The Best Casinos to Visit on the Las Vegas Strip

My trip to Las Vegas consisted of hitting evey casino on the strip. Sadly, the new casino Aria was still in construction. They were slated to be open on the 16th of December 2009 and I left a week earlier. Here are the casinos you have to visit. Regardless of gambling, dining or shopping; these are THE casinos to be at.

Bellagio
1.) It was showcase in the movie Ocean' twelve. The tables and scenary are largely the same but the actual casino felt smaller. There is a reason why it was in the movie; it is has a great atmosphere and I happen to have won a lot of money.
2.) The water fountain outside the casino is the best free attraction on the strip; vertaking the lion habitat at the MGM Grand and the volcano eruption at the Mirage. It is displayed often ( every 15 minutes 7pm - midnight) and there are several versions (different water dancing along with different song playing)
3.) They have the best cirque du soliel "o". It costs a fortune but well worth the admission.
4.) The tables are nice. The dealers are talkative and smiling. There is a lack of help in the slot department as only two or three helpers on the floor and took 20 mins for them to fix and error on my machine.
4.) The buffet was 7 out of 10. The quail was delicious; freshly made and grilled. The dessert was plentiful. Ice cream is rather dull. Your typical buffet but with a fancy atmosphere.

Caesar Palace
1.) The Caesar Forums is pretty big. It is probably the size of your local mall. It was very linear and a good place to walk around/ not gambling. There are three shows in the forums but they are all bad and outdated.
2.) The buffet is 5 out of 10 stars. It is very typical and not worth the price. Nothing stands out in my opinion. I went because I was comp for the buffet.
3.) Gambling at caesar is a mix bag. Had a nice blackjack dealer. Nice and sweet lady but had a rude paigow dealer. Way too happy in taking my money and definitely faking it when he felt sorry for taking my money.
4.) Outside of Caesar is ridicous. It is huge. There are four buildings with the caesar logo and probably all hotels. Nice to walk around if it isn't the summer time.
5.) It is conveniently located in the middle of the strip, next to the Bellagio and the Mirage.

Venetian
1.) The newer casino on the strip. It has the largest shopping area. It is loosely based on Venice Italy as you could paid to ride in a fancy boat on the gondola canals. It looked kind of romantic. There are alot of shops. Much bigger than the caesar forums
2.) The casino is huge. I barely got around as it is basically one giant open space. Gambling was nice. The pitboss and the roulette dealers were nice enough to help me out ( clumsy with the shopping bags and winter jackets). Got me an extra chair, and ordered tea for me.
3.) The atmosphere was a bit dark for me personally.
4.) The selection of restaurants is immense. The Tao Restaurant is very similar to the NY version and it was also a night club.
5.) The Palazzo connects to the Venetian but nothing sticks out

Wynn/ Encore
I had the best time at the wynn. I won most of my money here. I won two tickets to La Reve ( retail 300) and I got comp for a buffet and offered to stay there overnight. My opinion might sound biased but the Wynn is THE place to be at.

1.) It is the newest casino at the time I was there. Aria didn't open up. The hippest club is there too, the line was way too long and just gave up and gamble again. The decor was very nice. A mix bag as it will have something for everyone unless you hate the color red or variations of red. They use red alot.
2.) The only free attraction is severly limted. Front row seats required a one drink minimum and eveyone else has to watch it behind a glass wall. View is okay but wish it was more open.
3.)The buffet at the wynn is the most expensive at 42 dollars but also the best I believe. 9 out of 10 stars. The decor is crazy with giant vases. There is an entire section of dessert. Everything is done right in person icluding creme brûlée and french crepes. The ice cream selection was top notch, I even think they could be homemade. There are alot of choices from sushi, Chinese, Build urbown pasta area. The one thing I didn't like was that here was not enough helpers at the buffet. A brand new turkey went uncut. Strings of sausages smelled so good that I cut it myself for a piece..
4.) Encore is a casino connecting to the Wynn. The atmosphere is totally different. It was like it was design by a hardcore Chinese person. Red is used alot as well as lanterns and various fluff in red color. I got lost and a pitboss who was off duty gladly walk us to the correct direction. They really need more sign placement.

Notables
MGM Grand
It aged pretty well despite being one of the older casinos. The lion habitat is still a great free attraction. There are also two baby cubs that are too adorable not to miss. Of course there is also the giant lion outside and from that angle, you can take pictures of the mini Stature of Libery from New York New York casino.
Treasure island
Second best cirque du soliel. Mystere. The sirens of ti/ pirate battle is still a classic but the rest of the casino is slowly being outdated. Stay for the show but for everything else, walk across to the Venetian
Mirage
Another casino that aged well. The Volcano is a classic. The one thing I hate was that the dolphin and shark exhibit is not free anymore. There is a charge just to get in because they had newborn animals.
Paris
Overall very nice. Definitely aged well. It is a very good place to take pictures of the Eiffel tour, Arc du triomphe and the fountain outside if you want a glimpse of Paris, France.
Rio
Technically not on the strip, there is a free shuttle from Paris to Rio. The show is a definite must see as it is free and also uses volunteers. PG-13 btw as the showgirls are dress beauitfully and non existant in some areas. The Seafood Buffet is the best seafood buffet on the strip. There is so much different variation of shrimp, crab legs and clams that I probably could have die from seafood overdose. Seafood Lovers 10 out of 10. Casual Buffet eaters 7 out of 10.
Mandalay Bay
One of the older casinos but aged very well. It is all the way south of the strip but the look of it is still classy. If you enjoy a less hectic, more civilized place to gamble; I would recommend playing here. The age group is older than the rest of the strip.
New York New York
I love the mini Brooklyn Bridge. That was about it.
O'Sheas
They have the best price on beer and mix drinks but it is way too crowded and way too many people tipsy or drunk. Great place jsut to hang out with random drunken people but for everything else, walk away. There are also a lot more smokers than i would perfer.

DO NOT GO Period
Tropicana - should be one of those casinos that has to be torn down and rebuild.
Imperial Palace- Barely found the entrance and way too dark to do anything
Monte Carlo - Becoming Old, very deserted
Harrahs - Old but the Flavors buffet is 7 out of 10. A lot of variety and the seafood is up there with Rio's Seafood (not in variety but in taste)
Ballys Really Old
Luxor/Excalibur - Really Really Old. The only reason you would visit these is if you visit Mandalay Bay.
Sands - No Comment
Casino Royale - Small, old but really for the people that perfer the old Vegas look.