Priceline Hotel: 3* Las Vegas (Convention Center) Courtyard Las Vegas Convention Center

[dannon]

Hi ,

Here's what I am looking at . I have a conference at the Venetian from 9/16-9/19 [Monday-Thursday]. The Venetian rates are very high for me and since I will be renting a car , any other hotel would be fine with me.

I have never been to Vegas in all my years of traveling - so , I don't know how the traffic is . Where do I stay ?

Do I stay in the Strip North area itself ? Or would it also be OK to stay in the Strip South , Strip East or the LAS convention areas ? How long does say , 6 miles , take from the Strip South area to the Venetian both during and after rush hour ?

Also, about resort fees. Do all the hotels have resort fees ? Any other extra fees? My main requirements are free internet and free parking .

The 3* hotels in the Strip North area - Harrah's and Stratosphere - get poor reviews and so, I am thinking 3.5* and above may be better .

Thanks.

[Noise]

Venetian and Palazzo are both nice. Wynn and especially the Encore is close by to the Venetian but much nicer hotels. If you are looking for South Strip, the Aria is very nice. I wouldn't stay at the Luxor, Excalibur, Stratosphere (neighborhood around the tower is terrible).

[dannon]

Thanks for the info . Yes, the Stratosphere gets a lot of those complaints - so, I will go 4* and above.

[AaronJB]

what would be your desired budget per night and star rating? Many hotels in Vegas do charge resort fees. In terms of free internet and free parking, you may want to look at PRICELINE Express or HOTWIRE to look for a listing w/free parking and free internet.

Thank you for using the board's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[dannon]

Thanks for the reply. I am looking at upto $75/night [ that would include parking and internet ] . So, without resort fees which say are $25 - then ,upto $50.

Also, I found in the PRICELINE EXPRESS deals [used the PRICELINE link from here ] - in the LAS convention area there is a 3* hotel listed for around $70 that has free internet, parking, free breakfast . Based on what I have researched , this is the Courtyard or Residence Inn - and it has very good ratings . And none of these have any resort fees. I am thinking I should go for this based on my requirements.

If I go this way , then it would have to be the PL express deals - because if I use the NYOP , then PL can upgrade me to a higher level which I dont want because it will inevitably a resort and also because the 4* LAS convention hotels are quite a bit cheaper than the 3* hotels. Even in the PL express deals for this area, the 3* hotel is more expensive than the 4* one.

What do you suggest ? All hotels in the LAS convention are about 2 miles or less from the Venetian .

Thanks.

[thereuare]

I think if you can raise your budget just a little you can save yourself a fair amount of hassle by not driving (and be able to explore the Strip and Las Vegas a bit more easily)...

PRICELINE EXPRESS has a 4* hotel in the Strip North zone for $70/nite (Indoor or Outdoor Pool, Restaurant, Free Parking, Business Center, Casino, Fitness Center) which i'm guessing is Treasure Island and using the discount link code in my signature gives you an additional 10% OFF bringing your room rate down to $63/nite... but there is a $28 resort fee. This would make the Venetian walkable and if you don't need a car for any other reason you wouldn't have to touch the car during your trip (or if renting a car perhaps even forgo renting one)

There is also the 5* Strip North Vicinity hotel (Indoor or Outdoor Pool, Pets Allowed, Restaurant, Business Center, Fitness Center) for $84 which i assume to be the Trump (again 10% off brings room rate down to $76/nite)... but there is a Resort fee which provides internet and shuttle to the strip (although if you only need to do it once a day it is a manageable walk, imo)

As far as the PRICELINE EXPRESS property showing Free Breakfast in the Convention Center zone... i'm not seeing any 3* property with this amenity offered on a current search for your dates, are you still seeing this offered for your dates?

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[dannon]

Thanks for the info. Yes , the 3* option for $72 is still there in the PL express deals. It has a guest rating of 8.o and a Guest Favorite. It includes free internet and parking. So, is this the Courtyard or Residence Inn ?

