For those who have been to vegas

[XChris1632X]

looking to go on vacation before i leave for the guard. I havent really ever had to plan more of a trip than going to snowshoe mtn. My problem is that im tight on cash right now after christmas and paying off bills before i leave. I have looked on travelocity and can find some 3 or 4 night stays with flight for like 3-400$ I dont want to waste a lot on gambling I just want to party. How much do I need? What is the best place to go for a deal and that is nice and on the strip? What do I need to see why i am there kinda deal? If I remember right I saw a post from the Dr. when he attended vegas. If he sees this maybe he can shed some light, although im not quick to judge usually and i dont know him but from the looks of things he has quite a bit more money to throw away than I do. Thanks in advance for any info.

[iwishiwascool]

vegas is not fun with a tight budget.

 

I have been twice this year. Once with no budget at all which was fun, the second a few days after I bought my car which made me cheap. I wouldnt go without less than a $1000 to lose at the tables and a few hundred for food and entertainment.

[Guest Luetic]

I agree, Vegas is NOT the place to go if money is tight.

 

Why not just go down to a river boat, like the Belltera (sp) stay over night, have a nice dinner, gamble a bit. It would be fun with out all of the drama of flights etc.

 

You can easily drop $5k on a Vegas trip and not bat an eye.

[SlowZ06]

Believe it or not, the essentials aren't expensive. The buffets are cheap, the hotels are cheap. Gambling is not cheap. You can go cheap, but $500 is just about the bare minimum for 3 days if you're going to enjoy it.

[mrs.cos]

Ok, well first things first.

 

There are lots of decent hotels that may not be as expensive to stay in as others. We have stayed at the Tropicana, which is across from NYNY, MGM, Luxor and a few others for about 30-50LESS a night.

 

B) lots of fun stuff to do, Free acts all over the place..

http://www.vegas.com/attractions/

http://www.bigempire.com/vegas/

 

What kind of budget are you looking at. Also if you go during the week, flight will be cheapr and so will hotels. Thurs=saturday are the most expensive hotel nights, by far.

We are going again in February.

[XChris1632X]

i will gamble a bit but not too much. thats not why i want to go. i want to party. I am recently single from a 3 1/2 year relationship (who knows how long it will last this time) but I need to get away. Im prepared to throw away a grand and have more if possible. Like I said I may gamble a couple hundred but id rather enjoy other aspects of vegas.

[XChris1632X]

looking for a short trip sunday-wed.

[HotCarl]

if it's short, why not windsor? Take a couple friends, a few hours drive rather than paying for a plane ticket. casinos/strip clubs/bars/clubs just like vegas. (thought not exactly like vegas)

[XChris1632X]

Im kinda scared i may never get the chance to do the vegas thing while im single and i can now. Considering the past I will probably not be single long, she will fuck with my head and probably hook up with some guy then realize she cant be without me and come back to me just like every other time. My sorry sad dick ass will be just waiting. So you see I kinda just want to go all out for a few days with no regrets and burn off the money I saved for her engagement ring for the second time. Maybe I can even come to a new realization that life is too good and I dont need her and come back to being single with a new perspective. Who knows people keep telling me vegas is magical.

[Kevin R.]

1. Take said money for Vegas trip.

2. Give said money to Sam.

3. Party at his ranch with tons o ladies.

4. Forget about said girl.

 

[Guest Hal]

I say go and have some fun, you have at least 7500 - tax coming after BCT and AIT. Along with you base pay during BCT, you should be able to afford a short trip if you do it smart.

 

PS. When are you leaving for BCT?

[XChris1632X]

im leaving the end a feb. You must know some about the gaurd to know that the sign on bonus was 15k and I was getting 7500 upon grad.

 

 

If I do go where should I look to stay, and where should I stay away from. I want something sweet but not too sweet that it racks up the dollars. Just nicer than the cheaper places in vegas.

[XChris1632X]

Kevin R. Sam needs to show proof of these such ladies in jpeg or .mov form.

[KentStateTsi]

i too am leaving end of Feb for bct....what sucks is you will only get 10k of your sign on after bct..the rest comes in installments each year. my sign on, bct pay, ait pay will all be spent on a nice ride. i'm tired of being 23 and driving a minivan.

[Crash1647545504]

I am going with my dad April 20th for NHRA Nationals. It will be my first time, and I will just be 21

[Guest Hal]

You think you're upset about not getting the rest of the money right away lol. I get my half upon grad from BCT/AIT and as soon as I contract with ROTC the rest goes away. What dates are you guys leaving? I am heading to MEPS thursday and want to find a good date in feb.

