Though we do not spend much time Downtown, the El Cortez is always worth a visit primarily due to the Flame Steakhouse. The restaurant maintains an old school vibe. Classic steakhouse fare is offered plus some seafood specialties that include Florida stone crab claws (Oct-May) and walleye pike. Though the menu is ala carte, it is reasonably priced and the availability of coupons makes it a bargain play. My favorite side dish is the creamed corn. Those staying at the El Cortez receive a coupon good for a bottle of wine at check-in.

Great casino and hotel, especially with the ACG coupons. We won money on slot play and table games, great food, great service. Large rooms if you opt for tower room, nice that you need room key card to operate the elevator.

This place is not bad if you like the old style vegas feeling. Although there are not many table games, there always seems to be a seat available for us. I used to go the the cafe a lot until they told my dad he couldn't wear his tank top in the summer. I could understand the Flame but not the regular restaurant.

Rooms are O.K. - even after the remodel, don't assume it is awesome. But it is better. Nicest rooms are in the Cabana Suite, but be smart and make sure you are in an upgraded room over in the "Suites" otherwise your room will feel more like the Cabana Closet. Wife refuses to stay here, she hates having to cross the street after dark - especially when the posted security guard is caught up doing things other than his job (flirting with the ladies appears to be a priority). As for the rooms in the hotel, stay away from the vintage rooms unless you truly don't know where the homeless shelter is. Tower rooms are O.K., but their last remodel might as well been decades ago as their room inventory is ridden hard.

Casino is the reason to go. Slots are the best in Vegas, and tables are frequent and popular. Maybe too popular as sometimes you will have to be patient, especially on the lower end .25 cent and .50 banking games. Sports Book has heavy traffic. Keno but no Bingo. Players Club - shockingly - is only So So, fairly stingy with free play and increasingly more stingy with free rooms and food (not sure why given that they are not all that special).

Food is still good and reasonably priced. But it too used to be better.

Cortez is still an above average choice for the Downtown Gambler on a budget.

When we go to Vegas we like to stay downtown, we love the old-style Vegas. On our last trip we decided to try the El Cortez and we were very pleased with every part of our stay. The hotel rooms are adorable and very retro. Their steak house is divine and the slots are pretty loose. The price was the best deal we have ever had in Vegas. Try it, you will be amazed!

Great place to stay for budget minded. Used ACG coupon last year for 2 for 1 vintage room,$30 total. This year upgraded to tower room for $50 total, well worth the extra cost. Large room, sitting room with sofa, comfortable bed. I'm a poker player but I used the $10 free slot play coupon and won $20. Short safe walk from under the canopy at the Fremont Street Experience. Great staff!

I happen to be paralyzed and in a wheelchair, but fly out several times a year to enjoy Downtown Vegas which for me is much more accessible, convenient and safer than getting around the Strip. I often venture into casinos alone as my friends do not share my interest in sportsbook wagering and I can only sit with them at 21 table for a couple of hours before I get restless.

The El Cortez is one of my two preferred Downtown Vegas properties for several reason. It has one of the best sportsbooks managed by a great guy Frankie and a terrific staff who are always friendly and polite. The El Cortez Sportsbook also awards comps on sports wagering which few others do and is always generous with free drink tickets to use at any the hotel bars.

El Cortez also rates high in my books for table games -- and not just because they offer single and double-deck 21 that pay 3:2 on Blackjack. But more important for someone such as myself who is in a wheelchair, they have several low tables that make it much easier to read the cards and manage the chips.

The El Cortez also has nice, large rooms in the Tower and offeres a decent coupon book with some extra perks.

Everyone is always quick to remember me and say hello -- it seems like they have had the same bellman for years and the security guards are visible & helpful.

The selection of food at the El Cortez is also nice from the inexpensive & healthy Subway to a decent coffee shop to a very nice steakhouse that is one of the best dining bargains in Las Vegas.

It is just a short stroll to the rest of the Downtown casinos along Fremont Street and the short stretch has really improved with is selection of bars and restaurants.

