Booked on Travelworm ... By far the cheapest hotel in Vegas at $140 for 3 nights on a very busy weekend (from what I understand, $90 for 3 nights isn't uncommon at the Spike)

PARKING: There are two lots; one just to the right of the Gold Spike, and one behind it. The one to the right is flanked by Ogden Road, Las Vegas Blvd, and another motel. Security periodically walks this lot. The back lot is right in front of the security trailer and seemed more secure to me. The two guards I talked to were both friendly. Parking passes are required, and they seemed to chase off loiterers. I did not feel unsafe leaving valuables here.

CASINO: The casino is small, and has only electronic machines. There are no table games. There is a smoky aroma to the whole place, but nowhere near where the other reviews are making it out to be. If you've ever gone into the home of someone who smokes indoors, its like that. The jackpots are small; at one point, they announced the winner of a progressive slot machine at $211. There are two entrances, with a security booth between them. The bar is to the far right, the diner to the rear-right, and the hotel check in directly in the middle of the casino and all the way towards the back. I gambled about $40 here and the odds seemed pretty bad. There are a lot of locals, but most are friendly blue-collar folks looking for some cheap gaming. The casino has a "Copper Mine," which is actual slot/video machines that take pennies. There is a soda machine and a snack machine, and waitresses dressed in regular street clothing were walking around comping drinks.

BAR: The bar is pretty small, but the allure is that it's dirt cheap. 15oz Coors draft is $1. They also offer $1 Pucker- or flavored Vodka shots. They offer Pina Coladas and Daquiris for $1 as well, each about 12oz in a plastic cup. They are a full bar, so you can order about anything you want, but for the price i'd stick with the dollar menu. You won't find drinks any cheaper on Fremont Street or on the Strip

DINER: The diner at the Gold Spike is _awesome_. They're 24 hours and serve basic but hearty food. The first night I stayed there, i went down for the "Ham Steak and Eggs" meal which was $2.99. The ham steak measured probably 10-12 inches across, with two eggs, two pieces of toast, and hash browns. For under 3 bucks, thats a steal. The second night I had their breakfast special, which was like the other, but came with two huge sausage patties instead of ham, and was $1.99. I ordered both of these between 2 and 3am, and the cook and cashier were both very polite. The food was delicious, and I would eat there again without hesitation. They also serve spaghetti, burgers, hot dogs, fish and chips, and a few other 'American' style foods.

HOTEL ROOM: The hotel room was spartan but clean; if you've stayed at a Motel 6 or a Super 8, this was a step up (albeit a small step). There is a small table with two chairs, a large king-sized bed (2 queens in some rooms), two mini-closets, a three-drawer dresser, and a 19" television which only picks up about 5 local stations. There is also a desk and chair, but no internet access or writing tablets/pens. The window does open about 8 inches for circulation, and the air conditioning unit worked just fine. Flanking each side of the bed were small tables, which both had a lamp on them, and a telephone on one. I did not use the phone so i cannot comment on the clarity or reliability. The carpet is pretty run down and the paint isnt exactly gleaming, but the room was very clean and presentable upon check-in. I saw no bugs or grime, and the bathroom was clean and stocked with an extra roll of toilet paper, two bars of soap, a bottle of shampoo, and two of each: towels/handtowels/washclothes. From my room (501; 5th floor, farthest room on the left) i had a view of Ogden Road, and the Fremont Hotel. I heard very minimal noise from surrounding rooms, and the doors do have 2 locks; a chain lock and a deadbolt. I felt very secure in the room the entire stay. With some new carpet and new paint the room would have looked awesome. The maid was friendly and made a point to learn my name and asked me each morning if I'd like my room made up, as she was usually a room or two down when i left to go gamble.

SURROUNDINGS: One block over on 3rd street and Ogden there's a great bar called "Sidebar" which is pretty swanky for this area. Next to it is an awesome restraunt for burgers, Triple George, and near that is a biker bar called Hogs and Heiffers. Lots of action and people around this little strip of bars, and I spent a good portion of my nights there. A 3 minute walk from the casino lobby gets you to Fremont Street. Left on Fremont is Hennessey's Bar, which is also a great irish pub. Jillian's is across from Hennessey's if you're in to pool or bowling.

CONCLUSION:

$29 a night? Sign me up. Cheap and excellent food, dirt cheap drinks, centrally located, and safe. The Spike isn't for people who like to be pampered; don't expect room service or lavish rooms. But, if you can handle self sufficiency and dont want to pay too much, the Spike is for you. I will absolutely stay here again.

We were splitting our trip between Vegas and Laughlin and decided that this place was cheap and worth a try. We have always stayed on the strip in the past and were curious about downtown so it worked out well.

When we got there they put us in a standard room, although I had booked a "suite". After going back down and talking to the 1 person doing registrations they put us in the right room. To apologize for the error they charged me the cheaper rate for the 4 nights that we were there.

The room itself was on the threadbare side. It was well worn but clean. Could certainly do with a coat of paint and some new carpet but... The room was fairly large with a balcony, not much of a view though. They were also putting new mattresses in the rooms while we were there.

The casino was dirty with a fairly rough looking bunch gambling in there. While my wife didn't like it we had no troubles at all. They also have several security guards around all of the time. We even won a few bucks on their machines.

The diner has seen better days but if you are a little adventurous the food can't be beat at their prices. Real plates would be nicer than the paper ones that they use but oh well.

The location is only a couple blocks from Fremont Street but with the Lady Luck closed they are fairly dark blocks at night. That being said we made the trip several times on foot with no problems. In fact, we had more people stopping us for change on the strip than downtown.

Finally the parking. While the lot is small and behind the hotel they have cameras and security in the lot most of the time. Plus, on the weekends and some nights, they have a guard in the lot making sure that you are gambling or staying at the hotel before they let you park. As a result we always had a parking spot.

So to sum it all up we had a good time and would certainly consider staying here again if we were staying downtown. This hotel casino certainly isn't for everyone but if you have a sense of adventure it might be worth a try.

Dont get sacred away from a truely cheap place to stay in downtown Vegas. The rates monday thru thursday arent much of a deal but on the weekends, when everbody else jacks up thier room rates by $125 a nite the SPIKE SHINES. The Casino is very seedy and dump, but my room was clean and fair. TV remote was missing but there was plenty of hot water and a comfortable bed. Plenty of nice security people and checkin and checkout was simple. I will stay at the spike again.

Picked it as a cheap place to stay. Staff was great, the room as good as any budget hotel. Every one was happy with the hotel (3 friends were with me).

An example of the service the staff picked up our scattered shoes and put the pairs nice and orderly in the closet. Something I have not seen at the $200+/nights hotels.

Also the view from the suite was really good.

I can only guess people giving the poor reviews have never stayed in a Super8, or some how figured that for $49 a night they were getting a some suite at the Rio.

Would I go back again.... I'm going back in March 2007!