Las Vegas guide and MSE thread 2015

stoneman

Re looking for flights. I used to use ITA matrix but find it a bit daunting. kayak and the like are OK but the daddy has to be Google flights. I used it to book my DUB/LCY/JFK/LAX/LIH/LAX/JFK/LCY/DUB and if can handle that then anything else is a piece of cake.

stoneman

jonesMUFCforever wrote: »

For anybody who can travel from Dublin via Gatwick with BA - see how much you can save!
For me looking at dates for next March the prices come out at £1100 for both of us staying at a cheap hotel such as Excalibur - UK price nearly £1400

So you can save £300 for 2 of you. You have to factor in the possisioning cost of
flights, a night in Dublin before hand, which might entail you taking another days holiday, then the thought that your flight gets delayed or canceled meaning you miss your connecting flight.
All to save £300?

lonestarfan

jonesMUFCforever wrote: »

For anybody who can travel from Dublin via Gatwick with BA - see how much you can save!
For me looking at dates for next March the prices come out at £1100 for both of us staying at a cheap hotel such as Excalibur - UK price nearly £1400

I thought they were good prices when earlier posts gave a suggestion to try this method. I'm inexperienced at this though so decided not to do all the extra travelling and changes etc. It took me a while to work out what to do and how I would get to Dublin for the first part of the flight. Plus there's cost for the checked extra baggage on the flight to Dublin to start off in the first place etc. With the flight times I might need a hotel or an extra days holiday as the flights times didn't all match. But for the journey on the way back I realised after reading the posts on here that I could end my journey at Gatwick. This idea isn't for me as it didn't turn out worth the saving and Gatwick is a pain for me to get home from at the end of a long flght but certainly might be a tip for others who are fit and well and can manage the changes.

stoneman

lonestarfan wrote: »

No. :rotfl:
He's well behaved lol. He's a bloke who wants to shoot
Its for his 21st birthday and my 50th but my plan was gamble, eat, shows, gamble, eat, shows. Oh and the Grand Canyon. Shooting is not my cup of tea. I'll try to persuade him to do the indoor gun places rather than the outside ranges.

We go to the Pro Gun Club. About half an hour drive (but I think they do a free pick up). You can do loads more than an indoor range. Sniper, skeet, clays, even fire semi heavy artillery if you have the money. In the summer go early about 8am because by 10 you will be melting. We usually spend a couple of hours there and go through $200-$300

stoneman

lonestarfan wrote: »

I thought they were good prices when earlier posts gave a suggestion to try this method. I'm inexperienced at this though so decided not to do all the extra travelling and changes etc. It took me a while to work out what to do and how I would get to Dublin for the first part of the flight. Plus thers cost for the checked extra baggage on the flight to Dublin to start off in the first place etc. With the flight times I might need a hotel or an extra days holiday as the flights times didn't all match. But for the journey on the way back I realised after reading the posts on here that I could end my journey at Gatwick. This idea isn't for me as it didn't turn out worth the saving and Gatwick is a pain for me to get home from at the end of a long flght but certainly might be a tip for others who are fit and well and can manage the changes.

http://www.google.com/flights

lonestarfan

Thanks Stoneman. Google flights is in dollars. Can't seem to find out how to change it to sterling.
Anyway this years vegas flights are booked but with Thomas Cook.
If I want to go again which is very likely then on reflection having read more then I think I would go for scheduled flights using the tips on here.

duchy

I'll have a go

I've picked my birthday week as a random set of dates

4 Sept arrive Gatwick leave hold bag at left luggage Located on the far wall of the Arrivals area near the Costa Coffee outlet cost £5 per bag

4 Sept LGW DUB 09.40 11.00 FR113 £32.99

Lunch in Dublin - for me this is a treat not a diversion then back to the airport