Even if I do not always stay at the El Cortez, I definitely so my fair share of gambling and eating there.

If you enjoy the "old Las Vegas" feel or are looking for some value then El Cortez is the place for you. You can find single deck $5 blackjack games with good odds and you don't have to deal with half the tourist on the strip that have just seen the game on tv but never played it. The steakhouse is also a great value for the quality and quantity that you get. Historically it's pretty cool to still see a casino that looks like the pictures from 40 yrs ago in this day and age of bigger and better. I've never left disappointed and always look forward to going back.

hi i'm bob from coal township PA. this is my second home in las vegas, been staying at the el coetez since 1983 .they know how to make you feel at home.food gaming is great if you like to drink this is the place,service is great. rooms are very clean and comfortable. the strip is a jip, we rent a car and park at the hotel it's very easy to get around not like the strip. no need to go to the strip. Fremont st. is where it's at. before you go to vegas make sure you get (THE AMERICAN-CASINO GUIDE) those coupons come in handy. good luck BOB

Always a great time at El Cortez. I use our American Casino Guide coupon for free slot play while my husband plays the quarter roulette. We celebrated our anniversary in their wonderful steak house and had excellent food and service. It is not fancy like places on the strip, but you get a good gamble and great service. We drive, so appreciate the on site parking.

The most friendly gambling house of whole Vegas!
We just loved it in the downtown - living on the strip.

Ok, so anybody who knows much about the El Cortez knows it has a colorful history. It is currently the longest running casino/hotel in Las Vegas that is much like the same as it was 50 years ago. It's downtown in an area that many might not want to visit. We decided to give it a whirl and at first, regretted out decision. The place is definitely "Old Vegas" all the way. The woodwork, the bars, gaming area, everything is classic and I liked that. But with that came a lot of smoke and a substantial number of gamblers who I wouldn't want to meet in the alley. We tried to eat at the restaurant and in spite of the fact that there was nobody in line in front of us, we finally gave up after about 15 minutes of the hostess telling us she'd be right with us while she continued to seat people who arrived behind and after us. That was very strange. Then we played some blackjack and I have never seen a dealer act so rude. Not to us, but there was a lady at the table and the dealer was so rude to her, we left.

The good news is that we came back a few days later to try to the Flame Steakhouse. This place still enjoys a sterling reputation as one of the better steak houses in Las Vegas and for very good reason. It was also quite classic and took me back to the 60s. It was quiet and very nice. The lady who waited on us was named Linda who had been serving there for 16 years and she was so nice and such a wonderful server! The food was excellent. I had a steak and my wife had salmon. My steak was great and her salmon was the best I have ever tasted. I don't know about any of the other restaurants at El Cortez but the Flame is as good as it gets. To have a steak with a salad and potato is about $40 apiece but here's a hint: the American Casino Guide as well as other publications, often have a 50% off coupon for The Flame! This made our entire meal about $35! Of course we tipped Linda 18% on $70 and it was well worth every dime. When you go to Las Vegas, GO EAT AT THE FLAME!

This place is all about the Flame Steakhouse... From looking at the outside of the El Co, you would not think that there would be this type of Steakhouse inside this joint.

Damn near the best steak I have ever had. The sides are massive and big enough for two to share. It is also very reasonably priced' that combined with your ACG Coupon, you would be a fool to pass this place up.

The casino is okay, more or less on par with some of the other places downtown. My only advice is go during the daylight hours. It's gets kinda spooky at night, especially when I was last there, a week before Halloween...

CM

Found the El Cortez Cabana suite with a special where I paid $60 a night for a suite and get $35 free play and $25 food credit. The room is a little tacky bright color but that is my only problem. The bed was super comfortable and the bathroom was really nice. We ate at the Flame Restaurant with no complaints. Food was great. The El Cortez is not a big casino so they don't have all of the newest slot machines, but they have enough to make it fun. Cocktail service was great. I looked at the table games but did not make it over to them. The players club employees were friendly and explained everything with ease.

