In spite of the Orleans being mostly considered a locals casino, one of many that is primarily aimed at the local population of Las Vegas, it is still a large and impressive property, with 1,885 hotel rooms and a 135,000 square foot casino.
Normally, having a hotel with almost 2,000 rooms would make it a very big one indeed, and therefore suggesting that they do get a lot of travelers, anywhere else but Las Vegas that is. This barely places them in the top 30 as far as hotels go in this city, and they do indeed get a lot of walk up traffic here.
That’s certainly not a bad thing though as if the locals like visiting your casino, many of which work for casino hotels themselves, and also have a lot of local knowledge that tourists generally don’t have, well that does say something for you.
The Orleans is owned and operated by Boyd Gaming, which do own quite a few smaller casinos, over 30 in total, but on the other hand they run the Borgata in Atlantic City, so they are no stranger to the larger casinos either.
The Orleans is Boyd Gaming’s signature property in Las Vegas, and was completed in 1996. It offers Las Vegas guests and residents a real taste of New Orleans, complete with a French Quarter look, Mardi Gras masks hanging from the ceiling, and even alligator shaped doorknobs.
The Orleans got off to a pretty rocky start during its first couple of years, but the company didn’t give up on it, and instead poured more money into the project with a major expansion. More expansions came later, and the place has settled in nicely as a successful casino hotel.
In 2003, the Orleans Arena was added, and few casinos in Las Vegas can boast a 9,500 seat arena on their casino property In fact, only one of them has a bigger one, the MGM Grand.
This very large arena allows the Orleans to attract a lot bigger entertainment and shows than a property this size normally would, as well as host several local sports teams, including hosting some games for the UNLV basketball team when their arena is unavailable for a game.
Guests here are also treated to a free shuttle ride to the huge shopping center The Forums at Caesar’s Palace, as well as to their sister hotel casino, the Gold Coast Hotel.
The Property at the Orleans Las Vegas
These accommodations begin with discounted rates, starting at only $40 a night. This is much cheaper than a similar hotel room at a real New Orleans casino, which will cost you four times as much. This is still Las Vegas, where the deals are much bigger, but even in this city, that’s one that’s difficult to beat. Deals like this are rare.
The standard rooms available, either a 450 square foot deluxe king or a deluxe two queens, include a variety of amenities, such as 24 hour room service, in room hair dryer, ironing board with iron, coffee maker, and safe. You could arrange for a fridge in room at additional charge. The coffee maker is state of the art.
One and two bedroom suites can also be booked, as well as the 1,800 square foot New Orleans Suite or the 2,500 square foot Presidential Suite. If you want one of these suites here you need to book well ahead, since they are in high demand. Planning early is crucial.
Those who like fine dining will notice 2 selections here, the Prime Rib Loft, specializing in delicious prime rib, and Alder and Birch, who serve up excellent steaks and delightful cocktails. They have special offers every weekend.
Casual diners have 5 different restaurants to pick from, including the French Market Buffet, Big Al’s Oyster Bar, T.G.I. Friday’s, the Courtyard Café, and Ondori Asian Kitchen. Service here is remarkably fast.
There are seven quick bite spots here, where you might grab a burger at Fuddruckers, a tasty sub at Subway, candy at Rocky Mountain Chocolate, Italian fast food at Sbarro, smooth ice cream at Baskin Robbins, coffee at Java Vegas, and a nice snack at their bowling alley. Options are plentiful.
The bowling alley here is enormous, with 70 lanes. There’s also an exciting arcade, a kids play center, and an 18 theater movie house. Families love this place.
In addition to the Orleans Arena, they also present entertainment at the Orleans Showroom, their 850 seat theater, as well as at the Bourbon Street Cabaret. They also offer meeting and convention facilities and a versatile business center. Events are held frequently.
There’s also the Spa Orleans, as well as a barber shop and beauty salon on location.
The Casino at the Orleans
This is one of the more spacious casinos in Las Vegas, with 135,000 square feet of gaming space. It has won several awards, including Casino Player’s Best of Gaming award.
Slots are king here, and there are few casinos in Vegas with more. Their 2,600 slot and video gaming machines will provide slot, video poker, and video keno lovers with all of the action that they can handle. They are particularly known for their array of penny slots, and their high limit slot salon is indeed a salon, and comes with its own private lounge worthy of old time New Orleans.
They also have a good selection of table games here, including Blackjack, Craps, Roulette, Pai Gow Poker, Baccarat, Let it Ride, and Three Card Poker. They also roll out Blackjack tournaments twice daily.
Their poker room in particular is impressive here, and overall this is one of the better poker rooms in the city, which has been recently upgraded with new tables and comfortable leather chairs. They have been named Best Poker Room in Las Vegas by readers of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, and with all of the great poker rooms in the city, that is really saying something.
No Las Vegas casino would be complete without a sports and race book, and they have both here, with state of the art facilities. Traditional keno drawings are also available here, in addition to the video keno in their slots area.
Players also get hooked up with Boyd Gaming’s B Connected rewards program, which is linked to all of the company’s properties around the country.
The Orleans may not be the best known casino hotel in Las Vegas, but it is a pretty good spot, and you don’t have to be a local to play here.