Rating: 
Summary: Ignores or gives short Schrift to several obvious topics
Review: 1. May reflect the author or editor's own lack of interest in pro sports. Mentions that Vegas has pro baseball and hockey teams but inexplicably fails to provide any info about them (name of team, phone number, website and e-mail addresses, dates of season, ticket prices, name and location of arena or stadium, major-league affiliations). If many folks don't care about Vegas's spectator sports options, that's fine. But my family makes a point of visiting the local pro baseball & hockey teams wherever we travel in the US & Canada, and the author didn't put forth even minimal effort to inform us of our options.
2. The "Side Trips" chapter covers many interesting attractions, such as the Hoover Dam, Area 51, Red Rock Canyon & Lake Mead. But it makes no mention of Nevada's famous brothels (or infamous, depending on your point of view) -- some of which are in counties adjacent to Vegas/Clark County. If some readers find the brothels offensive or unappealing, that's fine. But the author should provide the information and let the reader decide whether to skip it or read it.
3. The guide has a "section" on Internet access, but doesn't bother to list even one Internet cafe (or coffeehouse with free Net access). How hard is that?
4. The accommodations section is fairly thorough, but misses a rather obvious property: the Marriott Grand Chateau Resort. It's large and right on the Strip - hard to miss. It was under construction long before the guide's publication date and occupancy starts in October '05.
Rating: 
Summary: A well done review
Review: All travel guides have the same problem: how to give the visitor(and sometimes even a resident) up to date information such as phone numbers and opening times, while offering useful maps and general advice, and wrapping it all up in a package that is worth reading. In other words, how to be both a book and a bulletin board. I think Mary Herczog has done a very impressive job here. The book is marvelously written, a book so funny and informative that you might enjoy reading it even if you live in Vegas or have no intention of ever setting foot there. That is important, because some of Frommer's guides have lots of numbers, but no narrative skills to tie them together. I should point out that two of the negative reviews of this book by other reviewers refer to a previous edition that I have not seen. This book does discuss the new(ish) Aladdin and other topics those reviewers said they could not find. The book spends about two thirds of its length on the Strip and its offerings, and the rest on non-resort offerings around town, which seemed about the right mix for me. Please note that not all hotels are covered, just a selection of the more prominent resorts. I personally would have preferred a general overview of the major casinos; instead the accomodations are reviewed in one section, the shows in another, the restaurants in yet another. All authors must make decisions, though. It's not all Mirage and Mandalay Bay, either: bookstores, strippers, and gay clubs get their own sections, and much else. All in a book so well written that you won't want to throw it out in 2003....
Rating:
Summary: Missing one amazing destination...
Review: Frommer's Las Vegas was the second travel book on Las Vegas that I have purchased. The First was the Discovery Channel's Insight Guide, which proved to be more history and color photos than travel advice. Frommer's is known for their "opinionated" and "honest" reviews of travel destinations. We'll this one is no exception. The book is laced with sarcastic tones and comments about the looks and feel of the casinos' and attractions in Vegas. The information is very personal and honest, to a point. The author Mary Herczog, is very opinionated about the feel of the places she visits. In a good sense, she lets you know about the space and attractiveness of each hotel and the feel of being there. But these are merely her opinions. Some of the places she finds distasteful and tacky, you might say magnificent! But never the less the whole book is very helpful in planning a trip to Las Vegas if you have never been before. Read again. Is helpful if you have never been to Las Vegas. Otherwise, you should have visited most of the major casino's there and decided for youself. The book is more of a Encylopedia of Las Vegas, you pay for the organization of information. Very well written, but very steep in bias. Note to Fellow MEN: This book is written from the perspective of a WOMAN(No Offense). A smokey, crowded and noisey casino to Mary Herczog might be heaven to some of us Male Wager-Holics. Overall the book is fun to read, informative, helpful in organizing addresses and phone numbers, insightful and interesting. Very opinionated, but good. Hope this helps.
Rating: 
Summary: Frommers is always consistent!
Review: I purchased this book for our second trip to Vegas. As always, I found Frommer's to-the-point opinions to be right on. We used their dining advice and were never disappointed. (Make SURE you try the Le Village Buffet at Paris). We also took their advice to get off of the Strip and sampled some excellent Thai food that we would have never known existed otherwise. We stayed at the Mirage and loved it!! Frommer's was right in calling it an old favorite. We will definitely stay there again.
