and happy- rather than controlling and picking in the sense that you are going at it, and then paying 3 times the money.

Go out and eat, shop or use your money in the casino and you'll feel like you got a heck a lot more out of it.

If it were I- I would do the Palm or Rio and watch the younger ones going into the clubs. LOL! That's where the real life eye candy is now, IMHO.

Well, you sound like you might have to have a positive exact reassurance process going on, and so I checked a few more things. I won't have time later. It's now or never.

I did the listing on www.priceline.com and NOT the bidding.

You can get Venetian for $166 per night/day for those 3 dates.

Some others:

Palazzo (this is the new 5 starr part or new building-in duo with the Venetian) And btw- this IS and so is the Venetian considered 5 star- so that hotwire 5 star might be across the street from the Wynn and Bellagio- this Palazzo- new entity.

Trump Tower you can get for $212.

These are all pay right now, no cancellation and set in stone- you DO KNOW the exact hotel you pick.

Listing on their individual sites or calling them direct- and you get much, much higher pricing because of that Friday night being in there.

I would do the $92 dollar 5 starr middle Central strip I cited in the first post. That with tax would be around $300 for the entire stay.

First time in 20 years in Vegas, you are not even going to be in that single 5 star all that much. LOL!

But if you must know exactly- then go with the Venetian for $166 or Wynn on hoteldiscount.com or the Palazzo for $211 on Priceline.

When you see the differences and how close they are- and how the traffic is so heavy in that area anyway- why would you want to spend $300 or $400 more total just for the lodging when they are all 5 star rating?

Enjoy- and come back and tell us about that new Palazzo right there.

Many thanks for doing all that work!!

I just noticed that the Four Seasons has a third-night-free deal through their website.

Does anyone have any comments on the Four Seasons?

Check the pool HOURS before you book. When we were there the Bellagio pool closed at 4 pm each day. They want people in gambling and not out in the hot tub.

I just stayed at the Mandalay Bay for a conference and took a look at some of the rooms at the Four Seasons while I was there since it's in the same building and I was curious about it. The pool is closed for the season there so that might eliminate it off the bat for you. But otherwise I quite liked it--but I'm not a fan of Vegas in general and not a gambler so that's probably why I liked it ;-)--it's quiet and doesn't have the glitzy Vegas feel to it. I had breakfast at the Verandah restaurant one morning--expensive but good.

You should note that Mandalay Bay is down at the far end of the strip so you'll need to take the tram up to Excalibur and then walk or cab it from there to wherever you're going. That may or may not be an issue depending on your plans.

NW: Thanks for this information. Now that I know their pool is closed for the winter, I will eliminate the Four Seasons.

I did come across a site that has links to deals on hotel sites. So it appears that you book directly through the hotels, but can use this site to find some good deals;; has anyone booked this way?

www. SmarterVegas.com

Due to the pool situations,I think I have to narrow the search down to Bellagio, Wynn, and Venetian or Palazzo.

JJ5: I do not have to include that Friday, but when I checked for three nights beginning on Tuesday the 20th, the rates appeared to be very high for the 20th, for some reason.

Many thanks again for all of your help!!

Here is an update on pools in winter:

Wynn swimming pool is heated and open all year round.

No information yet on Encore pool; the Encore opens today. If their pool is not ready, guests can use the Wynn pool.

I stayed at the Wynn in September and loved it for reasons the others have mentioned... the pool, the wonderful service etc... and best of all...I found a great rate on a cheapo website and the hotel matched it!! Their service was incredible and we had a wonderful visit. We made friends with just about every employee we came across, the concierge, the girls who delivered the wine to our room... etc... the employess go through an amazing customer service program.

Stay at the Wynn!! :)

You can't go wrong with any of the four that you mentioned--great strip locations and elegant new/remodeled rooms. If you haven't done it already, go to each resort's website and sign up for free email offers. I get them almost daily and there are some great deals right now.

...and January weather in Vegas is tricky. I've been there before where we wore coats and gloves and I've also been there in January when we sat out by the pool in 75-80 temps. It's a total crapshoot (haha) so you may very well get some pooltime in.

The Golden Nugget downtown has a heated pool -- one of the few that is open year round.

Hi, remember me :)

I will be in Las Vegas this upcoming weekend Friday to Monday. It's too bad we won't be there at the same time :(. It would have been great to meet you. I would have loved a heated pool too, but then, I don't do laps like you do. I got a Flamingo package deal through Orbitz. The main reason I did was I could get Jet Blue out of Long Beach, 5+ miles from home and about 1 from work, where I may leave my car in our covered parking garage. I am so glad I did now with all the weather problems affecting LAX

The Wynn or the new Encore sound dreamy. I hope you enjoy your trip. Las Vegas has really changed, you will be amazed.

JJ5, here is a great big virtual hug for you.......

We are going to Las Vegas in February to attend a wedding and that is what prompted me to read this thread.

I never use Priceline and wasn't aware of Hotwire until I read your post.

We booked a five star for five nights in February for $94/nt and you are correct, it is the Wynn! What a deal!!!

Thank you so much for saving us hundreds of dollars.

What a fantastic deal you got for the Wynn! I love Priceline for hotels now; I got the Palmer House HIlton in Chicago for about $90/night that way 2 months ago. I just got back from Vegas....be sure to check out the Bellagio conservatory and Caesar's Palace as well. There is a new Asian noodle restaurant in Caesar's that looks fantastic....they make the noodles by hand and it looks so authentic and is not that expensive.

Thanks,everyone, for all of your help!

We seem to have narrowed things down to the Bellagio or the Wynn--and can get some decent prices on both of these hotels and will ask the hotels to match any website deals.. (I will phone again to see if the Encore pool is open yet and if it is, will include that in the final three).

So, between the Wynn and the Bellagio, which would you choose--is there anything else I should know before we make the final choice..??

Also, any particular rooms to ask for, or to avoid, at those two places? (We will opt for the cheapest room category, I think)

Well never mind--I just phoned the Wynn and was told that the pools at both Wynn and Encore are closed and they have no idea when they will open again "it depends on the weather."

So that leaves Bellagio, if I want to swim..

why would you want to swim in Vegas in January when its about 40 degrees?
Also, lap swimming..it's just not set up for that kind of stuff.these pools are not shaped like olympic pools..

As I wrote above, I've been to Vegas in January and swam at Caesars--they used to heat the pools to a high temperature. Perhaps they no longer do this, but Bellagio says on their site that their pool is open all year round.

If you are a swimmer, you prefer a rectangular pool, but can make do with other shapes, too.

I love the pools in Vegas and in the summer, you can't get me out of one.
Maybe you should look to the spas at the Wynn or Bellagio with the lap pools that they have enclosed vs. the outdoor pools.
It snowed last week and January hovers around 40 degrees during the day.
It doesn't make economic sense to have the pools going all year long for one or two people a day to swim..along with the liability that goes with that with and no lifeguard and slippage issues to and from the pool from the hotel.

Thanks--I wish I could find an indoor lap pool! The site linked below mentions that the only indoor pools are pretty far off the strip; it also notes that Bellagio pool is kept at 84 degrees year round.


http://www.lasvegasinsider.com/html/lvipools.htm

Bellagio is a lovely hotel and if they keep there pool at 84 degrees and it seems that swimming is important to you, I would book it!
Have a great time!