I was in Vegas last February. It was a business and pleasure trip, so my husband tagged along. It was my second trip to Sin City, and my husband’s third, fourth or fifth, I’m not exactly sure.
Getting there:
We flew out of Loveland/Ft. Collins airport on Allegiant. If you live in Northern Colorado, I highly recommended this. It’s only $5 a day to park your car (use to be $3). Flying Allegiant to Las Vegas is like being on a party plane, at least on the way there. Coming back it’s a little quieter because everyone is tired and broke.
Photo by Amy Lyons
We planned to stay on the strip and decided against renting a car. Cabs are easy to come by and we don’t mind walking, but remember this HeidiTown Travel Tip: No Cute Shoes in Vegas (cute shoes hurt). On my previous Vegas trip I walked the strip bare foot because my incredibly adorable heels gave me incredibly huge blisters.
A tip on Vegas cabs – don’t get taken for a ride. When you get in the cab at the airport tell them “No Tunnel!” Going through the tunnel will add about $6 to your fare from the airport to most hotels on the strip.
Where to stay:
The gardens behind The Flamingo are a nice way to get away from the noise and crowds for awhile. Photo by H.M. Kerr-Schlaefer
We stayed at The Flamingo for three nights. We’d previously stayed at The Mirage, but this was a work-related trip and the company booked rooms at The Flamingo. It wouldn’t have been my first pick, but it turned out well. We chose not to upgrade to a Go Room ($25 extra/night), and we are glad we didn’t. The regular rooms are just fine – a little old, but who spends much time in their room while visiting Vegas?
Another tip – you can get coupons from the player club booths at the various casinos. I signed up for a Player Card at every casino we visited, and was able to get coupons good for food and entertainment – two for one drinks, discounted buffets and show tickets, etc. It’s well worth taking the few minutes to sign up for a card.
On the first night we ate at The Flamingo’s seafood buffet – a coupon made it $18/person. We thought it was a good deal and the seafood was fine, nothing spectacular, but the snow crab was tasty. The dessert bar was fun, mostly because the desserts were so pretty. Unfortunately they looked better than they tasted.
The Flamingo is “old Vegas” – smoky with low ceilings. However, the staff is super friendly, which is more than I can say for the snotty person I ran into at the Venetian’s player’s club desk. We felt The Flamingo wanted our business, and this isn’t true of The Mirage or some of the newer (albeit nicer looking) casinos that only seem to cater to the high rollers these days. The pool at The Flamingo wasn’t open in February, but we think it rivals the pool at The Mirage.
Two drawbacks at The Flamingo: Internet is $13.99/day and you have to pay to use the gym ($10 each visit). We thought both charges were ridiculous. Of course, who goes to Vegas to workout?
Free drinks:
Photo by Christine Kovacs
There is a myth about free drinks in Vegas. These mythical free drinks are actually very hard to come by for someone like me. You can only get free drinks if you are gambling. I am Scottish and have an aversion to losing money, and therefore I get very few “free” drinks in Vegas.
On this last trip, however, I discovered a great way to get free drinks without having to gamble large amounts. Keno. You can sit and make one-dollar bets on Keno, and order all the drinks you want from the waitress who frequents the Keno area. Regrettably, for tightwads like me, it’s getting more and more difficult to find Keno in Vegas, but thankfully The Flamingo still has the game, and we started there every night.
It’s also wise to stock up at the liquor store. There’s one just a couple blocks away from The Flamingo, right on the strip. And remember, in Vegas you can walk around with a drink in your hand so the casinos can’t really stop you from coming in with an outside drink.
Eating:
The Bellagio Light Show is free! Photo by Ryan Schlaefer
HeidiTown picks –
Margaritaville at The Flamingo. They have a patio overlooking the strip and for a three day stay we ate every breakfast there. Our room key saved us 30% off our bill at the restaurant. I highly recommend their delicious breakfasts.
Ellis Island. $8.99 steak special, comes with a beer. Don’t ask questions. Just go there. You will NOT be disappointed.
Look and ask for specials. A lot of the less fancy casinos run food and drink specials as a way to get people in the door, and it works. There are tons of late night specials all over the strip. Just keep your eyes and ears open, and don’t be afraid to ask. We were wandering around one day and found a great hotdog plus beer deal, but I can’t remember where we were (somewhere on the strip near The Flamingo).
Check out the Las Vegas Forums at www.TripAdvisor.com for more tips on Vegas.
Feel free to leave any insider tips you may have discovered while visiting Sin City.
Harrah's runs great drink specials all day long. Photo by H.M. Kerr-Schlaefer
Fountain outside Caesars Palace. Walking around Caesars is fun and free, and this is the only casino where I won money. Photo by H.M. Kerr-Schlaefer
Nice, sounds like a fun trip! No gambling? Yoiks ….
A couple other tips for you … yes, Keno is a way to get free drinks with little gambling, but also you have to sit in that lousy keno area and you will lose whatever you have to bet … easier way, go to any casino bar with those quarter video poker machines laid in, ask the bartender for a $10 roll of quarters and start playing, 25 cents at a time. The bartender will immediately offer you a free drink (tip him a buck a drink to make sure he keeps asking) … technically, you are gambling, the bartender doesn’t care it’s only a quarter at a time, and unless you are unusually inept, it’s virtually impossible to lose $10 at video poker in under an hour. I usually walk away with my original $10. Plus you get to sit out in the casino with real people.
And when you order a drink, and it’s free, please don’t ask for “a beer” and settle for a Busch light in a plastic cup. Be inventive, it’s free, how about some Maker’s Mark on ice? Call liquor, people.
Sorry to say, the free gym is also gone in Vegas. But the gyms (or “spas”) are super nice. If you’re playing and using a club card, you can usually cajole the pit boss into giving you a pass … but if not, worth the dough.
If you have a late flight (the 6 p.m. to Denver, for example) and have to be out of your room at 11, here’s what we do … pack up, head for the gym (“spa”) … they give you a pass for the day for your money, and a huge locker. So we lock up our luggage, go out and see the town, hang out, do whatever until it’s almost time to go, then go back to the gym, take a sauna, whirlpool, a hot shower, maybe a shave, then get our stuff and head for the airport, then it’s like getting a room for the day for only $10.
Also, check out my fave site, http://www.cheapovegas.com .. it’s a hoot.
Excellent tips Chase! I especially like the gym tip – I don’t think I would have thought of that. Also, nice tip about calling your liquor – I mean, it’s VEGAS! Ya gotta make the most of it!
My husband (Ryan) tried the ten dollars worth of nickles trick, but they wouldn’t give him a free drink unless he did the Max Bet each time ($1.25). I think even Vegas is feeling the down economy!
The Sports Book is something I failed ot mention – this is the primary way Ryan prefers to spend his time in Vegas and it’s a great way to gamble without losing a ton, plus they have waitresses in most of the Sports Books (tho’ this last time they were hard to find).