Tag: El Cortez
View All TagsVegas History / El Cortez / Fremont Street / Downtown / Downtown Vegas / → All Tags
It's The Historic El Cortez Now
Ten things you should know about the El Cortez? Make that eleven.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that the El Cortez has secured a place on the National Register of Historic Places:
Constructed in 1941, the El Cortez remains one of the oldest establishments on Fremont Street and the only one to continue operation under its original name.
EDC / Electric Daisy Carnival / Hotel Rates / Gold Spike / El Cortez / Artisan / Circus Circus / Orleans / Riviera / Hooters / Stratosphere / Golden Nugget / SpringHill Suites / Luxor / MGM Grand / Aria / Bellagio / → All Tags
A Look At Rates For Electric Daisy Carnival
Even though Electric Daisy Carnival isn't until the end of June (June 21-23), hotel rates are already significantly higher than they were for EDC this time last year.
If you're planning on attending this year's party, be sure to act quick! We've collected the initial rates below from some of the hotels we recommended last year. EDC also did everyone a solid when they partnered with a few of the bigger hotels, including Luxor, New York-New York, MGM Grand, Aria, and the Bellagio. You can check the discounted rates here. As of now, some of them are cheaper than the hotels below. For example, Circus Circus is cheaper if you go through the EDC website at $87/night, and a room at the Luxor is $135/night.
By the way, three-day passes to EDC are still available. They're priced at $500 for those over 21. Single day admissions aren't being offered this year, but a lay-a-way plan is!
Downtown Vegas / Fremont East / Downtown / El Cortez / Dive Casinos / Drinking / Gambling / Survival Strategies / Dining / → All Tags
10 Things You Should Know About Downtown's El Cortez
Downtown's El Cortez is the perfect example of a dive. It is really old, it smells like a grandma, and everything is really cheap. That said, it is absolutely one of our favorite places for cheap food, drinks, and gambling. Bugsy Siegel less famously owned this place at one time, too. Your money will go much farther here than that other casino he owned on The Strip.
Over this last weekend, we planted ourself in one of the hotel's Pavilion Rooms and took advantage of all the El Cortez had to offer. We had a great time and learned quite a few fun facts and survival strategies:
1. As we have mentioned before, El Cortez has 40% looser slots than the Clark County average. To us that means a twenty dollar bill lasts longer and brings us more free cocktails.
2. The main casino bar is actually a really cool place to people watch. We have met both really nice friendly tourists, and a ponytailed old man that, although unprovoked, yelled at us about the President until the bartender 86’ed him.
Downtown / Downtown Vegas / Las Vegas Club / Plaza / The D Hotel / Four Queens / Fremont Street / El Cortez / Gambling / Video Poker / Slots / → All Tags
How To Get Something For Nothing In Downtown Vegas
We would like to welcome our brand new VegasChatter contributer, Nick Holliday. A recent transplant from Chicago, Nick is firmly settled on the east side of Las Vegas. Nick spends most of his time and dollars as far from The Strip as he can since he works there all day. That means you can expect coverage of both off Strip and downtown finds. Nick loves punk rock, craft beer, decent whiskey, casinos, dive bars, and being comped which is fitting because, for his first post, he shows us how to turn nothing into something at the casinos of downtown Vegas.
There are so many possibilities when it comes to how a Vegas vacation will turn out. Maybe you win big and take some of the casinos’ cash with you. Maybe you “break even.” Like the majority of thrillseekers, you will probably party and gamble nonstop until your vacation bankroll is spent. There is always something going on in this town, so what’s a visitor with hardly any cash in their pocket do when they want to have a little fun in Las Vegas?
Fremont Street offers a ton of opportunity for the average small-time gambler. The great promotions, cheap food, and cheesy neon reminds us of a Las Vegas that we have only read about. Where the Strip is full of luxury resorts and high-end shopping malls, Fremont is all about the gambler. That sits right with this low roller.
Football / Contests / William Hill / Station Casinos / LVH / El Cortez / Riviera / Plaza / → All Tags
Are You Ready For Some Football... Contests?
Football season is right around the corner and the sportsbooks are getting us ready for the most popular sport to bet on by hosting pigskin contests. Now that you know how to bet each game, we have another way to get in on the action.
You know that the big boy of all football contests, the LVH SuperContest is accepting registrations now and their first every SuperContest weekend is next week. Well, Station Casinos and William Hill have some contests for you to join, too. These contests are considerably less expensive than the $1,500 it costs to joint the LVH SuperContest. Here's the scoop:
Downtown Vegas / Downtown / Eating / Restaurants / El Cortez / Steakhouses / The Flame / Triple George Grill / → All Tags
Downtown Dining: The Flame
We've never heard an extremely positive or extremely negative review about The Flame at El Cortez, but this writer is always up to try a new steakhouse and he's glad he did. Happiness doesn't come from the fact the steak was good (it wasn't), but this writer won enough playing craps to cover dinner for two and then some.
We weren't expecting the best steak in Vegas, but we did expect something good enough to walk away from smiling. We did do that, but it could have been because of the wine and our awesome waitress who laughed every time we clapped and said "Hercules, Hercules." Despeite our fun waitress, the next time we're downtown craving a moderately priced steak we'll take the five minute walk to Triple George.