The location, a bit sketchy. The casino, smells like old lady perfume. We stayed in the newish Cabana Suites and loved them. Very cool rooms at an unbeatable price. If you are staying downtown give the Tez a try.

The El Cortez is a great, small casino which has low limit table games. The video poker selection is good and the slot choices are limited by its size. The people I met there, customers and workers, were some of the friendliest in Las Vegas. It is not the newest or cleanest casino, but it is worth a visit when you are down on Fremont Street.

We always park in the El Cortez's parking garage when visiting the Fremont Experience casinos. We use the ACG coupon and then walk to the other casinos making sure we take advantage of their ACG coupons too.

I have stayed in all the various level of rooms at the El Cortez over the years, and I’d probably be there a long while on my next trip if they had not decided to limit bookings to 7 nights in a calendar month. El Cabana are my favorite because the styles and colors are full of life. Nothing dull here from the Lime Green Walls to the flat screen television with many more offerings than the usual place.
There is a refrigerator in every room. Don’t miss it. It is built into the cabinet under the flat screen television and almost invisible. It is great to be able to have cold water all ready to go.
The rooms are smaller than you might expect. For two it might be a bit cramped if you like lots of space. In the lobby you can grab a piece of fruit or a handful of candy. Security is there also checking everyone, so it is very safe. There is a small workout room El Cortez has no pool, only plans for a pool.
The most spacious rooms are the Tower rooms. These are the size of Orleans rooms and may have been laid out by the same folks. They are almost duplicates. However, the television is the old style. It looks very small in these large rooms. The beds are very thick and high and the most comfortable in the hotel. Also, these rooms do not require a walk across the street as the El Cabana rooms do.
Both the Pavilion rooms and the Vintage rooms are very downscale. The Pavilion is built near the parking garage and it is easy to park very close to your room. Some are fine, but some are just old and not as functional. The window blinds can’t be opened without letting anyone walking by see right in. Noise anywhere nearby can be heard fairly clearly. I really don’t like that there is no table for my computer. However, the late night view of the neon in Fremont East seen from the walk around balcony outside these motel like rooms makes for a pleasant end of the day.
Vintage rooms as the name suggests reflect the old Vegas rooms of the past. These are small, cozy, clean and very quiet rooms. Unlike the Pavilion where everyone walks by on the outside corridor, there is no traffic here. The window is frosted glass that lets in life but offers no view. There is no table for my computer, but a nice easy chair pulled up to the set of drawers near the bed works well, especially tucked in close with the top drawers supporting the computer.
Getting to these rooms has always been a hassle for a guy who carries a huge suitcase that can weigh 80 pounds when all three carry-ons are packed into it. However, using the unmarked door from the second floor Pavilion elevator, I managed to get into the room with a short flight of stairs that went down. Even going up there stairs was easy, so it made the way back. Second floor, make a left, use the unmarked door.
The room itself has
* a fine queen bed and very rich dark furniture reminding me of the wood in the Golden Gate.
* a hair dryer.
*a coffee pot
*two small garbage cans
*clean and fresh interior
*small but old fashioned bathroom with faux ivory faucet handles.
*no smoking
*plenty of lights
*quiet. I hear nothing here.
*television more diverse than in other casinos. (Quite a contrast from the Orleans where some folks watched "Meet the Folkers" twice because it was the only free movie available.) However, the walls are thin so two televisions on different channels at 2 AM interrupted my sleep.
*an exhaust fan in the bathroom
*good shower head.

NEGATIVES

*small closet only had hooks. No bar with hangers.
*no safe
*tacky parrot

Once the El Cortez was an casino island in the middle of run down storefronts and loitering pan handlers. Since the renovation of Freemont East that stretch has changed dramatically. There are cameras and increased security. And the storefronts have become clubs or interesting hangouts. Now there is The Beat coffee house for vinyl record sounds and healthy food, a bar that features video games and may have a huge line outside in the evening, a Hookah Lounge. And the El Cortez adds to that street party atmosphere by sponsoring Vegas Streats where gourmet food trucks meet comic book art and free music for a small but interesting street fair. These places attract the young. El Cortez has always attracted the older lower income crowd. When I went there did not seem to be much movement from the fair to the casino, but perhaps over time that will change.

