Opinion on Excalibur vs Circus Circus
- We want to see Penn and Teller at the Rio
- We want to eat at Gordon Ramsey's Steakhouse
- I want to drink a boat load of draft beer at The Pub at Monte Carlo
- I want to watch the Final 4 games at a decent sportsbook
- I want to gamble at Casino Royale and El Cortez downtown
If those 5 things are accomplished, the trip will have been a success. Which hotel option is better financially, time wise and experience wise all things considered?
Quote: MrRalphHow much is the Monte Carlo? Can't be much more. Better location. Excalibur and Circus Circus are dumps. Circus Circus could not pay me enough to stay there. Try Treasure Island even though it is not an MGM property they have been sending some cheap offers and I have hardly played there. You should also consider Harrahs or the Quad both are better than Circus Circus. Circus Circus puts you not close to anything.
Yup. This is exactly right.
Circus Circus: You are likely to get mugged outside
Excalibur: Filled with people hauling their loud and obnoxious kids around looking for a cheap vegas vacation. The rooms don't even have wifi for god's sakes. What is this, 1980?
Also add Luxor to the list of dumps that I would not stay at.
Monte Carlo is a good choice. It is small and cheap, but still nice. Definitely not luxury, but charming. If you gamble a bit it is very easy to get comped there. And you are right in city center. Aria is connected by a short tunnel of stores, and if you want to look at some eye candy you can walk over to Cosmo on a weekend. Also, Cosmo has some good bars and restaurants.
I think the critical factor is how you are getting around....
Taxi's can cost more than a hotel room for all the travel that you are talking about.
Circus Circus in a long ways from everywhere, so you are not walking from there anywhere.
The bus ain't bad, I took that once when I was there in Dec.
In four days we paid over $150 in cab fares, just going to similar places like you described.
SFB
Quote: mwalz9I would either walk or get a cab to get around. A cab to the Rio and Downtown of course. Walk elsewhere.
I would strongly recommend you keep saving your MyVegas points til you get better options. google LVH and the Quad for good deals on cheap hotels that are decent rooms and directly on the Monorail. LVH was 30/night last I saw, some nights less. If you stay at the Quad, you can get free shuttle to the Rio for Penn and Teller, and everything else you want to do is available by monorail and bus. The bus goes directly up the strip from downtown and is $2 each way last I heard. You will save money overall if you plan your transportation and hotels that way.
Also, booking this far ahead, if you're dead set on one of those two, you should google a rental car. I rented from Hertz for $17/day when I was there in October, but it was a midweek rental. You never know when the deals are on, though. Parking is free pretty much everywhere (think downtown might have a parking fee).
Quote: BeardgoatIf youre just using the room to sleep in... circus circus since it is free. If you actually care about the atmosphere in the casino you stay at then Excalibur. Whoever mentioned that Excalibur has alot of families/kids maybe they are forgetting that Circus Circus is like a gigantic Vegas daycare. Kids everywhere
Yeah, that's why they both suck.
thought it was way over priced and boring. Teller
never talks, so Penn never shuts up. It's an hour
of him rambling on and on and on with some
goofy magic thrown in. Their show really needs
some relief from Penn's mouth, I wanted to shoot
him after about 40min. I was never so glad when
a show was over.
Quote: mwalz9OK, guys. Just looking for an opinion for the masses. I have been playing MyVegas and waiting on them to open the room comps for the first weekend of April 2014. They finally have. That is the only weekend I can get off work to make it to Vegas so switching weekends isnt an option. My predicament is I only have enough Loyalty Points earned to do the following: Stay at Circus Circus for free on both nights (Friday and Saturday) or stay at Excalibur for free on Friday and pay for Sat (approx. $114). Which would you do? I'll also include a list of whats important to me on this trip to see if any of that makes this decision any different.
- We want to see Penn and Teller at the Rio
- We want to eat at Gordon Ramsey's Steakhouse
- I want to drink a boat load of draft beer at The Pub at Monte Carlo
- I want to watch the Final 4 games at a decent sportsbook
- I want to gamble at Casino Royale and El Cortez downtown
If those 5 things are accomplished, the trip will have been a success. Which hotel option is better financially, time wise and experience wise all things considered?
You gave only two choices so Excalibur it is. The $20 trick works like a charm and you have easy access to the casinos at that end of the strip. You have the Mandalay Bay - Excalibur tram and the foot bridges. They are all free.
Between that and your other choices, I'd go with spending the $114 for Excalibur.
