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We spend a lot of time at Vegas Pop dispensing ideas on how to spend the mythical millions of dollars you probably don't have. It makes sense, Vegas is a fantasy land where dropping $40,000 a night for the Hugh Hefner Sky Villa at the Palms Fantasy Tower or buying a $700K Koenigsegg at Caesars Palace are not big deals, for those who can afford it. For the rest of us, it's like assembling a Christmas wish list.

Today, we're going in a radically different direction. Today my friends, we're looking at the best places to find a deal in Vegas including where to eat, where to drink and where to have a good time.

If you didn't just win the World Series of Poker main event, then this story is not for you. For everyone else, here are ideas for Vegas on the cheap:

Where to Eat
Going back to caveman days, shrimp cocktail has been the currency for casinos to lure would-be patrons into their gambling halls. The main problem with the shellfish promotional plan is that Vegas is in the desert. Even if you sucked at the geography bee, you know there's no indigenous shrimp. This is not a general indictment on the Vegas shrimp game, but I've had some iffy shrimp cocktail experiences where the price of the tub o' shrimp had a direct correlation to my gastrointestinal well-being.

I prefer the prime rib deals where a slab of quality red meat will usually run you under $10. One of the finest slabs in town is at Binion's Coffee Shop downtown. You get that old-school Vegas vibe and plenty of meat. If you're South Strip, then the Coronado Cafe at South Point is the best value hands down. They have an eternal $9.95 special which includes the beef, French fries and a salad. The salad is a nice touch that makes you feel healthy.

If your party plans keep you out very late (or very early), graveyard specials provide ridiculous deals. After a night/morning at ghostbar or VooDoo Lounge, stop off at the Gold Coast between midnight and 6AM for $1.95 ham, eggs, hash browns and toast. If you're leaving Seamless around the same time, you can stop off at The Orleans for the $3.95 steak, eggs, hash browns and toast special. Check out Anthony Curtis' Las Vegas Advisor site for more graveyard deals.

Where to Drink
In an era where even some Off-Strip bars are charging $14 for a martini, the "Super Big Gulp" law of economics applies if you're looking for a drinking deal in Vegas. That law dictates that you look for the biggest container of alcohol you can find and buy it. Go ahead and skip the "half yards" and go for the full yard of cocktails or the alternate ginormous football-shaped jug. You'll spend around $25 bucks for a yard of adult Kool-Aid, but when compared to the $14 martini, the value is clear. Plus, after the strawberry daiquiri is long gone, these marvels of plastics engineering make classy additions to your kitchenware.

If you like your thrift with a little adventure, then definitely try one of the City's Best dive bars. or a smaller casino. The big resort casinos are in the luxury business which doesn't translate well into a dive bar concept so you have to go forth and explore to find a good deal.

In the dive bar genre, Champagnes Cafe is pure swank. In the smaller casino category, Casino Royale has dollar beers, but you have to take everything that comes with dollar beers like rowdier crowds. On one of my last cheap-beer expeditions, I encountered a man who was apparently unclear on proper intestinal gas expulsion etiquette and let's just say I only had about 25 cents of that dollar beer.

If you're looking for deals, flip on local TV when you get to your room and some of the smaller casinos run ads on their drink specials or you can also check out sites like cheapovegas.com.

Where to Have a Good Time
I'll get a lot of "Fletch is stupid" mail for this, but one of the best places to people watch is aboard the Las Vegas Monorail. It's relatively cheap (in some cases free) and you get an interesting look at the city and its visitors. By "city," I mean the Strip and by "visitors," I mean reality show-worthy individuals with no shame. My favorite is the mullet guy with the optional fanny pack that thinks "rock the train" is just as funny "rock the bus" was back on high school field trips.

Take the full tour Monorail tour and hop on at MGM Grand and wear a big pair of Jackie Onassis dark sunglasses for maximum voyeur capability.


For something more traditional, try one of the free shows. There's the good ol' pirate-themed Sirens of TI (above) which uses sex appeal to add to the value proposition of the free show. If you had the cast of 'Golden Girls' swashbuckling, the pedestrian crowds clogging the Strip sidewalk in front of Treasure Island would probably be thinner, but maybe not.

The free Parade in the Sky show at Rio has lost some of its luster over the last couple of years, but as a bonus while you're there, find one of the roving Chippendale's dancers for a hunky photo op. Your girlfriends at work (and maybe even your boyfriend) will be like, so jealous.

You can also find deals, coupons even, for shows where the show is not free, but with a buy-one-get-one free scheme, you can save money. I found this coupon for 'Bite' on the Las Vegas Leisure Guide so if a gothy, sexy vampire show is your thing, you're all set. Even Cirque du Soleil's 'Zumanity' is running ironically-priced ticket specials.

If you have found any really good Vegas deals you'd like to share, leave them on the comment board below. I'm off to smoke a cigar back in the glamorous life.

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