Recently I took ten days off and went to Las Vegas! This was my sixth trip there in the last six years of my visit to some great places to eat and gamble and sleep- So I am posting this as my official Las Vegas review.
If you have never been to Las Vegas or have not been there for 2 years this review will be helpful. The city is constantly changing and growing. I love playing Texas Holdem poker online but after playing it for quite some time it is nice to get away. And it is nice to be able to afford a nice vacation like this. Before I became an online poker player I would never have dreamed of going to Vegas for ten days and sitting at one of the most beautiful hotels in the world – The Venetian domino qq.
Transportation
On my first trip to Vegas we didn’t rent a car. We took 8 bucks for a shuttle from the airport to the hotel and walked or took the bus / taxis for a rest stop. Ever since then we have rented a car. If you go midweek or offseason it is very cheap to rent a car in Vegas. We never paid more than 25 bucks a day. If you add up the cost of taxis and shuttles, it seems much smarter to rent a car.
Beware if you are a timid driver, people drive like maniacs out there! If you prefer, get the best bet for the best bet. There are buses every 10 min going up and down the strip, and there are many free mono rail trams on the strip that go to many casinos.
My reccomendation is to rent a car and bring a wad of singles and valet it. If you like me you will want to go and see all the beautiful casinos. There is nothing better than driving to the front door and having it parked. I usually tip a buck or two. Otherwise you can park in the parking structures for free.
Hotels
On my most recent vacation I went with my friend Kurt. Below are some pics of our hotel room at The Venetian. If you can afford I would highly recommend staying here. It was by far the nicest hotel I have ever been to. The bathroom was a HUGE, with a jacuzzi tub, double sink, separate shower, a toilet with a separate room with a phone and marble floors.
Our Room
The Venetian and the Bellagio are the 2 nicest hotels in Las Vegas. They are expensive. I have been to many hotels in Vegas and it all depends on what you want out of your vacation. Most people will gamble and drink into the wee hours of the morning so the hotel won’t matter much. If you want to stay in the cheapest hotel possible and stay close to Gambling I recommend staying in downtown. I stayed at the Las Vegas Club downtown last year. Midweek you can get a room for 35-45 bucks a night. On that trip we only slept about 10 hours total the 3 nights we were there, so much the hotel didnt matter.
However the Las Vegas Club was pretty nice and the rooms were very large and had a couch. I have stayed at other hotels downtown and most are in the price range and more expensive weekends and peak season. So if you want to be pampered and stay somewhere nice find a strip on the hotel – The Venetian and the Belagio are very nice, and very expensive. The MGM or Luxor or New York are mid-priced .. If you want to go cheap downtown.
Drinks
If you love gambling and love to drink PERFECT- If you are gambling drinks are free. So dont spend 8 bucks at the bar, hit the tables or slots and drink on the house.
Gambling
I have gambled at many-a-casino in Vegas. I think on this last 10 day vacation we hit most of them. Gambling for my suggestion comes down to preference and cash. On weekends and peak times it is hard to find a blackjack table with a 5 dollar minimum on the strip. Most are ten bucks and up. So If You Are On A Budget I suggest gambling downtown. They have plenty of five dollar tables and even three dollar tables. They also have single and double deck blackjack games with lower limits for downtown. Strip use auto shufflers and are 6+ decks – the most bad odds for making this. On this trip I mostly played blackjack. I consider online poker my profession and being on vacation needed a little break. So I played mostly blackjack and the horses.
Some must-see casinos are The Venetian, there are shops and the Venice canals, and beautiful paintings and artwork. Also the Belagio is a stunning casino, they have a water show to the front set. If you are going to bet on horses or sports I suggest the sportsbook at Belagio. They have personal flat screen TV’s leather chairs and drinks supplying cocktail waitresses. We spent a lot of time here.
Food
Where to eat? This trip on We Are So Much Food, I Must Have Got 20 Pounds … Lets Start Out With The Buffets:
The best buffet I have ever had is The Aladdin Casino at The Spice Market Buffet. It was around $ 25 and the food was amazing. They had different categories of food, American, Mexican, etc. Everything I tasted was delicious.