Deuce bus?
It’s expensive, so I don’t know if meets the bang for your buck criteria, but the Wynn had an amazing spread. We ate lunch there for 2.5 hours, just took our time and sampled everything.
Heh. I was once walking down Flamingo from the Rio to the Mirage. We reached the corner of Caesars Palace. I said, “We’re almost there – Caesars is right next door to the Mirage.” 20 minutes later, we were still walking past Caesars.
The Deuce is a bus that runs along the Strip to Fremont Street.
https://www.rtcsnv.com/wp-content/uploads/routes/2018/deuce.pdf
This is very useful information.
Actually, there are two different buses that run up and down the Strip - the Deuce, and the SDX (Strip & Downtown Express). The SDX has fewer stops, and runs a slightly different route (it stops in front of the Westgate, whereas the Deuce does not). You can ride both of them, as well as all of the other public buses in Vegas (and pretty much every casino except for The M has a bus stop in front of it) for something like $8 for 24 hours or $20 for 72.
I’m pretty sure The Deuce gets its name from the fact that it is a double-decker. You really should try to get a seat in the front row on the upper deck at least once.
One warning: they get very crowded at night.
Well, there are two “gourmet” buffets, that are expensive, but you get what you pay for; Wicked Spoon (at the Cosmopolitan), and Bacchanal (at Caesar’s). If you’re looking for “just a buffet with a decent selection at a decent price,” I would suggest either Mirage or Aria - maybe Paris as well.
If you like buffets, every hotel has them. Food replenishment and quality varies. Costs might range from $10-40. I prefer food made to order, and served fresh. But Wicked Spoon at Cosmopolitan was good. There was a seafood buffet as well which was okay. Most have roast meats, lots of variety and desserts. Like everything else in Vegas, buffets are widely reviewed and you can Google a list of “best” buffets, shows, restaurants, casinos, tourist attractions, concerts, etc. Information is everywhere, but quite a lot of it is biased. I’d look at a current travel guide at your local bookstore which will rank all of these, perhaps more objectively.
The Deuce and SDX buses are fairly good for going down the strip or downtown. Day or multi day passes might be the best choice. Taxis are reasonable, but distances are small (on the map) and traffic heavy and slow. A short walk probably goes up and down escalators and through several casinos, and is not short. A hotel like MGM has many thousands of rooms and getting to the lobby can be a 30 minute walk, no kidding!
I would STRONGLY recommend buying “The Unofficial Guide To Las Vegas” by Bob Sehlinger. It will cost $20, but save you an incredible amount of time and money, as well as optimizing your activities.
“Bang for your buck” buffets may be worth looking at the Rio–it used to claim to be the biggest (been a few years, so that may no longer be the case). I found the Wynn to be slightly better quality, but the Rio did have more selection.
The sumptuous buffet is probably the quintessential Las Vegas restaurant experience. There are many to choose from. I’m not up to date on comparisons, but I’d bet there is at least one website dedicated to this topic.
Even the low-end ones (eg Excaliber) have an astonishing variety of items. The high-end ones (eg Bellagio or Wynn) surpass excessive.
Some people like to arrive about 30 minutes before the transition from breakfast to lunch or lunch to dinner to get even more choices.
Some buffets offer an unlimited 24-hour pass, sometimes including multiple locations (due to ownership consolidation) for only slightly more than dinner alone. Now THAT’S excessive!
I hate Vegas, i don’t drink, I don’t gamble, and I don’t like hot weather. But I’ve been there a lot for work. I mostly go to shows and watch people on the street.
I’ve been to about half of the Cirque de Soleil shows, but my favorite is la Reve, which isn’t actually Cirque, but it’s in the same style. That’s really spectacular.
I’ve also been to several magic shows. I really want to see Penn and Teller, but they’ve been dark (or too late at night) every time I’ve been there. David Copperfield is bored and doesn’t want to keep working. He’s technically excellent, but I’d skip it. Mac King is terrific. I went to a show with a young guy just getting started that was great because of his enthusiasm, similarly some not-well-known guy with tigers.
I always go to the booth that sells tickets for today’s shows at a discount.
yup.
Some of the hotels are fun to walk through, with amusing fake architecture, or wild animals, or waterfalls, or… And the people, of course
Personally, I’ve eaten a lot of mediocre overpriced food in Vegas. I went to one of those buffets. Mediocre versions of lots of expensive stuff. I’d rather have a couple of excellent items than my choice of fifty mediocre ones. Maybe those guides are helpful. And it might be worth booking restaurants in advance.
Best wishes.
Oh, and I’ll fifth the recommendation for the pinball museum. That was fun. Lots of good classic games.
Note that even when you ride the bus (either the Deuce or the SDX), and you need to transfer to a crosstown route, be prepared for a long walk.
I usually include the Pinball Hall of Fame on my visits, and the transfer from Deuce southbound to 201 Tropicana eastbound is about a ten-minute walk. It’s about the same, or a minute or two longer on the return, from 201 Tropicana westbound to Deuce northbound. I’ve encountered the same kind of walk on my visits to the Atomic Testing Museum on Flamingo, when transferring between the Deuce and the Flamingo bus.
Moral of the story? Even if you’re taking the bus, wear comfortable walking shoes.
There are a lot of public transit options in Vegas. I tried them all, and ended up mostly just walking or using one of the buses. I don’t remember which bus. But yeah, even with the bus there is a lot of walking. Everything is buried in the back of some giant casino or something.
I’ll piggy back on this thread, we’ve got one Sat night in Vegas after our week long hiking trip in Utah. Staying on the strip, we’ve got some day activities already planned. If you had to pick one show to see; Penn & Teller or one of Cirque du Soleil/Le Reve? Ticket prices appear about the same $150/seat for all shows if you want a good seat.
There are three types of buffets in Las Vegas: Over-the-Top, Local’s Favorite, and “Leaving Las Vegas” Suicide Special. You want the first type. Those would be Wicked Spoon (Cosmopolitan), Bacchanal (Caesars Palace), Bellagio and Wynn. If you were staying way off-Strip to the South, M Resort has a very good seafood buffet with unlimited beer and wine included in the base price. If you want to make a Sunday special, hit the Champagne Brunch at Ballys or the Jazz Brunch at Wynn (moved to Lakeside Grill until they put The Country Club back.)
Your best bets for off the beaten path restaurants will be in Chinatown (just west of the Strip.) Lots of really good places hidden in strip malls. Follow John Curtas on Twitter for reviews and such (@eatinglasvegas.)
Grotto Ristorante at the 4 Queens hotel.
I’m a life-long amateur magician.
I love Penn & Teller, but their ironic, post-modern style is not for everybody. After the show, they are in the lobby and talk with all fans.
I admire David Copperfield’s expertise, but find his stage persona even smarmier than Bob Saget. You might disagree.
Mac King is superb. His family-friendly afternoon shows are “old school” in the best sense of the term. He also is available after the show.
I don’t care for Chriss Angel. His videos use camera effects.
Last month I saw an exciting, new talent - Xavier Mortimer (Bally’s, 6 PM). He has a fresh, original approach that incorporates dance, acrobatics, and a little mime. He is French & charming as hell.
I love Penn and Teller and have seen their Vegas show three times. Nevertheless if you can only see one show, I would recommend a Cirque du Soleil. My recommendation would be Ka.
Penn and Teller would be on the top of my list…if it weren’t for the fact that they won’t be there the five days I will be there.