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Top 10 March Madness parties in Las Vegas

26 February 2018

For a college basketball fan, there is nothing like experiencing March Madness in Las Vegas.

The first two rounds of the NCAA men's basketball tournament — particularly the first two days, being played this year on 15 and 16 March — are simply insane. The action is nonstop, the crowds are massive and the atmosphere is pretty much what you'd expect when thousands and thousands of mostly male sports bettors spend the entire day drinking and gambling on a roster of 32 first-round games, all played in a 48-hour window.

There are an abundance of options for taking in the games in Las Vegas. Some are free; some are quite expensive. Below, we have hand-picked 10 of this year's March Madness Viewing Party options, mixing in a variety of price points and locations.

But before diving into the details, we present a few Las-Vegas-related articles from recent years that will be helpful in ensuring you get the most out of your upcoming trip:Now, on to the March Madness viewing parties and related details.

10. The D Las Vegas
If you are heading to Sin City for the tournament and you aren't already a member of the "March Madness in Las Vegas" Facebook Group, drop everything you are doing and join right now.

The group, started by Barry Inciong in 2008 on Yahoo with eight members, is now more than 10,000 strong. It’s a vital resource for March Madness trips to Las Vegas, including informative and insightful tips about party venues, airfare, ground transportation, restaurants and just about anything else involved with a coveted trip to Vegas.

As an added value, members of the group have a designated seating area at The D's Detroit Ballroom during March Madness. The room is located on the 12th floor where there is an outdoor balcony, TVs all over the place, cash bars, a William Hill sportsbook counter, food, and blackjack and craps tables. Also, upon check-in, members receive a $25 match play chip that can be used throughout the casino.

The D, one of the happening spots downtown, also has Man Cave rentals available for March Madness. Starting at $175 per person, the caves house a minimum of six people and include four 70-inch HD TVs, all-you-can-eat food, beverage service with a private server, free WiFi, option for discounted hotel rooms and a $25 match play casino chip.

9. Plaza Hotel and Casino
Let's stay downtown at another venue providing special deals for March Madness in Las Vegas Facebook Group members. The Plaza is offering special hotel room rates and a waived resort fee for members during March Madness and will also host a Madness Eve Party on 14 March.

By attending, you will receive free entry into the March Madness Party (regular price is $15 per day) held in The Plaza Events Center. The 5,000 square-foot venue will have 18 screens, two projectors and a "state-of-the-art sound system." Admission includes a free T-shirt, one drink and one food item.

8. Golden Nugget - Las Vegas
We'll hit up one more Downtown Las Vegas venue before heading toward the Strip. Headed by veteran Sportsbook Director Tony Miller, the Nugget is one of the best books in the downtown area, and the annual March Fever Viewing Party has been well received.

General admission is free, but if you want premium seating in the Grand Ballroom set up, which features four projection screens and bunch of other smaller TVs on the walls, VIP tickets are the way to go.

Prices for one-day, guaranteed seats in the VIP section range from $120 on Sunday to $230 on Friday, 18 March (including tax and gratuity), or you can save $60 and get a four-day VIP pass for $625. Prices include all-you-can-eat stadium-style food and four drink tickets, valid at the premium bar.

7. South Point Hotel Casino and Spa
Another one of our favorite off-Strip properties, sitting about seven miles south of Mandalay Bay, is the South Point, where two legends of the industry – Jimmy Vaccaro and Chris Andrews – run the sportsbook.

Entrance to the "March to the Championship Watch Parties" (15-17 March) in the South Point Ballroom is free. Fans can take advantage of on-site wagering stations, free chair massages and a variety of food and drink specials, including $3 bottles of Bud, Bud Light, Bud Light Lime or Shock Top, $16 buckets of six Budweiser bottles and $25 pitchers of bloody marys and margaritas.

South Point is home to the VSiN radio studio, so you can also watch a live broadcast and have a chance to meet Brent Musburger, who hosts the afternoon drive time show "My Guys in the Desert" and has been known to mingle with the crowd while making his way to the betting window.

6. Topgolf Las Vegas

Topgolf's flagship venue in Las Vegas opened in 2016 behind MGM Grand Hotel & Casino Las Vegas and is the largest franchise of its kind at 150,000 square feet, offering fantastic views of the Strip. It has become a go-to spot for us whenever we're in Las Vegas, providing an entertaining change of pace from the casino/sportsbook/Strip scene.

The "Hoops Viewing Headquarters" for March Madness has a few different price points. Each day is split into two five-hour sessions (morning and evening), and the state-of-the-art, climate-controlled golf bays, which accommodate a minimum of six people, cost $500 with a mandatory food and beverage spend of $600.

Other options include high top seating on Level 3, starting at $300 for up to four people per session, and couches on Level 2, starting at $800 per session for up to eight people.

