How To Drive from Vegas to Los Angeles after Long Weekends

The Sunday drive back to So Cal is a fact for a lot of us. What’s the best strategy for avoiding (most of) the traffic? (I vote for going home on Monday, but work doesn’t always agree.) Southbound from LV on the I-15 on Sunday afternoons (or one of those two Monday holiday afternoons), you see the brief mention in the LV R-J that as of 3:30 p.m., the backup was 13 miles, but that really isn’t very much info. When did it start backing up, when did it peak, when did it go away? What’s the window? What time should you try to hit Jean by? Any real stats out there? Any correlation with check-out time on the Strip?

We tend to get these questions right after Thanksgiving and Christmas. The answer, as far as alternative routes to I-15, doesn't change, though this question is a little more detailed, so we'll get to those issues first.

This Thanksgiving as mentioned in the question, traffic was backed up for 13 miles at the peak of the jam in late afternoon. That's not much information, true, and there's not much more to go on, but it's not too challenging to extrapolate the fact that for traffic to be backed up that far at that time, it had to be building up to it for a while beforehand. And after the peak, it certainly wasn't smooth 75-mph sailing right afterwards. The fact is that traffic is always heavy, if not downright stop and go, all day almost every Sunday of the year, and particularly so after three- and four-day weekends. And an accident in the first 100 or so miles (to Baker) -- fuhgeddabowdit.

You can leave at first light on Sunday to beat most of the rush, but who wants to do that, especially after partying for three or more days and hard the night before. And yes, since checkout times are in the 11 a.m.-to-noon range at most places, you can expect that by the time southern Californians get on the road, the biggest backups will gather steam in the mid-afternoon. Leaving later is always on option, but that means you have to kill at least five or six hours after checking out and you're driving home almost entirely in the dark.

Rots o' ruck!

To avoid all that to a certain extent, there are three alternatives. You can still get there from here. They're quite a bit longer mileage-wise, but could actually be shorter time-wise, depending on local conditions.

The first route starts off heading west on Rt. 160. This is Blue Diamond Road, the exit off I-15 just south of the Strip where Silverton is. Road construction has finally been finished and is now two lanes each way as it winds up into the Spring Mountains. At little Mountain Springs (right at the summit; check out the Mountain Springs Saloon for some local color). Now it's a fast 63 miles into Pahrump.

From downtown Pahrump, you head south on Rt. 372, which turns into CA Rt. 127 at Shoshone after 27 miles. From there, it's another 56 miles to Baker, well past the state line at Primm and the ag station. The entire detour is 146 miles, 51 miles longer than the direct route from Las Vegas to Baker on I-15, with a travel time of 2 hours and 15 minutes, as compared to 90 minutes direct without traffic, but God knows how long with.

The second possibility is a true back door through Nipton, California. You drive through Henderson on I-215 and cut south on US 95 to Searchlight. There, you head west on NV 164. You pass through Nipton, a tiny desert town just west of the state line, then continue another 10 miles or so on I-15 just before Mountain Pass. From Las Vegas to Mountain Pass on I-15 is 60 miles, or 50 minutes with no traffic. From Las Vegas to Mountain Pass via Nipton is 90 miles/80 minutes at most times of the day and night. So the Nipton route is 30 miles, though only about a half-hour, out of your way. Of course, you'll still run into traffic on I-15 only 50 miles from Vegas, but it could still save you hours on that Sunday.

Third, continue past Searchlight, then past the turnoff to Laughlin, and continue on to I-40 in California, a total of 100 miles from Las Vegas. From there, it's a fast 133 miles west to Barstow, where you pick up I-15 again. Altogether, it's 234 miles to Barstow, compared to 157 direct on I-15, or three hours and 40 minutes compared to two hours and 25 minutes without traffic on I-15.

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Comments

Jackie Dec-31-2020

Why Drive

Do you really need a car in Las Vegas?  Think about it, how much do you actually use a car in Las Vegas. So why not just fly in and out with free rides to your hotel and back to the airport and plenty of taxi or uber rides if needed.  Less wear and tear on your vehicle, no accident due to over exhausted partyers. No traffic jams or breakdowns.  Less than an hour travel time. Plus you get to look down at all the fools who drove and laugh at them.

Kevin Rough Dec-31-2020

I disagree, Jackie

I drive all the time in Vegas.  Many of us don't stick to the strip.

