Sahara Las Vegas is one of the old original (the sixth) resort casinos to open on the Las Vegas Strip (in 1952.) As an older property, the room rates at Sahara are typically low. Its location also detracts from its ability to command premium prices.

Sahara was the first resort I ever stayed at in Las Vegas, in August 1992. I booked a five night stay in one of the "garden rooms" (these were demolished in the late 1990s and a new parking garage was built in their place.) As a newbie tourist before the Internet was available to the masses, I learned the hard way that five nights on the Las Vegas strip is too long and that garden rooms are not the best.

Now that I rarely gamble and have an avid interest in photography, a five night stay at the Sahara would probably not be problematic for me. Back in 1992, however, instead of spending most of my time shooting photos I spent most of my time gambling. I think I had budgeted $400 for gambling and burned through it in two nights. I walked the strip from end to end twice and having had enough of the strip, I rented a car at the rental car office in the Sahara lobby my last day there and aimlessly drove around sightseeing. My photography equipment at the time was just one cheapie cardboard disposable camera.

I shot the above photo during my aimless August 1992 drive. I ended up in Arizona at a Burger King and turned around. The scenery between Las Vegas and Arizona is a fairly uniform barren desert all the way. 

The Sahara is a good budget property to choose if you have to choose a budget property for a Las Vegas vacation. It's not overrun with kids like Excalibur or Circus Circus; and is a bit nicer than Imperial Palace and Tropicana. The location is not good, however; you should have a rental car or plenty of money for taxis (or love walking) if you stay at Sahara. Stratosphere is half a mile to the north, Circus Circus is across the street and about a quarter mile to the south.

Sahara Avenue, just to the north of the Sahara property, is close to the dividing line between the City of Las Vegas (which is north of Sahara) and unincorporated Clark County. Except for the Stratosphere, every resort property on and near Las Vegas Blvd. is actually in the townships of Paradise or Winchester, Nevada. The postal addresses are designated Las Vegas, however. The entire strip is also formally "Las Vegas Blvd. South" although many people refer to "center strip" and "north strip". The Sahara is at the north end of the strip but it's still Las Vegas Blvd. South. Las Vegas Blvd. North begins after you pass Fremont Street downtown. Most tourists will never go farther north than Fremont Street.