Paid for coupon books, yes they are worth it.

These are coupon books that actually cost money to get the coupons. You may ask why would any frugal vacationer pay for coupons. I will gladly answer.... because we save more using the coupons than we actually spend to purchase the books. We buy these two every year and always receive enough benefit from them in $$$ savings to more than pay for them.The one on the left is the American Casino Guide and can generally be purchased on Amazon for under $13 a list of the coupons here American Casino Guide there are coupons for many casinos throughout the US, we use the ones listed for Nevada - Las Vegas. The book on the right is from the Las Vegas Advisor web site. This coupon book is a little more pricey but this book comes with membership benefits including access to the forums which are a wealth of knowledge for visitors and locals alike. The cost of this online membership + coupon book is $37/year, there is also a hard copy membership + coupons for $50/year although we have never paid for this option. A list of their coupons Las Vegas Advisor. It is important to note that we always rent a car while in Las Vegas and are able to get the maximum benefit of the coupons by having one as most of the coupons are for off strip casinos. If you are staying at a Casino on the strip and not renting a car it would be hard to use enough of the coupons to offset the cost.

Shows in Las Vegas

I believe that Las Vegas is the entertainment capital of the world. There is so much to do and see even if you don't gamble. We try to take in at least one BIG show during each of our trips and as many cheapo shows that we can fit in. Big Name entertainment does not come cheap in Las Vegas so this is an item that we always budget for. If its one of the very popular shows tickets may need to be purchased several weeks in advance. I love the Cirque du Soleil shows. We have seen Mystere, Ka and Beatles Love (we actually got to see the first public show opening night). We won tickets to Stomp on a free pull slot machine at Planet Holloywood Casino promotions. I won tickets to see Monty Python's Spamalot at Wynn from an internet sweepstakes from Casino Travel News. When Rosanne Barr was doing her one woman show at NYNY we actually bought tickets to see this show that was way less than what I expected. There are 1/2 price ticket brockers in Vegas and some prices are just discounted and not 1/2 price, although we have never purchased tickets from them that is a way to see a show on a budget. Don't expect to get tickets to "O" or Le Reve there but I have seen Mystere & Ka tickets heavily discounted. There are lots of one drink minium shows (you have to buy at least one drink and see the show for free), however be aware we have paid anywhere from 6.95 - 9.99 for that one drink and thats each person. You could order simply a fountain cola and pay the same price as an alcoholic beverage. Please note that your bartender or server will still expect a service tip even though you are over paying for this beverage. Tipping in Las Vegas thats a whole new future posting. There are also alot of BOGO free coupons in the local newspaper and the visitor magazines for comedy shows.

All rooms this trip comped, that means FREE!

We just found an offer for one of our past play casinos (The Orlean's) for a free night for May 24th (Sunday before Memorial Day). Actually it was for 2 nights free but we only needed one because we already have the other 5 nights comped already. That Sunday is always a hard night for us to get for free because of the long holiday weekend. This Casino is also giving us $10 in free eats as part of the room offer so indeed they are paying us to stay woo hoo! We so love to gamble at this place too because of the wide open spaces, clean air and good pay video poker. So we will only be staying at one new (never stayed before) casino this trip. Thanks Orlean's, Rio and Plaza

Renting a car, staying off strip

We always rent a car when we are in Vegas initially because it allowed us to book a cheaper room off the strip. Las Vegas has always been one of the cheapest places to rent a car. Prices are up because of the daily LVCRF (Las Vegas car rental fee). In my opinion, most of the rooms that we have slept in are very similar with the exception of downtown. SEE MY ROOM PICKS RINNING DOWN THE RIGHT SIDE OF THIS PAGE. My guess is that visiting gamblers gamble more in the casino where they are staying. Casino's have to stay up to date on rooms to continue generating business. We have been known to sleep in three different hotels during our 6 day trip. We are actually staying in three this trip. Some might say I would hate that (my husband did initially) but the way I look at it is I spend very little time in my room, a daily shower and sleep and if casino A will give me 3 night and Casino B will give me 2 nights free, I'll take it. I take any free rooms, meals or casino play that I am offered. These are comps and Las Vegas is full of them but they aren't actually free, usually based on play ($$$ spent gambling) at their establishment.