Is it better traveling alone?

Yes, I think it does.  Maybe you had an experience in your relationship/marriage like what you posted.  Or maybe you saw this in your parent's marriage, and that's why you feel the way you do. 

My parents didn't share any hobbies or interests. Neither did any of my relatives with their spouses. Back then, it would have even been a little weird if they did. Everybody's idea of getting away for a little fun was different from that of their husbands or wives, and in fact, if either had the opportunity, it was accepted that they would want to get away from their spouses and have some "me time."

Until, oh, the Sixties at least (and long after that in many cases), marriage was about popping out babies. The men wanted wives who would be good housekeepers. The women wanted men who would be good providers. Compatibility and mutual interests were strictly secondary considerations, as was, well, love. The only relevant factor was whether the contract would lead to a house in suburbia with a picket fence and kids playing in the yard. And quite frankly, whether the husband was an asshole or the wife was a bitch, whether either or both of them were selfish or stupid...that didn't matter. Not much, anyway.

The consequence of this was that in oh so many instances, when the last kid left the nest, those marriages would fly apart like cheap watches. That wasn't, of course, always the case--some couples rejoiced in their new-found freedom and started to travel together, do home projects, etc. But far more often than not, hubby played a lot of golf and puttered in the garage, while wifey hung out with the ladies' club and went shopping.

My parents stayed together until their deaths, some 25 years after the last of us left home. They did a lot of RVing in their last 10 years or so, but it was more my dad wanting to travel (he was always a gypsy at heart, which I inherited from him) than my mom having any real enthusiasm for the concept. I can't recall them doing any fun stuff together, like going to concerts or museums (which my mom loved). And they had NO social life, even though my mom was very gregarious. She just couldn't make friends whom my dad would also like.

So I have seen this effect in gamble/don't gamble couples. They travel together, and one goes off to the casino while the other does something else. They're both happy to get away from each other and do what they like to do. And frankly, if gambling IS a mutual interest, the couple is usually broke, because one or both of them suck at it (very few Jean Scotts in this world).

My marriage was to someone with whom I shared few interests and therefore, it didn't last all that long. We both told ourselves that not liking to do the same things didn't matter. It did matter--it was a deal breaker. Then I had a very long relationship (eleven years) with a woman who was also divorced and whose marriage had also been, as they say, nasty, brutish, and short. We persisted in our relationship precisely because a) we had a LOT of mutual interests and did all sorts of stuff together b) had no kids and no interest in having any c) had zero interest in marriage. We're still good friends, three decades later.

So my observation as well as experience has been that a relationship or marriage wherein the two persons just don't get the same enjoyment out of the same activities and interests isn't all that happy and often doesn't last. And yes, we all know many couples who drew up a truce a long time ago: "You do your thing, and I'll do mine, and we'll have dinner at 6:00 and watch TV later." And they both dream about being married to someone else, or not being married at all.

If anybody here's marriage is other than what I've described, and you and your spouse love to do stuff together, I'm happy for you.

Candy and Edso,Thanks for kind words.My son loves Las Vegas and coupon chasing.We have a great time.My husband more of a homebody.Doesnt care much for travel.Before retirement my great friend traveled with me.She isn't well now.So I have fun with Karl my son.

IMHO expectations can make or break an experience, a vacation, a career, a marriage.  And how one adapts to the changing landscape of those expectations.  

Whether to stay joined at the hip in Las Vegas, or split up and each do their own thing, neither is right or wrong.  Discuss ahead of time, though it may take a 'dry run' to know what to expect in Vegas.  With cell phones, it is pretty easy to keep in touch, so as not to become worried or irritated, wondering where the others  are, what they are doing at the moment, dinner plans, etc.

Don't forget the phone charger when you go!

Candy

"Don't forget the phone charger" should have been the First Commandment on Moses' tablets. That and maybe, "Never order the meatloaf."

Fortunately, Vegas offers a wide variety of experiences. That didn't used to be the case; 40+ years ago, it was a repulsive desert shithole that was basically a satellite of the casinos. No entertainment outside the casinos, no parks to speak of, no real diversions other than rich-people golf. Not even any sidewalks. Eventually, though, it became an actual city.

I wouldn't recommend that anybody visit Vegas for any non-gambling purposes; it doesn't have enough to offer to justify going there; it's out of the way and the weather is terrible. But if you want to drag along Significant Other, there's going to be enough diversion that you can hand them the car keys while you go to blow a few thousand on the slots, and they'll find something to do. Meet up for dinner and share your experiences ("I saw Red Rock Canyon"; "I sat in front of a slot machine and pushed a button several thousand times until my money was gone").

If you're talking about expectations in marriages, I think those are vastly different now than they were a couple of generations ago. I think couples now are supposed to present a united front to the world and not live separate lives. Back in the olden days, as long as they bought a house and reproduced, they could and usually did have not much in common, activities and interests included.

IMHO, if I had the time and money to completely explore and experience a city, Vegas would be about 753rd on my list, just behind Tulsa, Oklahoma and Darwin, Australia.

Thanks for your response to my question, Kevin.   Totally get where you are coming from after reading it.

Thanks for your response to my question, Kevin.   Totally get where you are coming from after reading it.

read through all this and it's interesting, I've been to Vegas as a single many times, as a couiple many times, a couple with children several times, and then a single with children and grandchildren many times.  When I traveled for work I found Vegas was probably the best city for single travel just because it's so common, and there's plenty to do. Traveling to Vegas with co-workers on the other hand kinda sucks, they tend to either be clingy or go off the rails completely.

Having said that, in neither of my marriages would I have ever scheduled a vacation to Vegas or any where else solo. We were never financially able to afford that, and even though my first marriage was not good we did enjoy each other's company.  My "real" wife (kids etc.) loved Vegas so we were in complete agreement on that.  

And Kevin if you see this, our first romantic get-away and then later honeymoon weekend were both to Tulsa.