LAST EDITED ON 08-06-12 AT 09:22 AM (EST)

You can get cheap tickets for shows on the same day of the show. Granted they are not the top acts, but good ones. There is a kiosk across the street from Ceasar's (not the real Ceasar's Palace -he never lived there, fyi) at Bill's. Which brings me to Bill's; they have cheap drinks and take in "Fat Elvis" show in the afternoon.

Best place to get free drinks that we have found is the sports book at the Bellagio. Most sports books just give you a free drink ticket, but at the Bellagio with a bet there you can sit and watch games all day if you want and drink for free. Depending on what games are on will make a difference on how busy the waitress is, but the last time we were there we placed one small bet on a basketball game and watched it for a while and the waitress served us about 6 top shelf drinks each (tip of course).

There isn't too much "cheap" food on The Strip. You can get massive quantities at a pretty good price, but the inexpensive food is going to be on Freemont St. The buffets on the strip are awesome if you really like to eat. I believe Harrah's (Harrah's, Flamingo, Paris, Ceasar's, Rio, Planet Hollywood) still have a 24 hour buffet pass for about $40 where you can go to any of their buffets (a couple exclusions) as often as you like if you want to pig out one day. Our best was 4 and I was miserable, but it was a good miserable. Vegas is a culinary Mecca, don't worry about finding something different, it is around every corner. I think Emeril's Stadium (Palazzo)has some good appetizer specials in the afternoon/happy hour.

If you have a car drive out to Hoover Dam (or they have bus tours for not too bad of price), it's a good way to kill some time and it is impressive.

Wear comfortable shoes. You will be amazed on how flipping big the place is and how much you have to walk.

Use the bus on Las Vegas Blvd. It costs about $7/day and runs frequently and stops at all the resorts. We never have to wait more than 10 minutes, and it is a great way to get downtown. They stop by "Pawn Stars" pawn shop too, which is close to downtown on Las Vegas Blvd.

You can walk the strip and "people watch", but what we like to do is sit outside in Margaritaville (north corner of the Flamingo) and let the weirdos walk by us.

Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it. -Ronald Reagan