I had a great meal at Bradley Ogden at Caesar's years ago, and also an OK one at Bobby Flay's.

Last time, though, I was so sick-feeling from the smoke just walking from the front door to the restaurant section, I didn't feel like eating. Ugh.

Caesar's is a dump, it's so dated and smoke smelly. It is definitely something to walk through and explore (it's MASSIVE), but don't stay there.

Mandalay Bay always struck me as having the nicest pool.

Red Rock Hotel and Casino -- it is off strip, but it is awesome. The pool is terrific. It has a huge movie theater, a spa, a huge bowling alley. The buffet is good and it has many other restaurants.

On strip, The Bellagio and The Venetian are my favorites.

Aria, which is beautiful, has been pretty generous with comp show deals lately. They must have a lot of unfilled rooms--you would think it would be hard to afford, but apparently it's not. (So I hear from family. I haven't stayed there myself, though their poker room and sports book are posh.)

You should know that Luxor and Excalibur suck. Stay clear of "name your own price" on priceline or too-good-to-be-true online specials at an unnamed "4-star, on-the-strip" hotel. You may end up at Luxor. No way is it 4 stars.

Mandalay Bay, however, is beautiful (just south of them, the southernmost big strip hotel). If a little remote.
MGM Grand is vast--you'll spend the whole vacation just figuring out how to walk out of the hotel. It's nice enough but nothing special. NY NY is touristy.

If you can afford them or find deals, Bellagio, Venetian, Aria, Wynn are all the top of the line.

Last time I was at Caesar's I felt like I couldn't breathe from the decades of smoke baked into the place. You couldn't get away from it anywhere.

I was just looking at pics of a place called Green Valley Resort in Henderson (just south of Vegas proper) and it looks NIIICE. Obama is going to Henderson to practice for the debate and I was trying to figure out where he would stay out of curiousity.

Last time we went USAir had nonstop flights from DCA and we could book a hotel/airfare package through USAir vacations for no more than it cost for a flight.

10:04, sorry, accidentally hit send too soon

Another con was it was a bit dated/tired looking...but it's been a few years, maybe they have refreshed it?

Are you traveling with or without kids?
Without kids, I try to stay off the strip. Most (if not all?) of the strip hotels allow smoking--even when we have requested a non smoking room, at check in they have told us that they are all out and we have been given a smoking room anyway. Also, to get ANYWHERE in the hotel, you have to walk through the casino, and kids aren't allowed on the casino floor--so you have to take care to walk on the perimeter and it's just a huge pain.

When we were there a few years ago (with kids) we were mostly there because we were doing a long road trip (cross country), and we wanted to see the Hoover Dam. We stayed at the Residence Inn Hughes center, which was about 1 mile from the strip.

Pros: Non smoking hotel
no casino
Free Breakfast
Lots of space--we had a 2 bedroom/2 bath room for about the same price as a cheap room (think Excalibur) on the strip
Pool was open more hours than the pools of strip hotels

Cons: Off the strip, we had to drive

Depends on your price range. However, if you want a moderately (to even cheap) priced hotel with a prime location and great pools, I'd go with the Flamingo. Yeah, yeah, it's not the fanciest. But, really, you cannot beat the mid-strip location or the price. Just make sure you use the hotel website and upgrade to one of the fancier rooms. The upgrade is worth it.

If you want to spend some more money and be a few steps off the hustle and bustle of the strip, I'd recommend Aria. Very modern, clean lines and beautiful views.

Looking for the true, garish, Las Vegas scene? Then you might want to look into the Wynn or Bellagio (both more expensive but all Vegas).

Yahoo travel usually has great airfare/hotel bundles. Definitely stay on the strip, somewhere between the Palazzo and Mandalay Bay. The Cosmo and Aria are the newest and are on the tram that connects to Bellagio. Caesars tends to be overpriced, but is well-located. We usually stay at Planet Hollywood. The location can't be beat, the rooms are nice, the vibe trends younger, and the prices aren't bad at all.

I liked the Venetian and the Bellagio best.

Looking for suggestions on a hotel in Vegas for first timers. The choices are overwhelming. Also, where is the best to find the best pricing - through the hotel directly or should I use orbitz, expedia, etc.