Where Should You Stay in Las Vegas?

You should know a couple of things about accommodations in Vegas from the start. The average national occupancy rate for a hotel is 65%. This means that most hotels in the United States are barely profitable. They don’t start making money until their occupancy gets above 60%.

In Las Vegas, though, the occupancy rates are 87% during the week and over 93% on the weekends. That’s even more impressive when you consider that there are over 150,000 hotel rooms in the city.

This means that staying at hotels in Las Vegas can be relatively expensive compared to other destinations, and condos and timeshares are often a better value.

If you really want to find a bargain on where you’re staying in Las Vegas, get flexible with your location. You can save a lot of money being near the Strip instead of staying on the Strip.

Staying on the Strip

Las Vegas isn’t really a big town at all. If it weren’t for all the big stuff on the Strip and Downtown, Vegas would just be another small town in the desert. Everything’s close by, and it’s easy to navigate, even when traffic is slow because of the large number of cars on the road.

Most of the major casinos and hotels in Vegas are located on the Strip, although some of them are located in the downtown area. The Strip, strictly speaking, is a stretch along Las Vegas Boulevard South, but most people include the surrounding blocks when talking about the Strip.

You can find practically anything in the area, too. There are casinos, golf courses, pools, restaurants, and spas abound. One major area next to the Strip is Paradise Road, which is east of the Strip and runs parallel to it.

When you see aerial shots of Vegas in modern movies and TV shows, you’re looking at the Strip.

Staying Downtown

The Downtown Las Vegas casinos and hotels are generally older and smaller than the casinos and hotels on the Strip. That’s not true of all the properties, there, though. You can also find big luxury properties in Downtown LV if that’s what you’re looking for.

The main difference between downtown and the Strip is how close together everything is. Fremont Street is the main area of Downtown, and it only takes up a little more than four city blocks. I’ve seen parking lots at malls in Dallas, Texas, that are bigger than Downtown Las Vegas.

The casinos here are colorful, plentiful, and right next to each other. The neon from the casinos along with the overhead light show have resulted in downtown being nicknamed Glitter Gulch.

One of the cool things about Downtown Las Vegas, too, is the variety of casinos and hotels you can find. Many of the casinos and hotels on the Strip are owned by common owners, and they’ve all become somewhat homogenous.

The people downtown are as diverse as the casinos, too. Think of the area as being the Vegas version of Bourbon Street in New Orleans.

How to Choose a Casino or Hotel

You should think about your plans on your trip to Vegas when deciding on a hotel. Factors to consider include how much you want to spend, what you want to be near, and what your idea of “quality” is. You can find lodging of any combination of cost and value in Vegas.

If you’re traveling to Vegas for fun—and let’s face it, that goes for most people—you can find excellent casinos and hotels anywhere in town. You’re not limited to the Strip or downtown. You’ll find more entertainment and amenities like pools and spas at properties on the Strip, though.

And if you stay downtown, you’ll probably spend less money, and you’ll have access to some of the best gambling and dining in town. You can get from the downtown area to the Strip and vice versa in less than 15 minutes by car. If you don’t have a car, public transportation in Vegas is easy to find and use.

Here’s my suggestion: If you’re bringing a car, stay on the Strip. If not, stay in Downtown Las Vegas. If you’re there for entertainment, concerts, spas, and swimming pools, stay on the Strip.

If you’re there to gamble or to get some culture, stay downtown. I personally prefer Downtown over the Strip. The variety of people is greater, and the area has more personality. The Strip is a sort of adult Disneyworld, but it’s plastic and lacks variety.

Noise Levels and Las Vegas Lodging

More than other cities, Las Vegas has a noise issue to consider when deciding on lodging. This is true both Downtown and on the Strip. If you have trouble sleeping because of the noise, you might try staying somewhere more remote. I suggest trying Green Valley Ranch Resort if you want a quiet night’s sleep.

Where does all this noise come from? If you’re staying on the Strip, keep in mind that there’s a volcano exploding several times a night on the Strip. You also have an endless amount of both foot traffic and cars driving up and down the Strip at all hours. Vegas, more than any other city, is open 24 hours a day.

Downtown is noisy, too, even though it’s less crowded than the Strip. That’s because the hotels aren’t as tall, and they’re closer together. Many of them are older properties that lack soundproofing. There’s also a stage at one end of Downtown LV that hosts outdoor concerts. When a concert is going on, you can literally hear your windows rattle if you’re staying at Golden Gate or the Plaza.

