Getting Around Las Vegas: Practical Information

The Las Vegas transit authority, Citizens Area Transit (CAT), runs the number 301 bus, which stops at all the major hotels along the Strip for a flat fare of $2.

Exact change is required; dollar bills are accepted. There are also the Las Vegas Strip Trolleys, green, old style buses which travel between Luxor and Stratosphere Tower on the Strip for a flat fare of $1.75. These services can save a great deal of pounding up and down the Strip between hotels, but both can sometimes be unpredictable and slow.

If used a lot, taxis here can work out to be an expensive way of getting around. They charge $2.20 for the first mile plus $1.50 for each additional mile. A cab from the airport to the south end of the Strip (a five-minute trip) costs around $11, while a trip to the north end can be as much as $20. Cabs can be hailed on the street if their top lights are on, or, more commonly, picked up at one of the hotel lines where you will be expected to tip the doorman at least a dollar.

Despite the fact that the majority of your time will be spent on one street, the Strip is a very long stretch of road, and while the properties along it appear to be near, this is an optical illusion caused by their vast size.

Renting a car in Las Vegas allows you to see everything without getting footsore or spending a fortune on taxis. Parking is easy in Las Vegas; all the large Strip hotels have free parking lots. All the major car rental companies are represented here and cars may be picked up and dropped off at McCarran Airport. Rates can be as low as $20 a day.

Perhaps the ultimate Las Vegas travel experience is the limousine, particularly the stretch limo. It is possible to rent a wide range of these vehicles, including stretch and super stretch versions that come fitted out with TV, cocktail bar, and even Jacuzzi, for between $40 and $80 an hour. Several companies in the city, such as Ambassador Limo and Las Vegas Limousines, rent their vehicles by the hour as well as for picking up and dropping off visitors at the airport. On Demand Sedan & Limousine Service provides chauffeur-driven vehicles.

Tipping

This is part of life in Las Vegas. Bellhops expect $1 per bag, bartenders $1 a drink, waiters 15 percent of the check, and cab drivers 10-15 percent of the fare. Leave a dollar a day for the chamber maids and a tip for croupiers, if you are lucky and win

BookItNow offers Holiday specials and best vacation travel deals, cheap hotels, flights, packages with latest travel destination news.