For those on a budget looking for clean, quiet accommodations just off-the-Strip, this is a solid pick. The Gold Coast isn't fancy, and guest rooms are quite simple, but it's not without its charms. In a town where much of the cuisine is a cheap American facsimile of ethnic food or a fancy fusion version of it, the affordable, authentic dim sum at Ping Pang Pong is a little dumpling cart of fresh air. Just a half-mile from Las Vegas's Chinatown, the hotel has not one but two genuine Asian restaurants. It's not isolated in the way that far-off-the-Strip hotels like the South Point are. The Rio is right next door, and the party-hard Palms is across the street. Located a mile off the Strip (a five-minute, $8 cab ride), the hotel doesn't feel too far from it all. Unlike at many Strip hotels, you'll find no scene or pretension here - just a few kids splashing in the pool, a few adults soaking in the spa.

Outside, the hotel's pool isn't huge, but it's nicely landscaped with large palms and small flowers and more pleasant than you'd expect at such a low-priced hotel. With free parking and a lively 70-lane bowling alley with league programs, the crowd skews local and more mature than the twentysomethings on bachelor(ette) binges on the Strip. The 48 gaming tables draw a steady crowd, especially for a hotel this small. A cocktail waitress offered me a drink when I was merely talking to someone at a slot machine, not gambling myself - a rare thing in Vegas. The 86,000-square-foot casino feels cozy, and, unlike the similarly sized mazelike casino floor at Harrah's, it's easily navigated. Inside, Gold Coast guests will find a mellow scene, but not a dead one.

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