For the last four years, the kids and I have joined Mike in Vegas for the annual Defcon conference.  He goes to the conference, we hang out.  That means that I want to stay at a comfortable hotel, with plenty of room and amenities, that is also centrally located.  Though it’s off the street, the Palm Place is a pretty good alternative.

The Palms Place is a condo hotel, built before the Las Vegas real estate market collapsed in 2008.  Many of the units are privately  owned, though they are available to rent as hotel rooms through the hotel management.  They are identically decorated.  It follows closely the model of the MGM Signature Suites, where I’ve stayed twice, but the Palms Place has a cheaper look.  Still, it’s a very comfortable place to stay with a family.

The studio room features a king size bed, an L-shaped Italian sofa that converts into a queen size bed, a comfy chair, a large desk/counter area and two wall mounted TVs, one facing the bed and the other the sofa.  Only one of the TVs worked during our stay.  There is a kitchen area by the door, which comes with all the basics for keeping/cooking your food.  It had a desk, but it was somewhat uncomfortable to use.

The bathroom featured a beautiful, large and deep jet bathtub in its own enclosure, next to a floor shower. The walls are translucent so anyone in the room can see you bathe.  The tub is very noisy, so it’s not the best place to relax, and it’s literally impossible to hear the TV from the tub, but it’s still a very fun tub.

The room was all in all very relaxing and comfortable. It felt utilitarian rather than luxurious, but it was large and stylish enough.  One big minus, however, is that you cannot open the windows or go into the balcony (if your room has one).

The hotel didn’t have too many amenities itself, but it was also comfortable.  The hotel pool is on the 6th floor, along one side of the hotel. This high up, it can get pretty windy and this may be the one spot in Las Vegas where you can actually feel chilly outside in the middle of an August day.  It usually doesn’t get too crowded, and the kids and I had fun playing there.   Bear in mind that the pool hugs Simon, one of the restaurants, so you cannot really swim in privacy.

Palms Place gives you access to the facilities at the Palms next door – which you can access via a covered walkway.  Unfortunately, we never found the swimming pool at the Palms’, so I can’t report on how it was.  We did take advantage of the cheap but top-quality buffet restaurant and the movie theater – which is conveniently located near the walkway to the Palms Place.   We also went to the Palms to take the free shuttle to Caesar’s Palace.

All in all, the Palms Place provides and affordable and relaxing alternative to the strip.