First time to Vegas: Advice?

Im heading to Vegas for the first time in April (early for this post, yes, but im excited) and was looking for advice.

- Where to stay (nice, but not too pricey)

- Where to gamble?  Looking to get in a small buy in poker tourny or two

- Where to bet sports?

- Must see sites?

Any idvice would be greatly appreciated.

My tip would be to stay on the strip somewhere, but make sure you get downtown for one evening...will help you decide where to hang out on future visits.

Thanks.  What are the plusses of downtown?

Also, the pools/strip clubs/ clubs generally aren't my scene. 

downtown +'s ,,easy to walk from casino to casino - cheaper to stay- lots of good dining options with a short walk--keep an eye out for a post from Vegas Gourmet--he is the "go to guy" in all things Vegas

What kind of budget are you working with, who are you going with, and how long are you staying in Vegas ( weekend or during the week)? For your first trip, I would avoid staying downtown.

There is a site that has the poker tourny schedule for every hotel. I'll try to  find it and link it.

All Vegas Poker?

Good luck...How old are you?  May impact some responses.  21 vs. 51...

go to Las Vegas Hilton Sportsbook, best in town

Thanks for the responses boys.  I'm 27 and married.  The married part takes a lot of fun out of it, ha.

As far as the budget, not much.  I'm looking at limiting it to $1,200 which includes the flight and all.  I'll be going from Sunday to Thursday.  4 night stay.

Also, I'll be splitting the room with one other person.

And that person is a past fraternity friend, not the wife.

hungry....

$1200 for the flight from the East coast, food, hotel (shared with one other person), gambling..all for 4 nights?  Yes?

Yes, you nailed it Gourmet.  1200 is not a hell of a lot, I know :-(

What part of the great state are you from?

Hungry....

Assuming you have a round-trip flight from the East coast for $300...that leaves $900 for transportation from/to airport, hotel, food, gambling.....That means 5 days/4nights at, approximately, $200 per day/night.

My first suggestion would be to fly in on a Monday and leave on a Friday...that's the cheapest.

Second, I would look at places like Excalibur or Hard Rock for midweek prices....You need to be in the center of the Strip (to limit transportation costs). You might look into the buffet packages that many of the places have...eat all day for one price....

Third.....YOU MUST SET A LIMIT ON BETS...SPORTS, TABLE GAMES, POKER, ETC....

Fourth....Take a hundred dollar bill, fold it up, put it in your wallet....don't go near it.

More advice to come, based upon your thoughts on these ones first....

I like it Gourmet.  Is Excalibur decent?  I think I'd want to find a hotel/air package deal first and then plan a budget around that.  Thanks for the assistance with this.

Also, I only want to play in a few poker tournies and make a few small sports bets.  Won't be doing any extended time on tables.

Excalibur and New York-New York are MGM properties and fairly inexpensive...located across from the MGM Grand and near a dozen other hotels/casinos....Your age group (under 35) should like NY-NY better...no poker there; but easy to find games anywhere....You can bet a minimum of $5 on any sports bet at their books....Excalibur has a pretty cheap all-you-can-eat-all-day buffet; you don't have to stay there to get it...

Excalibur is $24.99 for unlimited, all-you-can-eat all-day buffet visits...

   Solid work

Adding: By the time you add up the " resort fee" and all the other taxes, your bill be bloated to almost paying for an extra night. Try checking the hotel sites for a deal and Jetblue's site; Jetblue is 30-40 dollars more per flight, but you get cable TV and no fee for your luggage.

Awesome guys.  Really appreciate the assistance.  I'll try to find a deal at a hotel near Excalibur to take advantage of the buffet. 

Look at Hooters, next to The Tropicana, across from the MGM Grand....Sun-Thur should cost you very little...either Tower or Bungalow....

Ceasars for sports, Bellagio for poker.  And as far as tips go... manage your money! It sux being broke in LV after 2 days on a 4 day trip, trust me!

And most importantly, go to Margaritaville at least once a day!