Las Vegas Suggestions

Lucky, I love Vegas! You'll have so much fun. Definitely just get out and walk the strip! So much to see, and it'll take most of one day just to do that. A lot of places you'll go will have a little coupon book with special deals for attractions or shows, like 2-for-1 deals... like if you take a cab from the airport they should have some in there. The last time we went, we stopped in the Luxor towards the end of the strip (the pyramid shaped hotel/casino) and they had a ticket desk where we were able to pay one price (something like $50/person) and it allowed us to go to 3 different attractions. You choose from a list they have, and we picked the Titanic exhibit there at the Luxor, the CSI exhibit at MGM Grand, and this silly Spongebob 4-D ride at Excaliber.

MGM is a really great hotel & they have the lions all day which are fun to watch. The Venetian is REALLY beautiful where their shops are. Planet Hollywood is also fun to walk around. City Center near Aria is way fancy, and just something to see!

Also, I recommend spending the money to take a taxi down to Fremont Street, or the old strip. Taxi fare was about $23 each way, but down there they have the 4 Queens, Golden Nugget, Binion's, etc... and it's the covered street with the "tv" going over it and at night they play different entertainment bits, or shows... and there's usually a street entertainer down there.

Have fun!!!

Treasure Island does a free show every night, the Sirens of Treasure Island. It's not as good as the old pirate fight, but it's entertaining. The Bellagio has a really neat fountain show also, best viewed at night with the lights. Caesar's Forum Shops has an animatronic show with fountains and lights and stuff that we really liked called the Fall of Atlantis, it's also free.

My suggestion is to invest in good pair of shoes for walking, if you dont have one already, and just explore. We had a great time just wandering from casino to casino, but just be aware that even though they look like they're right next door to each other, it is a lot of walking.

Buy restaurant gift cards at restaurants.com - you can usually get a $25 gift card for $10 - saving you $15. Right now, they're $3 saving you $22!!!!
I hardly ever eat out with using one of these gift cards.
You search, buy, print and go! You don't have to wait for them at all. Just be sure and read the fine print. There's usually a minimum - I don't mind a $35 min, but a $50 is a bit tough. And usually they don't include alcohol. It's still a good deal though.

I don't think you can get away with any cheap food in Vegas (I could be wrong about that)....

....but last time I was there you could go to a discount ticket place, you might have to wait in a long line but you can get tickets for half off or more than the advertised price.

Oh and there are some free shows you might want to check out:

http://govegas.about.com/od/cheaplasvegas/a/freelv.htm

Oh and don't think this article mentioned it, but you have to check out the show at Treasure Island.

I have been to Vegas a few times and we have discovered that all the super nice motels are on one side of the strip, but all the GOOD cheaper food is on the opposite side of the strip. There is a little kiosk that even has several places like a Wendy's, McDonalds, Pizza, chinese, etc all in one little area. We found a SUPER burrito place down what looked like an alleyway between casino's that had HUGE burritos for about $5.00. Just walk the strip and check it out. Most of the Casino restaurants are way too expensive, but their menus are usually posted outside near the doorway, so you know what you are getting into. Treasure Island is an awesome place to stay with a free show and the most comfortable beds I have ever slept in. Have fun!

We go to Vegas regularly (we have friends who live there). Some great things to go do/see:
-Lions at MGM Grand (be careful, it can get very crowded in there)
-Fountain show outside the Belagio
-"Welcome to Las Vegas" sign at the south end of the boulevard
-M&M shop (it's on the strip, north of MGM, east side of street).
-Treasure Island has (or used to have) a show out front with pirate ships etc

Those are all free. The tigers from Sigfried and Roy (Secret Garden) are at the Mirage. It was $10-$15 per person, but ask if there is a deal for people staying there.

As far as food, anything on the strip is going to cost quite a bit. I do remember a McDonald's or two along there, but really your best bet might be to drive west a few blocks and find a "normal" restaurant or fast food place (I am assuming you will have a car). The nice thing is that Vegas is laid out like a grid, most of the streets going East-West or North-South. Google Maps can get you a map, but unless you have GPS, I don't blame you for wanting to stay close to the strip. (If you are willing to drive, mssg me and I can tell you a couple of good places, off strip)

I highly recommend you take just a few minutes and listen to the people on the street that offer free shows and free play and whatnot. We talked with a guy who offered us $200 free slot play at Hooters, and by the time we were done with him, we had $200 at Hooters, $200 at Planet Hollywood, 2 tickets to the wax museum, 2 gondoloa ride tickets for the Venitian, and 2 tickets to see Criss Angel. Of course, we had to go and sit through their timeshare presentation which took about 3 hours all together, but we also go a free lunch from that too. We just listened to what the people had to say, and stuck to our guns that we were not buying anything, and we asked no questions. Sure, it took a few hours of our time there (we were only there for 3 days, and one of those days was conusmed by our wedding), but it was totally worth it. We never would have done all those things because it just wasn't in the budget.

One family goal is to go to every Margaritaville....YES, Vegas has one! GREAT PLACE AND CHEAP!!!!

The buffets are suprisingly affordable, especially when compared to the dinners, and it seems that every hotel has one. If you go for lunch, you can get the lunch price but eat enought to last you through the night. Show prices get better the day of the show, when they try to sell tickets at any cost. If you're not looking for something specific, then just go and see what happens. Vegas can be very expensive, but it doesn't have to be. Take in the sights, go to a piano bar, play the penny slots. Wander around to the other hotels/casinos and see what they have to offer. Caesars is definitely worth a visit, the decor is outrageous. Take good shoes, because you will be doing a lot of walking. We stayed at Caesar's and it took 15 minutes of walking just to get out of the hotel. And we got lost in the Mirage. Have fun!

Sign up for Groupon and Living Social. Each day they have deals that you can purchase on food and fun stuff to do in town.

Right next to the Coke store just down from MGM Grand is a ticket store where you can get discounted tickets. Also check out all the other hotels/casinos. Many will have discounted buffets. The least expensive places we found were the Gold Coast and Terrible's. The Rio has an excellent one, but it is a bit more expensive especially on the weekend.

Hit up the buffets as much as possible -- a lot of food for reasonable prices. Mirage has a pretty good buffet. If you've never been to Las Vegas, one suggestion is to just visit the various hotels/casinos. They are so beautiful and/or outrageous, and it doesn't cost anything. You have the Bellagio with it's dancing water outside and it's beautiful flowers and butterly exhibit inside, the Venetian with it's replica Venice waterways (outside and in) and living statues and Italian palazzo, etc. There is an aquarium in Mandalay Bay (for a cost), and Luxor has a permanant Titanic exhibit. And of course there are all sorts of shows (I was partial to the various Cirque shows).

My husband and I have been going to vegas every year for the past 15 years. And things have changed so much since we started going their in the last 90's. It used to be that you could get a really good tasting and cheap buffet meal. Now, for an average all you can eat meal the average is probably $17.00 per person.
Sometimes if you go to one of those time-share presentations (if they see you walking with a man it will be assumed that he is your husband and they will pull you off the streets) you can get vouchers for cash or a restaruant certificate for free meals. Also they will give you free show tickets. If you decide to take up on that offer be prepared for a hard core sell presentation and to loose more than a few hours of your vacation time.
Some hotels will give you a certificate or voucher for a free show (most of the good shows that are really worth seeing will cost you at least $80.00 per person and that is the average.