Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The Hotel Spread
Nonsensical pricing that's based on whatever the market will bear is the
norm in Vegas. But it's not a total free-for-all. Yes, rates on the same hotel
room can sometimes jump $200 in the course of a day, but . . . well, they're
always jumping in tandem with others in their price category. So if you know
which hotels are traditionally cheapest, traditionally in the mid-range, and
traditionally the priciest, you can tell into which category you're going to
need to jump when the town is busy. And when it's slow, you just may be
able to upgrade.
I've created the chart on the opposite page using actual prices culled from
extensive searches performed over the course of several months. I can't guar-
antee that you'll be able to get these rates, nor do I have the space to include
every property, but I thought this would give readers a Rosetta stone, so to
speak, to help untangle the mysteries of nightly rates in Sin City:
The glamour has evaporated, but for visitors seriously into gambling, who
enjoy being able to walk from casino to casino, and who need to adhere to a strict
budget, Downtown is an excellent choice. At many times of the year, rooms will
be half as expensive, though they're just as nice as what you'll find on the Strip.
While the casino areas can be claustrophobic and well, seedy, the slots have a repu-
tation for being looser, and the minimums on the table games are often far lower.
Safety-wise it's advisable to stay on or as near to the Fremont Street Experience
as possible. A downtown revitalization is in the works—or so Mayor Goodman
says—but right now, the areas away from the heavily trafficked Fremont Street
area have a skid row vibe that's less than appealing.
$-$$
The farthest I'd go east of the Fremont Street Experience canopy would
be to the
El Cortez Hotel and Casino
(600 Fremont St., between 6th and 7th sts.;
%
800/634-6703 or 702/385-5200; www.elcortezhotelcasino.com; AE, MC, V).
Though it's 3 slummy-looking blocks from Fremont, it has the low prices, history,
and classic Vegas vibe to justify the trek. Much of “El Cheapo” (its loving local
nickname) was renovated in 2005; stay in the North Tower and your $33-a-night
price tag—a common rate here for much of the year—will buy you a slightly
larger than normal room, with clean carpeting, fine beds, ultrasuede green arm-
chairs, and a small but spotless bathroom. If you're willing to accept one of the
tiny rooms in the oldest section of the hotel—built in 1941—you'll feel as if
you're in an old-western (the white-painted board walls, tiny loo, old-timey flow-
ered curtains, and bedspreads seem to whisper “yee haw”), but you could pay as
little as $16—the lowest rate I know of in Vegas for a private room with bath-
room.
Think about whether that $27 savings is that important to you, though—
these are all smoking rooms, they have the smallest closets I've EVER seen (and
I've seen a lot of hotel closets), you'll have to climb a stairway to get to them, and
the walls are mighty thin, so you'll be miserable if you're a light sleeper. You'll need
