greggarious

Thanks for all the suggestions everyone.

I ended up staying at the Cortez. A little run down but doubling the amount of time I could stay in town (very cheap room) was worth it. Walking to Atomic was very safe, in fact I never felt uncomfortable downtown. Checked out Binion's my last day, might stay there next time or splurge on Golden Nugget if on a shorter timeframe... I really liked the cafe at Binions, for a budget brunch (eggs and hash) they were very good.

I may be going out for a conference on the strip in the summer, and might take a few vacay days after. Would switch hotels if that happens, probably to somewhere downtown - leaning towards GN since I also enjoyed their poker room, and I'll have had my fill of Caesars and Bellagio during the conference. Cortez was ok, but I think I'd like a step up in quality, at least something on par with LINQ or Flamingo. The room was extremely run down. I don't mind old school but stuff like a shower door not working or the fact the safe (!) was broken was annoying.

(Turned out the battery was dead and they had to replace it. Not a huge deal but it took a while for them to send someone and a while to diagnose, when I just wanted to unpack and hit the poker tables)

eponymous_coward

You can't; the hotel's been closed for the better part of a decade.

https://lasvegassun.com/blogs/kats-r...ction-binions/

You could stay at the Four Queens though (same owner). Their rooms are OK (just were refurbished).

GN is fine and the most Strip-like of the downtown joints. You might also like Downtown Grand if you want upscale from the ElCo. I have friends who rave about their corner premium rooms.

I haven't had broken shower doors or service problems at the ElCo but I admit the place is a bit more downscale as downtown joints go- the gambling is first rate though ($5 single deck blackjack), and the comps are easier. I rather like the Cabana Suites. It's definitely a low roller/dealer breakin joint though.

greggarious

Oh they were breaking in dealers for sure. I played roulette a little since it was cheap and at one point the dealer managed to send the ball into the wheel so hard it bounced out and landed on the game board LOL.

Thanks for the suggestion on Four Queens. I've heard it mentioned before in the context of having no resort fees. Honestly, a little bit of a step up for Cortez and I'm good. To give context, when I'm on the strip I normally stay at the Flamingo so I'm not super choosy. Golden Nugget is nice, but not sure it's extra-40-a-night-resort-fee nice.

ctoneill93

Downtown is safe, just stay where people are. I've stayed at the D and it's good. I've mostly stayed on the strip though. You can get free rooms at Mlife properties if you play the Myvegas slots game on your phone and rack up points. You just have to pay resort fee. I've stayed at MGM Grand for free with points. Also at Treasure Island you don't have to pay resort fees if you don't want to. Take the bus from the strip to downtown. Buy an unlimited pass and you can ride up and down the strip all day without walking much on the deuce or sdx.

1flyer

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eponymous_coward

Well, in that case, I'd look at the California*, Four Queens, Downtown Grand, Fremont* and Main Street Station* and pick whatever's cheapest (the Boyd properties, the ones I marked with *s don't charge resort fees, like the Four Queens). You should be good at any of them. The Cal just got refurbished and it's pretty nice, I think, if not swankalicious like the Golden Nugget or a Strip joint like Venetian/Palazzo.

Golden Gate has some issues with their cheapest rooms (they tend to be fronted towards the FSE which means you'll get the dulcet tones of Spandex Nation through your windows until late) and a lot of the rooms are small like the ElCo's very cheapest rooms in the original hotel (the ones that you have to take the stairs to get to). Plaza is OK but if you have quality issues with the ElCo you might have some with Plaza, too.

greggarious

Thanks, I appreciate the tips.

eponymous_coward

NP. There are some nights where Downtown Grand is coming up cheaper than Four Queens on hotels.com, even including resort fee... I stayed there recently. Solid option IMO- I don't play much there and still got half off some entrees in their coffee shop plus a $10 match play. The rooms are in good shape and I think it meets the bill at the right price.

CMK10

I got a room at the Days Inn and Wild West Gambling Hall last month as part of the Wyndham promo. It's honestly not bad (I rated it at 4* on TA). It's safe with a good amount of free parking, it's near a lot of the usual sights, wifi worked well (and is free) and the room was comfortable enough and in decent enough shape. I wouldn't have minded actually staying there instead of just checking in, hanging out for an hour, and leaving.