Las Vegas · Backpacking
ON A BUDGET
Midweek rooms can undercut dorm beds, and the walking distances between casinos are twice what they look.
Hostels off the Strip
The small hostel stock sits downtown around Fremont East and at the northern top of the Strip, where rooms and beer both cost less.
What a day costs
Bed 30–55 USD, though midweek casino rooms sometimes beat that once you price the resort fee of 30–50 a night. Food 20–40 off-Strip.
Getting around cheap
The Deuce double-decker runs the Strip around the clock on a 24-hour pass of roughly 8 USD; the SDX express skips stops between the malls.
Free by day
The Bellagio fountains and conservatory, the Fremont Street canopy show after dark, the Flamingo wildlife garden and most casino spectacles cost nothing.
Where travellers meet
Fremont Street is the cheap crawl, hostel pool parties do the rest, and sportsbooks will seat anyone who orders a drink on a big game day.