 

On topic. The Flamingo is a really nice hotel, albeit somewhat more expensive. I hear the pyramid one (can't remember the name) is nice, my brother stayed there.

[KentStateTsi]

i just had a cyst removed from my face and doc says 10-15 days to heal...plus a little partying time. so i'm thinking 3rd week in Feb. not looking forward to my "peanut butter" shot

[Guest Hal]

I just looked up what that shot is...I am not looking forward to that at all.

[mrs.cos]

i will gamble a bit but not too much. thats not why i want to go. i want to party. I am recently single from a 3 1/2 year relationship (who knows how long it will last this time) but I need to get away. Im prepared to throw away a grand and have more if possible. Like I said I may gamble a couple hundred but id rather enjoy other aspects of vegas.

 

THe only gambling i do there i sthe nickles slots..

 

you can take 30$ in nickles and play for hours with that.

So you dont even have to worry about atht. Drinks are free if you are gambling (even teh nickles).. keep that in mind.

 

COMPS COMPS COMPS!! Learn em, Get em.

 

Free shows.. Free dinners.. work it.

[Dr. Pomade]

Listen, pimp, forget all these people telling you not to go to Vegas. You're money, baby, so you get your shit together, head west, and rock the fuck out of Sin City.

 

Sounds like you've got a good deal on airfare - anything around $400 roundtrip (for one person) is about what is usually is. Also, that you're planning on going Sunday through Wednesday is great too, considering that rooms are cheapest then.

 

BEWARE: Superbowl Week is coming up. (I think the Superbowl is going to be held on February 4 this year.) It's by far the busiest, most expensive week in Vegas. So, if it were me, I'd definitely plan to avoid that week. (In fact, going the week after that would probably be great - prices on rooms would plummet, I would imagine.)

 

Staying anywhere on the Strip will suffice. Seriously, to me, they're all about the same: all of them have tables, slots, and all the same shit. Some places smell prettier (e.g., the Mandalay Bay), some places have neater architechture (e.g., the Luxor, the pyramid-shaped casino that Hal referenced), and some are bigger (e.g., the Bellagio), but, really, when it comes down to it, they're all the same. Here's how I look at it: you don't go to Vegas to stay in a fucking hotel room. So find a room at one of the major casinos on the Strip - you can find a listing of them easily by doing a search online - book it, and forget about it. On an off-peak week, and on those days, you should be able to get a room at a major casino for around $89 a night. Off the top of my head, here's some of the major casinos on the Strip that I wouldn't mind staying at: Bellagio, Winn, Monte Carlo, Luxor, Excalibur, Mandalay Bay, The Flamingo, Paris, New York New York, The Venetian, Treasure Island, The Mirage, Caesar's Palace, and the Stratosphere. Two other casinos are the Hard Rock Cafe and the Palms - both tend to cater to a younger crowd, but neither are on the Strip and both tend to be a bit pricier.

 

What must you absolutely do when in Vegas? Well, IMO, nothing, except to party like a fucking rockstar. There's not really any one "hey, you must do this" thing in Vegas, at least not in my opinion. Instead, if I were you, this would be my gameplan: I'm going to check in to my hotel and then go down to the casino and check it out; then I'm going to go to this and this and this casino before I leave at some point to check it out; in the meantime I'm going to this and this stripclub; and maybe, in between, I'll come back to the room to get a shower and maybe take a nap. So, before you go, have in mind a few of the casinos you want to visit and a few strip clubs, and then just let the trip happen how it happens.

 

Do you like going to night clubs? If so, Vegas has plenty of them. Some things to consider: (1) lines to get in them are fucking long; (2) they weren't THAT great - it's not like I've ever been "OMG THIS IS THE BEST CLUB EVER!!!1!!" when I've been there. So, if you don't hit up a lot of clubs while you are there, then it's not like you are going to be missing a bunch. If you go to Vegas and can only go to one club, then make it the Ghost Bar at the Palms.

 

Cab fare there is expensive - it'll cost you about $25 every time you get in a cab. If you plan on going anywhere other than your casino during the trip, then seriously consider renting a car. You can get one for the entire trip for around $150 or so - drive seven times while you're there, and the car pays for itself. You can easily book a rental car along with your airfare (and room) through Expedia or any of those travel websites. Driving there is easy - everything there is basically within a few miles on just one stretch of road (i.e., the Strip), and valet parking is free (or, really, a few bucks that you'll tip the valet guy), so you don't have to worry about parking - just roll up and jump out. Also, FYI, you can go to any casino you want as many times as you want - there's no "cover" charge at any of them.

