Pros and Cons of Downtown Las Vegas
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- čas přidán 27. 05. 2023
- Pros and Cons of Downtown Las Vegas
We stayed on Fremont Street over a weekend and share the good and the bad of our experience, hope this helps you decide if you should stay in Downtown Las Vegas
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Share with us your thoughts of Downtown Las Vegas!
I love downtown! So much fun & our money last a lot longer than the strip! I go for the noise. I ask for a noisy side room & I'm 70!
That is awesome 🙌🏼
@@JoshRachaelI start my Vegas Trips downtown now, with at least 1 day and night downtown.
If you stay at a spot like Golden Gate facing the FSE, you’ll notice the music running late; I stayed at the Plaza and the excellent staff at the front desk gave me a spacious and quiet room at the back of the property.
I love playing in Circa; I can bet sports, play good VP tables, get all my Vegas magazines, and be quite happy.
I always eat at American Coney at the D and at White Castle, and the buffet in Main Street Station is excellent.
The live music is free, the bands are tight, and its fun.
The situation downtown is really no different then what you’ll find on The Strip. Plenty of strange people to navigate away from in both locations.
I just stayed at the Circa in June 2023. Park me in the crowd that like's music, dancing, drinking and gambling. That being said, there are some great pool options to chillax in the day. I also Uber'ed to a shopping excursion. Basically all of Vegas is available with Uber or a hired car service. I found both the Uber and Limo rates to be far less that here in Seattle. I'm going back (this time Golden Nugget) in September, helped in part by my small winnings on the earlier trip. The Cosplayers in the circles are a blast.
That’s awesome!!! So nice when you can find a spot that just feels right. Uber and Lyft are gamechangers for traveling in Vegas nowadays
I usually stay at The Four Queens. They don't have the dreaded resort fee there.
Nice!
Thank you for the spot on solid vid of pro's and con's of Downtown LV. When it comes to transportation from Airport to Freemont the cheapest way is to take the (CX) Centennial Express bus for 2 dollars one way or 1 dollar for elderly and disabled riders. It takes aprox. 45- 50 min. or longer depending on traffic. I'm frugal af so I always take the bus to save money for more gambling and booze. Cheers!
Nice! Wow that is cheap but we tend to always go with most efficient us of time, so for us we prefer to pay to get somewhere sooner (within reason)
The nice thing is that once to get to downtown you rarely have to leave
I like downtown casinos for their vintage slot selection, and lower bet options on tables and slots. Great video!
Great points for sure!
Binge watching you guys..
LOVE IT..!!
Thanks Dean!
Nice video. Excellent tips
Glad it was helpful!
Love your videos---Very informative and entertaining. Both Josh and Rachael are wonderful speakers and seem very sociable.😀
Thank you so much!
Always stay at The D. Takes 30 seconds to find an exit; and they have great house music 😀
They do have an abundance of quick exits haha, loved the music
I agree fully!!! Thank you!!!
Thank you!
Great video! We checked out Circa on our last trip and had a GREAT time gambling enjoyed our lunch at 8 East. We ventured out and were really hoping to enjoy walking around downtown & enjoy a different food scene. But we honestly felt like we had to be extra cautious compared to walking from Aria to the Cosmo etc..
Especially at night, we highly recommend paying close attention to your belongings and surrounding. It can be a blast but also quite scary on weekend nights.
great video. very well detailed
Thank you!
Great video, I think you guys nailed it.
Thank so much Terry!
The only "con" I have, is the crowds at night. I enjoy everything else about Downtown, Fremont expierence. But I tend to leave once evening time rolls around.
Yea night crowds are very loud and rowdy it seems, our biggest drawback as well. Thanks for sharing
Pro: Gambling pay-outs are much higher downtown.
Is it actually proven? I will say my gambling was awful until one giant hit at the end of the trip to save the day
Highly doubt that.
nevada gaming commission publishes reports on a per denom take for the strip vs downtown, it’s slightly better downtown for players (imo not worth worrying about unless you’re spinning tens of thousands of times per trip)
Golden Nugget, Rush Tower. Love this hotel. I think it’s the best hotel downtown. Pool is also awesome!
We have never gotten comps there so it has been hard to go somewhere you have to pay for a room when others give it for free. Thank you, maybe next time we go downtown
@@JoshRachael Agree with the Rush Tower comment above. It's super nice and was very affordable Sun-Wed.
