> Vegas used to be fairly cheap because they wanted you to spend money gambling
This is true. You could get a pretty schmantzy room comped if you lost a lot at the tables.
My friend recently went to Vegas, lost $1000 at BlackJack, and all they got was a $50 voucher for the restaurant.
I wanted to go to Vegas for my birthday in the fall and the only decently nice rooms for a reasonable price are off the strip, which is definitely not as fun. And the food prices are insane.
Circus Circus is still the cheapest hotel on the strip. Yeah, it’s old and musty but still a pretty good deal.