The Orleans Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas

Everyone has heard of the Bellagio in Las Vegas very opulent, a fantastic place to stay and a real budget breaker-but I'm going to tell you about my favourite discovery in Las Vegas where you can enjoy all the glitz of Las Vegas at a fraction of the price..
If you'd rather spend your money on a fabulous suite (which you'll only be sleeping in as Las Vegas has so much to see and do) then stop reading now but if you'd rather spend your hard ...
...course a little flutter in the casinos-then read on.
The Orleans is located a mile off the strip on West Flamingo-something that did make me wonder if I'd picked the right hotel surely The Strip was the place to be-but the price was great and we were attending a couple of shows at their 700 seater showroom so I agreed to giving it a try.
We were warmly greeted at reception and told our requests for a high room with a strip view had ... more

Everyone has heard of the Bellagio in Las Vegas very opulent, a fantastic place to stay and a real budget breaker-but I'm going to tell you about my favourite discovery in Las Vegas where you can enjoy all the glitz of Las Vegas at a fraction of the price..
If you'd rather spend your money on a fabulous suite (which you'll only be sleeping in as Las Vegas has so much to see and do) then stop reading now but if you'd rather spend your hard earned cash on fabulous meals, seeing the Grand Canyon by helicoptor, tremendous shopping, amazing shows and of course a little flutter in the casinos-then read on.
The Orleans is located a mile off the strip on West Flamingo-something that did make me wonder if I'd picked the right hotel surely The Strip was the place to be-but the price was great and we were attending a couple of shows at their 700 seater showroom so I agreed to giving it a try.
We were warmly greeted at reception and told our requests for a high room with a strip view had been met. I personally like the way reception is situated before the casino so unlike many other hotels you don't have to trudge through the casino to check in. The Orleans has "only" 1886 rooms-sounds a lot but many of the strip hotels have more than 5000 rooms which makes for a VERY long walk from your room to the strip. A standard Orleans room is in fact what they call a "petit suite" or what I'd call a junior suite-two double beds and a seperate seating area with couch and a coffee table. The rooms are large and as previously mentioned some have fantastic views of the strip. The bathroom is adequate and has the almost unique feature for a Vegas hotel of a small window that opens. The rooms follow the "French Quarter" theme of the hotel and are attractive and most importantly very clean. There are also suites available..
The hotel has a massive casino both slots and table games and some of the friendliest staff I've encountered in Las Vegas.. No dealers looking down their noses at the punters here unlike some other casinos. Drinks are free-you just tip the waitress $1 a drink-and drink what you like spirits, beer, coke or even my favourite coffee with Baileys.
So what else does the Orleans offer ?
What about the younger members of the family or those who don't want to gamble?
A multiscreen cinema with very moreish popcorn
70 lane ten pin bowling centre
Nice pool with plenty of shade (much needed Las Vegas can be punishingly hot )and Spa pool
Health club and spa
Arcade
Creche facility
Showroom -700 seats recent artists have included Neil Sedaka, Glen Campbell and Donny Osmond

Having seen all this it must be time for food. Every hotel in Vegas has a buffet but the Orleans combines a multitude of choice with very reasonable prices -prices range from $6 for breakfast to $12 for dinner, additionally they have a TGI Fridays, Subway, an Oyster bar, steak loft, cafe, Seattle coffee place and Italian, Mexican and Chinese resturants and a great burger bar. All are reasonably priced and in four stays I've had one bad meal (at the cafe).
Of course you are in lLas Vegas and regardless of how much there is to do at the Orleans-you want to see the Strip. You could jump into one of the plentiful cabs outside for less than £5 but there is also a free shuttle bus running every 20 mins to the heart of the Strip. If you have a hirecar you could drive as parking on the Strip is plentiful and free but the Strip traffic is horrendous and best avoided. There are other reviews that detail the numerous attractions on the strip so I won't bore you with them here.
Now back to money.....how much is this going to cost you ?
My last trip in December I was paying what I felt to be a very reasonable $65 a night booked direct with the hotel-however whilst browsing I found a special offer of $25 a night through a web hotel site. The Orleans have a Best Rate Guarantee-if you find a better rate elsewhere they will match it -even if it is a prepay rate although they still don't expect you to prepay for the entire stay unlike the web hotel sites. or stitch you up with 100% cancelation fees. Each of my four stays I've used the Best Rate Guarantee and each time the Orleans have honoured it with a smile..
As a review this may seem a little too glowing but I've consistently returned to the Orleans because there is so little to fault and although I've looked at other hotels none offer such good value for money. I feel I get the best of both worlds-a reasonable and comfortable hotel to stay in-and all the access to the strip I could want without paying $300 a night to be there.  

...less