Budget hotels on the strip - advice?

I would really appreciate any advice anyone could give me about which of the following budget hotels is the most suitable for my needs: Circus Circus, Sahara or Riviera?

My boyfriend and I will be visiting Vegas for the first time between April 11th (Wed) and 14th (Sat) as part of a whistlestop tour of California/Nevada. We%26#39;re both in our late 20s and are up for experiencing Vegas, while not gambling our life savings. We%26#39;re keen to stay in a strip-based hotel, although I know these 3 are all at one end.

Because we%26#39;re staying on a Friday night, the rates I%26#39;ve found for all 3 hotels are around the $300 mark. We%26#39;re staying in hostels during the rest of our trip, but have put a bit more money aside for our Vegas accomodation, so we%26#39;d ideally like to have use of a decent pool etc. while we%26#39;re there, to make the most of being in a hotel rather than a hostel. I%26#39;m sure we%26#39;ll spend most of our time exploring the strip though.

My boyfriend was initially keen to stay at CC, but I%26#39;ve read reviews about annoying kids; and CheapoVegas advises thinking long and hard about staying there, which has really put me off. However, I%26#39;ve also heard bad things about the other two (Sahara is particularly run-down/Riviera stings you with extra charges), so am finding it really hard to put everything into perspective. I know it%26#39;s likely to be the best of a bad bunch whichever we choose.

Also, I%26#39;ve read that you should go for a tower room in Circus Circus and a deluxe room at Sahara, but am not sure about the room quality/choice at the Riviera?

Can anyone please help me to rate these options. I%26#39;ve spent ages trawling through reviews etc., but still can%26#39;t decide!

Thanks in advance...

Budget hotels on the strip - advice?

Have you checked Imperial Palace or Excalibur?

Budget hotels on the strip - advice?

Of the three hotels you mention, Sahara would be my choice. It%26#39;s easily the nicest of the three and you%26#39;ve got the monorail there to get you to center and south Strip. Avoid CC at all costs and the Riviera has seen far far better days

With Vegas hotels, location is a huge factor and all three of your options are isolated at the north end of the Strip, a good distance from where (for a first visit at any rate) you really want to be. Looking at what your budget is you should take a look at Imperial Palace. It%26#39;s not a great luxury hotel but it%26#39;s easily as nice as CC or Riviera and it%26#39;s location (very central) can%26#39;t be beat. Excalibur is another option that may be in your budget that%26#39;s worth looking at.

Great psychic powers Loveland! :-)

Let me preface this by saying that I%26#39;ve not stayed at any of these three properties, but based on location and impressions from having been in various areas of the casinos, I would choose Riviera.

Have you priced out Bill%26#39;s Gambling Hall (formerly Barbary Coast - note: no pool) or Imperial Palace at Center Strip? I would also check Tropicana at South Strip. IMO these three are similar quality properties but offer better locations.

More like - great minds think alike! :)

I%26#39;d rather stay at Riviera than Circus Circus. At Riviera you want to choose the Monte Carlo tower.

I would recommend the Tropicana as a budget place to stay. It has one of the nicest pools on the strip. The garden rooms are a little dated, like staying at the Holiday Inn, but... they have a nice little outside deck, great for your morning coffee or just to recoup mid-afternoon. Be sure you get a room facing the pool/gardens. The Trop is located on one of the busiest corners of the strip. NYNY, MGM, Excalibur, Luxor, MB, etc... all right there. They have a great casino, friendly dealers and low limit tables. I%26#39;ve acturally won at BJ there! Enjoy your trip...

i%26#39;ve stayed at sahara and had a very nice stay. it is far north strip, but we%26#39;ve walked to the wynn pretty easily. you can also take the monorail, which has a station at the sahara, to get to mid or south strip.

i don%26#39;t remember what type of room we had, but i%26#39;m sure we booked the cheapest option. our room was clean and comfortable and we had a nice view of the stratosphere. we love to gamble at the sahara. i like the low limit blackjack and hubby likes the poker room. it%26#39;s an easy walk to circus circus for the fabulous steakhouse.

i wouldn%26#39;t stay at circus circus because of the kids and i wouldn%26#39;t stay at riviera because i don%26#39;t like to gamble there. neither of these hotels is on the monorail.

Wow, thanks so much for those tips. I%26#39;m so glad I posted!

I noticed that Bill%26#39;s Gamblin%26#39; Hall was central for a good price and had positive reviews, but it doesn%26#39;t seem to have availability on that Friday. I found this out via various booking agents%26#39; websites, as you can%26#39;t book via the website and it%26#39;s expensive to call from the UK!

I checked Imperial Palace earlier and it was about $450, which is more than we want to spend. My (ancient) work Internet browser doesn%26#39;t seem to like the Tropicana website, but I%26#39;ll keep trying. I did look on pretty much every hotel website yesterday and I don%26#39;t recall this one being a viable option.

It looks like we%26#39;ve ruled out Circus Circus now anyway. I%26#39;m erring towards Sahara I think (in the Tangiers tower), but Riviera may still be in with a shot. Has anyone else got any pearls of wisdom that could seal the deal...? ; )

Just remember that Bill%26#39;s doesn%26#39;t have a pool.