At the same time, I think it might be best to save your MyVegas points and just spring for a room at the Monte Carlo. You could also stay one free night at Excalibur and then move to MC.
My reasoning:
MC is just a step up from Excalibur. The rooms at Excalibur seem to have a thin layer of gunk on just about everything (think of 5 year old PlaySkool toys).
Circus Circus is like 10 year old toys.
You're an adult.
Quote: Yo11IMHO - there isn't much of a difference between these two resorts,
One sucks and the other sucks worse. Circus
is crawling with kids and if you love that, and
god, who doesn't, stay there. If you hate kids,
and god, who doesn't, stay at Excalibur.
Quote: ThatDonGuyBetween that and your other choices, I'd go with spending the $114 for Excalibur.
They would have to pay me $114 to stay at Excalibur. Actually, I still wouldn't do it. I'd probably start thinking about it at around $500.
Is that a really expensive weekend or something? Excalibur is usually dirt cheap (because it is a dump). I would, at least, check prices of other places before paying that much to stay at Excalibur. Monte Carlo is usually pretty inexpensive and it is 100x better. NYNY is pretty cheap as well, and probably much nicer than Excalibur (I've never actually stayed there, but how could it not be?) Even nicer places like the MGM Grand are often in that price range (since they renovated everything, the rooms there are very nice)
You could also stay off the strip for cheaper, but the problem with staying off-strip is that you end up spending more money in cab fares than you saved, plus it's a huge waste of time (which is your most valuable asset while on vacation)
Quote: EvenBobWe saw Penn and Teller a few years ago and
thought it was way over priced and boring. Teller
never talks, so Penn never shuts up. It's an hour
of him rambling on and on and on with some
goofy magic thrown in. Their show really needs
some relief from Penn's mouth, I wanted to shoot
him after about 40min. I was never so glad when
a show was over.
Whatever the opposite of this is. I thoroughly enjoyed their show.
Edit: I saw it in April 2012 but I'm pretty sure they still make it a point to meet and greet after the show.
Quote: rudeboyoiWhatever the opposite of this is. I thoroughly enjoyed their show.
There's are always people who are easily entertained.
I demand a little more for my money than some guy
prattling on endlessly for an hour, with some well
practiced hocus pocus thrown in so we don't fall
asleep. I prefer close-up slight of hand stuff, not
the corny crowd magic.
Quote: EvenBobThere's are always people who are easily entertained.
I demand a little more for my money than some guy
prattling on endlessly for an hour, with some well
practiced hocus pocus thrown in so we don't fall
asleep. I prefer close-up slight of hand stuff, not
the corny crowd magic.
Yeah, have to agree; most enjoyable magician I ever saw was never famous; Patrick McSomething. He did table magic for a summer at the resort area I was working in. Coins, balls, cards, etc. Great patter, great dexterity.
Saw David Copperfield several years later; he stood 3 feet from me and did the dancing handkerchief trick. He didn't even try and cover the gaff. I was very surprised. Patrick was better, but he was never famous.
On the flip side, I've spent about thirty minutes in Circus Circus, and didn't really see it properly. I have only a small desire to go back again to find out what I really didn't miss.
As a caveat, I normally stay at the Orleans. Off strip, cheap, and easy enough to get back on strip to see what is to be seen. With a gaming floor I still enjoy, and bars to watch the sports at or have a drink at late at night.
(shrug)
Quote: beachbumbabsYeah, have to agree; most enjoyable magician I ever saw was never famous; Patrick McSomething. .
Best card magician in the world right now
is Ricky Jay. In his 60's, he still practices
hours a day. He can tell you he's going
to deal from the bottom of the deck and
you still can't see it. Here he is on Letterman:
This is really amazing:
Quote: rudeboyoiWhatever the opposite of this is. I thoroughly enjoyed their show.
Yeah, me too. Best show I've seen in Vegas, by far.
But Luxor over Excalibur over Circus Circus. I'd rather stay at Beethoven's house than stay at Circus Circus, facepalms and all...
The weekend comp bonus rates are as follows:
Circus Circus 34,000
Excalibur 42,000
Luxor 48,000
MonteCarlo 81,000
NYNY 101,500
Mandalay Bay 115,500
MGM 122,500
Aria 215,000
Seriously, get yourself up to Monte Carlo if possible. They had a double XP weekend where you could level up pretty easily.
Quote: AxiomOfChoiceYeah, me too. Best show I've seen in Vegas, by far.
Yeah, Vegas really sucks for shows.. Ever see
Wayne Newton? Good grief.