Less than an hour travel time??  How?  Most people don't live at the airport.  In the time it takes to drive to the airport, park the car, take the shuttle to the terminal, go through security, wait to board, fly to Vegas, wait to deboard, and walk out to the shuttles you have spent more time than if you would have driven.

Mike Dec-31-2020

Car is a must in LV

With all the excitement and buildup traveling to LV, I can't stand waiting around for a Uber/shuttle/traffic jam.  I'll always rent a car and use the back roads to go where I went, when I want.  Rental cars will save you money if you go to the grocery and buy your room drinks/snacks and not pay strip gift shop prices.    Kevin Rough is right. Vegas offers loads of fun off the strip.

Edso Dec-31-2020

Leave early

We usually stay in Vegas for 4 or 5 days, sometimes an entire week, so we take it easy on the last night, get our packing done and then leave out between 8 and 9am if it's on a Sunday.  No issues with traffic.

Lucky Dec-31-2020

Driving back

I agree with Edso and Kevin.  I usually drive to Vegas very early Thursday morning from the Valley.  Like 5 am.  Beats all the traffic through Pasadena through to the 15.  I get there in 3.5 hours. Early check in. Faster than the airport and flying (which I still do occasionally). I leave very early Sunday morning, like 7 or 8am.  Am usually home by noon.  I too old to party Saturday night (gamble instead)
.  I golf all 3 days, then home.

David Dec-31-2020

All solving the wrong problem

The question that should be addressed is WHY there is a 13-mile backup on an interstate highway even when there is no accident. I-15 is a piece of crap. It is always under construction and it is always too few lanes. This is low-hanging fruit if our politicians ever get their poop in a group and put together an infrstructure package.

brian Dec-31-2020

stay at home

There is a lockdown in California.  Stay at home and do not bring your virus here.

JimBeam Dec-31-2020

@brian - very well said

I agree with Brian. The people from CA are ignoring their own lockdowns and rules and are continuing to spread the virus. They are also supposed to quarantine for 15 days when returning to CA - how many are actually doing that? I rarely leave my home but went for a cruise on the Strip on a Saturday afternoon recently. The crowds here are immense with little social distancing and plenty of people still NOT wearing masks. Anyone who expects the virus numbers to reduce in Nevada is just plain fooling themselves. Stay home CA!

Roger Gallizzi Dec-31-2020

A Balanced approach

Before we moved here permanently, we had a weekend place in Paradise not far from the strip.  We drove in most Fridays (hitting Barstow by noon, thanks to my employer).  If you're not careful, coming too late into LV gets you caught up in Las Vegas commute traffic for those who work here.  Since we're not 20 somethings, and were here at least two weekends a month, we did get on the road home at 7:00 am and we were home in less thank 3.5 hours.

Having said that, when we moved here, I still did/do consulting work in California, and would sometimes fly 2-3 RTs weekly.  McCarren is an easy in/out airport in my opinion and so are all of the regional airports in Southern California-Ontario, Long Beach, John Wayne, Burbank, etc.

Since we live here, we use a car, but not always.  If we're going out to an evening and we know we'll be hitting a casino, a show, dinner, we just Uber and it works fine.  

Personally, I'd much rather sit at an airport bar than sit in a car.

rett98 Dec-31-2020

CA Traffic

If the CA visitors listened to their states "lock down" rules then Vegas would be a ghost town over the weekends. They are the only people keeping Vegas alive. From the posts I have read a high percentage of people are wearing masks when out on the strip and nearly all in the casinos. A little traffic jam on the Sunday should be expected.I use to work in London, UK and getting into town at anytime during a standard day would take hours...you just have to plan for it.

Jetpilotrick Dec-31-2020

Avoid Traffic

Want to avoid traffic???......Stay home in California!  You’re not suppose to travel!   We don’t need you bringing more Covid here!  You don’t see Las Vegans traveling to California.  Too many California license plates in Nevada!  Don’t add to the traffic.....Stay home!

Kevin Lewis Dec-31-2020

For all those complaining...

California's stay-at-home orders refer to people's activities within their communities, not to travel--what retail businesses and restaurants can do, curfews, etc.

There is nothing in those rules that says that Californians can't travel within or out of the state. The rules do recommend a 14-day self-quarantine upon return. Not order--recommend.

I don't think it's a good idea to travel to Vegas right now, but it's not illegal to do so. And Las Vegas residents complaining about them FEELTHY Californians is as old as time--yet, they still happily take their money.

