You want seedy, baby? Hit the Gold Spike and the El Cortez, both in the ol’ Downtown part of town. Who needs Sigfreid & Roy with the people-watching show those two joints put on! They’re a cross between a 50’s Greyhound bus terminal and a senior citizen church Bingo parlor. Man, oh man, the low-rollers those two places attract!
But I think you’ve got the right idea: screw the Strip. I live in NYC, so I see enough wealth and glitz. I love Downtown Vegas where old and new, wealth and poverty, dignity and shamelessness mingle to create a strange, unpredictable netherworld.
In addition to the two casinos above, here are some other Downtown picks:
If you want cheap – but respectable, clean, spacious and well-maintained – accommodations, get a room at Jackie Gaughan’s Plaza Hotel at Fremont and Main Streets. Rooms run about $30/night weekdays (somewhat more on weekends). Ask for a room facing Main St., or you might end up with a view of the train tracks and/or satellite dishes. In my opinion it’s the best hotel deal in town, short of being comped. (FYI, my pick in Reno is the brand new Circus Circus, also $30/night.) Dirt cheap breakfast is available across the street at the Golden Gate.
If you get tired of the seedy side of Downtown, but don’t want to travel to the Strip, try the Main Street Station Casino (on Main St.). It’s decorated very, very tastefully (or, as tastefully as overfussy Gay 90’s train station interior design can be) and attracts a nice, civilized – but not James Bond wannabe – clientele; the buffet’s not bad either.
Other Vegas tips:
Star Trek Experience, as noted by another poster, is boffo.
Hoover Dam is a must-see, if you’re into “conquest-of-nature” stuff. The Art Deco architectural details of the place are as stunning as the construction job, by the way.
And the Grand Canyon is, well… grand! (If you don’t have a day to kill to see the GC, at least take a fast drive to see/hike Red Rock Canyon, not far from Vegas. It will give you a taste of the fact that you’re still essentially in the desert.)
Have a blast!