Las Vegas thread and MSE guide 2009 part 2

Wammer

September

Re the second ticket at $25 for CdS show, I have just read that there are only a certain amount of these allocated for each show. If you know your dates then I would suggest calling sooner rather than later.

pebblesmax

October , November

aniseedball wrote: »

We were planning on hiring a car and driving out to Death Valley, if so we'll go to Walmart on that day. I'm a bit worried about driving over there though. We've spent 10 weeks in America over the last 3 years but have never got a car, I'm too scared of crashing and having to pay a massive excess. Plus the cars over there are all like monster trucks and if one of them hit us we'd be toast! My hubby has only been driving for 2 years and falls to bits when he drives somewhere new. I've been driving for 8 years and am very confident, but I'm still not sure about over there I've driven in Greece and Spain, Greece was fine but Spain was horrendous :eek:. Also I'll be pregnant so not sure how practical it would be to drive to Death Valley in summer :rotfl:

If you survived driving in Spain, them Vegas will be a piece of cake. Even the rude drivers are more considerate than your average Spanish driver. I drive in Spain all the time, but still find it more stressful than driving in Vegas/USA.

Also, if you book with one of the companies recommended here, then I'm sure you are pretty safe as far as insurances are concerned.

tingtong

kitchensink wrote: »

I love this place and the fact that people are so quick to help - just hope one day i might be able to return the favour! Now just have to find somewhere to stay in san fran and yosemite and the trip is booked. I know it's late for yosemite - but ever the optimist!

Would recommend:

SF - http://www.jdvhotels.com/hotels/sanfrancisco/carlton

Yosemite - http://www.yosemitebluebutterflyinn.com/

Hope it helps !

trets77

aniseedball wrote: »

Thanks for the replies about Walmarts guys, I've jotted down the closest ones to us. We've been to two of the Orlando ones and one in Cancun and loved every minute, a great way to spend an afternoon lol. I've heard about Target but never been so we may have to call in for a nosy :beer:

We were planning on hiring a car and driving out to Death Valley, if so we'll go to Walmart on that day. I'm a bit worried about driving over there though. We've spent 10 weeks in America over the last 3 years but have never got a car, I'm too scared of crashing and having to pay a massive excess. Plus the cars over there are all like monster trucks and if one of them hit us we'd be toast! My hubby has only been driving for 2 years and falls to bits when he drives somewhere new. I've been driving for 8 years and am very confident, but I'm still not sure about over there I've driven in Greece and Spain, Greece was fine but Spain was horrendous :eek:. Also I'll be pregnant so not sure how practical it would be to drive to Death Valley in summer :rotfl:

if you Hire from Carhire 3000 all insurances are included , and there is zero excess. all you may need to pay for on arrival is Fuel ( which can be purchase in advance with some packages )

Driving in USA is a breeze to driving around a UK city at rush hour . just remember these tips.

• Too stop yourself getting getting confused which side of the road you need to be on , remember the driver side should be nearest to oncoming traffic and passenger nearest the kerb.
• You can turn right on red light by default . providing it is safe to do so and your turn is clear . Lights you cannot turn right on are clearly marked .
• junctions with a flashng red light , you should be prepared to stop and let any waiting cars have the right of way .
• Automatics are so easy to drive . just remember to put your foot on the brake when selecting drive , park or reverse.
• never overtake a school bus with it's flashing lights on .

Death Valley is well worth the effort to get out there. as are the other places you can easily reach from Vegas

Dangermouse99

October , November

Hi, I'm planning a trip to Vegas this year, looking at going around 18th September onwards for around 10 days. A guy I used to work with went a few months back and it cost him around £500 for a week. I was hoping for something similar from Expedia but all I've seen is £800 ish plus for decent hotels.

Can somebody please recommend the best site(s) to look on and whether or not to get the flights (Manchester) and hotels separately? I'm sure I can get it for less than £800.

Thanks in advance!
Dan

ferf1223

October , November

Dangermouse99 wrote: »

Hi, I'm planning a trip to Vegas this year, looking at going around 18th September onwards for around 10 days. A guy I used to work with went a few months back and it cost him around £500 for a week. I was hoping for something similar from Expedia but all I've seen is £800 ish plus for decent hotels.

Can somebody please recommend the best site(s) to look on and whether or not to get the flights (Manchester) and hotels separately? I'm sure I can get it for less than £800.

Thanks in advance!
Dan

Your dates may make it a challenge - there's a big fight and Killers concert on the 19th, so that will make it a more expensive weekend than normal. Not sure when exactly your friend went but timing really can be everything in planning Vegas trips - there are low times when hotels are very cheap - if you can tie that up with a cheap flight you'll get a great deal. Whether getting flights and hotel separately will be a better deal depends on your exact circumstances - price them separately to see how it compares to packages. Remember packages are per person, but rooms in Vegas booked direct are per room (for up to 2 people) so take that into account if you'll be travelling with someone else.

Dangermouse99

October , November

Thanks, we're going with one eye on the fight, didn't realise the killers are there too, locals lads as well so guess the timing is tough and late!!

c_l_a_i_r_e

July

Dangermouse99 wrote: »

Hi, I'm planning a trip to Vegas this year, looking at going around 18th September onwards for around 10 days. A guy I used to work with went a few months back and it cost him around £500 for a week. I was hoping for something similar from Expedia but all I've seen is £800 ish plus for decent hotels.

Can somebody please recommend the best site(s) to look on and whether or not to get the flights (Manchester) and hotels separately? I'm sure I can get it for less than £800.

Thanks in advance!
Dan

As Ferf says price up packages and flights and hotels separately. Booking separate is usually always cheapest but expedia have had some great booking discounts recently. Is there any way you could be more flexible with your dates - Fri and Sat nights are much more expensive than midweek in Vegas and with your current dates you are covering 2 weekends which will inevitably push the price up.

Try pricing your flights up with:
https://www.kayak.co.uk
https://www.netflights.com
https://www.opodo.co.uk
https://www.expedia.co.uk
For hotel deals check out https://www.smartervegas.com and http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/travel-deals/704925/?start=2340 for starters.

trets77

Dangermouse99 wrote: »

Thanks, we're going with one eye on the fight, didn't realise the killers are there too, locals lads as well so guess the timing is tough and late!!

we have done for less than £500 a week ( flying direct and Staying @ The Mirage and THE HOTEL) but like others said time you go is everything . we went week before Xmas for that price which is probably the slowest week of the entire year .

any flight around £350 each is going to be good value but if this fight is popular then of course it will push up flight prices ( Ricky Hattons fights always pushed prices high ) . where are you flying from ?? . if it isn't London or surrounding area then to save cash Indirect is probably your best bet.

then it's a case of pricing up hotels using the links in post 1. should be seing offers for September now , so you can do all you sums and have a pretty good idea of what you can do it for , before parting with cash .

like others said prices are per room , not per person if you book direct , and you can have look at 3 per room for a supplement , but personally i would say stick to 2 per room if you have even numbers/ or it is only a few $ more as you can fold away beds i believe .

inmypocketnottheirs

Don't know if this has been covered elsewhere but a good place for hotel deals is www.hotwire.com. Basically you select the location and star rating, but only find out the actual hotel afterwards. However, by cutting and pasting the hotel description into google it will usually come up with the hotel homepage. I recently stayed at The Drake and Hyatt Regency in Chicago for $89 inc taxes and MGM in Vegas for $69 inc taxes.