GET THERE: All of the major airlines fly round trip from Denver International Airport (DEN) to Las Vegas’ McCarran International Airport (LAS). Fares vary wildly thoughout the year depending on time of year and what’s happening, so check out for the city’s schedule. For instance, our trip coincided with the very popular annual NASCAR weekend March 1-2, and so reasonable airfares and hotel rooms were hard to come by. In the summer, you can find airfares as low as $125 round trip, but the rest of the year expect to see fares starting at $180.
GET AROUND: Unless you are going to go well beyond the Strip, there’s no point in renting a car. Cabs are everywhere and relatively cheap, and although walking from one end of the Strip to the other can be exhausting — it is, after all, 4 miles long (and hey, walking from one end of the Bellagio to another can be exhausting) — it’s still a reasonable way to get around, except in stiletto heels. If you have a big group and can afford it, a limo is a nice option so that you don’t have to stand in the very long cab lines. If you’re going to a show, take those lines into consideration — they can add a half-hour to your travel time.
DRESS CODE: Vegas seems like a sloppy town, but the fact is that almost all of the clubs have a policy of not allowing sneakers, bandannas or baseball caps, and they aren’t kidding. You can ditch the headgear, but if sneakers are all you brought, you will be sitting at the slots or shelling out $200 for a pair of dress shoes. Women tend to wear very slinky, very short dresses out, and even forgo wraps and coats unless it’s very cold; they also carry the tiniest purses possible. There’s just no place to put anything down, especially if you don’t have a table.
MORE INFO: Check out David deMontmollin’s “Las Vegas Little Red Book: A Girl’s Guide to the Perfect Vegas Getaway” (with Molly Sullivan and Hiram Todd Norman) and “Las Vegas Little Black Book: A Guy’s Guide to the Perfect Vegas Weekend,” also with Norman ($11.95, Justin, Charles & Co.), or go to .
Kyle Wagner