El Cortez still has some of the best gambling downtown for minimums of yesterday. $5 single deck blackjack that pays 3:2. $3 craps with 10X the odds. 50 cent roulette. The video poker has suffered a downgrade since the good old days, but there are still a few excellent plays. Live poker is a unique spread limit game of $1-$3 until the river card comes and then $1-$6. The rake is $2.50, the lowest in Vegas. The game starts with a single one dollar blind so waiting for cards is not expensive. Dealers are tipped in increments of a quarter, so small pots are not gutted by the tip. Vegas legend Jackie Gaughn plays every afternoon. He lives on the second floor of the El Cortez. He is not a good poker player and somewhat senile now, but an interesting character just the same. They advertise very loose slots. How that is determined is a mystery. However, most slot players report good payback. It certainly beats anything on the strip.

Comps are reported as good, but I have not scored much from my last visit. They did just set up individual online comp accounts where offers are displayed on line with a log in like B Connected. No free rooms for me.

The Cafe serves a very good prime rib and the rest of the food seems good as well. Flame Steakhouse usually gets good marks. I liked both the T Bone and the Walleye Pike. The Walleye was garnished with a green sprig that I still have been unable to identify so as to use in in my own kitchen. Staying in a Cabana suite got me a coupon for a free bottle of wine, and it was a full bottle too. Restaurant.com often has deals. American Casino Guide has 50% off up to $25.
Also across the street is Mamacita’s, a Mexican/Cuban place. Again, it is outside the building, but just a few steps so closer than restaurants in larger casinos.
I have booked rooms twice now using a deal that is offered for a few nights each month. The price of the room is returned in food credit and freeplay (even the tax) so the room is basically free. They let me charge food to the room right up until checkout. They also put my two nights of freeplay on my card all at once. It is one of the best offers open to anyone without any prior play. The freeplay cannot be used on the best VP pay tables, but it still pays if the money is just run through once. It would be hard to lose more than half bringing a $60 Cabana room down to $17. Last trip I made $12 on that play.

American Casino Guide coupons include a $10 freeplay and one of the last 2 for 1 hotel coupon deals. $34 gets you two nights in Pavilion or Vintage; $50 two in El Cabana. And if you schedule your nights at the end of your Vegas trip, and leave any day but Saturday, you get a free ride from the Casino to the airport, on the hour from 7 am until 2 pm.

There is no free wifi in the rooms, but there is free wifi at The Beat Coffee House and sometimes coffee is just a dollar. It is directly across the street, so it is as close to the room as the Orleans coffee house wifi.

If you want to know what vegas was like in the 1970s, 60s or even before, walk a little bit outside the canopy of the Fremont Street Experience to the El Cortez. A cheap crowd, but the place is always busy enough to make you feel like you aren't playing alone, but never really crowded. The waitresses seem to be pleased when you give them a dollar for bringing you a drink to the slots. The coffee shop has some history, and if you don't expect much, you won't be disappointed. They will never be able to get rid of the cigarette smoke, and I'm not sure that we want them to. Don't look for the latest progressive slot machines, or any fancy table games. You come here for slots, blackjack, craps and roulette. If you want anything else, go somewhere else. The place doesn't change, and that is just fine

It was may first stay in Las Vegas and the most impressive casinos for me were the casinos in downtown and especially the El Cortez. The best lightly perfumed air of all casinos, the temperature is most agreeable. And the low limit at the roulette table ($1) was a mere seduction for me and my wife. We stayed in the El Cortez from 11 p.m. until 6 a.m. - is there a better certificate?

The first thing you notice when entering this casino is the smell. The odor is not at all offensive but it is quite strong. I really don't know what it is.

The casino is classic old-style Vegas. There are old and interesting photos on the walls. Good single-deck blackjack games are available.

