I just wrapped up an extensive and exhausting Las Vegas research trip. I'll have full reviews of everything I got to see later, but for now I wanted to give you the highlights and lowlights of the hotels I checked out.

Despite my snickering about whether or not the new owners could pull it off, the new Planet Hollywood is a stunner from top to bottom.

The casino is a huge improvement over the Aladdin, with a modern take on retro Hollywood glamour, all dark woods and dramatic lighting set off by vibrant purples, reds and greens. I also got a preview of the new rooms, which aren't available yet but will be later this year.

They are beautiful, with purple velour on oversized headboards, funky modern furnishings, Sheraton's Sweet Sleeper beds -- pillow-top mattresses, down pillows, etc. -- flat panel televisions and more. Each room will have a Hollywood theme. There will be multiple rooms with the same theme ("Pulp Fiction" for instance), but each room will have unique memorabilia in display cases. New restaurants, nightclubs and entertainment are on the way and it all sounds interesting, so I have to give credit for doing a great job with the property.

The new "Go" rooms at The Flamingo are currently the coolest rooms on The Strip. Done with a big nod to the Bugsy Siegel era, the rooms feature decidedly retro decor, with big, white padded vinyl headboards, white built-in desks and chairs that look like they time traveled from the 1940s, and full walls of white drapes -- electronic no less -- offset by vibrant pinks and deep browns in the wallpaper, carpeting and accents.

Flat-panel televisions, CD/DVD players, and high-speed Internet keep it modern, so the overall effect is very hip. The bathrooms have also been completely redone with frosted glass walls, a television built into the mirror and all new fixtures, lighting and amenities. Staying in one of them will cost you extra -- about $50 more per night if the Web site is any indication -- but it's totally worth it.

I saw another home run at El Cortez, the downtown Las Vegas stalwart that is in the process of a major makeover that has turned the property from an also-ran into a major contender.

The casino area has been completely revamped with new wood and metal accents, carpeting and -- most importantly -- about half the number of machines it had before. It is much less crowded.

The rooms have received facelifts, with upgraded furnishings and decor, plus touches you don't usually find at hotels in this price range, such as wireless Internet and flat panel televisions coming soon. A new porte cochere is open on 6th Street, with beautiful stone and iron details. There is much more in the works, including a plaza linking the property to Las Vegas Boulevard and a hip boutique hotel addition. A huge victory for a downtown classic.

Not a lot has changed yet at the Loew's Lake Las Vegas hotel, which the company took over from Hyatt, but expect that to change soon. Some of the rooms have gotten a makeover with upgraded furnishings and decor, but the bulk of the changes are more subtle. For example, the lobby is due for some additional landscaping and new furnishings, and the outdoor areas are getting new deck chairs, cabanas and fire pits along the lake. It was a nice hotel before and still is, and I'm looking forward to seeing what the evolution of the property brings.

I spent a night in one of the new Widescreen Rooms at the Excalibur and have to tell you it is worth the extra $20 a night. The old rooms are not only boring and basic -- they are getting pretty worn. The new rooms have been extensively upgraded with better beds, nicer furnishings, widescreen flat panel television, iPod-ready alarm clocks and new vanities and fixtures in the bathrooms. Not the nicest rooms in town, but a huge evolution over the older product.

The new tower at Terrible's is quite nice, with several hundred rooms of both standard and suite variety. Each comes with plenty of niceties, such as flat-panel televisions and new furnishings, and the suites have Jacuzzi tubs.

But you will forgo some luxuries such as high-speed Internet access? For prices that are a fraction of what you'll pay nearby on the Strip, who cares? The hotel also added a much needed parking garage -- shade! -- and expanded the casino a little bit. Still a good overall package.

The Full Story

• Planet Hollywood Defies Expectations With Makeover
• Vegas Prepares For Lucky Day, 7/7/07
• Five Good Shows, One Worth Leaving Early

In Next Week's Column

Next week: The latest from Las Vegas.

Plus, don't forget to send your questions about Las Vegas. I've got room for more, so send them in today!

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