Taking on New Adventures

Recently, I talked with some friends who are heading to Vegas soon to give them some suggestions on what to do on their trip. Then, just two days later, another friend asked for suggestions as well. However, my recommendations were completely different. Why? Well, these two couples like completely different things and also have different budgets.

With that in mind, I give you some basic tips for making your Vegas trip successful, no matter your budget.

First, decide on your budget. I feel like this is the best way to get started because from there, you can figure out everything else you want to do: from what hotel to stay in to where to eat to how much you can gamble with and then all of the extras that the city has to offer.

Second, decide on what’s important to you. Are you interested in the pool scene or are you more interested in the food scene? Do you plan to relax in the room and hopefully have a view or is your room somewhere you sleep and get ready only?

Once I decide my budget, I start our trip planning with the room. We have both MGM Rewards and Caesars Rewards but have higher status with MGM. So typically, we have better perks at those hotels. While I would love to stay at some of the higher-end hotels with all of the frills, I always manage to find great rates at one of the hotels we like that’s in the mid to upper range. Typically, we end up at one of those hotels, and we are perfectly comfortable!

Because we both have remote jobs, we are able to book weekdays and not have to spend all weekend in Vegas, unless we are there for a specific reason. This helps not only with room rates but also flight costs!

For our flights, we constantly check our preferred carriers to find the best deals. Sometimes, that means booking two one-way tickets while other trips has us booking the earliest flight there and the latest flight back. It just kind of varies depending on when we go to Vegas. We also have been known to book the flights at the last minute due to work issues for my husband and other travel factors. But I would recommend doing one of the flight searches that alerts you to the lowest rates and booking what works for you.

Now, it’s time for the fun stuff. Are you into restaurants and want to try as many as you can? Book a few reservations in advance. You can always cancel or adjust times but so many of the “hot” restaurants book up early and the wait times are often long. Be sure to book a reservation, especially if it’s a place you know you want to try.

Into the dayclub or nightclub scene? Do some research before your trip to find out who is playing on your dates, what the costs are and if you should make a reservation for your group. I do recommend reservations for bigger groups but if it’s just 2 or 3 of you, you may be able to walk in and hang at the bar or standing-room only area, depending on where you go.

Bottom line, for restaurants and clubs, planning ahead is your best bet!

I tell everyone I know this tip: Plan on it taking time to get anywhere you want to go in Las Vegas. Although everything seems close, it really isn’t. From walking to traffic to not a fast point A to point B, it’s going to take longer to get where you want to go so take that into account and don’t over plan.

The joy of Las Vegas, especially for someone like me, is finding those great places as you walk along and creating your adventure as you go. Sure, we always have a plan and idea of what we want to do, but unless we have a ticket we’ve paid for already for a concert, club or event, we are always open for a last minute adventure. And almost always, it never disppoints!

Want some other travel tips? Hit me up! Happy to help with ideas, suggestions and more as you plan out your next trip!