LA + Vegas, need tips and recommendations!

Lifesaver

I note that no-one has mentioned getting a Voucher book to get cheap accommodation when in the States.

The first thing I ever do is get off the plane and call into the nearest Dennys to pick one up - they're free and can be used in hotels and motels and restaurants. They are regionally printed so available all over the US.

blindman

Having finally got to the end of this interesting thread can I ask FboaD to reiterate your plans so far?

Dates of arrival\departure?

Quick tips I'll add while your posting:rolleyes:


Flights
Did you sign up with BMI Frequent flyer to get the airmiles?
If you did then this thread details how to get the best use of the free 20,000 miles you get with the card.


LA
Hotels
Have you used Priceline? Some bargains to be had in the 3\4* range in LA.

Driving
Traffic can be horrendous, avoid the rush hours and around LAX
West coast
Big Sur and Hearst Castle are must do's on the area.

Murphy_The_Cat

blindman wrote:

Big Sur and Hearst Castle are must do's on the area.

Hi Blindman

I'm sat here smiling at the mere mention of the Big Sur , did you visit San Luis Opisbo whilst you were there ?


MTC

fatboyonadiet

blindman wrote:

Having finally got to the end of this interesting thread can I ask FboaD to reiterate your plans so far?

Dates of arrival\departure?

Quick tips I'll add while your posting:rolleyes:


Flights
Did you sign up with BMI Frequent flyer to get the airmiles?
If you did then this thread details how to get the best use of the free 20,000 miles you get with the card.


LA
Hotels
Have you used Priceline? Some bargains to be had in the 3\4* range in LA.

Driving
Traffic can be horrendous, avoid the rush hours and around LAX
West coast
Big Sur and Hearst Castle are must do's on the area.

Arriving 10th, going to Vegas the morning of the 17th and coming back on the 20th.

Got a car in LA from Hertz and might get a car from one fo the dream car rental places for a day in Vegas. Booked the Luxor for Vegas and the Vagabond Exec Inn for LA. Going to get a helicopter ride for Vegas too but not booked that yet.

When is their actual rush hour? Similar times to ours?

blindman

No.
We drove from San Fran (stopped o'nite at Monterey) then down Big Sur with the plan to stop at Hearst Castle for an evening tour.

The route was blocked with a landslide so we had to backtrack the top 1/2 of the journey.
The we drove to LA

I used info from the helpful people at this site.

blindman

fatboyonadiet wrote:

Arriving 10th, going to Vegas the morning of the 17th and coming back on the 20th.

Got a car in LA from Hertz and might get a car from one fo the dream car rental places for a day in Vegas. Booked the Luxor for Vegas and the Vagabond Exec Inn for LA. Going to get a helicopter ride for Vegas too but not booked that yet.

When is their actual rush hour? Similar times to ours?

10th of which Month?

Not sure about exact times of their rush hour, register (free) on this site and ask there.

Luxor is at the end of the strip, a long walk.....what rate did you get?

Vagabond Exec Inn what was the price and why did you choose this (not a criticism) just wondering.

Stayed here for $38 per night through Priceline.

My review is here

Murphy_The_Cat

Lifesaver wrote:

I note that no-one has mentioned getting a Voucher book to get cheap accommodation when in the States.

The first thing I ever do is get off the plane and call into the nearest Dennys to pick one up - they're free and can be used in hotels and motels and restaurants. They are regionally printed so available all over the US.

Lifesaver, thats a brilliant tip, but did you know that you can get in in Britain before you leave so that you can better plan your holiday ?

If you visit Travellers Guide, you can have the guide for the State/s that you are going to posted to you. The guide is free, but the postage is a hefty $7.

If you've never used one of these guides before they can save you some serious $$$$. I'll be honest and say that i don't know how much is available in peak time.

MTC

p.s. Blindman, I enjoyed Monteray, especially watching the "slotters" play in the sea.:D

fatboyonadiet

blindman wrote:

10th of which Month?

Not sure about exact times of their rush hour, register (free) on this site and ask there.

Luxor is at the end of the strip, a long walk.....what rate did you get?

Vagabond Exec Inn what was the price and why did you choose this (not a criticism) just wondering.

Stayed here for $38 per night through Priceline.

My review is here

September. Not sure what we paid at Luxor exactly but booked it direct on their site, think it was about $109 dollars a night for 3 nights.

Vagabond because we wanted to stay in that end of town and paid £275 for a week, free parking was a bonus too. Might have a look into your recommendation too.

fatboyonadiet

Murphy_The_Cat wrote:

Lifesaver, thats a brilliant tip, but did you know that you can get in in Britain before you leave so that you can better plan your holiday ?

If you visit Travellers Guide, you can have the guide for the State/s that you are going to posted to you. The guide is free, but the postage is a hefty $7.

If you've never used one of these guides before they can save you some serious $$$$. I'll be honest and say that i don't know how much is available in peak time.

MTC

p.s. Blindman, I enjoyed Monteray, especially watching the "slotters" play in the sea.:D

Maybe if someone is going before then they could pick one up for me and post it to me

blindman

Use the Las Vegas Convention checker to see how full the hotels might be.

One of them

And another

[URL="file:///H:/My%20Documents/Travel/USA/October%202006/Las%20Vegas/visitingusa.htm"]Old thread [/URL]with useful links.

Sign up to email alerts to the hotels, you may get some offers that beat the Luxor.


Tripadvisor review on the Vagabond, looks good but it is 2004 and only one review.

The Residence Inn has free parking also.