Oh dear God do not do that.

And what is wrong with dt?

Other than it would likely take well over an hour to get downtown and maybe save you about $12-15 over a cab, there's nothing wrong with it. I guess it depends on your budget and how much value you put on your time.

Plus you are taking a bus thorugh some not so nice part of town. I always find is amusing how people come to Las Vegas, gamble away hundreds if not thousands of dollars and then worry about saving $20 on cab rides.

Although I will say, sometimes it IS good to have a car. It all depends on where you are going. One trip, the Ex and I went to the Gamblers General Store. It's kind of on the outskirts of Downtown out by itself. We shopped for a while and then when we were ready to leave, we couldn't flag a cab down to save our lives. Come to find out later, cabs won't stop if you flag them (like they do in NYC). Apparently by law, they can't. (or at least that is what we were told). It was kind of irritating. So just be aware if you take a cab somewhere, you may have to call and have them come pick you back up. You should not have an issue getting a cab in the more "touristy" spots though. They hang around the Strip hotels and the Downtown hotels too.

R E N T A C A R

The hotels have free valet parking and as stated in the previous posts, cabs are expensive

[QUOTE=hlburi]... Come to find out later, cabs won't stop if you flag them (like they do in NYC). Apparently by law, they can't. (or at least that is what we were told). It was kind of irritating. ...QUOTE]

I believe the law is that they can't stop on the street. Years ago we stayed at the Day's Inn Town Hall Casion - dumpy place on Koval behind Ballys - its been torn down now. We would call for cabs, but they rarely showed up. If we flagged one on the street they would circle back and stop in the parking lot.

I guess it boils down to personal choice. I've never found myself needing a car when I've stayed on the Strip. And on the rare occasion I did need one, I would just rent one for the day. Cabs aren't terribly expensive (as opposed to cabs I've taken in LA and other places). And then as mentioned previously, you also have the choice of taking the monorail or the bus.

But definitely do what works best for you. Have a great trip!

You might be right. It's been a while and I don't recall exactly. I just remember trying to flag one down and they wouldn't even turn around for us. Maybe I wasn't showing enuf leg??

Anyhow, what was really ironic is that right across from the Gamblers General Store was a cab dispatch station.

I DISAGREE... even if I don't take into consideration the fact that I always get limo pickup at the airport,

When in Vegas, I always stay on the strip... and find walking and cabs to be just fine. When I'm on vacation, I hate to deal with traffic and driving; NOT to mention the fact that I really enjoy my cocktails, especially in The Vegas... I spend most of my life having to drive... it is nice to not have to worry about it sometimes. Since your schedule is often wacked in Vegas [up much later than usual] and most drink a bit more than usual, driving is more of a liability IMHO.

If you decide you must leave the strip for a day trip... then you can always just rent a car at that time; but it seemed that the OP was looking for advise on a short 3 day strip trip....

Well, I must assume that the OP is already on his way to Vegas, so this is for posterity...

I've done all the permutations of renting a car vs. cabs vs. buses vs. free shuttles vs. hotel trams vs. monorail vs. walking, etc...

In general, first time visitors are best served using taxis and the bus. They're usually on the strip, and most of the major sites are within a few miles and well served by the bus or hotel trams. Besides, walking the strip and taking in the sights can be great fun.

It doesn't take that long to get to downtown from the strip on the bus, depending on time of day. If you're going in the morning, it's pretty fast. Late afternoon, it's not too bad, but it'll take about 30 minutes. It does slow quite a bit mid-strip, but once you get past the Wynn, it picks up. Besides, if you're a first time visitor, most people use the time to sightsee, which is good from the double-decker buses.

For subsequent visits, getting a car is useful because it gets you to the off-strip properties and other sites, like Red Rock Canyon, Valley of Fire, or Hoover Dam. If you take the time to become familiar with the backstreets around the strip, a car can be a relatively quick way to get around. People are usually at the point where they have a specific idea of where they want to go, rather than simply casino-hopping and wandering around.

As noted, if you're partying or drinking, then cabbing it is the way to go, unless you have a designated driver.

I personally don't find the traffic or driving on the strip to be all that daunting, and I don't find it all that much slower than taking a cab. After years of commuting in the SF Bay Area, stop-and-go traffic doesn't faze me. Besides, I enjoy driving the strip and taking in all the neon.

At this point, I usually base my decision on whether to rent a car or use other transportation entirely on economics. I figure it takes about $10 to cab it to most places I go. So, roundtrip is $20. I can usually rent a car for around $25 a day, so if I'm going off strip more than once a day, I rent a car. If not, I stick with public transportation and cabs. For me, the decision is based on what I intend to do while in Vegas and where I want to go.

For example, I'm headed to Vegas for March Madness - arriving the Wednesday night before the first game and leaving Sunday evening. I'm staying at the Aladdin for the first two nights, and then moving to the Stratosphere for the second two nights. I won't bother with a car during my stay at the Aladdin since I'll be mostly at the sportsbooks all day and won't venture far from the strip - maybe a trip to the Palms or Hard Rock. Any occasional trips I have up and down the strip can be handled via the Deuce or a combination of walking and trams. However, I'll rent a car for the time I'm at the Stratosphere. The Strat is far from most places I want to visit, so it'd be easier to have a car to get around. I could just take the bus, but since I'll be "commuting" fairly often, it's just more convenient to have a car.

I do find that if I have a car, that I tend to travel around a lot more.