I have never suggested on this blog the best resorts to stay in Vegas. It seems self-evident that it really is about dollars. Obviously, a family with children may enjoy Circus Circus more than someone else who might find the older property only a great place to gag on the smell of stale cigarettes. But the Strip is meant to be explored; you can stay at Bellagio and still head to Circus Circus with the kids for a brief visit.

The problem is really money. How much do you want to spend for a hotel room you may not spend much time at during your vacation? And, as many travel writers have pointed out, warehousing yourself on the Strip has never been cheaper. If you want to fork out around $35, you can probably find a room at, say, Imperial Palace on a weeknight.  But  the plunge in room rates so dramatically over the last six months has meant that, for the first time, even the most luxurious hotels in Vegas can be rented at unbelievably low rates. So, I have a new hobby. I love luxury resort bargain shopping for staycations. You will get more out of this practice than I do, because the offers and specials really are geared to bringing tourists here. Also, the discount potential increases the more nights you stay at a resort, and I am going places only  for a single night.

The goal for me is to find a room at a top-tier resort for $100 or less a night. My list of top tier includes: Wynn, Encore, Bellagio, Mandalay Bay, Venetian, Palazzo and Mirage. I have left off Trump as it is a nongaming property and Four Seasons, which is a nongaming hotel and part of Mandalay Bay. I admit this list is subjective. The Mirage, for example, stands out as a hotel where some would disagree with my assigning it to the top rank. My reasoning is that thanks to the nightclub Jet, and entertainment that includes two hot shows ("Terry Fator" and Cirque's "Love"), Mirage has become a destination resort for many. On the other hand, I left off Caesars because I think the older property needs some work, including fixing up and cleaning up, before being as comfortable a place to stay as its newer competitors..

The No. 1 rule for luxury bargain hunting: Be flexible about dates in general and avoid weekends in particular.

That last part might be difficult for people looking for a weekend getaway. But consider the price difference in the basic Web rate for Mandalay Bay on a weeknight compared with a weekend. For $110 you can have a room on Thursday, April 23. But if you want the same room on Saturday, two days later, you will have to pay $350. And, that isn't the final twist. Saturday, April 25, is marked as a "No Arrival" day for Mandalay Bay. That means you would have to arrive at least a day before -- that extra Friday night will cost you an additional $210. 

Sometimes Sunday, but usually Tuesday and Wednesday seem the days to pick up the best values. I would plan a Sunday to Wednesday vacation. There is plenty to do in Vegas 24/7, so don't worry about the town being closed. The numbers change and move swiftly right now on room rates, so check back at resort sites frequently if you don't find a rate you like. But an hour on the Web should allow anyone with a flexible schedule and minimal effort to find a night  to stay at any luxury hotel on the Strip for around $150. And if you want to stay more than one night, you should be able to make that number go down. That is fairly easy to do. So all the rest is fighting over about $50 or less a weeknight.

For me the challenge remains the $100 room. Right now they are easy to find at a great hotel like Mandalay Bay. The key though is to be flexible. I concede I have not found a night at Wynn or Encore for $100 -- yet. For now Steve Wynn's customer service reputation makes me happy to pay a little extra for his properties. Or, I may find a night at Bellagio for $129 and decide I am reaching diminishing returns to save $29. But here is where you have an advantage: I am looking for only the best room prices. And since room rates are all I care about, there is nothing the resort can do that sweetens the deal for me. But who goes to Vegas to stay in a hotel room, even a luxury one, except a resident? You are probably here to do things; right now the resorts are putting together packages along with these amazing room rates where you can factor in discounts on food, shows, golf, spas or credits that can be used anywhere in the resort. Again, that is along with the low room rate.

So, instead of trying to find the cheapest room on the Strip, why not consider getting the most luxurious room on the cheap?

Photo: Sarah Gerke