A safe bet: Vegas deals will be available
04:24 PM CDT on Thursday, September 11, 2008
If you're heading to Las Vegas, you'll have to work harder to find deals than in years past.
During any given week, one deal can be better than another. But some factors will be in your favor.
I predict hotels are going to have to be very aggressive in the coming months for three reasons: Major airlines are cutting back on fall flights to Las Vegas, the high price of gasoline is expected to thin car traffic from California and Arizona, and Las Vegas has more than 100,000 rooms to fill.
Fewer passengers and less traffic will force hotels to cut rates and become more competitive.
Just the same, you'll have to shop carefully to get the best rates.
Round-trip airfares from Dallas to Las Vegas have gone up from $198 last year to $298 this year. The decrease in flights is because Las Vegas is primarily a leisure travel market, and airlines are concentrating their efforts on cities where they can earn more by serving the business traveler.
Although charters such as FunJet have pulled out of Las Vegas and moved to more-profitable destinations such as Mexico, you can still find decent package deals.
Be really careful when an airline offers a vacation package and says you can get up to $100 off or a 10 percent discount. Consider how that translates for a package costing hundreds of dollars more.
We recently compared package rates using promotional offers for stays at Caesars Palace for three nights beginning Oct. 6. Southwest is offering $60 off three-night packages, $80 off four nights and $100 off five nights when you book by Thursday for travel through Dec. 25 (www.southwestvacations.com/specials/detail.asp?xmlFile=FS0313).
US Airways is offering up to $54.27 off when you book by Friday for travel Oct. 1 through Dec. 15 (www.usairwaysvacations.com/specials/lasvegas.html), and American is offering 10 percent off packages when you book using a Citi AAdvantage card by Sept. 30 for travel through Dec. 31 (www.aavacations.com/citiaadvantage).
Although at first glance the US Airways offer looked as if it would save you the least money, it beat the competition with package rates of $648 per couple. American came in second with a price of $897 per couple, and Southwest was third with $1,018 per couple.
When checking these deals, we also priced buying airfare and hotel separately. The hotel cost $784 for three nights, and the cheapest airfare we could find was $642 for two people, making any of these packages worth considering.
I bought my airfare and hotel separately for the last two trips I made to Las Vegas. We wanted to stay at the Mirage for the first trip because we had bought tickets for two shows that were at that hotel.
We were traveling during the busy Presidents Day weekend, and the least expensive rate we found at the hotel's Web site was $729 for three nights (taxes and fees included), but we didn't buy then.
When I checked rates three weeks before our departure, they had dropped to $549 total. I called the hotel and was able to get that rate and saved $180.
Then, three days before our trip, I checked again and found the rate had dropped to $385 for three nights. I called again and got the new low rate, saving $344 over the original price I found.
The lesson? It can pay to persevere in hunting the best rates.
To find out about hotel deals, go online and sign up for every e-mail-offer program available from your favorite Las Vegas hotels. Many of the best deals come out two months or less in advance of a trip, so keep checking if you've booked even earlier.
A word of caution: Be sure you know the cancellation policy. You don't want to lock in a rate and be stuck with it if the price drops later.
Friday and Saturday night stays in Las Vegas can cost more than double the rates for stays Sunday through Thursday. Not only does Las Vegas have high demand from air travelers, but people drive in from California and Arizona on weekends, making room rates higher.
For the best prices, try a Sunday, Monday or Tuesday departure from home, and leave Las Vegas before Friday night.
If you return on a Sunday, expect the airport to be jammed, so be there two or more hours before your flight.
You also should avoid visiting Las Vegas during big conventions. One week in particular to avoid is the second week of January, during the 2009 International Consumer Electronics Show. This gathering alone expects 148,000 attendees. Four additional conventions that week will add another 45,000 people, for a total of 193,000 visitors.
We checked rates at the Venetian for that week, and the lowest we could find was $649 per night or $2,122 for three nights (taxes included). The same hotel was $179 per night ($583 with all taxes for three nights) in September. To check convention dates, see www.lvcva.com/meetings/convention-calendar.jsp.
When booking travel to Las Vegas, you must plan ahead and comparison-shop to get the best deals. Prices can vary by hundreds of dollars from month to month.
US Airways may have offered the least expensive packages at one time, but this doesn't mean that Southwest or American won't have a better offer the next time.
Tom Parsons is publisher of BestFares.com.
• A cheap way to get around is the Deuce bus service. The double-decker, air-conditioned buses run up and down the Strip and to downtown. They operate around the clock, and a 24-hour pass is a mere $5 (single fare, $2). You can hop on and off as frequently as you'd like, and the pass is valid on other bus routes. The Deuce runs every seven to 10 minutes for most of the day. Drivers accept cash only, and they don't make change. Contact: www.rtcsnv.com.
• If you're missing the prices of old Las Vegas, head downtown. On our latest trip, we saw signs for 99-cent shrimp cocktails, daiquiris and margaritas. If you want to splurge, go for the $7.99 prime rib dinner you see advertised. While downtown, stay for the free Fremont Street Experience nightly light show. If you're staying on the Strip, ride the Deuce to downtown. Contact: www.vegasexperience.com.
• If you want to see a show while you're in town, head to Tix4Tonight, where you pay half price for same-day tickets. The outlet has four locations on the Strip and one downtown. Available shows vary each day. Tix4Tonight also offers discounts on meals at selected restaurants. Contact: www.tix4tonight.com.
Tom Parsons