He is fantastic. I love his card throwing too.Quote: EvenBobBest card magician in the world right now
is Ricky Jay.
Here's Ricky slicing a pencil in half:
Quote: AxiomOfChoiceYup. This is exactly right.
Circus Circus: You are likely to get mugged outside
Excalibur: Filled with people hauling their loud and obnoxious kids around looking for a cheap vegas vacation. The rooms don't even have wifi for god's sakes. What is this, 1980?
Also add Luxor to the list of dumps that I would not stay at.
Monte Carlo is a good choice. It is small and cheap, but still nice. Definitely not luxury, but charming. If you gamble a bit it is very easy to get comped there. And you are right in city center. Aria is connected by a short tunnel of stores, and if you want to look at some eye candy you can walk over to Cosmo on a weekend. Also, Cosmo has some good bars and restaurants.
If Wi-Fi is important, then stay away from Harrahs too. They have none.
Monte Carlo and NYNY have extensive construction outside on the Strip, a real PITA for walking, especially on busy weekends.
..Quote: thecesspitI stayed at the Excalibur on my very first trip to Vegas. I don't think it's changed much in 11 years, and wouldn't stay again now. The location is convenient, but the gaming floor has lost it's shine and allure for me. Perhaps I'm not starry eyed at Vegas any more. May it was the pit manager who pissed me off last time I was there.
On the flip side, I've spent about thirty minutes in Circus Circus, and didn't really see it properly. I have only a small desire to go back again to find out what I really didn't miss.
As a caveat, I normally stay at the Orleans. Off strip, cheap, and easy enough to get back on strip to see what is to be seen. With a gaming floor I still enjoy, and bars to watch the sports at or have a drink at late at night.
(shrug)
I agree the Orleans is an all encompassing experience and affordable..(Fuddruckers in the food court ,,yeah baby)
dispute by a couple of goons. Never again.
Quote: EvenBobYeah, Vegas really sucks for shows.. Ever see
Wayne Newton? Good grief.
I don't know how old you think I am, but don't you need to be at least 60 to get in the door to that?
I've seen some cirque shows too. I enjoyed them. I also saw Blue Man Group, which I didn't particularly like. And, I saw Crazy Horse Paris at MGM before they got rid of it (that was not bad). Penn and Teller was better than any of them, IMO.
Now, I agree with you about Ricky Jay. If I had the chance to see him live, I'd go for sure. Anyone who is interested in magic at all and hasn't seen Deceptive Practices should, IMO (it's streaming on Netflix). It's a documentary about Ricky Jay; both interesting and entertaining (it shows some of his work)
I do agree the Ricky Jay movie was incredible.
Quote: boymimboGo find a CZR casino and earn about 100 points ($1000) through a slot machine with a player's card. Then check your TR account and check for reservations a couple of weeks liater. Voila, instant discounts.
But Luxor over Excalibur over Circus Circus. I'd rather stay at Beethoven's house than stay at Circus Circus, facepalms and all...
The weekend comp bonus rates are as follows:
Circus Circus 34,000
Excalibur 42,000
Luxor 48,000
MonteCarlo 81,000
NYNY 101,500
Mandalay Bay 115,500
MGM 122,500
Aria 215,000
Seriously, get yourself up to Monte Carlo if possible. They had a double XP weekend where you could level up pretty easily.
I've stayed at both Excalibur and Luxor within the past 5 years, both times when I was doing on-the-cheap business trips. Excalibur is aging but there's nothing wrong with it. It suits its target market. So does Circus Circus. It's your call whether you're part of that target market for each property.
But the Luxor is, in my opinion, no longer a safe building. The interior of the pyramid building has settled and the walkways and floors of the rooms are now sloped downward toward the central abyss. This is noticeable both when you're walking to your room and when you're in it. I vividly recall stepping out of the shower and looking down at the floor where a small puddle of water should have been because the curtain was slightly drawn back. Instead of a puddle, a small rivulet had formed running toward the front of the room. That is how sloped the floors are. If you're going to stay at the Luxor, do not stay in the pyramid hotel, stay in the other part.
field of magic.
Dutch illusionist Hans Klok became the custodian of Blackstone, Sr.'s famous "floating light bulb" illusion
after the death of Blackstone Jr.
Quote: beachbumbabsHave been watching Deceptive Practices off and on this afternoon (Ricky Jay doc from previous post). Very worth the time, thanks.
Yeah it really makes you wonder about playing a hand-dealt game in a casino huh? :)