Fun and fair review. I prefer the strip, but usually make time for a day Downton, preferably a weekday, and take the bus outta there before it gets too late.
Thank you! Yea we are more strip people as well but do enjoy dabbling in downtown now and then
Pretty spot on review, guys! We’ve shied away from Freemont over the past few years to check out some other things in LV due to a lot of the cons you guys mentioned. The one hidden gem (at least for us) is the Downtown Cocktail Room (DCR) that is a speakeasy. Not sure if you guys have tried it yet but it is a great spot.
Thanks Dave. Will need to check that out if/when we stay downtown again. We did enjoy ourselves but once a year is likely to be the max amount that we would stay downtown since we almost always go on the weekends and it can be too overwhelming for us.
I agree! A great placevto drink and just, as my kids say, vibe. 😂
Great video, you guys should stay at the Plaza or the Downtown Grand next time
Thank you! We have heard good things but we tend to follow the comps. Maybe we will be able to match one of these days and try one out
I stayed at downtown grand the last time I was in Vegas. Way better than staying on Fremont. It’s one block over so not noisy.
Nice will have to check it out!
Great info! Thank you! With the exception of the El Cortez and Circa, I've found the Blackjack games on Fremont St. to be terrible. I would also consider the tower rooms at El Cortez as a good place to stay. They are newly remodeled and incorporate some of the features of the pre-remodeled rooms. That property lacks a pool or I would stay there more.
Thanks for the tips! We typically follow the comps so if we can get a room we are willing to try most any property in Vegas
You need another vacation to rest & relax if you stay Downtown 😄
No doubt
It’s great to see you too tell everyone,that ever hotel is the same in los Vegas,you late the people for their self.
Thanks a lot Brian
You nailed the pros and cons but we have moved to staying downtown versus the Wynn and Venetian just because we like what downtown has to offer. We usually stay at the Nugget due to casino comps and at the Nugget, comps are exactly that. No resort fee or parking. We always ask for a room that faces the strip and facing Fremont Street. We enjoy gambling, cocktails and dining. We love Vegas Vickie’s at the Circa for evening cocktails. For dining we love Oscars, Barrys’s, Andiamo and Triple George for the nicer places. For more casual places that would be 8 East, Le Thai and Nacho Daddy’s. We have also found gambling (slots) to be so much better downtown versus the strip. No major entertainment shows but that’s fine with us. Been there and done that. Finally, I feel just about as safe DT as I do some places on the strip. Namely around the Flamingo area which had had plenty of issues. As you stated, one just needs to be aware of their surroundings. Nice job on the vlog and thanks for sharing.
We are hopeful to start earning some comps from this past trip. We will see about it. Hopefully we can get some offers for The D, Circa and Golden Gate, would enjoy at least one trip a year downtown for sure. We have definitely scaled back on shows over the past couple years. It is actually kind of freeing to not have to be somewhere at x time for a show - just throws the whole night off, needing either to do early dinner or late place you hope to find on the strip. Yes that area from Harrahs to Cromwell is definitely not a safe area on the strip and is likely worse than Downtown from what we have seen. Thanks so much for sharing!
Well said! All of the reasons why we now stay a few days downtown on each Vegas trip!
So much to like about downtown, I think my favorite thing is just the consistent vintage old school vibe. Really great video detailing the pros and cons!
Thanks Griffon! The neon lights is what does it for us - just feels like Classic Vegas
Thanks you two. My husband and I love to stay on the Freemont Street Experience. Always get free rooms at the Golden Nugget. Usually we drive up from Phoenix (4.5 hours away). We really love playing black jack and craps at the Grand and eating at the new food court at the Freemont. Keep up the good work.
Thanks so much Sally
We always see a show at the Golden Nugget & Sharktank, sometimes there are shows at the Plaza the pool at Circa is awesome, we like to gamble and dine you may have missed Hugo's Cellar and the penthouse restraunt at Binions. I do agree not much for spa treatments but that's not my thing nor is shopping.
Thanks so much for sharing!