4 Sept DUB LGW 18.55 20.25 EI246 £488

collect bag from left luggage and walk a few yards to

Yotel £65
Watch a bit of TV, sleep, use free wifi
Up bright and early and walk a few yards to Virgin check in desk and check in bag- walk back to Yotel via Costa for coffee and a pastry
Leisurely shower , watch a bit of Sky news and amble to security

5/9 VS 43 11.20 LGW 14.05 LAS

returning

12/9 VS 44 16.35 LAS 10.25 next day LGW
connecting to
12/9 EI 243 16.50 LGW 18.10 DUB
(Ooops good thing I only checked my bags to London as I'd need them as I wanted to have a shower and change during the 8 hour wait for the Dublin flight as I "missed" that flight )

Costs
Ryanair £32,99 (no luggage fee as checked bag left at Gatwick)
Left luggage £5
Flight (Expedia) £488.25
Hotel Yotel £65 -)others are cheaper but the point was I didn't have to mess about with shuttles or treks- Hilton was about £85 for a bigger room but a longer walk) The Yotel rooms are TINY think like a cabin on a ferry but with a really good monsoon shower and free wi-fi.

Total £591.24

same Virgin flight LGW LAS return £1030

so saving £438 pp

I do take "on board" what Stoneman is saying about the extra day off of work but for me a day in Dublin is a bonus and the best part is the relaxed start to the transatlantic flight.

The £876 saved between two of us essentially pays for our hotels in Vegas with change.....and something nicer than Excalibur too !!

stoneman wrote: »

So you can save £300 for 2 of you. You have to factor in the positioning cost of
flights, a night in Dublin before hand, which might entail you taking another days holiday, then the thought that your flight gets delayed or canceled meaning you miss your connecting flight.
All to save £300?

I build in delay time -and the savings on not lugging your bags to Dublin (and paying to do so) offset the hotel cost (although for me I could actually drive home from Gatwick and back the next morning but I prefer the less stressed start with the overnight stay-I'm on holiday after all )

jonesMUFCforever

martmonk wrote: »

When you say via Gatwick do you mean doing that so you can drop the last leg on the way home?

I discovered when booking my flights recently you don't have to do that. The main reason is that uk air passenger duty only applies on outbound flights, so start in Dublin and return to you usual regional airport. I mentioned a couple of pages back I saved a fortune starting in Dub and returning to ncl.

If you are not set on BA then use kayak or similar and do a multi city search which will bring up additional airline options. Placement flights to Dub can be had from most regional airports for peanuts on Ryanair and or Aer Lingus.

The only reason I tried BA is that it is classed as a direct flight so if there is a delay from Dublin to Gatwick BA would have to put me on the next available flight - if any other budget flight was delayed I would be on my own.
I am fortunate to live 10 minutes away from a port going to Dublin by ferry so I would use both flights. Train to London is 4 hours for me and then you need to cross over to Gatwick (not)Express lol.
I did try flights out of Dublin and returning to Manchester but they were more expensive than what I quoted.

jonesMUFCforever

stoneman wrote: »

So you can save £300 for 2 of you. You have to factor in the possisioning cost of
flights, a night in Dublin before hand, which might entail you taking another days holiday, then the thought that your flight gets delayed or canceled meaning you miss your connecting flight.
All to save £300?

Please read my previous post - direct flight with BA from Dublin to Gatwick - any delays there and BA would have to put me on next available flight.
Cost of Dublin hotel is comparable to Gatwick hotel.
Cost of getting rail from home to Gatwick - not far from £200 - foot passenger on ferry to Dublin at most £60.
So my savings are actually more than £300.

duchy

As you can treat Dublin as your "local" airport there's often even bigger savings to be made flying indirect something like direct Dublin to Atlanta with a connecting flight too.

With all these "creative" flights there's always little tweeks to be made depending on where you live and how important direct flights are to you.

I remember someone here (either Rory or Stuie I think) missing the Holyhead ferry after getting "delayed" in the pub on their way to Vegas -fortunately they got to DUB in time anyway.