CAT Buses

I have always rented cars in Vegas, but with the rates continuing to go higher than I want to pay, I decided to use the bus to get around this trip.

I have taken the Deuce before to get between downtown, where I almost always stay, and the Strip. Yes it's crowded and it can take forever to get back and forth. This trip, I took the Downtown/Strip express. It was much faster, partly because it bypasses a large part of Las Vegas Blvd, but mostly because there are many fewer stops. Also, the new bus lanes around the downtown transfer station really speeds things up.

Next trip, I may even take the new Westcliff Express from the airport to downtown. I took one of the shuttles this trip because I didn't want to take a taxi and I didn't want to wait 30 minutes for the bus. Well, by the time the damn shuttle actually left, I could have taken the bus and only been out $2 (I could have used it this trip). Next time, I'll grab something to eat and wait for the bus.

When I went to the Strip, I didn't have to worry about drinking too much and having to drive back to the hotel.

I vote for putting the 24 hour bus pass for $7 on the LVA Top Ten Values list. Rental rates are going to have to come way down or else I'm going to have to do a whole lot of sightseeing before I rent a car again.

We only rent a car any more, if we are with another couple or we take one or more of our kids with us. Otherwise, we ride the bus. Once you get into it a little, I think you will find that they are logically organized and cheap. You are already on to a couple of key features in the WAX and the Strip/DT express. Really, that is all you might need if you are just an Airport/Strip/DT person. We often stay in neighborhood casinos so we often find ourselves using the 202 (Flamingo), 107 (Boulder) or similar routes as well. If you go to the Las Vegas RTA web page and click around, I think you will pick up on the system pretty quickly and you can figure what kind of ticket you want to buy. We are now seniors so the discount pass really makes it cheap to ride. Along with the free Sam's Town shuttle, we rely on the RTA for most of our transport in LV. Wecome to the bus system.

What is the best/cheapest way to get to the Riviera from the airport??? Any help is appreciated.

The Bus route #108 may get you close...might have to walk 3 blocks or so. Fare is a couple of bucks or so.
You could also take a commercial shuttle for about $6-$8 one way and that would take you to the front door.
I think the less money you spend, the longer it will take you but if your patient that may work for you.

For specifics, go to their web site and find the Trip Planner. It lets you put in your location and where you want to go and it gives you the pickup sites, the bus numbers, and the time normally required.

We've been using the busses for the past eight or ten trips, they've been easy. We stay downtown, so we use the bus to get to and from the airport, to the Strip and to some outlying casinos.

My only bitch is the move of the DTC down to Bonneville. I know that I have a tourist's perspective, but it makes little sense to me to have the major northern hub down by the jail instead of in the downtown area. This basically makes us more dependent on the SDX and the Deuce; we used to use the 108, the old 116 and a bunch of other routes, but now we need to take another bus a few blocks down to the BTC and change.

The WAX has been nice, though; very fast transportation from McCarran to downtown, about 28 minutes. Down sides are that it only runs every hour (which sucks if you miss it by 10 minutes) and that it drops you off behind Fitzgerald's, at 4th and Carson (which would be fine if we weren't staying at MSS). The southbound stop is at Fremont and Casino Center, though, which is really handy.

How cheap does a rental need to be for you people? My last rental was for $7.99 a day for a mid-size car. With taxes it came to $56 for four days.

Easy Francis. Not everyone wants to rent a car. We all have different agendas.

WHAT RENTAL COMPANY DID YOU GET THAT PRICE FROM? DID YOU USE COUPONS OR CODES?

if you are 60 or older, go to the downtown transportation center and get a senior card. you do not have to be a Nevada resident. That gets you half price on most buses except the deuce. HOWEVER, there is ONE kiosk outside the DTC where you can buy a 5-DAY unlimited bus pass for $10. You slide your card into the machine and the additional reduced fare options will display on the kiosk. This pass is good on all buses, even the deuce. Used it on the Westcliff airport express and it got me from downtown to the airport in under a half hour; only about 4 stops. what a pleasure to be ride of those shuttle services and rental cars.