To me, stay at either the Golden Gate or The D, because they are also part of Circa and you get two free passes to Circa, which I liked a lot more than the large pools in the Strip. And if someone does eat at 8 East, get the brisket fried rice and the chefs special, also go to Saginaw's Deli, great onion rings. At the Golden Gate, go to Prohibition Bar and hang at the spit where Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr and Dean Martin drank at, very cool.
Very cool, we had not heard great things HH a about Golden Gate rooms, what is your experience with them?
This was so informative! Thank you for making an honest review of downtown, all of the good and bad. As someone who has been to Las Vegas well over 100 times, I've never stayed downtown. Who knows, maybe one day I'll give a shot.
Worth a try every now and then, we are still Strip fans but definitely some positives about fowntown
Great content. You guys nailed it!! 👍
Thank you!
We usually lose weight when we go to Vegas
From all the waking on the strip
We like downtown more 🎉
🙌🏼
Very thorough look at downtown guys you nailed it!
Thanks Mike. Downtown definitely has its moments - good and bad
Good honest review 15:45
Thank you!
I love downtown Vegas ! I usually stay at The D but last year My room was not up to par .Things at the D are looking worn out and theCOMPS were not so good . Going to stay at the Golden Nugget this time . They have a nice pool and I got a better price for 7 days than the D could give me so we will see . I am old and I hate walking for miles . Downtown is perfect. I usually take trip to Valley of fire and there are many other things to do around VEGAS.I just love this area of the USA .
Golden Nugget looks nice but we try to follow the comps and have never been offered one yet
I would only need to go downtown for White Castel and American Coney Island which I grew up with and really miss. So after an afternoon downtown perhaps stay at Sams Town or a local place like that where the slots are supposed to be looser.
Love me some American Coney
Great 👍
Thank you
8 east is damn good, Saginaws is also on point.
We did try both this trip!
The Las Vegas Strip will break your bank now. Really hard to justify $20-$40 drinks, and dinner bills that cost $100+ per person. Heck, even the Caesars buffet is $100 with tip...The casino corporations design the layout/experience to take every single cent from your wallet. I like your approach. split meals, and buy drinks/booze/snacks at strategic low-cost locations. I was going to go to Vegas this last week, but decided to buy a bike rack instead for my e bike... 😂 Thanks
That’s a great way to put it for sure! The bike will definitely save ya a lot more in the end!
Walkability is everything
♥️ ♥️
I typically only go to Main Street and California Hotel for some good grub. Fremont is way to loud for me. I used to hang out at the photo place when my roommate worked down there and it's just crazy. After watching one of your other videos and seeing you chow down on hotdogs, I must go try that as well. Maybe after the WSOP!! Great video amigos!
Johnny we were just saying how we hadn’t see you for a bit, hope all is well
I much prefer that area to the strip, usually we stay at 4 queens, last time we stayed at the Golden Gate, had free access to Circa's stadium swim and sportsbook, when I saw them my reaction was wow. We get passes to Double Deuce Bus to visit the strip.
That is definitely a huge upgrade for guests at The D and Golden Gate!
Hey guys, have you tried Hugo's Cellar? Very good and it isn't a "steakhouse ". Grotto Ristorante has great Italian. Chart house is also really good. These would all be more well thought of if they were mid strip. The fact that the packaging is paper wrapped doesn't mean it's worse than the strip. I've had food on the strip that is 3x more expensive than the places i mentioned, that are substantially inferior.
We have not tried those spots, but will definitely look to them in the future. Trust me the strip prices are definitely noticed by us. It feels like there is no middle ground for the most part. Food Hall/Court or extremely high prices - at least for dinner spots.
@Josh and Rachael's Food and Travel just offering up options, I always talk up downtown. My family looks there noses down on me, they think just cause it coat more, it's better. Smh I just found you 2 and subscribed. I'm looking forward to more of your vids. 👍
@@valentinpineda247 Thanks so much, would love to hear your thoughts on other videos!
Never been a fan of Downtown. I’m more of a Bellagio / Wynn /Aria person!! Gonna stick with that! Great review, though, you guys!! 😉👍😍
Thanks Nancy, (whispers) we are too 🤫
This was fair and accurate.
Thank you
I love downtown but I agree there isn't a huge variety of things to do other than drink and gamble. Wouldn't recommend staying for more than a couple days.