Whether or not Californians can visit Vegas should be the decision of local government--i.e., the casinos. And they've already made that decision.

Roy Furukawa Dec-31-2020

Leave After Dark

I've made that drive many times and it's best to leave after dinnertime on a Sunday or Monday if it's a holiday weekend. Most of the traffic will be gone and makes the drive so much easier. It's not difficult to relax, eat, walk or shop on an easy Sunday afternoon and leave after dinner.

Eric Forman Dec-31-2020

Driving is usually faster

I've actually raced co-workers from the San Fernando Valley to Vegas. They flew, I drove, and I beat them to the hotel lobby by half an hour. And as suggested, if I only have a weekend I will do Sat-Mon and never hit traffic. Plus, rooms will be cheaper.

Mark Dec-31-2020

buttcrack of dawn!

"You can leave at first light on Sunday to beat most of the rush, but who wants to do that"

I do!  I go to Vegas probably 5-6 times per year (for the past 10 years or so), sometimes on long holiday weekends, and I always leave on Sunday at around 5-6am.  I'm used to getting up at that hour for work anyway, so it's not that huge a deal.

But in all those visits, leaving at that hour, I've not hit traffic a single time.  Just a nice smooth 80-90mph the whole way home to SoCal.

Jan-01-2021

3-B is the best option

Of the 3 options mentioned by LVA, the 3rd one is clearly the best.  Option #1 is the worst, involving the most extra driving but also putting out in the boonies, which is bad if you break down or have an emergency.  Option #2 is the 2nd worst.  Option #3 is by far the best of the three, but it was not fully delineated in the best way.  As I've written before, after you take I-40 west to Barstow, don't get on the I-15, which may well be a parking lot.  Instead, get off on Main Street westward and take it all the way through town, when it becomes Old Route 66.  You can drive 55mph with almost zero traffic.  When you get to Victorville, if you live in the San Fernando Valley, take Highway 18 west, which becomes Highway 138.  Near Palmdale, take Highway 22 to Highway 14 south.  If you don't live in the San Fernando Valley, then at Victorville you'd get on the I-15.  If there does happen to be a traffic jam, you'll only be in it for the minimum distance of all options.

Jan-01-2021

Reason for 13-mile backup

The main reason why backups (traffic jams) occur on the freeway back to L.A. is because part of I-15 is only 2 lanes in each direction; that's true of most of the stretch between Barstow and the state line.  Part of I-15 is 3 lanes in each direction.  I-15 is 4 lanes in each direction only for most of the stretch south of Barstow.  I-15 needs to be 4 lines in each direction in order to avoid traffic jams on Sundays (as well as traveling TO Vegas on Fridays).  But it isn't.  The builders of the Interstate system were only thinking about cross-country travel, not about travel between L.A. and Vegas, when they made I-15 be only 2 lanes in each direction.  If we can get the Powers That Be to make the entire stretch of I-15 between L.A. and Vegas 4 lines in each direction, then we won't have this problem.

Jan-01-2021

Don't ban us CA folk

Not all of us Californians are COVID-negligent.  It would be too draconian and inappropriate to ban us all.  I've now gone to Vegas twice since the pandemic started (via bus).  I did not bring the virus with me.  I am not infected, and I wore a mask everywhere, all the time I was near other people.  To deprive me of my desire to travel to Vegas and to deprive the casinos of my business would just not be right.  Do you really think that most infected Nevadans got infected by Californians?  I don't think so.  Nevadans interact with other Nevadans far more than they interact with Californians, and I'll bet that the percentages of people from each state who don't wear masks are close to each other.  The virus is already all over Las Vegas.

Pesach Kremen Mar-10-2024

Mr

You o NOT need a car in Las Vegas. The bus system operates 24/7 in many areas, fares have not risen in years and u CAN get to most places in the city.  Even if it takes u 1 hour vs a 15" min trip by car (more than 15" going to and finding parking, walking throgh parkinggarages etc) but for most people the etra time used you make more money for that time due the much lower cost of using the bus. In fact after taxes do you earn that much in the added 40" or so that you ar eont hebus. For most of us definitely no.  Using thebus (free wi fi) you can also get things done on your phone as well as u will not contribute nearly as much to the Las Vegas global warming, pollution, or heat island effect. Leave your car and use transit, it is the right thing to do.

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