So many good suggestions. Here's mine from our trip last week:
We stayed at Bally's mid-week and got the rooms for $26 a night on the Allegiant Air website when we booked the flight. It's centrally located, a little bit older, but clean. We didn't spend much time sleeping, so it worked out well wrt location as we were right in the middle of the strip. If you stay there, ask for the free upgrade and they'll get you a room in the North Tower. We were upgraded to a suite, which far exceeded my expectations.
Wear comfortable shoes and ignore those bastards handing out the cards on the strip. It annoyed me at first, but I just ignored them.
Bill's restaurant has a great breakfast that Nzoner pointed out. An even better breakfast can be had at Magnolia's. It's in the Four Queens downtown. The overhead show downtown is worth seeing as well.
This was my first trip and I liked both the strip and the downtown area equally. I like Black Jack, so the games were definitely cheaper downtown and you get more of the old Vegas feel there. Not sure I'd stay there though, even with the cheaper rates. We played at almost every table/casino we could find. There was even a cigar shop downtown that made my chocolate cigars on site, so I was in heaven.
Wynn, Encore, Bellagio, Caesar's Palace, MGM, Aria, City Center, etc. are all great and I will be staying at one of those fine establishments in the future, but this trip was simply to gain some experience with the area.
The Harrah's Total Rewards Card is a must, the comps are by far the best.
We did the Hoover Dam thing too and hit the little casinos on the way out there (Railroad Pass, The Station, Sam's Town, etc.) The locals go to Sam's Town a lot as the payout is better there, but it's definitely an older crowd.
And yes, I made a little wager on the Chiefs for the playoffs, AFC Championship, and SB. They were only $5 bets, so I'm not out anything, but it was fun to make the bet anyway.
