I've scheduled a mileage run that includes eight hours in Las Vegas--my first visit outside the airport. Any inexpensive (<$25) gourmet restaurants to suggest? I'm not a gambler, so what is a good area to hang out that might include restaurants, good shops, comfortable place to relax, and within walking proximity to more of the same?

There aren't too many inexpensive gourmet restaurants in Vegas. A bowl of tomato soup at Mesa Grill is $12 (but it's really good soup). If you're motivated to rent a car (which for a day can sometimes be cheaper than 2 taxi rides), and like Thai food, one of the best Thai restaurants in the country is in Vegas - check out Lotus of Siam & try the tempura as an appetizer and the Drunken Noodles (with chicken, which isn't on the menu, is $9 - with seafood, which is on the menu, much more).

Since you're not a gambler, depending on the weather & what time you get there, I'd definitely recommend doing the car, having a good lunch (assuming you get there in the day?), and maybe drive out to Valley of Fire (beautiful on a sunny day around 3-5pm in the winter as the sun goes down).

If that's not something you want to do, then I'd recommend either cabbing it to the Strip & walking the Strip and check out the installations at the Bellagio & wander down to the Venetian & check that out and maybe the Wynn as well. If it's after December 15, check out Cosmopolitan too. 8 hours on the Strip as a non-gambler is a long time - so if you're not all that interested in checking out casino's, then do the car rental thing.

Thanks. Valley of Fire looks spectacular, but long-range forecast is for rain that day. I'll likely hang around the Venetian and adjacent hotels and malls, with a hop over to Lotus of Siam--gets great reviews elsewhere, too!

Is $30 for a 24hr rental good deal in Vegas?

$30 is what I paid for a 24 hour rental! Beats Taxi's!


Inexpensive meals.....In and Out!

Here's my favorite inexpensive Vegas restaurant, though it's far from gourmet:

http://www.peppermilllasvegas.com/

It's on the North end of the Strip past the Wynn so if you drive up Las Vegas Blvd to get there it'll give you a great view of all the casinos. Enjoy your visit!

Especially if you want to get to Hoover Dam and/or Grand Canyon

The Wynn buffet would be a good choice to consider. Certainly something you won't find outside of Vegas.

It's not bad - but do a search for the Siemen's rate code for National or the Travel Partners CDP for Hertz (or use an AAA CDP like 212) and you may be able to bring it down. Cost of a cab to the Strip is about $10-15 depending on what hotel you go to, so $30 RT + $5 in gas is worth having that flexibility, especially if you want to go to Lotus of Siam, which is off strip, but not really something you want to walk to if you don't have to.

Also, parking is free everywhere, so keep that in mind.

The Peppermill is kind of kitschy - sorta "old Vegas" with neon & large portion sizes, but the food isn't all that great for the price, IMHO.

Others also like Hash-House-a-Go-Go (at Imperial Palace) for breakfast, but again, not really my cup of tea - but a lot of locals swear by it.

A little tip in case you decide to do the Bellagio buffet, as you're going solo, instead of waiting in line if it's busy, you can go in the back entrance & seat yourself at the bar. They'll probably expect you to buy a drink (liquor or beer or wine) with dinner if you're at the bar, but probably not required. Great way to skip the line if you don't mind sitting at the bar instead of table.

ALso, Spice Buffet at Planet Hollywood is pretty decent - though Wynn is probably one of the better ones in Vegas (of course, the seafood buffet at Rio is always spectacular!)

I was thinking more about a day trip to Gradn Canyon and /or Hoover Dam, but flexibility is always good too

Grand Canyon may be too far for a day-trip considering your time factors. Not 100% sure, but I think the North Rim may be closed seasonally - you should double check (although I could be completely wrong). Hoover Dam could be a decent way to spend a few hours - but I doubt you'll kill more than 3-4 hrs with that (unless you do the tour, which I've never been on).

I am looking into Grand Canyon West [where SkyWalk is] - that is about 120 miles from LAS and you get there via Hoover Dam.
I know it's gonna be a long and tiring day, but not sure when I'll get that close to it again...