I have only one complaint. Their reviews of nightlife were pretty good but they highly recommended Coyote Ugly. We had free tickets and did not pay the $15-20 cover charge to get in and were we ever glad. The place was nothing but a bunch of drunk bachelorettes dancing on the bar (well at least trying to dance). We never saw any of the Coyote Ugly girls we had heard so much about. But-to give Frommers the benefit of the doubt-we may have caught the place on a bad night.
Otherwise, great book. Not to sound cheesy, but I always feel like I get the most out of my vacation by doing a little Frommer's reading. Their guidebooks are by far the most organized out there. Have fun in Vegas!!!
Rating:
Summary: A well done review
Review: I was disappointed in this book. It doesn't offer a complete view of Vegas as some other books do. I was hoping for up to the minute casino and restaurant information, but this book didn't have all the restaurants, only a select few.
Rating:
Summary: If all you want is a brief overview, this is fine.... but...
Review: I was disappointed in this book. It doesn't offer a complete view of Vegas as some other books do. I was hoping for up to the minute casino and restaurant information, but this book didn't have all the restaurants, only a select few.
Rating:
Summary: Great guide if taken with a grain of salt
Review: Ms. Herczog is a wonderful writer who manages to make her guide entertaining as well as helpful. The guide is well organized and managed to save me quite a bit of cash in the first few pages...by planning around the major convention dates she listed, we got much better room rates. However, it does seem there are some areas where she is a bit less than objective. She raves about a restaurant, the Enigma Cafe, without letting us know that it's in a decidedly seedy little neighborhood where you don't feel quite safe (it also appears to have closed in 2000...but those things do happen all the time). She is perhaps a little too enamored of the Mirage...a great place for sure, but you do get to wonder if she's got an ownership stake it it. She has great tips on getting around and shows...though quite a few of the prices have raised since press time. I would have like to see a bit more info on the hotel pools...finding out which ones were heated would have been worth its weight in gold in March (from what I could see...the strip's best pools are at the Mandalay Bay...heated, beautiful, include "beach" and wave pool...and the rooms are fantastic, too)...however, since the Mandalay is so new, we can forgive the author for slighting this gem...the pools probably weren't open as of press time. In any event, keeping in mind that the book might be a little too subjective here and there, it's definitely worth the investment...you'll definitely get a lot more out of your trip if you read this guide first...and bring it with you.
Rating: 
Summary: outdated book
Review: My wife and I go to Las Vegas every year, so we more or less know how to get around there. But Las Vegas is one of the fastest growing areas in the Unites States, and the hotspots change on an almost daily basis. So we figured an updated travel guide would be helpful. Imagine my surprise when I opened the book, and on practically the first page, found that one of the "Spectacular Color Photos" was of the old facade of the MGM, and therefore couldn't have been taken in the last few years. We then flipped to the index, hoping to find information about the newest resort-casino on the strip, the new Aladdin (opened in 2000). Nothing. The Frommer's web site has no updates for this book. I don't know what their lead time is, but my feeling is that any book that stamps "2001" on its cover ought to have some currency. Although I'm sure little things have been updated here and there, anyone looking for a travel guide updated for 2001 will be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: outdated book
Review: My wife and I go to Las Vegas every year, so we more or less know how to get around there. But Las Vegas is one of the fastest growing areas in the Unites States, and the hotspots change on an almost daily basis. So we figured an updated travel guide would be helpful. Imagine my surprise when I opened the book, and on practically the first page, found that one of the "Spectacular Color Photos" was of the old facade of the MGM, and therefore couldn't have been taken in the last few years. We then flipped to the index, hoping to find information about the newest resort-casino on the strip, the new Aladdin (opened in 2000). Nothing. The Frommer's web site has no updates for this book. I don't know what their lead time is, but my feeling is that any book that stamps "2001" on its cover ought to have some currency. Although I'm sure little things have been updated here and there, anyone looking for a travel guide updated for 2001 will be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Gotta' Have It
Review: The time this saves you in phone calls and walking around for information is worth the cover price alone. If you love discounts, shows, shopping this is your best resource for the truth about what is worth doing. We got fantastic hotel accomodations and felt like we were in the right place at the right time throughout our stay. I will buy the most recent edition each time I return to Vegas. Yep, we'll absolutely be back!
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