Topgolf Las Vegas can accommodate up to 3,000 guests and has five bars with full food menus, two swimming pools and sportsbook counters.

5. Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino
OK, let's head to the Strip, where your wallet will take more of a hit because of the prime location, but you will be ensured an entertaining session of basketball with plenty of food, drink and TVs.

Planet Hollywood, which just celebrated its 10th anniversary on the Las Vegas Strip, will open up the Mezzanine level for its "Hoops on the Strip Viewing Party." At $150, limited tickets are still available, and admission includes an open beer bar, an all-you-can-eat buffet, live betting stations and giveaways.

The property will also have March Madness parties at Ringer, a bar/restaurant that sits just outside the sportsbook where there is a $125 minimum food and beverage spend per person, and at Heart Bar, where there will be cash bar specials on draft beers, buckets of beers, Ketel One, Jack Daniel's and Patron.

4. The Cromwell
This will be the inaugural March Madness party at the Cromwell, which just opened its new sportsbook last fall. The book is much smaller than most others in the city, but its cozy atmosphere, comfortable seating and crystal-clear 32-foot-long-by-9-foot-tall video wall will make it a first-rate landing spot for March Madness.

All-day seating for March Madness in one of the 30 or so leather seats is $278 per day, while high tables that seat four people are $888. Prices include a bucket of beers or three drink tickets as well as choice of a hot dog or personal pizza.

You can also sit at the chic Bound cocktail bar located behind the sportsbook for $150 per person and get the same drink and food offers as above.

The Cromwell also features some of most player-friendly gaming options on the Strip, so you'll have that going for you when taking a break from the basketball to roll some dice or play blackjack.

3. Caesars Palace
Recently renovated with pristine, high-tech screens, the Caesars Palace sportsbook remains one of the premier spots in Las Vegas, but a seat here for March Madness is going to cost you.

Bleacher seating is the most economical. All-day seats cost $125 and include two drink tickets. You can get closer to the screens by paying a cool grand for a leather seat in the VIP section, including unlimited beverage service and access to a VIP betting line.

2. The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas



Another "expensive but worth it" March Madness option on the Strip is down the street from Caesars at the Cosmo.

The seventh-annual viewing party will be held in the Belmont, a 40,000 square-foot venue with 12 stadium-style, 22-by-13-foot high-def screens, open from 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. A single-day open bar pass is $225 on 15 and 16 March and $125 on 17 March. A pass for all three days is $475. Guests can also take part in a number of interactive experiences including access to a hardwood court and regulation basketball hoop, a Golden Tee arcade game and an onsite sportsbook.

Tickets also include complimentary admission to Marquee Nightclub and Dayclub on 16-18 March.

1. Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino



Go big or go home. If you’re going to do March Madness in Las Vegas, you might as well do it at the biggest and best sportsbook on the planet, and that's the SuperBook at The Westgate.

All seats in the SuperBook will be gone by early morning, but The Westgate has other options. The Hoops in the International Theater party will show all of the action on giant HD screens in a smoke-free environment with free seating for up to 1,500 people. There will be satellite betting stations, as well as food and drink specials and former NBA star Darrell “Dunkenstein” Griffith and former Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman will kick off the festivities on Thursday (15 March) and will be available for autographs and photos throughout the morning.

Doors open at 8:30 a.m. each day, with games kicking off at 9 a.m. General seating is first-come first-served. Reserved seating is available for $25 a day, and includes a free beer.
Gary Trask

Gary serves as Casino City's Editor in Chief and has more than 25 years of experience as a writer and editor. He also manages new business ventures for Casino City.

A member of the inaugural Poker Hall of Fame Media Committee, Gary enjoys playing poker and blackjack, but spends most of his time sitting in the comfy confines of the sportsbook when in Las Vegas.

The Boston native is also a former PR pro in the golf-casino-resort industry and a fanatical golfer, allowing his two favorite hobbies - gambling and golf - to collide quite naturally.

Contact Gary at gary@casinocity.com and follow him on Twitter at @CasinoCityGT.

Gary Trask Websites:

twitter.com/#!/casinocityGT
Gary Trask
Gary serves as Casino City's Editor in Chief and has more than 25 years of experience as a writer and editor. He also manages new business ventures for Casino City.

A member of the inaugural Poker Hall of Fame Media Committee, Gary enjoys playing poker and blackjack, but spends most of his time sitting in the comfy confines of the sportsbook when in Las Vegas.

The Boston native is also a former PR pro in the golf-casino-resort industry and a fanatical golfer, allowing his two favorite hobbies - gambling and golf - to collide quite naturally.

Contact Gary at gary@casinocity.com and follow him on Twitter at @CasinoCityGT.

Gary Trask Websites:

twitter.com/#!/casinocityGT