Where to Stay in Las Vegas If You’re There on Business

If you’re going to Vegas on business, you’re probably attending a convention or trade show. If that’s the case, try to stay as close as you can to where the event is being held. If that’s impossible, try to find lodging near the monorail.

Many conventions and trade shows are actually held at the casino rather than the Las Vegas Convention Center. Many of the Strip casinos are able to host conventions of up to 5,000 people. If you can stay at the casino where the event is, you’ll be a lot happier. If you can’t, try to find a casino next door.

Some of the popular Strip casinos for conventions include Bellagio, Flamingo, Mandalay Bay, Paris, Planet Hollywood, Venetian, Westgate, and Wynn, among others.

No matter where your meeting is being held, you’ll have multiple options to get to and from. Many conventions offer free shuttle service. Lyft and Uber are options, too, as well as the monorail.

Be sure to account for traffic if you’re staying on the Strip. Traffic is a mess there, especially after noon.

Should You Go Big or Small?

You can find big or small properties in Las Vegas. Some of the smallest motels might only have a dozen rooms, while some of the biggest hotels have over 5,000 rooms. Which size works better for you is based at least a little on individual preference. What you’re planning to do while you’re there counts, too.

If you’re bringing a car, I’m going to recommend you go with a smaller property. If you’re staying in one of the huge casinos on the Strip, it can take 15 minutes to find a parking spot. I have a buddy who stayed at the MGM Grand once. He left his room to go to a show at a nearby property about an hour before the show started.

They missed the first 10 minutes of the show because of the amount of time it took to get to their car in the parking lot. Valet parking is a little better. I waited half an hour to get my car once at a casino on the Strip. And parking is expensive at the big hotels regardless of whether you self-park or valet.

You should also go with a smaller property if you’re concerned about noise levels. The smaller properties are more remote from the noise in the city. If you’re staying at one of the motels in the city, you don’t have to walk through the casino anytime you want to get from point A to point B.

Checking in and out at smaller properties is always easier, too. The first time I stayed at a hotel on the Strip, I was left speechless at the lines I had to navigate just to get to the front desk to check in. The big casinos are efficient. But when they’re dealing with those kinds of numbers, managing check-in becomes an endeavor similar to running an airport.

Finally, just because a hotel has a lot of rooms, that doesn’t mean it’s a better property. You can find luxury rooms in properties of any size in Vegas, but you can also find bare-bones accommodations at properties of any size there, too.

Casino and Hotel Areas

Casinos and hotels in Vegas can be subdivided according to area, and these areas must be smaller than just “on the Strip” if they’re to have any meaning.

Downtown Las Vegas is so small that it’s an area unto itself. Cool hotels in Downtown include Binion’s, the Four Queens, the Golden Nugget, and the Plaza. El Cortez is the only hotel Downtown that’s not centrally located. It’s about three blocks from the action there.

The south end of the Strip is one of the most popular areas to stay. The southernmost property on the Strip is Mandalay Bay. This is where some of the bigger hotel casinos are, and you can find the Excalibur, the Luxor, New York-New York, and the Tropicana here.

In the center area of the Strip, you’ll find properties like the Cosmopolitan, Planet Hollywood, and Bellagio, among many others.

The north end of the Strip is marked by The Strat. Circus Circus is also found on the northern end of the Strip.

You can also find hotels just off the Strip. These properties often offer much better prices than the properties right on the Strip, and they’re usually located just a block to the east or west of the Strip. Properties just off the Strip to consider include the Gold Coast, the Palms, and Rio, all of which are on Flamingo Road.

Finally, staying a little further out is always an attractive option. You can find hotels and casinos in and on Boulder Highway, Green Valley, North Las Vegas, and Summerlin.

The casinos on Boulder Highway are famous for having excellent gambling conditions. If you’re looking for low stakes video poker games with good pay tables, any of the Station Casino properties on Boulder Highway are worth looking at.

Conclusion

It’s hard to choose a place to stay in Las Vegas unless you know a little bit about the city first. In fact, it’s a little unfair to call it a city, since Vegas is really just a small town that attracts an enormous number of tourists.

Think about stuff like how much you want to spend and how luxurious your accommodations need to be. Also, think about whether you’re bringing or renting a car, which is a major consideration. If you’re there on business, you’ll probably want to stay where the business is being conducted.