I stayed at the Sands Regency Hotel Casino while in Reno for the USBC Open Bowling Tournament.

In a nutshell, I'd say that if you need to save money on a hotel, this is an alright place to stay. If you can afford more, I'd stay at one of the other casino hotels (like Harrah's, Silver Legacy or ElDorado).

The rooms in the Sands are not bad, but they are simple and lack some amenities I am used to.NOTE: there are three different towers at the Sands - I stayed in the Dynasty Tower. I was told that the Dynasty Tower was the most recently updated (not sure when, but couldn't have been too recently). The room was a typical sized two queen room. there are a couple chairs (not "easy" chairs, just good for a short sit), a desk with chair, a 25" TV (NOT flat screen), and a phone that is straight out of the 80's. The bathroom is typical with a tub/shower combo, one sink with a large counter top. The shower had good water pressure and was always hot, but the shower head left a lot to be desired (it worked - I guess I won't complain too much). The soap they give you is very small - about the size of a half dollar and only twice as thick. You also get a very small tube of shampoo and lotion. There is also a hair dryer mounted to the wall, but since I lack hair, I didn't use it. There was no iron and ironing board (you can get one from housekeeping). There was an open closet with plenty of "hotel hangers" and a folding rack for your suitcase.

The room was adequate. That is to say that it was clean and provided the necessities required. What really makes me give this place a rating of 3 is that the amenities of the hotel were not very good. The flagship restaurant is Mel's (the iconic drive-in from American Graffiti). breakfast at Mel's was good and the service was alright. I ate dinner there only one night and had a cheeseburger and shake. Both were only OK. Nothing special here.I did not try the buffet, so I can't comment on it (I had breakfast at the ElDorado twice - very good, I'd recommend it).There is also a snack bar (can't remember the name). I didn't see anything there that would stand out. I had their tacos and they weren't bad, but nothing to write home about.

Another downfall of the Sands is the Casino. It is very small compared to the "Reno strip" casinos. However, if you are looking for cheap table games, I did see $3 black jack during the week (weekends are $5 minimum).

Also, the Sands location is not great. You have to walk about 3 -4 city blocks to get to the "Reno Strip" and it doesn't seem like a very good area (lots of low-end motels). There are also a few beggars in the area asking for change. i wasn't scared to walk the streets at night, but I'm a big guy. I can imagine that a woman, by herself, would feel a little apprehensive about walking around this part of town.

Like I said in my opening, if you need to save money, this place is not bad. But if you can afford it, head for one of the strip casino hotels.

We had not stayed at the Sands for quite some time for a litany of reasons.

But they sent us some free nights, there was supposedly some management changes, so we went back.

As usual, there was a line about 2:30 on a Sunday afternoon to check in. We were surprised that there were no rooms available for us either, we had to wait an hour.

When we did get to our room, we were right next to the vending machines and elevators. I will never, ever understand when someone stays and plays enough at your hotel that they earn comp nights, why put them in the lousiest room you have.

Some typical maintenance issues in the room, the blinds were not working without a fight, the hot and cold water in the bathroom sink were reversed, the tub did not drain worth a darn. Could not maintain a water temperature in the shower, my road trip guilty pleasure is a nice hot shower, not so fun when you have to adjust the temperature every 10 seconds. The television channel selection is bad. Wi-Fi is available for $10 a day. My dog was obsessed with smelling the comforter. I do not want to know.

Yes, the Sands is still dog friendly, for $15 a night your dog can stay. Plenty of grassy areas nearby for dog walking.

The Sands seems to be moving in as many cheap slots as possible. There is 1 craps table, 1 roulette table, a 3 card poker table, a few black jack tables, sometimes a live poker table is available, there is a bingo room and the rest is slots. Lots of penny and nickle slots.

The bell desk staff and wait staff are friendly. I managed to lock myself out of the room with my ice bucket and my dog, security wisked upstairs with me to get back in the room without a barrage of questions, DNA sample, etc..

My main complaint with the Sands is always the food options. There is the bright diner Mel's, which is typical diner fare. Big Daddy's is trying to something for everybody (Mexican, BBQ, ?), and is just a disappointment. The buffet is OK, typical and the dinner theme changes every night. There is a little sandwich shop with a few tables, it is slow, the place is not clean, but the food is good when you get it. The Copa is their nicer dining option, but is closed more than it is open. We were going to eat there while waiting for our room Sunday afternoon. Closed. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday? Closed.

It is a couple blocks to the strip, where there are more dining and gaming options. Probably not a walk most would want to undertake, there are plenty of divey places and riff raff between the Sands and the strip. There is a decent convenience store within easy walking distance.

They still offer a free shuttle to and from the airport.

Overall, if you want a place to sleep, cheap drinks, and cheap slots, the Sands should work for you.

The Sands has low priced rooms with a good location and the first room I stayed in was not bad their amenities are not what you would expect kind of old. though in the next stay I was shocke the room was nasty, the carpet was wet from where they had tried to clean some blood from the floor I encountered people under the influence of meth in the elevator and the bed spread and bed seemed to be at least twenty years old as well as the t.v. overall the buffet was very good most workers were polite and the other tower was not bad for the price. though I would not recomend staying in the regency tower.

I recently came back from a two night stay at this hotel. I bought the room via hotwire and got it for an amazing price. Getting to the hotel from the airport was easy, check-in was easy so no problem until I hit the room. When I walked into the first room they gave me it was instantly obvious that the ceiling had caved in due to a water leak above. All I did was walk and walk out. I asked for a different room, which they gave me in the Dynasty Tower. Everything was great in that room until, around 8pm, I noticed dogs barking and howling on the floor. Not one or two simple barks but the baying of a basset hound or beagle that never stops. Again, packed my bags and went back down to ask for another room (all this within a few hours). They were kind to change me to a higher floor and that is where I stayed. So if you are a light sleeper, i would recommend elsewhere. However, if you want cheap thrills and a casino, this might just be up your alley.