Vegas on TV / The Cosmopolitan / Red Rock Resort / El Cortez / → All Tags
Travel Channel Hits Vegas With Three Choices, Tons of Criteria, And One Budget
Vegas on TV. The thought kind of consumes us. Whether it's a story that takes place today or yesterday, is food based or Jersey based. Admittedly, some shows consume us less than others (cough, GTL, cough). Throw Travel Channel into the Vegas & TV mix and that's a trio we can't pass up.
Travel Channel recently debuted a show called Top Spot that plunks couples into a travel destination with a set budget to spend on one of three vacation packages. Last night, the show touched down in, you guessed it, Las Vegas.
Pai Gow Poker / Gold Coast / El Cortez / Gambling / Tips / → All Tags
Why You Should Give Pai Gow Poker A Try
We love us a good Pai Gow Poker game, but we rarely play for a few reasons.
The main reason is that Pai Gow Poker isn't the most stimulating game. It has low volatility and one of the smallest advantages for the casino at just under 1.5%. The dealers are allowed to look at your cards and help you make a hand that will beat them. If your hand(s) don't beat or lose to a dealer, you'll end up with a push. No financial win. No financial loss.
Because of the low house edge, the casino will often charge a commission of 5% on your wins. Other things the low house edge leads to include low comp rating, higher limits on the strip (often $25) and a lot of ties, or pushes. Pushes aren't really fun if you want to gamble. When we gamble, we want to win! We want visions of big bucks coming our way.
Drinking / Gambling / Beer Pong / O'Sheas / Hooters / Bill's / Casino Royale / El Cortez / Plaza / Luxor / Excalibur / New York-New York / → All Tags
Where To Find O'Sheas Now That O'Sheas Is Closed
O'Sheas is no more.
The long-running casino closed its doors at noon Monday, April 30 to make way for The LINQ with promises to return again, some day. Until it does, many Vegas visitors are wondering where they can find cheap games, cheaper booze and, most of all, beer pong now. While these places can't replace O'Sheas, they just may hold you over until its return:
Cheap Table Games:
Blackjack
Hooters, El Cortez, Bill's: $3 minimum
Luxor, Excalibur, New York-New York, Casino Royale, Plaza: $5 minimum
Events / Food Trucks / Pop-Up Restaurants / Silverton / Fukuburger / Venetian / Palazzo / Epicurean Affair / Vegas Uncork'd / Bellagio / Caesars Palace / The Cosmopolitan / Mandalay Bay / Rain / The Palms / The Flame Steakhouse / El Cortez / Hot Dogs / First Food and Bar / → All Tags
Hunger Heaven: Foodie Fests, Championships, Qualifiers, Pop-Ups, Affairs, and More
This is what happens when we brainstorm story ideas before eating. For those about to eat, we're sorry. For everyone else that can't wait to eat, we salute you with an all almost (actually not even close if you can believe it) encompassing upcoming Las Vegas foodie event wrap-up.
LAS VEGAS' FIRST FOODIE FEST
Silverton Casino Hotel
Saturday, April 28 (noon to 11 p.m.) and Sunday, April 29 (noon to 9 p.m.)
Family friendly food and fun with over 30 gourmet food trucks, 15 food vendor booths, a farmer’s market, eating contests, beer garden, carnival rides and games, live chef demos, a tequila party tent, live bands, DJs, and after parties. Trucks you may know include White Rabbit Truck, Fuku Burger, Vizzi Truck, Devilicious and Mangia Mangia. Tickets are $7 in advance or $10 at the event. To buy said tickets or more info, visit Las Vegas Foodie Fest.
Downtown Vegas / Downtown / The Linq / The Cosmopolitan / Wynn / Palazzo / Marquee / El Cortez / Fremont Street / → All Tags
The Growing Separation of The Strip and Downtown Vegas
To many people Las Vegas is only made up of The Strip. Really, until you visit at least three times, it is. There's so much to see and do on The Strip that there isn't a need to leave. If you're into fine dining and clubbing and you stay at The Cosmopolitan or Wynn you may never leave your hotel for the weekend.
If you've been to Vegas a few times, your next stop is usually downtown to "Old Vegas" so you can see what Vegas used to look like. Downtown has always been more run down than The Strip. Age will do that to the best of us. In the past few years (five or so), downtown has started cleaning up. For us, that cleanup began with renovations at the El Cortez. While creating the new old Vegas, an arts district and a lot of cool new bars emerged. There's even a museum downtown now.
Downtown / Fitzgeralds / Golden Gate / Downtown Vegas / El Cortez / Renovations / Sigma Derby / → All Tags
Sigma Derby Coming To Downtown, And More Changes In Store
Last week, Vegas podcast Five Hundy By Midnight interviewed Derek Stevens, CEO and co-owner of Golden Gate and Fitzgeralds. The interview revealed a lot of updates on the two casinos, mostly surrounding Fitzgeralds, which we realized is the only two-story casino in Vegas. (Not something we ever thought about.)
The renovations to Fitzgeralds will take eight months from the last week of January with the first visible renovations being ready by the middle of March, in time for March Madness. The first major renovation will be to the bar on the first floor. It will be renovated so that it becomes the focal point of the casino. There will be another bar outside on Fremont Street so we can partake in one of our favorite pastimes - drinking outside.
The new changes will also bring go-go dancing, a la the party pits you see in many casinos. Upstairs will have a vintage feel as we've already revealed, and will house most of the video poker and slot machines. The thing many gamblers will be excited about it that Mr. Stevens confirms that there will be a Sigma Derby machine on the new second floor. Something VegasChatter fans have already caught wind of and are very excited about:
