The Las Vegas Thread and MSE guide

bargaindoctor

hope the encore works out better for u sew. do u know any good rates going on now? we arrive jan 6 for just a couple of nights. never been to vegas, nothing planned, just flying enroute elsewhere for 2 nights and want to make the most of it!

trets77

April

bargaindoctor wrote: »

in vegas from jan 6-8. any recommendations for place to stay / things to do? Saw MGM info earlier on but looks like it gets mixed reviews... same with gold coast!

instead of looking for a deal on a hotel recommendation a better idea IMO is to see what hot deals are about for your dates , then ask the thread it's opinion on what you find.

use the links in Post 1.... but beware CES starts on the 8th of Jan so don't expect rock bottom prices if your staying in Vegas on the 8th .

a quick look for you on the Fatwallet deal thread shows a pretty good Caesars deal for $75

photome

sew109 wrote: »

Venetian

Hi I am currently sitting in my "suite" at the Venetian we got a very good rate for 6 nights and this is our 5th before we go to Encore, I was not aware that under the deal we got that we are subject to a $75 per night charge if we check out early, if we were not subject to this charge we would have checked out early.

The room is very nice and the bed comftable and we have a half decent view (which we are not actually bothered about) but there are a few things that we dont like and maybe we are being fussy but the whole experience is beneath what we have come to expect at Mirage wheer we usually stay.

When we arrived check in was quick and we were in the room at about 7pm and although it appeard to have had a maid visit the room was not made up properly with the bed un made and had not been vacumend though the bathroom had been cleaned, each day after this the room was not cleaned properly we found tissues on the floor stuff to show it had not been hoovered, old pillow cases left on the floor and not changed etc and this was despite leaving a tip every day. The staff also seem not to be very friendly which again is not a real bother but somthing we have got used to at MM Grand and Wynn resorts but maybe that is due to cuts because of the financial problems that Sands Corp is having but that is not really my problem.

Our other main gripe is not the casino's fault but the patrons both in the rooms and of the casino seems to include huge amounts of 20 somthings who think that they are celebrties with no manners who shout a lot and stumble around drunk I am not talking 1 or 2 but stacks. I had one of these on her phone outside our room at 5am yesterday when I got up to tell her to shut up she just looked at me like I was mad.


On a good note the toiletries are great and we have had a good holiday but would never stay here or the Palazzo again even if it was free in fact I think that I would choose Excalibur over here for the overall experience.

Thats a very similar experiance to the one we had at Palazzo earlier this year.

The bed not made properly and the staff not friendly.

And we had loads of 20 somethings partying outside our door.

sew109

November/December

bargaindoctor wrote: »

hope the encore works out better for u sew. do u know any good rates going on now? we arrive jan 6 for just a couple of nights. never been to vegas, nothing planned, just flying enroute elsewhere for 2 nights and want to make the most of it!

have a look at http://vegasuncovered.wordpress.com

Just got back from shopping and then lunch at Mirage buffet yumm and feel even worse that we did not stay there. the room has been cleaned and all of toiletries etc are layed out very nicey but there was an old towel that we dont remember using in the bathroom floor and a screwed up cigarette packet on the floor neither of us smoke and we are on a non smoking floor !!!

Ok here are the good things we have done
Saw Barry Manilow - I bought the tickets for the wifes birthday we were two rows from the back when we were seated a nice lady said she had 2 spare tickets row E and would we like them, well the show was fantastic and the seats brilliant.

Hoover dam we went to Laughlin yesterday and stopped for brekkie at the Hacienda and sawa sign for helicopter trips from $29 well like everything else in the US its not $29 for anything decent ! It turned out to be $59 each to go overr lake mead and the hoover dam probably 5 mins flight time but we haad the helicopter to ourselfs fantastic.

Lunch at Tropicana Laughlin brilliant value excellent food.

Got upgraded by United we got upgraded from Economy Plus to Business for £280 worth every penny and some !!

bargaindoctor

WOW! I'd take the upgrade if I had the chance! Has anyone bought Virgin upgrades at the airport to upper class, do they even do them?

Thanks for the advice so far, it's fantastic. I should have been more patient and read advice here.

