Frommer's Travel Guides has a little mini-guide to travel in Las Vegas, produced for the CES Conference. They list a small number of websites they find helpful for travel planning:
www.lvcva.com
Las Vegas Convention site
www.vegas4visitors.com
General local info, reviews, family ideas
www.lasvegasweekly.com
General, local info and reviews
www.nightonthetown.com
Restaurant listings and restaurant information
www.cheapovegas.com
Funny travel tips
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
CES Las Vegas - what about downtown?
CES Las Vegas is one of the biggest trade shows in the world and I'm really impressed with the initial flurry of information, contacts, emails, and printed material flowing my way to prepare for the trip, coming up in just under a month.
However I'm surprised how little information there is about the downtown hotels. They are generally not nearly as nice as hotels along the Las Vegas Strip, but those will all be full with this huge conference of some 140,000 people. I assume all the downtown hotels will fill as well.
Recent efforts have focused attention on the Downtown region and the original casinos in the Fremont Street area such as Binyon’s and the Four Queens have brought the spectacular “Fremont Street Experience” to the downtown area. Pictures of Fremont Street
However despite the revival of Fremont, it is still the Las Vegas Strip where most of the action remains, and where you will find many of the world’s largest and most extravagant hotels, nightclubs, restaurants, and, of course, Las Vegas Casinos.
It’s important to note that the Las Vegas Convention Center is not along the strip. The Convention Center and the Las Vegas Hilton are about a mile from the strip via Tropicana Boulevard. The Las Vegas Monorail is a great way to get from the strip to the Convention Center or the Hilton.
Las Vegas - Early History
However I'm surprised how little information there is about the downtown hotels. They are generally not nearly as nice as hotels along the Las Vegas Strip, but those will all be full with this huge conference of some 140,000 people. I assume all the downtown hotels will fill as well.
Recent efforts have focused attention on the Downtown region and the original casinos in the Fremont Street area such as Binyon’s and the Four Queens have brought the spectacular “Fremont Street Experience” to the downtown area. Pictures of Fremont Street
However despite the revival of Fremont, it is still the Las Vegas Strip where most of the action remains, and where you will find many of the world’s largest and most extravagant hotels, nightclubs, restaurants, and, of course, Las Vegas Casinos.
It’s important to note that the Las Vegas Convention Center is not along the strip. The Convention Center and the Las Vegas Hilton are about a mile from the strip via Tropicana Boulevard. The Las Vegas Monorail is a great way to get from the strip to the Convention Center or the Hilton.
Las Vegas - Early History
Friday, December 7, 2007
Links Vegas
Las Vegas - Official Las Vegas Tourism Web Site IMPORTANT: Always check multiple sources for tickets, Hotels, and Flights. Kayak.com is an excellent resource. Also Hotwire.com if you are comfortable booking by rating and location rather than the specific hotel. There are not many "bad" hotels in Las Vegas, so you can hardly go wrong even just shopping by price.
But again remember that to get best prices always check hotels.com, kayak.com, and the hotel itself. If you Some hotels have player club specials, so call them before you book at anything that appears to be a high rate.
Las Vegas Wikipedia entry - General City Information
Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce
McCarran International Airport
Las Vegas Sun : The local newspaper for greater Las Vegas
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Best Cheap Hotels on the Las Vegas Strip
Zeke Quezada at About.com has the best coverage of Las Vegas anywhere. He's a local and writes extensively about the best places to eat and stay as well as shows and nightlife.
This week Zeke profiled several of the best "cheap" hotels in Las Vegas, noting that you don't have to sacrifice a nice room if you want to sleep cheap.
It's also important to note that rates vary enormously in Las Vegas. I'm heading down for the Computer Electronics Show in January and all the hotels know they'll fill up, so rates are about triple the normal price. I stayed at the Hilton a couple years ago for 55 - rooms during CES were 450!
This week Zeke profiled several of the best "cheap" hotels in Las Vegas, noting that you don't have to sacrifice a nice room if you want to sleep cheap.
It's also important to note that rates vary enormously in Las Vegas. I'm heading down for the Computer Electronics Show in January and all the hotels know they'll fill up, so rates are about triple the normal price. I stayed at the Hilton a couple years ago for 55 - rooms during CES were 450!
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
McCarran Airport, Las Vegas Bus Service
Las Vegas offers bus service from McCarran to the Las Vegas Strip and Downtown Fremont Street area. Depending on where you are staying and how much you value the savings of a few dollars over the Shuttles that leave the airport fairly regularly, this may not be the best option, though I've often found the shuttles to have a wait of 15+ minutes and then a -long- slow trip down the strip. If, for example, you are booked at the Stratosphere I have a feeling the bus would offer a faster trip down there than the Shuttle, which could take an hour or more depending on where the other passengers are heading.
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Airfare and four nights: $356
Normally I pay about $320 for the flight and another $300 or so for hotels in Las Vegas. When looking for bookings for the Computer Electronics Show January 7-10, 2008 I started to get worried when I notice that one hotel I'd stayed at before for 55 per night - the Hilton at the Convention Center - was running $456 per night for CES. Yikes! Even some of the clever discount options in Las Vegas like the Best Western Mardis Gras (walking distance to Convention Center, modest but clean and spacious rooms) were running almost three times what I'd paid last year for WebmasterWorld. CES is the biggest tech show on earth and everything will fill up, so the prices go sky high.
Therefore, I was thrilled to find a Flight/Hotel combination at $356 - the lowest price I've ever paid in Las Vegas by far. I will be staying in downtown Las Vegas at the Fitzgerald rather than the strip, but reviews indicate it has been nicely remodelled. This deal was through US Airways.
Therefore, I was thrilled to find a Flight/Hotel combination at $356 - the lowest price I've ever paid in Las Vegas by far. I will be staying in downtown Las Vegas at the Fitzgerald rather than the strip, but reviews indicate it has been nicely remodelled. This deal was through US Airways.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Welcome to Las Vegas
As one of the world's top travel destinations, Las Vegas offers visitors glamour, gambling, fine dining, superb hotels, and amazing shows. Here, we'll reveiew the newest shows and attractions in Las Vegas, the best restaurants, and much more. We'll feature all the major hotels and offer we'll offer great travel tips for this amazing city.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)