Hot off the presses from the December Anthony Curtis' Las Vegas Advisor. Thought some of you mind find this interesting. I figured in adiiition to promoting the club, I should also promote my employer.

Holiday Rates Rise

It’s getting tougher. As the upscaling of Las Vegas continues, the upward pressure on prices increases. We’ve seen this in dining and entertainment, and now it’s manifesting in room rates, as well. The results of our annual end-of-the-year monster room-rate round-up (AEOTYMRRRU) paint a cautionary picture, especially if you make a straight year-to-year comparison.

This year we found only 30 casinos with rates of $40 or less; that compares to 41 last year. The total below $30 was just 14 this year, compared to 25 last. And only three (compared to six) were below $20—though they’re good ones, with Gold Coast and Palace Station being lowest at $18 (using Travelaxe).

So how bad is it? I’m not trying to do the glass-half-full thing, but I don’t see it as too bad. First, making a straight comparison doesn’t make much sense. Inflation is a reality, and on a relative basis, the room prices during this deepest of discount periods in Las Vegas are still outstanding. And second, most of the increases are at the lowest end of the spectrum; many exceptional deals remain in the middle and on the lower high-end. Take a look at the “High-End” list on page 9: Harrah’s, Hilton, Flamingo, Luxor, Palms, Bally’s, and Golden Nugget, all for under $60. This level of accommodations costs, at minimum, triple the price anywhere else in the country. The best the city has to offer falls well below the $200 level (the highest quote we found was $240 at Four Seasons)—try finding that in L.A.

No, it’s not like it used to be. But then, what is?

This year’s study involved 90 casinos. Posing as bargain-hunting vacationers, we called room-reservation departments asking for the best deals available in December. Then, after determining where in the month the best deals fall (this year’s “golden week” runs 11 days, Dec. 12-22), we used the free online rate-search engine Travelaxe to try to beat the rates quoted on the phone.

This year Travelaxe posted rates for 75 of the 90 hotel-casinos called and came up lower for 45 of the 75 (60%). Travelaxe matched the call-around rate in 11 instances and phone calls accounted for the lower price in the comparison 19 times, or 25.3%.

The rates reported here were available at the time of our inquiry, but they can change at any time—we can’t guarantee that you’ll get any of the listed prices. Also, although we’ve uncovered some great deals, you’ll likely do even better by using players clubs, scanning newspaper specials, and surfing the Internet for last-minute reduced prices.

Finally, don’t forget the best deal of all—the free-room offer for LVA members at the Stardust. Click here for applicable dates.

Under $20 Club: Gold Coast, Orleans, Palace Station.

Under $30 Club: Arizona Charlie’s Boulder, Arizona Charlie’s Decatur, Boulder Station, El Cortez, Four Queens, Gold Spike, Klondike, Lady Luck, Stratosphere, Terrible’s, Wild Wild West.

Under $40 Club: Barbary Coast, Boardwalk, Circus Circus, Fiesta Henderson, Fiesta Rancho, Golden Gate, Nevada Palace, Plaza, Riviera, Sahara, Sam’s Town, San Remo, Santa Fe Station, Texas Station, Tuscany, Western.

High End: Harrah’s $46, Las Vegas Hilton $49, Flamingo $55, Luxor $57, Palms $57, Bally’s $59, Golden Nugget $59, Monte Carlo $60, Rio $65, Aladdin $69, New York-New York $70, TI $79, MGM Grand $80, Mandalay Bay $98, Hard Rock $99, Paris $99, Green Valley Ranch $109, Mirage $109, Caesars Palace $120, THEhotel at MBay $149, Bellagio $159, Venetian $169, Wynn Las Vegas $179.