Best off-peak time for Las Vegas?
 

Hello,

I'm looking to go to Las Vegas. I am completely flexible on time (other than it has to be over a weekend) so I'd like to find out what is the best time of the year to go -- ie cheap hotel rooms, less crowds, better weather, etc.

I believe this has been covered before but I didn't find it in a cursory search, and I would appreciate if someone who just 'knows' would tell me when's a good time to plan travel. I know I'll pay more to stay over the weekend than midweek, but I can't afford the vacation days.

Thanks

dg1: You've identified the major calendar-related factor. I would say that the next important factor in determining value-price periods would be to identify whether a major convention will overlap your proposed dates. Use the link below to see whether your dates coincide with 200,000 Shriners, computer geeks and so on. Good luck!

http://www.lasvegas24hours.com/calendar/index.html

Cheap rooms...better weather

These do not go together in Las Vegas! Unless 100+degrees is better weather to you! Summer is the cheap room time. You will still have to be selective as the weekend are not cheap, compared to weekdays.

We have traveled early December (cool, and I mean temperature) and there is a window of time for cheap rooms then too. Many of the shows are dark though, so you have to decide what is important to you and what end of the temperature scale is "better weather" to you.

Vegas does generate some good prices of and on in different markets. Some of the older hotels are suffering the new blues and are offering package deals. Downtown is often cheaper too. When I was a bachlor and a bit of a card player I stayed at some of the non casino motels near the strip. Prices were cheap, rooms large, but very very tired. Again you have to decide what is important to you.

Laughlin will produce much better weekend prices, if they have what you are looking for.

There are a couple periods where rates go down. I have found that select weekends between Thanksgiving and Christmas and also some weekends in Jan, Feb or March. The above posters were right ... it does depend on conventions. March is when conventions seam to start-up, but catch a weekend in between and you may be in luck. Also outfits such as UA Vacations discount packages but don't publish these rates until almost the last minute. Meaning, most vacationeers (is that a word?) plan months in advance but since demand is slow during the holidays, they discount about 3 weeks before (or so). A good agent can tell you approximately when rates usually go down (but of course would never sign in blood to that effect).

As for weather ... that is subjective. To me 50's and 60's in Jan/Feb are GRRREAT when you consider the potential for nasty Chicago winters. It never gets really bad there. I usually don't wear a jacket during my winter stays, but maybe its just the adrenaline and the booze at work!

Ah, a bargain challenge. This is one of my favorite things. There are many good suggestions but here's what Mr. Lion would do:

Go to one of the hotel web pages that has on-line booking such as www.mandalaybay.com and look at the calendar of available dates. This will give you a good idea of when the lighter times are. Currently the first three weekends in December look good and everything else is wicked expensive.

Next, go to www.unitedvacations.com and book a HOTEL-ONLY package for the weekend you've selected. This will give you a big list of bargain rates at many hotels for you to choose from.

Then I would compare these rates with www.lvrs.com and www.expedia.com to see if they have any improvement.

Finally, when you've narrowed it down to two or three hotels, call the hotels directly on the off chance they can get you a better rate. Most likely they cannot.

If you want any recommendations about specific places, feel free to ask! And have fun in the most exciting city in the world!

Thanks all -- a lot of good information in just a few hours!

QuietLion is right about the Mandalay Bay site, but you can get calendars at www.luxor.com and www.monte-carlo.com (both fine hotels, yet cheaper than MB) and even www.excalibur-casino.com, but it's a Motel 6-quality place.

Typically the week or two before Christmas are dirt cheap. I think you'll find the Monte Carlo and Luxor about $59 then. Often, you can even get cheaper rates (for any dates) at www.lvrs.com.

If you are slightly flexible about days of the week, Sunday and Monday stays make for great cheap getaways. The downside is that many shows are dark on both of those days (fewer visitors equals cheap rooms). But a Saturday and Sunday shouldn't be exorbitant.

dg1,

It looks like you are considering USAir special web pricing to LAS also. My wife and I are may go the second weekend in January.

Typically, leisure travel drops off significantly each year for about a month starting with the second weekend following New Year's. Even in Florida and the Caribbean, this is a relatively slow period.

You can usually find lots of last minute deals at many resort locations during this time period.

[This message has been edited by BillMorrow (edited 08-04-2000).]