Customer service is lacking, however. Once, I went to the cashier's cage to ask to borrow a pen. The employee told me there weren't any but there were several in plain view. I was not happy with this rude treatment, so I sent an email about it to the management. The email was ignored and I never received a response, much less an apology.

If there was a category for value it would rate high. The tower and vintage rooms have recently been renovated and are now non smoking. Only the Pavilion rooms will offer smoking.

The story goes Jackie Gaughan bought a defunct hotel and had it disassembled and re constructed as the pavilion rooms that are the 5th floor of the then new parking garage structure finished in 1963. The doors open outside so you can smoke to your hearts content with your room door open.

The 15 story Tower rooms, built in 1980, are non smoking now, as well as the original Vintage Rooms, which are accessible only by stairs in the casino, and are part of the original hotel. The vintage rooms used to be all smoking. I wonder how they got the stink out of there.

The new Cabana Building is 100% non smoking as well and has a "Smart" climate system. So if you smoke in there they fine you big time. The regular deluxe rooms are tiny, the junior suites are the size of a regular room, 400 sq ft. It's the old "Ogden House" building that used to be a fleabag used by the El CO for overflow and low buck rooms. There are a couple of "Super Suites" but I don't know if those are available to the common folk.

The gambling is good, 3-to-2 Blackjack, hand dealt or by shoe, but no double after split, H17 and the table limits are low.

.25 cent, $1.00 min roulette double zero, 4 tables.

Craps 2 tables, one is $3 sometimes, both are usually $5 on busy nights or weekends. I think it was 10X odds but don't quote me on that. Field 12 pays only double.

There's a decent mix of video poker, but no 9/6 JOB. Most of the best machines are deuces wild or various bonus poker games.

There are a couple of Wheel of Fortune machines, and a good cross section of slots, keno, and others including the newer video slots as well as a few old clunkers that pay pretty good.

The poker room is a cordoned off section over by the bar and has low fees, a very popular room for those crusty old card sharks from yesteryear, including the man "Jackie Gaughan" who loves to sit and play for hours most days. You know the guy has got to love to gamble, and he had some of the best offerings downtown for serious gamblers for many years. Low limits and buy ins make for an interesting crowd.

The casino layout is old school and smoking is still permitted in the casino but that may change in the future due to the strong trend developing nationwide as to smoking in public. Vegas still caters to many tourists from many nations, some have a high percentage of smokers, such as China and India, that have more smokers than America has people. Gamblers have a high percentage of smokers, it goes with the territory, both are risky propositions.

It's not exactly part of the Fremont Street Experience, but it's just down on Fremont Street. Pass Las Vegas Blvd, through the Fremont East District, it's down on the left.

El Cortez is a Vegas time capsule. It's a reflection of the good old days in Vegas with a little soul and history intact. The hotel is just off The Fremont Experience so it is close enough to walk to in comfort and safety and far enough away from the noise to get a little peace. The entire staff is extremely friendly, courteous and helpful.

The casino area is decently sized and quaint with plenty of good slots, table games and an understated but very functional sports book. The restaurants on-site offer very good value and quality. The rooms are very adequate for what I want to do - sleep in comfort when too beat to game.

The floor cocktail waitresses are efficient as are the bartenders and the drinks are stout. The presence of the owner, Jackie Gaughan, is reminiscent of Vegas-past where management took an interest in their guests. The El Cortez is a very special place rich in tradition and offering a great value downtown.

Would I take my wife there? Maybe not for a week, but a weekend hop, sure. It's great for the guys and those on a budget. It's also nice to be treated like a high-roller even if you are not. This is classic Vegas, baby. Catch it before it is gone and we're left at the mercy of the faceless Strip behemoths who gut everything of any real value.

No this isn't a Strip Hotel & Spa, it's not even under the Fremont Expererience which is merely four blocks away, however this hotel is on Fremont St. in the East Entertainment District.

