I am staying at the Tropicana. I have never stayed on the main strip before. From the Tropicana which casino is the best from the walkways that lead from the Tropicana, MGM Grand, or Excaliber.

Has anyone played the Tropicana's casino?

If you are asking which is better between MGM Grand and Excalibur, the answer is MGM Grand.

This is based upon the niceness of the hotel/rooms/casino/sportsbook/poker room.

The excalibur is cool place and a place I would probably be found at based upon the availability of cheaper tables.

As for your hotel, the Tropicana would be comparable to Excalibur. It has a decent pool that even has "swim-up" blackjack that you can play from the water. It also has a really cool attraction/exhibit(or at least 2yrs ago it did) that is called "Bodies". It's a exhibit of dead human muscles/bones/tissues.

You'll also be real close to Hooters(dumpy), NYNY(not bad, overpriced), Luxor & Mandalay Bay

there is nothing cool about excalibur. seriously. nothing. (nor is there about your current location, but you seem to have the idea of "bed only" so that won't matter"

head to MGM or Mandalay from where you are.

I would go to the MGM. It is my favorite poker room in Vegas.

Tropicanna isn't bad. It is not the worst but not the best. Someone else said it right you won't be in the room much so it is really about having a place to crash.

Excalibur and Monte Carlo will probably have the lowest table limits.

I'm not a fan of MGM Grand, but that is mainly b/c every time I walk into the place, something is under construction.

If you want nice in that area, go to Mandalay Bay to gamble.

Why are you staying at the Trop? If you are looking for a cheap place to stay on the Strip, stay at Casino Royale. It is right across from Caesars and near Harrahs and the Flamingo.

I stayed at The Flamingo in June 2006 for a bachelor party. Good enough for a room. Absolutely the filthiest pool I've ever seen (except for The Ramada Inn in Dhahran).

I stayed at The Excalibur in 2006 and 2007. In June 2007, I stayed in one of the newly remodeled rooms. Pretty nice for the low $100s/night.

I stayed at the Mirage in 2007 and the Stratosphere in 2008. I haven't stayed at the MGM Grand since 2002. Anyway, a room is a room pretty much. The MGM room was really nice, but I wasn't paying for it. If I had to pay $300/night for that room, forget it.

You can have fun with friends at pretty much any of the casinos. I will say that some are more upscale (The Bellagio) and some are a little more downscale (Stratosphere).

Forgot to add that playing Hold 'Em at The Excalibur was the first time I've ever seen a "lady" be asked to leave for language. She was some white trash chick from Bakersfield and it was her wedding night. She had quite a mouth on her. Nice rack too, but not worth the trouble.

[This message has been edited by HollywoodBQ (edited 5/21/2009 6:32a).]

Everyone is going to have a different opinion of where to play and what the best casino is. It usually is based on where they've had the best luck. That's why I used to love playing at the Stardust, but Mr. Trump changed all that.

the best place to play is where you are most comfortable.

if that jam packed playing $1 craps, O'Shea's is perfect.

looking for baccarrat? Wynn private area.

blackjack with bikiniclad dealers? Mandalay pool

blackjack with locals? Palace Stations



[This message has been edited by BMX Bandit (edited 5/21/2009 11:36a).]

Good to hear about Excaliber and cheaper tables. I am there to play, but not lose it all at once.

Stayed at the Sahara 6 years ago and the room stunk. The casino was ok though.

Check out Vegas Message Board. The best source for current info on Vegas. Lots of awesome and knowledgeable people there.

http://www.vegasmessageboard.com/forums/

If you have to choose between playing at Excalibur or Tropicana, play at Trop. Excal has HORRIBLE rules (at least they do for blackjack). Excal is BJ pays 6:5, only double on certain numbers, etc etc. Trop has much better rules/odds and has $5 tables all night.

When I have to go to the strip to play, I play at Trop. You're walking distance from Hooters too. Same rules as Trop for the most part, less available tables.

I love playing blackjack at the Tropicana. Never stayed but played at the $5 tables and always had a good run if the dealer was friendly.

Trop and Sahara are old Vegas.