 

Don't plan on walking anywhere unless you want to spend all your time fucking walking. Vegas - at least to me before I got there - seemed like such a condensced place, like everything was within a few blocks of everything else. Uh, nope. Just walking from one casino to the one next to it is like a 20-minute hike. Some people like that shit, the walking and stuff. I'm not one of them - I don't fly several hundred miles to then spend all my time walking around. They have a elevated train system there that connects several of the casinos (and, I think, eventually all of them), so, if you are absolutely against cabs/rental cars, there's always that to help out.

 

Alcohol is free in Vegas as long as you are gambling. That's a great perk, especially if you play table games (e.g., poker, blackjack). Note, though, that sometimes it takes waitresses a while to get to you. So, while the drinks are free, it's not like you get your own personal waitress (unless your gambling in high limit areas). I only say that because a few times I've burned myself just trying to get a drink: I've sat down at a slot machine to pass some time, just thinking I'll get a drink, and, while I'm waiting for the waitress to return, I've just thrown $40 into the slot machine. I could have saved myself $35 by walking up to the bar and buying it myself.

 

So, how much money will you need to take? Well, in terms of just straight cash, for three nights, I would think you would need at least $1500 to make it even worthwhile - that's $500 a night. I would think, in order to have fun (i.e., let loose at the strip clubs, have some fun in the casino), you'd need to take at least double that just in cash. Here's what you'll want to do, though, before you step out the door to head to Vegas: come up with a dollar amount that you have no remorse absolutely squandering in the worst way possible, put that in your pocket, and don't think twice about it. Seriously, no one should go to Vegas worried about money. So, worry about it now, come up with a dollar amount your comfortable with, and then go be a rockstar in Vegas.

 

Hopefully this helps. I just kind of spilled everything in my brain that I had floating up there about Vegas. Feel free to ask about whatever and I'll see if I can help.

 

Have a great time. You're right on - this may be the only chance you get, so enjoy it for all it's worth.

[SpaceGhost]

Good advice there.

[craig71188]

We used to go out every year for our sales meeting. They put us up at Sam's Town - way off the strip, but a free shuttle to the strip and cheap rooms $39-$49 Sun-Thu. Only downside - we refered to it as "God's Little Waiting Room-West". Try not to trip over the wheelchairs/canes/oxygen tanks (seriously) as you walk through.

BTW - the pyramid thingy - Luxor

Also - be sure you check out Freemont street in old downtown Vegas - GREAT light show on the roof on the hour (Free)- plus some neat old casino's.

[Ramsey]

who cares what hotel you stay at, you wont be in there very long; no last call = party never ends!

[Linc5.0]

i agree about the hotel. ur never in the bitch. last time i went out i stayed at paris,and it was pimp. but i was so fucked up that i really dont remember the hotel. Also anyone that thinks four days is short in VEGAS is not doing it right. When I go I maybe sleep 2-3 hours a night. Then take the red eye home so I can maximize my time....ps. dont plan on going to work that following day.lol. have fun. ill be there in April and July.

[XChris1632X]

Well plans kinda changed and im not leaving for basic until may 29th so i have more time then just two weeks to plan and come up with some green. i may wait a month or two and go with 3k to spend.

 

 

Doc you made it official im definatly going and I appreciate all the info. Infact you sound like you are more than just once or twice visitor maybe you should just take an unexpected vacation and show me how to do vegas the right way. I would definatly like to check out the night club scene, and I heard about that club and club rain. I have been looking at prices and pictures online. Some of the rooms look like something my grandma would stay in. Thats the only thing I dont like. I found a couple packages for 3 night stay + Airfare+ car rental for $500 a person. I figure my buddy and I will just split that and I can gather $2500 on top of that to blow. I figured that I would have to visit the clubs some because I want some vegas ass, and not that shit I got to spend money on. Just some drunk but but no fat chick ass. I really like the idea of going there with no plans other than visit this casino and that casino type of thing.

 

 

The one thing I did hear though regarding the clubs again was that its not how much money you have in vegas but who you know in vegas. I was told that different clubs are popular on different night and you can find a known club on a monday and they are slammin but on tuesday they arent kinda deal, and if you find the right club on the right night it can sometimes be hard to get in unless you know someone. A buddy said he tried to get into a nightclub one night that certain people were just strolling into and some were being turned away. He said he offered the bouncer $300 to get in and he said no.