To rent a car or not to rent a car.....

Preparing for my 7th annual trip next month. We always get a car, sometimes its sits for a couple days without being used. We normally take at least one good trip away from the strip (hoover dam, red rock canyon, etc). If you figure round trip fees from the airport (at least $50) and another $50 or more if you travel out of the area and you've already paid for 2/3 the cost of a car. Not to mention you have a place to keep your stuff until your room is ready, you can go to a store for room supplies, (beer and stuff), and the traveling early in the day in a car is pretty easy. I say it's well worth the money, if you shop around you shouldn't have to spend more than 175 for a week.

I almost always rent a car, it's cheaper, more convenient and gives more freedom.

However! I will not rent if I am in town with a group. I will not be a chauffeur or designated driver again. I will not have my afternoon nap interrupted by someone who has missed the Sam's Town to Harrah's shuttle so I can "swing-by" and pick them up.

The bottom line is what you want to do/see. On the one hand you always go during March madness, so I asssume your primary purpose is to bet on basketball games. That being the case, you can sit in one of the megabooks on the strip and not need a car. Of course you will pay exhorbitant prices for food, drinks, lodging, etc, (unless you are comped for all those). You also said that you always complain that you don't see enough of the strip!? I don't think a car will make much difference in that regard. I'm not sure what you mean by overcrowded parking lots, since I've never had a parking problem either self park or valet at any of the strip hotels, (maybe once or twice at Harrah's). Quite honestly, I don't think March madness is much worse than any other time of the year. On the other hand taxi and luggage fees with at least four of you will probably be nearly as much as the car rental - we always use Hotwire or Priceline and get fees approx 50% less than the other travel sites (expedia, Orbitz, travelocity).

Try staying downtown and commuting to a big sports book on the strip - you can walk from your room to your car in less than 2 minutes at most of the downtown properties, and the gambling choices are just as diverse as on the strip. We've been coming to LV a couple of times a year on average for at least 25 years and have never gone without renting a car. I can't imagine doing without one. Our stays usually average about a week in duration, and we generally only spend one day on the strip - just to walk through what's new and maybe see a show. There's way too much to see elsewhere in LV that is not accessible without a car.

You also mentioned a trip to Boulder Highway - there are plenty of good sportsbooks there with lots of parking and cheap hotel rooms. Then you could just use the car to get to places you really want to go. Sam's and Sunset station both have decent places to watch and gamble on the games. It sort of sounds like you guys need to plan a trip to LV at a different time of the year so you wouldn't have conflicting interests!

Renting a car is the dumbest move you could make. Please don't do this. Ok, ok, I'm only joking because the less other people renting cars, the easier it is for me to get around in my rental car. I want the streets to myself!

We have almost always rented a car in the last 10 years. It's usually based on our plans. Last February, we stayed at the Palm's for a long weekend and never left the property. Cab was the way to go for that trip. In April, we stayed at the Wynn for a week and had show tickets at NYNY, dinner downtown, Premium Outlet shopping, visit to M, picked up friends from airport, etc. Definitely needed a car for that trip.

My advice is to look at your plans, locations of things you want to do and then decide.

I spent my first two trips to LV without a car. I stayed on the strip both times which gave me access to many casinos of course, but I still visited friends at off strip casinos each trip. The RT cab to the Showboat and Ariz Charlies from center strip would have paid for a compact rental. While visiting my buddy at Charlies, he offered his car for the afternoon while he worked. I tooled around town and saw how easy it was to navigate. That was it. 60 some odd trips later, I've never looked back. If you're staying on the strip and are willing to limit yourself to there and shuttles, that's fine. There's som much more to see around the area though. Laughlin, Parhump, Death Valley, Valley of Fire, Red Rock Canyon, Mesquite, etc and the list goes on. It also gives you a chance to break away from gaming if you want.

Good Luck!
Ric at Joes

Here I come from the other side:

I've been to town a dozen time, and only rented a car once (for one day). I don't miss it. Then again, I travel alone, don't mind public transportation's occasional hassles (they can occur if the city is busy or not), and don't care about anything outside the casinos.

In your situation, Mr. kohler, I'm going to say the car rental is probably worth it. You can always try to plan things so that you don't rent on the days you don't need it.

P.S. All the hotels I've been in have a bell desk that are happy to store luggage for however long you want. Be sure to tip for this service.

I definately recommend renting a car, for all the reasons everyone has already posted, mainly to have the freedom to go from the strip to downtown or the boulder highway whenever we want, as well as to go to target if we forget something or to get snacks for our room.

Well, I think there are 2 sides to view this from.

If you are traveling around Las Vegas and want to view places and things other than the Strip area, I would always
choose a rental car.

If you do, then valet parking is the only way to go
most of the time. The exception for me is if the particular
hotel's valet service takes 20 minutes or longer to retrieve my vehicle. At certain spots there are ways to avoid this.

However, if you plan to mostly stay on and around the Strip, then you would not need a rental

If you plan to travel away from the Strip for only a day
or so, renting a car at the hotel might be an option.

On certain trips I rent a car, use a cab, take the monorail,
and walk to get around.

BTW, my next 2-day weekend trip, I'm pay 48.74 total
for a full-size car from Hertz.

I can see using a cab once or twice too for a short journey
on my next visit.

Good luck on your basketball bets and have lots of fun!!!

I play full pay video poker so I need a car to get to the locals casinos.

we always get a car ... one cab ride to Rosemary's pays for most of it ... and we always go to Rosemary's ... two trips into the back lot @ Bally's for tennis seals the deal ... or, like Keith says, go without and if you need one, get one