When people ask me why I love hanging out in Downtown Las Vegas so much more than The Strip I typically launch into a diatribe of reasons.
In short; I’m drawn to how easy the Downtown area is to navigate, how much I love the energy under the illuminated canopy, all about the interpersonal relationships that still exist along the corridor, and perhaps most importantly to you: the affordability factor.
Even when you’re not explicitly looking for it, you’ll start to pick up on things like the price difference of a cup of coffee or what types of promotions are being offered up by the various properties. Perhaps it’s because more locals swing by Fremont Street or it’s all part of a secret plan formulated by “The Downtown Alliance,” either way, Fremont knows how to attract guests with tons of entertainment at a much more affordable price.
Read on below to discover some of the ways you make your budget stretch just a little bit more next time you are in Las Vegas.
Navigating Downtown Las Vegas on a Budget
Dining
Downtown has a reputation for having some of the best dining options in all of Las Vegas. These restaurants include newer operations like anything you’d find at Circa or more mainstays like Top of Binions or Hugo’s Cellar. While the steakhouses might be a little more expensive than you’d pay at a local option in your neck of the woods, there is no disputing the cost is cheaper than their Strip counterparts. You can find a list of some of my favorite steakhouses, Downtown options included, here!
Now, back to that cup of coffee. My love for Downtown runs as deep as my love for Dunkin’ and that is saying a lot coming from a girl from Massachusetts. Not coincidentally, one of the few Las Vegas Dunkin’ locations is right in the middle of Fremont Street. I used to start my morning at this Fremont Casino outpost every single day when I worked at my casino Downtown. Now, I make the journey to their counter every day that I visit my old stomping grounds. This is obviously because I love their coffee – not so much the doughnuts – but also because their prices are some of the best you can find in the area when it comes to a cup of joe. I’ll be the first to lament that their prices have gone up since I worked down there, but the price of a cup of coffee at this Dunkin’ is still significantly lower than the price you’d pay at the Starbucks inside Golden Nugget.
Offers
In my opinion, Downtown attempts to lure new players by offering larger offer amounts than you’d find at bigger operations like Caesars or MGM, while also keeping established players happy. In some cases, these casinos have a smaller operating footprint at the executive level, which means they have a better chance at getting more unique and out there ideas approved.
Even if you haven’t played somewhere in a while, sometimes you’ll be surprised to find that you have offers loaded onto your player’s card. These offers typically look something like $20 off at a particular food and beverage outlet or $10 free play. Binion’s typically has some sort of play X amount to earn X points and they will give you an additional batch of free play. Since I play at Binion’s anyways, I always like checking for that offer. I typically will get an extra $75 on whatever they originally offered – a pretty nice chunk of change!
And because you know we have to say it…. PLAY WITH YOUR PLAYER’S CARD! You can’t earn offers if you don’t.
Standard Promotions
One of the best properties, strictly looking at their promotions including freebies and “earn and gets,” is Plaza Hotel & Casino. This property is doing a fantastic job bringing the value back to Las Vegas and throwing their players some tasty treats along the way. Mondays at Plaza are all about the pie. If you earn 100 slot points you can print a voucher to get a “free” slice of either pepperoni or cheese pizza. You can probably guess what Tuesday might highlight… tacos! Just like the pizza, you can get a free Taco Grande and drink after earning 100 slot points. Lastly, Plaza wants to keep you caffeinated on Wednesdays with vouchers for a free specialty coffee and pastry after you snag the required 100 points. Plus, you’ll keep your points after being redeemed.
Not counting these offerings, Plaza also provides a discount to their delicious steakhouse for players of a certain card tier. Players with their Bronze level card (2nd tier group) are provided 10% off the bill. Players, myself included, with the Silver card get to enjoy 15% off and if you make it to the Gold tier, you’ll get 20% off. This is by far one of my favorite perks, because it makes a decent dent in the bill, especially if you are with a group of people.
Regardless of which casino you visit, you should take a look at their website’s promotion and offers page before you go. It’s helpful to know what they have going on and what you may qualify for before you get distracted by all the machines.
Transportation
Just because you’re staying Downtown doesn’t mean you’ll blow your budget on transportation around The Valley. In all actuality, if you play your cards right (aka plan), you could end up saving a few bucks thanks to the proximity of everything Downtown has to offer.
When helping my friends plan their trips, I always recommend they stay Downtown and plan one full day on The Strip. This means that while staying Downtown, you can walk all around to the various casinos and then start making your way further down towards The Arts District. It is a fairly quick walk to the Container Park area and because it is located in a high foot traffic area, I don’t feel unsafe making the journey. The local police in addition to Fremont’s security officers are also very diligent about making their rounds through the area. With that being said, Vegas is a city and with any city walks, I keep my head on a swivel.
After exploring Downtown and The Art’s District, you can either opt to take a rideshare service or city provided transportation in the form of The Deuce. The Deuce, a double decker red bus, is a very cost effective and popular tourist-centric option that runs from Fremont Street all the way down The Strip. The bus is a 24/7 operation that claims to run about every 10 to 20 minutes depending on the time of day. There are tons of stops on this line, including everything from the Welcome to LV Sign, T-Mobile Arena, Gold & Silver Pawn Shop (yes, the one from Pawn Stars), both sets of Premium Outlets (I am a fan of the North one), and even the Discovery Children’s Museum.
Shopping
It happens to the best of us, no matter how much we check our bags and make lists (in our head) there’s a high chance you forgot to pack something. When you stay Downtown this isn’t a big deal at all thanks to the easy to get to convenience stores.
If you need to pick up some bottled water, chapstick, or even alcohol, you can swing by The ABC Store located across from Circa, or meander a little farther down to the Walgreens. Yes, the prices are going to be more than you’d pay at home or one of the truly local stores in Vegas but I can promise you, the prices are less than you’d pay in a sundries* store at any of the properties nearby.
*Sundries = Every time I use this word I get transported back to the first time I ever heard it. I like to think I am someone that has a grasp on a fairly wide vocabulary and normally I can deduce a meaning if it doesn’t automatically register…. Sundries, however, stumped me. I had just started working Downtown and my boss was talking to us about one of the gift stores but she used the term “sundries.” I am here to tell you that is just a fancy word for all the junk small, miscellaneous trinkets and household items you can find in a gift shop.
Takeaway
You can make your budget stretch a little bit farther in Downtown Las Vegas compared to The Strip. Downtown offers a wide variety of dining options and unique gaming properties, all within walking distance.