Much has changed since my first stay in 2006, at that time I had never even heard of it but needed a room. Why do I come back three times a year? Very simple, after one stay, my comps cannot compare with the Four Queens where I had stayed since 1998. I have not paid for a room since 2006, I get a food & slot allowance because comps are generous as are many of the penny & nickel slots.

The Hotel has undergone a major $23 million dollar renovation over the course of the last few years. New ventilatiion system, new carpet, new slots, updated rooms & lobby, and brand spanking new Cabana Suites across the street on Ogden in a sister building, also a brand new entrance and valet parking. The area around the Cortez is in flux everytime I come a new bar or shop has opened gradually changing, as once vacant buildings get occupants.

I always feel safe plenty of security both in and outside the Casino and I walk around alone sometimes at 2,3,4 in the morning from Cortez to the Fitzgerald, Binions and beyond.

The restraurant has been redesigned and features some good food at very modest prices, a steakhouse is on site as well but never eaten there. Additionally a Subway, Ice Cream and Coffee bar take up one corner. There is a new Fiesta Showroom for special events and concerts of local bands, plus a piano bar and two regular bars scattered through out the casino & conveinent parking garage.

While the drink waitresses don't come by too often, a decent tip helps to get better service and my drinks don't taste watered down. I'm not a table gamer so I can't say much about that however many have told me its the best video poker place downtown & for keno too.

I like a slot machine that pays or at least plays with a twenty to I can get an hour or better on some machines. On my first visit i won $200 on a two credit quarter machine, on my last visit using comps on a penny machine played it from 7pm till 4am walking away with $700.

My buddy and I never paid for a meal except for the sandwich from Subway and The Cortez has coupons for eating there, saving you a few bucks. People have always been so nice to me and once I left my HP digital Camera when I called two days later a maid had turned it in and it was shipped to me via priority mail which I paid for gladly.

When people ask me what the rooms are like I say compare them to La Quinta or Best Western however the rooms are large with very comfortable beds and pillows always clean sheets & rooms. These rooms have mostly all been updated, some have Flat Screen TV's and from what I have read the Cabana Suites are all new with modern amenities.

I spend very little time in my room. mostly to sleep and bathe. The rest of the day was spent walking around & seeing shows, when my brother stayed with me last winter he said the rooms were better than the Plaza where he often stays. My favorite thing about this property is it's still locally owned, not by a corprate magnet, and still has that feeling of old Vegas.

El Cortez is one of only three casinos in Las vegas that still has full pay 3-2 single deck blackjack.

They also have some of the best video poker in Las Vegas. They have good deals on rooms and food.

?

great casino, dealers are friendly, low limits on craps tables. I try to stay here at least twice a year

I have been going to Las Vegas by myself, or with my family for over ten years, and this casino is also a great place to stay and gamble.

It is really nice that you only have to go up a block to see Fremont street and all the other casinos. The people who work here are always friendly and very helpful.

?

The El Cortez casino is the complete opposite of the strip casinos. They have some great games -- and I think it's the best place in Vegas to play Blackjack. They only deal single and double deck games. No 6 or 8 deck shoes. They have low minimums -- as low as $3 or $5 all the time. Single deck blackjack pays 3:2 (single deck at most other places pays 6:5). They also have lots of full pay video poker machines. The atmosphere is pretty smoky, but this place is the way Vegas is supposed to be done.



The food and drinks in the restaurants and bars are very reasonably priced. They have invested a lot of money over the past few years renovating the rooms and although I've never stayed there, those who do rave about them. It's an excellent value.



I encourage you to support places like this, and keep them around! I have had some great experiences here, and look forward to going back.

Although we did not stay in the hotel, we made several visits to the casino during our latest trip, mid sept,08.

The gaming was great the staff were all very customer orientated. We ate at Roberta's which was fantastic, also at the coffee shop which was also very good and also a bargain.

From what i have seen and experienced at El Cortez i would not hesitate to stay here next trip.

?

This is Las Vegas as I remembered it in the 1950's.

Full pay video poker and great food specials make this a great place to go.

There is still a lot of smoke, but it is geting better.