Just returned from a two night stay at the El Cortez on a comp I received in the mail.

We had a Queen Double in the Tower - Room 614 at the end of a hall. The room was huge! It was nicely appointed and very clean. The bathroom is very small, so if you need a big bathroom, don't stay here. It was quite adequate for the 3 of us tho.

We ate a Cafe Cortez for breakfast twice and dinner once. We thought the food was very good, with a very good selection. Service was a bit slow at times, but everyone that worked there was very helpful and friendly.

The casino is quite big and spread out. They have the usual table games, with Black Jack at $5 a hand. They have loads of new penny machines and video poker machines in all denominations. Their dollar and quarter slots are very, very old and there is almost NO selection in the quarter range. They really need to get these updated! Many of the older machines were very, very dirty. Maybe there are plans to get new machines and this might be why there is no upkeep on them, I'm not sure? I basically just played video poker, but really would have liked to play some quarter slots.

All in all, we had an excellent time! I certainly would stay there again and look forward to doing so on my next trip.

My husband and I stayed at the El Cortez in the Cabana Suites. The Cabana Suites are actually across the street from the casino but it's literally 40 steps to get from one to the other. Both have security posted outside at all times so I always felt safe even if I was coming or going without my hubby with me. We got a suite on the ground floor, and called to see if we could have a suite on an upper level...( I dont like being on the ground level). They gave us a free upgrade to a bigger room on the 5th floor and the rooms are newly remodeled, quiet and VERY comfortable. The staff was friendly and helpful and the casino is nice and everything is clean and comfortable. We ate breakfast at the cafe and it was decent food...not great, but not bad either. We stayed three nights, which we booked on hotels.com for $117.00! What a deal...we also got a free coupon from the hotel when we arrived for a free 2 night stay before December 28. Needless to say, we already booked our trip back. We will be bringing out two teens this time and requested rooms in the tower rooms section, which several people we gambled with and met said were really nice too, and they have two queens. The Cabana suites only have king beds. This is well worth the money and great value! It's also just a block from the Freemont street experience and all the downtown casinos and entertainment. I would recommend this hotel to anyone wanting to go to Vegas on a budget and really get a nice place to stay!!! Thanks El Cortez....we'll see you in December!!!

hotel is located 15 minute drive from The Strip. Rooms are okay for this price

Made the decision to stay here based on user pics and reviews from Trip Advisor, and we were happy we went. So, yeah... it's not the Palms, but we felt very welcomed by the staff, and you gotta stay 'classic Vegas' at least once in your life. Very friendly security staff, front desk, you name it. Also, we had a very honest housekeeper. My husband had lost his ring, and we didn't notice until we had left the hotel for the day. When we returned that evening, the ring (that she found in the pile of towels on the floor) was placed on the counter for us to find.
The tiny window in the shower that leads to the outside is just like the ones at the Gold Coast. Very strange, yet amusing at the same time! Classic.
The cafe had great food at a great price and we ended up eating there twice while we were there for three days.
Also enjoyed the fact that the walk from the garage to our room was much closer than the hike you gotta take when you're staying on the strip.
Overall, I would return to this hotel for sure!