Right there with ya - thanks for watching
what time do you recommend go to freemont to hear the bands and see the light displays? it it too packed at sunset? going to vegas next weekend
It does get packed but if you want the full effect I would say after 7-8 pm or after dark
I visit Vegas from Arizona about once a month. I always stay and play on Fremont st. Every time I visit the strip it just seems like there's hidden "gotchas" everywhere.
We enjoyed our quick trip to downtown, but have learned we are Strip fans!
Thanks for watching!!
The myth of overspending, is a matter of reseach
Reasonable dinning
& drinks are found at The Miracle mile or
Elllis Island. - Koval Lane
Resort fees are waived with loyalty
- reward cards to include free parking, or flat rate taxi service. Or the monorail
There"s always an oppertunity to take advantage of amenities that are available
Just connect with a staff member
It’s all a matter of what you value. You can eat and drink from ABC store or Walgreens if you really want to save money I suppose. It is the great thing about Las Vegas, it truly has options for all people
Clam Jumper at GN!
Nice will have to check it out
Stay at the Nugget and you can have the best of both…pool/spa day time and Fremont night time!
Makes sense. We have never gotten offers from them and it’s hard to pay when you get free rooms elsewhere
The best two ribcaps I've had have been at Barry's and Oscars.
😋 🔪 🥩
It can take 15 minutes to walk from one strip property to another. On Fremont, 15 minute walk has all the action packed in one short walk! 😃
Definitely the biggest upside for us
10-15 years ago I would have visited downtown for a day or evening but not stay there. 2023 and 2024 is a different story completely especially with Circa there now and a lot of the other hotels being renovated.
There are many pro's of downtown especially if you have been to Vegas already many times and are on somewhat of a budget and mostly just want to drink and stay out late gambling and get maybe a nice steak one night. If you are going for the club scene then I would stay on the strip.
Pros of DT Vegas:
Better gambling with better odds and more low volatility slots available. Lower table limits.
Cheaper drinks and much better drink service
Much shorter walk to all of the Casino's especially in the summer heat. Let's be honest walking the Strip burns people out even the casino next door is like a 15 minute walk.
The Fremont Street Experience is a fun and big party.
Cheaper rooms and better deals than the Strip.
Can still uber or lyft to the Strip one day.
More fun and relaxed and less pretentious on average.
Downtown gives you more of the old school experience of why people loved and went to Vegas in the first place.
Great pros for downtown! Yes - it’s certainly changed and the fun part of Vegas is there seems to be something for just about everyone!
Just back from 4 nights at the golden nugget. Nice room in the Rush tower on the South side facing the strip, very quiet. All of Fremont Street seemed very tight on the slots. $10 and $15 dollar tables at most casino's. $5 tables at the golden nugget but they suck you in with add'l sucker bets on all games. Also progressive bets are $5 vs $1 at almost all other casino's. Fremont itself is fun if you can get away from all the beggars. Constantly harassing you for money, drinks, drugs. They can make you very uncomfortable at times. Other than that just the usual assortment of drunks and oddballs you find anywhere in Vegas now.
Yikes but true. Thanks so much for sharing your experience
I really enjoy being downtown… I was down there more prior to the pandemic, I have shifted more towards the arts district and Brew Dog for just hangin out.
But I always make a trip to Circa when I am in town, I have had multiple hand pays there, the drinks flow far more freely while playing and the place doesn't smell like an ashtray.
Also being adults only is a huge plus.
You are on point about the crime.
However I have to say there is just as much violent crime if not more on the strip but just not hyped up as it would be down town.
A man was shot and robbed in his room at Caesars last week, Multiple people have been stabbed to death or shot and killed on the strip in broad daylight so it is completely ignorant for people to say downtown is more dangerous than the strip. I was staying at Aria when there was a shooting in the Valet area.
I will say the homeless folks on the strip are far more aggressive on the strip compared to downtown, but again Vegas is a city of close to 3 million people so there will be crime and homelessness just like in San Diego.. or LA.
Agree there is crime everywhere, the only difference is the Fremont are is much more condensed geographically than the miles of the Strip. The key to Vegas like all big cities is be aware of your surroundings. Thanks for sharing
@@JoshRachael I think you hit the nail on the head with it being far more condensed downtown.
I love downtown! I can no longer stomach the price gouging on the strip, i csll it the stupid tax. I can afford it, no problem. But i am just fed up with feeling like a dumbass. You definitely don't get "fine" dining, but there are plenty of good restaurants outside of steakhouses. You have to explore to find them.
