Where to stay in Vegas?

I'm going to be in Los Vegas soon, and I'm trying to find somewhere inexpensive to stay. It's kind of overwhelming to look at the list of hotels...there are so many! Any recommendations on where to stay? We want to be within a mile or so of the main strip and $70/night or less.

The Stratusphere is about the only major hotel in that budget range. It is nice...though not posh. If you go off the strip there will be some Days Inn and the like in that price range.

Try this site: http://deals.hotels.com/hotels-Nevada/hotels-las-vegas/

Sometimes there are surprisingly good deals at some of the nicer hotels, depending, of course, on when you want to go.

Circus Circus and Excalibur are pretty inexpensive and are on either side of the strip.  Of course weekends are going to be more expensive no matter where you stay.  Also the monorail is a great way to get up and down the strip.

http://www.lvmonorail.com/

Don't stay at the Frontier!  DH and I spent a couple nights there on our honeymoon coming back from the LA Consulate.  We went there b/c we were on a budget and the price was right on the billboard.  Well, when we got inside we found out that the price they were advertising was for a room that did not include a bed!!    No, I am not kidding!  They had a fold-away couch. -Lovely 

We were tired of wandering so we took the more expensive room anyway.  The beds in our room were broken and had sharp points jabbing out.  The faucet in the bathtub kept coming off.  Our room was right by the elevator and the glass on the windows was so thin that we could hear all of the strip traffic all night. The internet was dial-up and basic amenities like a hairdryer and iron were not provided for.  We had considered getting a Motel 6 room, but ruled it out wanting a more authentically Vegas experience.  Now we wish we had taken the Motel 6 room.

Back in 2004, 2 of my friends and I spent 4 nights in Vegas at the beginning of June (Thursday-Sunday). Because the room prices were higher at the weekend than during the week, we couldn't afford to stay in the same hotel every night, so we spent Thursday night at Circus Circus, Friday and Saturday nights at Lady Luck (downtown) and Sunday night at the Excalibur - the costs were fairly reasonable that way and we got to experience 3 different hotels (Excalibur was my favourite).

We were on a budget of between $70 and $120 per room (all of us were in one room, so that was $23-$40 each).

Last time i was there, there was a Motel 6 next to the Tropicana... they're usually cheap. 

Circus Circus and Excalibur are pretty inexpensive and are on either side of the strip.  Of course weekends are going to be more expensive no matter where you stay.  Also the monorail is a great way to get up and down the strip.

http://www.lvmonorail.com/

I was going to mention Circus Circus as well my Best Friend & I stayed there last year it was a very nice hotel for what we paid for. they even have freshly made Krispy Kreme doughtnuts there as well in the hotel. we watched them make some doughtnuts after we went to a show & wanted a snack   

I stayed at Imperial Palace. it was part of a package with air and hotel but I just had a look and their standard rooms average around $60 per weeknight. Weekends vary but it looked like average of $100-$120 on Saturday and Sundays in summer. It was a decent room, clean hotel, great location and it has a pretty nice pool and casino.

We booked a deal through Expedia about 2 years ago...it was Airfare from JFK and 3 nights at the Bellagio and it cost us £257 in September. It was amazing. If you try something like Expedia you should be able to get a good deal.

Thanks for all the suggestions! We decided to stay at a cheap dinky hotel 1/2 a mile from the strip for our first two nights here. Everything was really expensive for Fri/Sat night. But alot of hotels have really good deals for Sunday or Monday night, so we're going to move to a nicer hotel. 

We stayed at the Monte Carlo the last time we went.. that was June 06. Word of the wise... June thru August is not typical tourist time in Vegas since it is SOOOO HOT! the heat is dry instead of the humid weather i'm used to but it was pretty rough. Also, we found the hotel plus the flight and a show for around $1500. Not that this helps much but we used Berkley Travel in Kutztown. Try going through a travel agent though. They can find you the whole package of tickets. hope this helps.

cheers,
jo

As a tip, if you're in one of the nicer hotels and there is anything (I mean ANYTHING) wrong, complain. They tend to comp you stuff if you do, or even give you an upgrade. My stepmom and I ended up staying in a luxury sweet because the internet wasn't working on the floor our first room was on.

(My stepmom is the queen of the upgrade)

My son is front desk manager at a big hotel in LV.
Rates can be low during this hot season.
I would never stay at the hotels that have been mentioned by some of you.
To me they are tacky.
Treasure Island/Mirage are good. Harrahs is good value and good location. I have a favorite, darn if I can remember its name. Its a French name. I will come back with it.

Its a French name. I will come back with it.

Paris?