I managed to get the Stratosphere for $20 a night through an 'agent', and have only just gone back to read the threads. Sounds like I should cancel... We're only in Vegas for a couple of nights, so I want to make the most of it.

David Copperfield is in town, so I'm thinking to check out the show one night. My OH is not really a gambler, so we may have to find alternative forms of entertainment!

Would love thoughts on (a) the flight upgrade thing for Virgin from LGW and (b) whether I should just forget the $40 on Stratosphere and book elsewhere...

WestHamDaz

i may be wrong but i believe if you want to upgrade at the airport on virgin it would generally cost you the difference betweeen your economy / premium ticket and that of an upper class ticket.

So, that could be anything from £500- £1500 really. As for free upgrades ive only ever known of 1 and that was my boss on a flight to nairobi. He was premium economy as he was bringing his wife along, whereas me and my collegue were upper. So we get to the plane expecting my boss to turn right and we have 8 hours of peace an quiet only to find out that virgin decided to upgrade him and his missus to upper.

the chances of this happening on a flight to the US is between slim and none though

ferf1223

March

bargaindoctor wrote: »

Would love thoughts on (a) the flight upgrade thing for Virgin from LGW and (b) whether I should just forget the $40 on Stratosphere and book elsewhere...

It depends on what you're after and what your budget is...for some the Strat is good enough and is all they want to pay for a hotel so it works for them...for anyone else, I would say look around...the location isn't great and if you're only there a few nights it might be a waste to stay so far from the action.

Trets has already mentioned CES though - so if you are staying the night of the 8th you're unlikely to get a great rate anywhere.

trets77

April

bargaindoctor wrote: »

WOW! I'd take the upgrade if I had the chance! Has anyone bought Virgin upgrades at the airport to upper class, do they even do them?

Thanks for the advice so far, it's fantastic. I should have been more patient and read advice here.

I managed to get the Stratosphere for $20 a night through an 'agent', and have only just gone back to read the threads. Sounds like I should cancel... We're only in Vegas for a couple of nights, so I want to make the most of it.

David Copperfield is in town, so I'm thinking to check out the show one night. My OH is not really a gambler, so we may have to find alternative forms of entertainment!
Would love thoughts on (a) the flight upgrade thing for Virgin from LGW and (b) whether I should just forget the $40 on Stratosphere and book elsewhere...

i 2nd Ferf's remarks. if you just want a room to sleep in and ain't bothered by location , then the Strat might be okay.
However the Strat is aimed at the Traveller on a tight budget. and the walk from the Strat to nearest strip Casino ( The Sahara) can be a tad uneasy in the dark. walking the other way towards downtown is even worse and will just send you past sex shops , cheap bars and tacky ( for the most part) wedding chapels. and onwards to a pretty dodgy part of town.

The Strat is techincally on the strip , but you are a long way from the strip you associate with Vegas. you will have to budget for Taxi's to get where the action is..

If you are a 1st time visitor, and you are only there for 2 nights ( and weeknights at that !!) i think you can look to treat yourself a little bit and get some great prices.

my advice ditch the Strat and look at some of the fantastic deals around

you can stay at the Bellagio for a $129 +$159 . !!! superb prices for one the worlds best hotels.

Caesars like i already said for a fantastic $75 a night . i snapped the place up at $100 a night earlier in the year , $75 is a rock bottom price for a hotel of that quality.

as for shows , David Copperfield is a very average show at best IMO . if you do decide to see him ,check the half price booths, excellent chance of getting tickets from them like we did .

i will roll out the show recommendation i always do

Le Reve @ The Wynn is simply outstanding and you may be able to find some discounts to book before you go . i will have a look around for you later.

if you want any more recommendations you will have to give us a idea of what type of show you want to see.

duchy

Taxis aren't an essential if you're staying at the Strat-the Deuce is a very useable and economic alternative at $5 unlimited use for 24 hours,

middy60

we stayed at the strat once gotta admit it's a bit out but if your tight on your budget its not bad nice big rooms.we only stayed one night has we got back to vegas early on our road trip and my wife wanted to go up the tower for which you get a discount if you stop there

hey duchy did you get the wynn code