We sure can. An LVA staffer recently went through the entire experience and here’s his report.
From the gates and/or baggage claim at McCarran International, you follow the signs for "Airport Shuttles"; if you go out the terminal doors and see a long line-up of taxi cabs, you’re on the wrong side of the building.
Cross the street to the middle island, where you’ll see signs for the McCarran Rent-A-Car Center. The blue shuttle buses pull up on the far side of the island. You wait for them in one of two lines that snake around the island; when you get to the front of the line, you board the nearest bus. The lines were long when I was there on a Friday around noon. They move fast, but it still took around 15 minutes to get on a bus.
The buses are frequent, but they only hold 20-odd passengers; a large amount of inside space is earmarked for luggage, of which there’s plenty. The driver helps load the luggage. Once full, your bus takes off and another pulls up.
The Rent-A-Car Center is on Gilespie Street just off Warm Springs Road three blocks east of Las Vegas Blvd. S. Depending on lights and traffic, it takes seven to twelve minutes to get there from the airport.
The bus lets you off at the front doors to the center. Inside, 11 rental car companies (Advantage/US, Alamo, Avis, Budget, Dollar, Enterprise, Hertz, National, Payless, Savmor, and Thrifty) are arrayed around the building, which also has a sundries store and restrooms.
Depending on the time of day and day of the week you’re there, the lines can be ferocious. Friday around noon, I waited an hour in line at Budget. The lines at Hertz, Avis, Payless, Savmor, and Thrifty were much shorter, while Alamo, Dollar, Enterprise, and National weren’t as bad as Budget, but not as light as the rest. On the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, you should plan on a long wait for a car, no matter what rental-car agency you're using.
When I returned the car around 6 pm on Monday, the Rent-A-Car Center was a ghost town; you could’ve walked up to any counter and had a car in 60 seconds flat.
Once you have your keys, you take an escalator down to the garage level and wander around a bit till you find your car. Then you drive out and wonder where Las Vegas is.
Actually, it’s not that tough to find your way to familiar territory. Take a right on Gilespie and another right on Warm Springs to reach Las Vegas Blvd. S. Take a third right on the Boulevard and you’ll be headed north toward the Strip and downtown.
If it’s rush hour and you want to avoid the traffic, take a right on Gilespie, but cut over into the left lane, so you can make a U-turn at the light at Warm Springs. Then you’ll be heading in the right direction (north) on Gilespie toward the skyscrapers.
Returning the car is easy, whether you’re coming from the north or east. Signage is excellent and access is convenient from I-15, I-215, and the airport itself. Also, it takes minutes to return the car inside the garage. From there, you walk out front and catch a bus for the eight-minute ride back to the airport terminals.
