Priceline Hotel: Las Vegas Strip 3/18-3/20 & 3/25

[threedogs]

Hi, I'm seeking advice from Las Vegas experts.

I'm planning a 9-day trip this March to Las Vegas/Grand Canyon/Phoenix/Vegas for my husband & I to celebrate his 40th birthday. This is our first trip to Las Vegas. I've used Priceline before, but only on Orlando hotels.

I think I want a 4 or 5 star hotel on the strip for 2 nights, March 18 & 19th. I will also need a room for 1 night, March 25th, the final night of our vacation. We aren't gamblers, but we will want to be within walking distance of all the sightseeing spots like the fountains at Bellagio and all the really impressive hotels. Again, I've never been to Vegas so I appreciate any advice. We like to stay in luxury hotels and casino/gambling isn't a factor.

I'd like to get a rate in the $150 range. Searching for rooms on Expedia, Travelocity and other travel sites are giving me SKY HIGH rates, like $400/night +++

An initial hotwire search for March 18-20 came up with:

5 star $406

4 star $273

3.5 star $209

This seems high, considering that I've read posts referencing winning bids at 5 star hotels for $169, etc. I understand that my dates are weekend nights & I also understand there is a large conference (ConExpo 135,000) March 17-19.

A hotwire search for my second date (March 25th) yielded 4 star (Customer Favorite! Casino, Restaurant(s), Pool(s), Fitness Center, Spa Services, Golf Nearby, Business Center) for $140/night. Must be Treasure Island? $140 is much more reasonable, but is this a good deal?

Anyone care to lend some strategy/advice for getting a good deal on a luxury hotel for my dates?

Thank you.

[thereuare]

Are the rest of your plans already firm that you can't switch your 'two-day' stay in Vegas?

The Vegas hotel market is unlike any other... rooms that go for $300 on the weekends are often less than a third of the price mid-week. Throw conventions into the mix and things get even more complicated, and that 135K convention is a BIG one and make things tough!

We'll be happy to help no matter what dates you need to try for, but i think you could save a significant amount if you can switch your dates.

Let us know and we'll proceed from there.

[threedogs]

Hello, and thanks for your response.

It won't be easy to change the dates. I'm using frequent flier miles to fly into LAS. I've already requested my vouchers. The carrier I'm using doesn't fly to Phoenix so flying in/out of Vegas is my only option. The trip is to celebrate my husband's birthday, and that date isn't flexible. :)

Our plan is to fly into LAS Friday night 3/18, arrive 10:45 p.m. Stay 2 nights.

Sunday drive to Grand Canyon (stay 2 nights),

Tuesday drive to Phoenix (stay 3 days with family)

Friday drive back to Vegas, stay one night & fly back east on the 11:00 p.m. redeye Saturday night. 3/26

I understand the hotel market works on the principle of supply & demand. What's my best strategy for getting a nice room for a reasonable rate. I'm just going to try to find a deal somehow somewhere.

Any advice on which hotels would suit my needs best? 4 or 5 star, close proximity to all the action, while not concerned about the facility's casino.

Thanks!

[thereuare]

If rates don't change for the first part of your stay, i don't think you're going to be successful at a 4* or higher hotel for under $150/nite. Not sure if you want to go up in price, lower in quality, or off-strip. Here is some 'food for thought' to at least get the ball (and dialogue) rolling:

Luxor can be booked for $189/nite thru THIS SITE. It's a 4* hotel but is at one end the end of the strip rather than the middle.

Ballys can be booked thru their website for $209/nite. This is not a 4* hotel but a 'strong 3*' and has a center strip location.

Paris is a 4* hotel and a good center strip location, nicer than Ballys, but is $249/nite thru their website.

The Imperial Palace is a 3* hotel, used to be a dump but the REVIEWS have been improving. It's not luxury and not a mega-resort, but it has a good location in the center of the strip and can be had for $158 by clicking HERE.

For your stay in the 25th it may be a bit early to find any good deals, but the Treasure Island is listed on their website for $129/nite so you'd do better than taking the Hotwire offering above (which could also easily be the NYNY). If you stay at the TI on your return trip, the Luxor may not be so bad for the beginning of your stay since they're both on opposite ends of the main part of the strip. Another idea for the nite of the 25th is to stay off strip at a Resort in Henderson.

Let us know your thoughts on the above and we'll proceed from there.

[threedogs]

Great, I like the Luxor, it's the kind of Mega-luxury resort I had in mind. And I don't mind being on one end of the strip, as long as the location is still convenient for walking to the attractions & touring the other mega-hotels. Since I've never been to Vegas I have no reference of distance. Is the whole strip walkable, or does it go on for miles & miles?

I have a few questions...

First, I looked but can't seem to find easyclicktravel.com's cancellation policy. What if I have to cancel or reschedule?

Second, Luxor's website has the 18th for $189 & 19th for $199 and if you book thru their website they are offering 2 free spa admissions, $10 discount for "midnight fantasy" and 2 tickets to the King Tut museum. And there is a 48 hour cancellation policy. So I'm thinking that for $10 more I get these freebies plus a very reasonable cancellation policy. Booking thru the Luxor website might be the way to go.

Have you stayed at the Luxor? Should I request a tower or a pyramid room? The pyramid room looks cool, but which is more luxurious?

I really appreciate your advice. Please keep it coming!

