I'm going to Vegas for the first time...?

Question

I thinking of staying at either Tropicana or Stratospere..any ideas, suggestions or alterantive places I should stay..I want to be on the Strip and I can't afford the Venetian or Wynn's..

Answer 1

Hi, glad to hear you are going to Vegas. My husband and I go there 2-3 times a year for the past 15 years and love it so much we are moving there this summer.
We have stayed at both the Tropicana and the Stratosphere. And we liked them both equally. The Tropicana is older, but for it's age, it's pretty decent. If you do stay there, make sure to ask for a balcony room with a view of the pool. It costs $10 more per night, but, it's worth it. In the evening and morning you can sit on your balcony and just take in the tropical enviornment of the pool area. It's very nice, there's usually a cool breeze, and it just gets you in a nice mood. Also, make sure to take advantage of the Giant Wheel in the front of the casino outside. We always hit it like 2-3 times a day, as they change employees and you can spin more than once a day. We won show tickets to the magic show that plays there. And it's pretty good. We went to that totally FREE. Saved us about $100 and we had a good time. Also, you get lots of coupons just for spinning, and we used those alot inside, for discounts on food etc. Great deals. There is a coupon for a Steak and Crab dinner that is around $14 with the coupon. And that was a great dinner for the money. Lots of Crab.
It has the old world charm of the old Vegas. And they have a great museum inside that has alot of old items from around Vegas from the "old days" and lots of video information talking about the origins of Vegas and alot about the mobster days. It's really interesting. Make sure to check that out.
It's also located where most of the action is. That intersection is where you have MGM, New York New York, Excalibur and tram access to Luxor and Mandalay Bay. Lots to do in that area.
But, if you have a little extra money to use the train or monorail, then staying at the Stratosphere is great too. I would highly suggest purchasing a 3 day monorail ticket though if you stay at the Stratosphere. It's much cheaper in the long run from taking taxis and even cheaper than driving your car around and finding parking. It runs the full length of the strip, and it goes right to the MGM. Sahara is right across the street from the Stratosphere, and you can walk over and catch the monorail and get to the other end really quick to see all of that. And everywhere in between. Here's the site that tells all about the monorail.

http://www.lvmonorail.com/

The Statosphere has it's own fun stuff. The tower of course is at the heart of it. If you like thrill rides, then you will love the tower at the Strat. Just going up in the elevator and hanging out on the deck is an adventure. It's pretty cool to see the lights at night. And you can watch the helicopter tours coming in from Red Rocks, Grand Canyon etc. and almost reach out and touch them as they come in from their tours at night. That's pretty cool. The rides are..............CRAZY!!! If you like thrill rides, then this is like the ultimate for the thrill seeker. Check out the videos on this next site. It shows some info, pics and vids of the rides at the Strat. I mean bone chilling stuff. If you are afraid of heights, just go on the deck. But, for a heart pounding experience, ride at least one of the rides. It's an experience just watching other people ride them. Again, here's the page for that.

http://www.stratospherehotel.com/las_vegas_stratosphere_ride.html

Here's the page that tells you alittle more about the tower itself with links to the rides, about the food and other stuff.

http://www.stratospherehotel.com/stratosphere_tower.html

Also, to find out about all the attractions in town in general, here is a site that has lots of links to everything, but, the first page is all the FREE stuff. Start with that and go from there.

http://www.vegas.com/attractions/freeattractions.html

There are alot of shows in Vegas as well. Check out this page for info on the shows in town.

http://www.vegas.com/shows/index.html

That should give you a pretty good overview of what to expect. But, in any event, have fun. It's the place to do it.
Good luck with your searches, and have fun.

Answer 2

They are both great. The Stratosphere is so far north on the strip it is not considered part of the strip. To entice people there they loosen up the slots.
The rides and just hanging for an hour at the top of the tower is great.
They both have a great buffet. The Tropicana has the better transportation. They have the monorail system that is at least half a mile away from the strat.
If you want to go anywhere from the strat you have to take the trolley, bus or a cab. Traffic is getting so bad I say think twice before you take your car. More important, you can get plastered and not get a DUI.
The big show is better that the trop. The grounds are meant to be 4 star and not 3 at the trop. Another advantage is that the trop is with in walking distance from a bunch of great places.
If you show up too early for check in, I suggest the Guinness museum and the underwater exhibit at the belagio.
Have fun!

