I was feeling down after Arizona blew it in the opening round of the NCAA tournament. My bracket appeared to be busted leaving me with no desire to bet anymore. With no desire to gamble, the only other thing to do in Vegas is drink. Since it was St. Patrick’s Day, I knew there would not be a shortage of strangers who would drink with me and not pass judgment.
Instead of staying on the Strip, I went to Fremont Street for the first time. Fremont Street was the first paved road in Las Vegas and is the set for many Hollywood movies (see Fremont’s Wiki page for that list). Fremont Street was also where TPOL’s CNN interview with Richard Quest was supposed to be filmed but it was too crowded.
When I got there, I was amazed at how cheap everything was. Gone were the $20 drinks from Hakkasan. Enter the drink specials that were comparable to Bourbon Street. Expensive food was replaced by affordable alternatives. Even the Elvis impersonator wanted less for a picture. Relishing in my transition from busted to baller, I audaciously ordered a doppio from Starbucks without asking the price. At $4.28, that was literally the world’s most expensive Starbucks espresso.
While I had a good time, I doubt that I would return. Partying in Fremont Street is the equivalent of moving to Astoria. You might save a bunch of money, but if you’re going to move to NY, move to the City, not a suburb off the strip.
I have to admit that I’m a big fan of Fremont Street. It’s a bit less Disneyfied than the strip. Also, if your luck sucks, you can walk next door in 5 minutes. It tends to be easier to get a drink, too, and food is a good bit cheaper. The zip line is pretty awesome as well.
Forgot to take a pic of the zipline. Crazy how normally priced everything is.
The gambling is so much better downtown. Easy to find 3/2 blackjack at low limits, craps at 10x/20x odds instead of Strip standard 3x/4x/5x, the slots are looser. You can get a cabana all day at Downtown Grand for $300 in food/beverage (try THAT at a Strip hotel). There’s good dining (EAT, Carson Kitchen) and drinking (Atomic Liquors, Downtown Cocktail Room, Laundry Room, Banger Brewing) if you go to East Fremont a few blocks away.
I would concur that it very obviously isn’t the Strip. If you’re into marble bathrooms, trendy nightclubs that charge $24 a drink, and huge lazy river/pool complexes, it’s not going to work for you. But there’s a lot of the time where I don’t want to piss money and time away on the Strip, so I go downtown.
I can dig it!
Fremont Street is amazing at night. The light show in the ceiling makes the trip uptown worth it, IMO.