Las Vegas Q&A
Real questions from people planning a trip, answered by the Vegas Guide team and by travelers who have been.
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| Question | Participants | Answers | Activity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Can you go inside the Sphere without a show ticket, or tour it? Shows & tickets Not inside. Sphere has no public lobby, no walk-up viewing and no guided tour; everyone who passes the doors holds a ticket for a specific event. The outside, the giant LED skin, is free to watch from the street. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| What is the best way to get around Las Vegas? Getting around Walk the dense center of the Strip and ride for everything else: free trams for the resort clusters, the Monorail along the east side, the Deuce bus for the long haul, rideshare late at night. You only need a car if you are leaving town. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| Which airport serves Las Vegas, and is Harry Reid the same as McCarran? Getting around Harry Reid International Airport, code LAS, and it is the same airport older maps call McCarran. The name changed in December 2021; the code, the terminals and the location did not. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| How much does the Las Vegas Monorail cost, and is it worth it? Getting around $5.50 a ride or $13.45 for 24 hours when you buy online, a dollar or two more at the station machines. Worth it if you are staying on the east side of the Strip and crossing it more than once a day; a poor deal from the west side. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| Where does the Las Vegas Monorail go, and what are its hours? Getting around It runs 3.9 miles along the east side of the Strip, from MGM Grand to Sahara, every 4 to 8 minutes, from 7 a.m. until midnight to 3 a.m. depending on the day. End to end takes under 15 minutes. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| What and where exactly is the Las Vegas Strip, and how is it different from downtown? Getting around The Strip is about 4.2 miles of Las Vegas Boulevard South, from Mandalay Bay to The STRAT, lined with the big resorts. Downtown is the original town 3 to 5 miles north, older and cheaper, built around Fremont Street. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| Is Uber or Lyft easy to use in Las Vegas, and how much does it cost? Getting around Easy, and most visitors use nothing else after dark. A ride between Strip resorts usually costs $10 to $20 on a normal evening; the catches are surge pricing and the walk to the pickup zone. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| How much does parking cost at Las Vegas Strip hotels? Getting around About $20 to $25 a day to self-park at most big Strip resorts in 2026, and around $40 for valet ($50 at Caesars Palace). Hotel guests pay it too, on top of the resort fee. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| What is the best way to get from Las Vegas airport to the Strip, and how much does it cost? Getting around A taxi or a rideshare, for almost everyone. The airport is 2 to 5 miles from the Strip, a 10 to 20 minute drive, and a cab costs a flat $21 to $29 depending on which end of the Strip you are going to. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| Which Las Vegas hotels and casinos still have free parking? Getting around On the Strip, only a few: Treasure Island, Circus Circus, Sahara and Fontainebleau park everyone free, and Casino Royale parks its own hotel guests free. Off the Strip, free parking is still the norm. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| What should you wear in Las Vegas? Weather & seasons For most of the trip, whatever is comfortable: shorts, jeans and sneakers work on the Strip, in the casinos and in most restaurants. The two exceptions are nightclubs, which check at the door, and the weather, which swings more than people expect. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| What is the weather like in Las Vegas in October, and what should you wear? Weather & seasons Warm at the start, cool by the end: highs of about 88°F on October 1, 82°F mid-month and 75°F on Halloween, with nights sliding from 66°F to 54°F. Pack summer clothes early in the month and jeans with a real jacket late. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| What is the best time of year to visit Las Vegas? Weather & seasons Mid-March to mid-April and mid-October to mid-November for the weather; summer or the quiet January midweeks for the price. Whatever the month, check your dates against the event calendar, which moves prices more than the season does. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| Is December a good time to visit Las Vegas? Weather & seasons Good for prices and holiday lights, poor for pools, and it depends on the week. December 13 to 23 is the cheapest stretch of the whole year on the Strip; the rodeo week before it and New Year's after it are the expensive ones. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| What is Las Vegas like in January? Weather & seasons Cool, dry and short on daylight, with two expensive convention weeks wrapped around two cheap ones. Highs run 57 to 60°F, lows near 40°F, and the sun sets before 5:10 p.m. all month. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| How much does a trip to Las Vegas cost? Money, tipping & gambling About $1,400 to $2,200 for a mid-range couple over three nights, before flights and gambling. That works out to roughly $230 to $370 per person per day. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| How much should you tip in Las Vegas, and is tipping mandatory? Money, tipping & gambling Not a legal requirement: Nevada pays tipped workers the full $12 minimum wage with no tip credit. It is still expected everywhere it would be elsewhere in the US, and Strip staff know the customary numbers to the dollar. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| How do you gamble in Las Vegas as a first-timer? Money, tipping & gambling Start with slots or a low-limit blackjack table, get the free players card first, and bring a fixed amount of cash you are happy to lose. You must be 21, and security will ask for ID. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| Is Las Vegas expensive, and can you do it on a budget? Money, tipping & gambling More expensive than it used to be, mostly because of what is not in the advertised price. It can still be done cheaply if you plan around those extras. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| What is the sales tax in Las Vegas? Money, tipping & gambling 8.375% in Clark County, which covers the Strip, Downtown, Henderson and the airport. It is added at the register, so shelf and menu prices are before tax. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| Where should you stay in Las Vegas: which part of the Strip, or downtown? Hotels & resort fees For a first visit, the center Strip, around Bellagio, Caesars Palace and The Cosmopolitan. Most of what you came to see is a walk away, and walking is how you will get around. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| Which hotels are actually on the Strip (Rio, Westgate, Virgin, Palace Station)? Hotels & resort fees None of those four. Rio, Westgate, Virgin Hotels and Palace Station are all just off the Strip: close enough that the marketing blurs it, far enough that you notice every evening. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| Do all Las Vegas hotels charge resort fees, and which ones don't? Hotels & resort fees Nearly every casino resort charges one. The exceptions are a short list worth knowing by name. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| Is the resort fee taxed, and what is the hotel room tax in Las Vegas? Hotels & resort fees Taxed, at the same rate as the room: 13.38% on the Strip and 13% inside the Las Vegas city limits, where Downtown sits. The fee you see quoted is almost always the pre-tax figure. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h | |
| What is a Las Vegas resort fee, and what does it cover? Hotels & resort fees A mandatory nightly charge the hotel adds on top of the room rate: $45 to $55 a night on the Strip in 2026, plus 13.38% tax. You pay it however you booked and whether or not you use anything it covers. 1 answer 7h | 1 | 7h |