Where to Stay in Las Vegas: Strip or Downtown?

Recently received a question on Twitter whose answer veteran Las Vegas travelers already know: Where’s the best area to stay in Las Vegas, near the airport or downtown?

The person was really asking what’s best, the Fremont Street area or the central and especially southern Las Vegas Strip? The airport sits just off the Strip near the Luxor and Mandalay Bay hotels, which are not in its flight path.

The answer has to vary with each person, because the demographics and environments of these areas differ so much.

The Strip

Everyone knows about the Strip, but may not know how affordable it has become.

Typically, Strip hotels appeal more to those who want a total casino resort experience, with nice pools, upscale restaurants, top entertainment, etc.

This is especially true of the central and northern Strip, where until recently you didn’t find truly budget prices. More on how prices have changed below.

Fremont Street - Downtown

Traditionally, Fremont Street has appealed to slot and poker players who don’t want to shell out a lot for rooms and food. This area near the Greyhound Station has always been known for incredibly inexpensive hotels.

Now, you’ll find downtown rooms cheaper than they’ve been in decades.

On Hotels.com, you can actually find Fremont Street-area hotels going for under $10 with an even larger selection for under $20. These prices do go up on weekends.

Of course, I'm generalizing. You can also find a few more expensive hotels like the Golden Nugget downtown & a few cheaper ones on or near the Vegas Strip.

Budget lines becoming blurred

Although you won’t find any $10 hotels on the Strip, prices keep plummeting to levels not seen in years.

The current economy, which has hit Las Vegas hotels very hard (not in terms of the number of visitors but instead in the prices they pay), has made most 3- and 4-star Strip or near Strip hotels very affordable for budget travelers. Some of these better hotels are cheaper than a nearby Motel 6 on weekdays!

For example, a quick search of Hotels.com for 3- and 4-star hotels for several dates in August 2009 found

• Luxor $50
• Harrah’s $45
• Las Vegas Hilton $39.95
• Excalibur $33
• Bally’s $44
• Palms $49.50 (one of my favorites near Strip)
• New York New York $62.49
• Monte Carlo $49.95

And, if you book with Hotwire or Priceline, 3- or 4-star Strip or near Strip hotels like these become even cheaper on weekdays.

Fremont Street history and its exciting vibe

Younger travelers especially love the excitement of downtown’s Fremont Street light show (opens with music used with permission) and Times Square vibe.

The downtown area also appeals to those who want to feel the history of Las Vegas. You can still glimpse history on the Strip, such as the Rat Pack favorite Sahara Hotel & Casino, whose 1950’s and 60’s flavor remains, but while downtown you’re surrounded by it. This is the Las Vegas that built up to serve workers on the nearby massive Hoover Dam construction project during the 1930’s.

(How that dam first became called Hoover Dam, then Boulder Dam, and then again Hoover Dam has a fascinating history. Let’s just say President Hoover, who initiated the project while Secretary of Commerce during the early 1920’s, wasn’t very popular during the Great Depression to put it mildly.)

If you do book downtown, know that you may not feel comfortable on streets away from Fremont after dark. And, if you want to book the Strip, know that the northern Strip (the portion north of the Encore Hotel) lacks the upscale vibe of its central and southern portions. Except for the Sahara Hotel & Casino, none of the hotels mentioned here are located on the northern Strip.