I will be renting a car anyway irrespective of where I stay. I am not planning to visit the strip too much as I will be at a conference for the most part of 2 days . The next time, when I go with my family , I will explore Vegas in more detail .

So, what do you suggest ?

[thereuare]

Thanks for the info. Yes , the 3* option for $72 is still there in the PL express deals. It has a guest rating of 8.o and a Guest Favorite. It includes free internet and parking.

Are you referring to the Convention Center property? If so, is this the full list of amenities associated with this hotel as i'm seeing the following amenities associated with the 3* Convention Center property when searching PRICELINE EXPRESS for your dates:

Free Internet

Indoor or Outdoor Pool

Free Parking

Business Center

Fitness Center

So, what do you suggest?

Given that i don't enjoy driving i would take the Strip North 4* or 5* properties referenced above so that i could walk to the conference each day... what would be your reason for wanting to stay further away in the Convention Center zone? What is it about the 3* hotel in this zone that makes this offer appealing to you?

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[dannon]

Yes, those are the 3* hotel amenities in the LAS convention center area. I always rent a car as I have a zipcar account and zipcar is present at LAS airport. I like driving around new cities. Also,, with the guests/friends at the conference - I would like to go to restaurants and shopping.

The appealing thing about this offer for this zone is that from what I have seen - the hotel is mostly a Courtyard or RI and they have no casinos on the property. Also the regular rates for hotels like Treasure Island are $65+tax and these hotels have smoking rooms with lots of casino activity . That's why I wanted to go with the 3* LAS convention center are a hotel. These are all priced at close to $100+ a night and so a PL express deal gets you good savings and most probably a non smoking hotel.

Of course, none of the hotels I may be thinking may turn up and a new hotel can come up and bite me[ leading me to be the first to post that hotel !!! ]

[thereuare]

Also,, with the guests/friends at the conference - I would like to go to restaurants and shopping.

Most attendees will likely spend time at the conference hotel (or at the bar at the conference hotel) and is another reason to stay within close proximity.

The appealing thing about this offer for this zone is that from what I have seen - the hotel is mostly a Courtyard or RI and they have no casinos on the property.

Most of the hotels in this zone may not have casinos, but i think you're making a big assumption/leap of faith that you're going to get one of these two as there are other 3* hotels in this zone. I don't know which property this PRICELINE EXPRESS hotel is, but of the two, i'd more likely leans towards the Courtyard since 'Free Breakfast' is not a listed amenity (and this is something that is offered at the Residence Inn... i don't think it's offered at the Courtyard)

Also the regular rates for hotels like Treasure Island are $65+tax and these hotels have smoking rooms with lots of casino activity . That's why I wanted to go with the 3* LAS convention center are a hotel. These are all priced at close to $100+ a night and so a PL express deal gets you good savings and most probably a non smoking hotel.

Not sure if you checked rates for your specific dates but i just checked two different sites and see a $108/nite rate at TI (and $300+ for the Mirage)

Ultimately it's your decision what is important to you for this trip... a non-casino/non-smoking hotel OR the convenience of being close to your colleagues at the conference.

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

Let us know what you decide and how you'd like to proceed and we'll take it from there.

[dannon]

A follow up to my request. I got the 3* Courtyard Marriott Las Vegas Convention center . It was listed as a 3* in the PL express deals in the LAS convention center area and was priced at $72. Total with tax was $259. The regular rate on hotel website was was $125 + tax . The dates are 9/16/13 - 9/19/13.

Very happy to get this property. Close to the venetian , no casino on site and all non smoking rooms with free internet and parking.

Used the PRICELINE link from here. Thanks for all the help and advice.

[yellowdog]

dannon

Thanks for using the PRICELINE links on the board :)

Good to see that you got your preferred hotel

Enjoy your stay and conference.

Yellowdog.