There aren’t many upscale hotels in this area, but The D Casino Hotel Las Vegas offers a contemporary upper-middle-range getaway on Freemont Street. Guests here run the gamut from retiree slot worshippers, to young bachelor parties, to vacationing families. If guests can make is past the smoke-choked lobby, they’ll find a modern 45,000-square-foot casino, an array of bars and restaurants, and some pretty awesome pools. While not exactly Strip-caliber, The Golden Nugget Las Vegas holds its own in terms of amenities and atmosphere. Since then, many of the properties on Fremont Street and its environs have become sleepy throwbacks to a bygone era.

Its 'Old Vegas' neighborhood had a higher profile in the 1970s, before the ascendancy of the Strip’s mega-resorts, a shift crystallized by the opening of the The Mirage Hotel & Casino in 1989. With one of the oldest casinos in the city (first opened in 1946), the 2,419-room Golden Nugget has endured in the face of overwhelming competition from the Strip. It’s worth considering Excalibur Hotel and Casino, which is along The Strip and offers a plethora of family-friendly features. On the plus side, all come with flat-screen TVs, free basic Wi-Fi, and hairdryers. But guests should be forewarned: booking rooms is a crapshoot, as some smell of smoke, some are a bit dated, and some are subject to late-night noise. Live entertainment and a nightclub are also available on-site.

Top restaurant options include a steakhouse, sushi at Red Asian Cuisine, and Grotto Italian Ristorante, and an all-day buffet. The property may be smaller than its peers on the Strip, but it still offers plenty of entertainment options, with its 45,000-square-foot casino, two pools (one with a waterslide through a shark tank and another for adults only), multiple bars and restaurants, and a small spa and fitness center. Located on Fremont Street in Downtown Las Vegas, the upper-middle-range, 2,419 Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino is an off-the-Strip alternative for travelers seeking a different side of Sin City.

The golden nugget pool