[TravelGuy]

The Strip goes for about 4 & 1/2 miles, but from the Luxor you'll be within a reasonable walk to where it intersects Tropicana Ave., which is a major center of action.

Admission to the Luxor Spa, which is a pretty good one, is $20 and good for a 24 hour period. So if both you and your husband want to use the Spa each day, free Spa passes are a hefty savings. Also, I think the King Tut museum is worth seeing once.

I've stayed in both the Pyramid and Tower rooms and think the Tower ones are much nicer. They are newer, noticeably less worn, larger and more luxurious. Also, whereas the Pyramid bathrooms have a shower only, the Tower rooms have a tub as well. Nevertheless, a surprising number of people seem to prefer the Pyramid, although probably not the majority.

[thereuare]

EZCLICK'S policy is usually cancellation 72 hours before check-in date.. except for some disney properties which <i think> have a 5 day before check-in policy.

If Luxor will give you those 'freebies' regardless of lenght of stay, you could book the $189/nite thru them, then book the other nite thru EASYCLICKTRAVEL in order to save the $10 and get the freebies :)

Since you're not much into gambling, here is a thread of CHEAP AND FREE in LAS VEGAS.

[TravelGuy]

I believe I stayed just one night a couple of years ago and got the same freebies. From the website it looks like it's 2 spa passes per stay. So if you're big spa people, maybe then you need two stays - one night in the pyramid and another in the tower. That way you could try both and get more spa passes. :)

[threedogs]

Thanks for all the great advice, please keep it coming!!

Since my last post I've made some minor modifications to my itenerary.

Friday 3/18, arrive 11:00 p.m.: I've booked a room for one night at the Golden Nugget. (Internet rate $169) We can stay up late and see the Fremont Street Experience, sleep late Saturday, check-out at noon and drive to the Grand Canyon. We have a cabin reserved in the National Park.

After we spend the week in Arizona, we'll return to Vegas Friday 3/25. I booked the Luxor thru their website ($139). We'll have Friday afternoon/evening and all day Saturday to tour the strip. Our flight home isn't until 10:00 p.m. Saturday night.

I'm very interested to hear your opinions of the Golden Nugget & the rates. Can I do better with a priceline or hotwire bid?

[heinous]

Hi! I just wanted to add my two cents on Vegas - I'm a frequent Vegas traveler. In fact, I'm leaving next week to spent New Year's there again! I can't wait!

The Luxor is a good place - the tower rooms are better and newer. People like the pyramid rooms for the novelty of being in the pyramid, going up the diagonal elevators, and having one side of your room slanted because of the pyramid shape. The spa is quite large and well-equipped on the women's side, so it's a nice place to hang out even if you don't get a treatment. However, don't consider the King Tut museum when comparing packages. It's sort of interesting, but extremely small.

It really depends on what you're looking for out of your Vegas experience. If you want the whole mega-resort thing, then Luxor is a nice-ish one, with cool themed pool areas. But I wouldn't call it mega-luxury unless you get one of their nicer suites. If you're just looking for a cheap place to stay, then Imperial Palace is right in the middle of everything and reasonably priced. I am personally a big IP fan because of its location and price - but I go to Vegas all the time and am done with the big resort stuff. I just need a place to sleep for a few hours. The IP is not attractive or impressive, the pool area is small and silly, and the service isn't great.

I also used to be an event planner and booked rooms during Vegas conventions. My best advice is to not book anything un-cancellable now unless it's a ridiculously good deal. The week before the convention, prices usually drop because no matter how big the convention, there are more rooms in Vegas than can be filled.

Looking at your itinerary, you're only spending 2 separate nights in Vegas. I'd suggest that, especially since it's for a special occasion, you find something you really like on the Strip. The Golden Nugget is fine - it's the nicest place downtown, but downtown Las Vegas isn't necessary to see. It's not what you'd think of when you think of Vegas. They've improved it quite a bit and it is much safer at night now, but if it's your first time to the area, driving around and figuring out the parking there can be a bit of a hassle, especially since you're arriving so late. The Fremont Street Experience is ok - it's just a flashy light show. There are better free shows at the Bellagio and Treasure Island. Also, downtown is a 15-20 minute drive north from the Strip, and the airport is just south of the Strip. The Strip will be crowded, but it's just one long street, so you won't get lost. Plus, there's just nothing like driving up the Strip at night for that Vegas experience. You should be able to find something on the strip for around $169.

Once you get to your hotel, you won't want to take your car out again until you leave. Once you're on the Strip, pretty much everything is walking distance or a very cheap cab ride. Cab ride between the Strip and downtown is probably around $20.

OK! That's my 2 cents! More like 200! :)

[thereuare]

Here are my thoughts:

I think you'll be hard pressed to catch any of the Fremont Street Experience. I believe the last 'show' is at midnite, and if your plane lands at 11pm, it will be tough to claim your luggage (if any), rent a car, drive downtown, check-in at the hotel, catch the 6 minute show.

Between Luxor and Treasure Island i would probably choose TI. The Luxor is a bit more 'resort-y', but i enjoy the area around TI better and it is a bit better located for seeing the sites of Las Vegas that i enjoy (Venetian, free drink at Casino Royale, Mirage, Caesar's, etc). When commented above the TI was $129, but it is now $139, and at the same price as the Luxor i would stay take Treasure Island... just my opinion, others may like the other end of the strip better.