LAS VEGAS, 11:40 a.m. EDT June 25, 2001 -- The hotel currently known as the Castaways has gone through several incarnations in its almost five decades of existence. It was built in 1954 as the Showboat, relatively far removed from the hustle and bustle of downtown Fremont Street and the burgeoning Strip. It rapidly gained a reputation for being a low-cost and friendly alternative to the busier parts of town.
Through the years, the hotel has grown and changed, first with a top-to-bottom remodeling in the '90s that got rid of the titular showboat theme and gave it a fun Mardi Gras/New Orleans look. New owners have swept it and gotten rid of that theme and the original name.
Today the Castaways has a light and airy tropical/Polynesian theme. To be honest, it's nothing Vegas hasn't seen before at, say, The Mirage or Mandalay Bay, but the new look is much nicer than the old with both real and decorative foliage, lots of fine woods (done as faux bamboo), stonework, new carpeting and wall coverings throughout, and a fresh coat of paint. The result in the common areas like the casino and lobby is much more inviting than the old Mardi Gras look -- a welcome change.
At 80,000 square feet, the casino comes close to the Strip monsters in terms of size -- in fact, it's almost the same size as the casino in Paris Las Vegas. But it feels smaller, mostly owing to the additions that have been made over the years in separate rooms and sections of the hotel. Don't trust your first impression. Take some time to explore -- you'll be surprised at how much there actually is here.
You'll find all of the latest slot machines (5 cents to high limits), a ton of video poker, table games (blackjack, craps, roulette and more), the biggest bingo room in all of Las Vegas with more than 1,200 seats, a keno lounge, a small but pleasant race and sports book, and more.
Other entertainment comes from the lounges -- one adjacent to the main casino offering live, free entertainment with no cover and no drink minimum -- and the country's largest bowling center. At 106 lanes, the alleys have been completely upgraded with new carpeting, paint and equipment. They had been getting a little ratty as of late, so this is another welcome change.
For meals, you have four options: the Pelican Rock Café is a 24-hour coffee shop, serving everything from snacks to full meals, all at very decent prices; Blue Marlin, a Spanish-style seafood restaurant in a lovely new dining room, that specializes in more than 14 salsas all served fresh to your table; The Prime Cut, which offers a fairly basic but moderately priced steakhouse menu; and the newly redecorated San Brisas Buffet, with a variety of food stations that offer American, Chinese, barbecue, Mexican and Italian entrees. There are also a couple of fast-food options in the bowling center like Baskin Robbins and Blimpies.
The 447 rooms have not had the benefit of a remodeling yet, but we're told that is on the way. As it is, they are still quite lovely and comfortable with standard rooms in the main 19-story tower featuring coffee makers, in-room pay-per-view movies, pay-per-use Nintendo 64, hairdryers, and nice writing desks in the king rooms. Upper-floor rooms offer some great views of the Boulder Strip or Downtown, depending on which side of the building you land.
The older rooms in the three-story motel-style buildings around the pool are also quite nice, but due for an upgrade as well. They don't differ much from the tower rooms except for the fact that the first-floor units have sliding glass doors and small patios, which more than make up for the fact that they are kind of dark.
There are no irons or boards, safes, or dataports on the phones, but perhaps some of that will be added when the hotel redoes the rooms. Hint, hint.
As mentioned, the pool area is surrounded by the older-motel units, which makes the facility quieter than those that border parking lots at most small hotels like this.
For the Winnebago set, there is an 84-space RV park adjacent to the main hotel with full hook-ups, individual telephone service, laundry facilities, private showers, a dog run and an onsite, live-in manager.
The biggest lure here is, of course, the price. During the summer of 2001, they are offering weekday rates of $49 with a $20 per-night "energy rebate," bringing the cost to just $29 per. That price includes a complimentary express breakfast buffet. Even without that special program the rates of $49 and up weekdays and $69 and up weekends is pretty remarkable for all you get at that cost.
The hotel is also running some golf packages in conjunction with several major courses around town. If you're a fan of the sport, this may be one of the places you should check out first.
The only downside to the Castaways is, of course, the location. You'll absolutely need a rental car if you are planning on staying here so you can get to the places you want to go (there is free self and valet parking). With that car, Downtown is a quick five-minute zip up Fremont Street, the hotels on Boulder Highway are a quick five-minute zip in the opposite direction, and The Strip is probably 10-15 minutes away, depending upon traffic.
Walking is out of the question partly due to distance and partly due to the fact that the neighborhood isn't the greatest. But we're not too worried about the latter, provided you don't wander off the well-lit and patrolled hotel property at night.
We were very pleasantly surprised by the changes at the Castaways. If you're in the market for a small, friendly, clean, comfortable and inexpensive hotel with many of the entertainment options of the big boys on The Strip, the Castaways should be high on your list of places to consider.
Location: 3
Price: 9
Value: 8
Rooms: 7
Casino: 8
Amenities: 8
Facilities: 6
Service: 10
Fun Factor: 7
Bonus: 7 Castaways
2800 Fremont St.
Las Vegas, NV 89104
(800) 826-2800
www.castaways-lv.com
This Week's Trivia Question
Q. When the Fremont Hotel was built downtown in 1956, their room tower was the tallest building in Nevada at that time. How many stories was the tower? (The Answer)
The weekly trivia question is brought to you by the Vegas4Visitors Online Memorabilia Museum.The Full Story
- Review: Affordable Castaways Worth Location
- Review: Rita Rudner Tickles Audience
- Review: Mizuno's Ensures Terrific Meal
- Other Vegas News: Maxim Says Goodbye
- This Week In Vegas: Fourth Fireworks
- Vegas Q&A: Safe City For Teens?
- Vegas Q&A: Odds Of Double Diamond Slots?
Coming Up Next Week
In the news: More new hotel, show and restaurant reviews.
In the Showrooms: George Carlin, Tim Conway & Harvey Korman, Don McLean and more.
Rick Garman is the head writer for Vegas4Visitors
[an error occurred while processing this directive]