Answer 3

The Tropicana is actually on the strip and they have $5 blackjack tables all day everyday. The stratosphere is ghetto. The closest hotel to it is Saharas, which is an old people hotel. From Saharas you can catch the monorail all the way up the strip, but you have to walk through a nasty part of town. I would vote for the Tropicana or pray you can find a cheaper strip hotel. Try the older ones like the Flamingo, Bill's Gamblin house, Harrah's, Imperial Palace. For your first time in Vegas you're going to want to go to other hotels. So stay on the strip. Check out the Brew Pub at Monte Carlo's it's awesome! The tropicana is way closer to the fun stuff!!!

Answer 4

The Island tower rooms in the Tropicana are nice. Whatever you do; "DO NOT STAY AT THE GARDEN ROOMS IN THE TROPICANA". If they give you a garden room at check in, ask for an upgrade immediately or find a different hotel.

Tropicana is in a great position at the end of the strip next door to MGM and across the road from Excalibur and New York, Luxor. Stratosphere is probably a nicer hotel being about 40 years younger and all but its location is its big problem. There is nothing and I mean "nothing" within half a mile, north, south, east or west of Stratosphere. If you choose Stratosphere its either stay in the hotel or lots of walking, buses or taxis for you.

Similiar priced hotels on the Strip include:
1.Excalibur (two of my friends stayed here and liked it)
2.Circus Circus (lots of kids, "LOTS", but they seem to have cleaned up the place a bit last time I was there to have a look around in Feb 2007. West Tower rooms are nice here, but restaurants are still nothing short of awful, apart from the brilliant steakhouse of course)
3.Sahara (i stayed here in 2005, liked it, but ditto the problems with Stratosphere, far away from everywhere else)

Orleans and Gold Coast are about a mile west of the strip. Both have free bus shuttles to the strip every 15 minutes or so. Both hotels come highly recommended from yours truly at about $40-$60 a night. Orleans is a slightly nicer hotel with bigger rooms, pool and more restaurants but Gold Coast is in the better location next door to the Rio and across the road from the celebs favourite haunt The Palms.

It was up to me I would toss a coin between Tropicana and Gold Coast and see who wins.

Answer 5

Hi....I think the Stratosphere is way too far north....I actually stay at the Tropicana and I love it....I booked there on the advice of a yahoo answers person who used to live there. He told me that it was clean and charming, even though it wasn't new and didn't have all the bells and whistles.....I think it has a great pool area, I get great rates.....(I am going back next week and since I am in the players club, I get two nights free and $45 a night for the other 3). Like everyone says, you only need a place to sleep and you aren't spending all your time in the room anyway.....My brother has also stayed there and he is way fussier than I am and he even liked it there......
You would be close to the NYNY casino and that one is my favorite one of them all to visit......you would be closer and more into the action at the Trop and that is my advice.

Answer 6

The Stratosphere is so far at the end of the Strip, it's a LONG walk to anywhere else! My aunt stayed at the Trop and said she would never do it again.

Personally, I like Luxor for an affordable strip hotel. It's really nice, it's clean (a big thing to me) and well maintained and well staffed.

Answer 7

i have stayed @ stratosphere. It was a decent place to stay. Not much going on there. Its a long way from the center of the strip. You will need a car if you plan on staying there. It far away from everything. But the rooms are ok for the price you will be paying.

Answer 8

Ive only stayed at Caesars Palace about seven times so I dont know about anywhere else. But Caesars is awesome.

Answer 9

Luxor is nice, but not too expensive. at the far end of the strip, but still there. Your gonna have a blast!!

Answer 10

TRY THE CIRCUS CIRCUS MAYBE. I BELIEVE IT IS REASONABLE. WENT FOR THE FIRST TIME LAS NOV. HAD A BLAST.