kansasmom

Hi all --

My sister and I do a weekend getaway each year, and this year Vegas is the place. I've never been there. We want to do a little bit of gambling also and maybe take in a show. I'm a bit overwhelmed by the hotel choices. I'd like to be on the Strip, I think, and we're just looking for a nice place that is well-located. Pool not really important. Thanks for any advice.

Lori

Caesar's is connected to the Forum Shops Mall. Treasure Island has a "bridge" over to Fashion Show Mall. Aladdin is connected to Desert Passage Shops. Basically any hotel strip is pretty convenient for shopping

Without knowing your budget it is hard to recommend a hotel but I'd check prices at Center Strip. Time of the year, day of the week, etc. play a big part in prices, let us know when you plan this trip.

Lori

I meant most any Strip hotel is convenient ..

No_name

I would also give Caesars my vote for the above mention reasons.

kansasmom

Thanks. We're going Dec 8 - 10. We've not on a tight budget, but we probably won't stay at the most expensive place either. All suggestions are appreciated...

happytrailstoyou

You want to stay at the Bellagio, Venetian, Paris, Bally's, Caesar's, or other nearby hotel such as the Mirage or Treasure Island.

You don't want to be at hotels in the vicinity of Luxor or Circus, Circus.

socialworker

Hi, for a "girls'" week-end that includes a lot of shopping, I would stay at Paris for the atmosphere and then cross the street, so to speak, and shop at the Caesar's shopping extravaganza.

Lori

We usually stay at the Mirage (or T.I), and we love the location, altho over the years we have stayed just about every hotel on the Strip . I (husband & I) will be at T.I. the end of this month and mid-Oct. I'm at the Mirage for a "girls" 4 dayer !! For mid-price I'd choose Mirage, T.I., or Paris as the best. For a little lower I'd go with Flamingo, Bally's. On the higher end is Venetian, Bellagio and Wynn's. Monte Carlo is not a bad place, but I am not crazy about that end of the strip. I'd avoid (at all costs) Imperial Palace, Circus Circus, Excalibur !! MGM GRand is just too inconvenient to get around in and again, it's on the south end of Strip.

Check every hotel website and choose one you feel good about. You can also call the hotel and as if they give a Auto Club discount (10%). Many do if the rooms are not already promotional rates. (I know for a fact Mirage & T.I. do).

Lori

I just checked those dates, you will be there over a weekend .. that means the rates will be considerably higher then Sun-Thurs. at most hotels, but if you and your sister are splitting the costs it may not be too bad.

Tess

Venetian or TI would be a great location for the Fashion Show Mall--just a short walk across the street. TI has Mystere (one of my favorite Cirque shows) and Venetian has Phantom. Cabs are cheap and you could zip down to Caesars Forum Shops another day but the Fashion Show Mall is larger and not consistently higher end like Caesars.

manduss

My votes would be Caesars or TI. It would be helpful to know your basic age range in order to make a better suggestion. I'm making a gut assumption of 25-39.
TI has a younger crowd (and less expensive, but nice rooms). It is across the street from the Fashion Show Mall and has easy access to more shopping at the Venetian and clubs/lounges at the Venetian, Wynn and Mirage. Caesars is not very far either.

I would NOT suggest Paris. I was there less than a month ago and was disappointed. The room was smaller than most Strip hotel rooms. The restaurants were good, but not places I would go if I were not staying at Paris. They have a severe lack of bars/lounges/entertainment options. The hotel was not bad, per se, but in a city where most hotels have something to offer (such as great dining, clubs or shows) in addition to a theme, Paris only offers a theme.

kansasmom

Well, manduss, you were close in your guess on the age. I've now aged out of the prime demographic and just turned 40. But I still would prefer not to be surrounded by senior citizens either. If you were choosing between Mirage and Bally's, which one? Or is there another in about the same price range and equally good location that anyone would recommend?

Heavens

Well, you are running into the National Rodeo Finals and that might be why the rates are higher. That event draws a huge crowd over the time of the rodeo, Nov 30 to Dec 9th.

That said, our favorite hotel is a little smaller than most of the biggies on the strip, but is very centrally located and has a lot of wonderful features. It is the Monte Carlo. Not so humongous, but conveniently located between NY/NY and Bellagio. You have a short walk to the elevator once you get in, it isn't as smoky as the other casino hotels, and it is light and airy inside, not so dark and oppressive. It is walking distance to Ceasers Forum Shops (be sure and check out the new addition, it is amazing) and a good walk to the Fashion Show Mall or a short cab ride.

Other features we like about the MC: big comfy rooms, nice staff, very good restaurants inside (we love the Trattoria and have had many good meals there at reasonable prices) and also a food court for a quick coffee of Micky D fix, which can come in pretty handy at midnight after a night of shows and drinking. So, might want to check out the hotel, which isn't so expensive either.

manduss

Hi.

If I were chosing between Mirage and Bally's I would go with the Mirage. I like the environment at the Mirage better than at Bally's. Both have easy access to a number of other casinos, but I find that I like the area around the Mirage (with Caesars, TI, the Venetian, the Wynn, Fashion Show Mall, etc) much better.

happytrailstoyou

The rooms at the Mirage are more luxuriously appointed than Bally's, but they are also smaller and so are the windows.

The lobby layout at the Mirage seems designed to create confusion, whereas Bally's layout is straightforward.

placeu2

Mirage vs. Bally's? That's a no brainer, go for Mirage. Hard to believe the prices are the same.

In the same neighborhood, I am a big fan of Paris. In fact I would make that number 1 in this discussion.

Don't forget about the shopping at Aladdin/Planet Hollywood. Not quite the Forum shops but lots of variety anyway and an in mall rainstorm.

Down the srtip a bit, I also like the monte Carlo as pointed out by a previous poster.

If you are indeed there for Rodeo week, don't forget your best cowgal boots and hat! Sounds like fun to me.

Braunsky

Which hotel you will like can be subjective. I cannot comment on hotel rooms other than the Flamingo because we usually stay at our time share. We like the Flamingo for location and price and we've always had good service. Their renovated rooms are nice, and you can request a room on the Flamingo road side toward the front, upper floor, that has a view of the Bellagio fountains. Some Bally rooms do as well. Whatever you decide this close to your trip, I'd book asap. Prices go up as availability goes down. Check out Flamingo and Bally prices on line at http://www.harrahs.com/ - click on "other hot deals" and you'll get a list of all their hotels. I think MGM has a similar system at their web site. If you want to save some money for shopping, the Flamingo is still showing $100/night for Fri & Sat that weekend, less for Sunday. The type of shops in the hotels are very different. Caesars Forum shops run the gamut from touristy to fabulously expensive. It's worth just walking around. Our favorite place just to window shop is Bellagio, which is all fabulously expensive, except their gift shops off the conservatory. The Venetian has some unique shops, a fairly wide range of prices. Wynns is all tres chic expensive from what I recall. The shops at Alladin/Planet Hollywood or whatever it's turning into, actually have stuff you might need or want to buy, it's more like a mall, and a verrry long walk all the way around.

manduss

This is a little bit of a tangent, but have you thought about the Rio?
The rooms should be less expensive and their basic room/suite is larger than a standard room at Bally's or the Mirage.
They have a free shuttle that takes you to Caesars (and the Forum Shops). They have additional free shuttles to Harrah's and Bally's/Paris.
The cocktail servers (Bevertainers) are nice eyecandy (both male and female) and do a song or dance every 15 minutes or so throughout the day.
The Chippendales show is also in residence at the Rio.

Take Care,
Mark