Thank you for sharing. Hard to argue with ya there.
Only 6 deck game downtown worth playing is at Circa, stand on 17 0.42 house edge $100 min. Best double deck games are El Cortez 0.40 house edge $10 min, Golden Gate 0.40 house edge $100 min, Golden Nugget 0.40 house edge $100 min, Main Street 0.40 house edge $5 min, The D 0.40 house edge $100 min, Plaza 0.40 house edge $25 min. Best and only single deck is El Cortez 0.19 house advantage $10 min.
Wow thanks for the stats!
48 hours was just about right
🤘
Where is the best parking garage downtown?
not certain but guessing Garage Mahal
Probably a silly question but I'll ask anyway. Technically speaking, you're not legally allowed to buy alcohol in a closed container (like from CVS) and consume it within 1000 feet of where you bought it. But I notice you recommend it in this video, and honestly I saw EVERYONE doing it when I was last in Vegas. Is it fair to say no one cares about it and there's zero enforcement?
You nailed it on that one. They will put it in a bag then everyone walks out throws the bag away and consumes. It is widely done and no enforcement that we have ever seen
@@JoshRachael Thanks. Next time I'm there I'll just go with the flow and do what the crowd does. Drinks were so much cheaper at convenience stores!
@@Dark0blivion Yea give it a try, we have never seen anyone get busted for cracking a beer outside of ABC.
Circa has a huge pool, but they should tell people that you are not allowed to swim. I thought they were joking, but no, you are not allowed to swim or go under the water. It is for lounging only.
Oh dang we didn’t hear that but makes sense I suppose. Those pools were way too crowded anyway, no way you could swim I suppose unless you went super early. And not gonna lie I doubt you would want your head in that water 😷 I don’t think it is just water in those pools 😂
You can go underwater, as long as it is not very crowded, weekdays are better to do that.
I’m a strip girl! Coming from NY I want my luxury hotel even if it’s pricey love visiting downtown always!
🙌🏼 right there with ya. We had a fun time but if The Strip wasn’t there I would guess we would rarely go to LV
That is how I am…. downtown is great to visit.
Gambling and drinking. I say drinking is now Vegas. Too many drunks.
Gambling has shrunk.
We are here in KL resort world 😊. Here, they gamble like crazy. But, they do have amusement park for families.
Nice! Yea drinking is definitely getting to be bigger and bigger in Vegas, the gambling is still pretty big though I would say
Watched a lot of vagas reviews always talk of hurting g feet does no one walk in their normal lives.😂
It’s because most people end up walking 2-4x times what they walk at home
Rachel is keeping it real about crime 9:46
It’s true
I'm a local and at the D alot! Week days are wwwaayyy cheaper than weekends! The owner Derek is cheap!! 3 times more on Sat is bull!!! Also I've learned that if you book a corner King it comes with a refrigerator! I'm surprised you didn't mention anything for the tourists about the cannabis shops!!!? They have two of them on Fremont Street and they are both ripoffs they are fake synthetic marijuana and you don't even get high!!!?? I see people walk in there and start to look around and I go up and I tell them!! Not sure why they do that to people selling fake pot!! Also the D hotel has a tiny y u c k y pool so they do however let you use the circle pool which is not very cool cuz it's really loud for music and it's only 3 ft deep!!!!!!!
Good call, we try to share our own experiences and have not gone to any of the rip-off shops or the real ones so simply forgot. That’s a shame about those
Crime, drugs and alcoholism?? Sound like being back in Philadelphia
I'm sticking to the strip!!!
Time and a place for sure
Good for you!
Hey this isn’t broadway! #nashville
Haha, still living that story
Where isn’t there a metro or bus/public transport from the airport??? You Americans love taking taxis
Thank you?
Still at the D, eh? 😂
Haha one trip
Funny. I would take Rachel to the D twice.
@@JoshRachael all kidding aside- what’s next?
Currently in Nashville, have a new 3 night cruise series from 2 weeks ago that will be out after the Vegas series, then back to Vegas. Been a pretty crazy spring schedule
4:08 let the boycott continue
🍻
A LOT OF WEED SMELLING homeless
That’s not a lie