Las Vegas Transportation - Cars, Buses, and, Monorails

While Las Vegas doesn't have a phenomenal mass transportation system, you do have a few options for getting from point A to point B. The Las Vegas transportation system does include buses and taxis, and on the Strip you'll also find several monorails and trams that connect some of the hotels together. You also have the option of getting around with a car, as parking is not such a big problem, but on the other hand, traffic often is.

Getting from the Las Vegas McCarran Airport to your hotel is easy. Just outside the terminal you'll find booths selling tickets for airport shuttles that can take you to your hotel. Not every shuttle goes to the same places so ask which is the one for you. The shuttles don't have fixed routes, but rather swing by all the drop-off points for the passengers they carry. With any luck, your hotel won't be the last stop. If you're traveling with a group of two or more, getting a taxi to your hotel may actually cost less and be more convenient. To be picked up from your hotel at the end of the trip, be sure to get the shuttle company's phone number and call ahead.

The Las Vegas transportation system includes a number of independent lines of self-driving monorails and trams on the Strip for you to take advantage of. Since the opening of the MGM Grand to Sahara monorail in 2004, it's possible to ride a train nearly the whole length of the strip. The train lines, sorted by southern most stop from south to north, are as follows:

• Mandalay Bay/Luxor/Excalibur (free) - This line goes from the Excalibur hotel to the Mandalay Bay in the southern direction, and also stops at the Luxor going north.
• The Las Vegas Monorail (paid) - This line opened in 2004 and goes from the MGM Grand to the Sahara hotel with stops along the way, and is by far the longest line. Towards the beginning of the northern part of the strip, past the Venetian hotel, the line veers east to serve the Las Vegas Convention Center. The northern stops are still a walking distance from the Strip though, and the monorail goes back there for its final stop at the Sahara.
• Bellagio/Monte Carlo (free) - Due to common ownership, a quick connection between these two hotels was constructed.
• Mirage/Treasure Island (free) - This line also connects between two hotels built by the same company. It's a very short line, only connecting two adjacent hotels, but is the quickest way of getting from one to the other.

Las Vegas is serviced by the Citizen's Area Transit, a.k.a. CAT, system. Two CAT lines, Las Vegas Strip (301), and Las Vegas Strip Express (302), service the Strip 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. But, when using the bus, keep in mind that service can be very slow and full, especially during busy hours. Bus schedules can also be unreliable at times.

The trolleys are actually buses designed to look like trolleys, and stop along hotels on the Strip from about 9:30am to 2:00am. Trolleys are more touristy than the city buses, but suffer from similar problems like slowness in traffic and unpredictable schedules. Trolleys run about every 20 minutes, and exact change is required to ride. For fare and other information you can call The Las Vegas Trolley at (702)382-1404.

Another mode of Las Vegas Transportation is the taxi. Taxis can be found all over the city and it isn't usually a problem to get one in front of a hotel, on the street, or at the airport. Although, during busy times such as evenings and weekends, waiting times for taxi lines can be long. Taxis are regulated by the state, and taxi fares are the same for all companies. Taxi fares break down to an initial fee, a fee per distance driven, and a fee per unit time passed while waiting or in slow traffic. Look for an exact fare schedule displayed on the cabs.

Either bringing or renting a car, and not relying on public Las Vegas transportation, does have its advantages. You have the freedom to go wherever you like whenever you like, and you can also easily venture on road trips out of town.

Traffic in Las Vegas can be a problem, but the parking situation is great. The major hotels offer free valet parking, and all you'll have to do is shell out a dollar or two for the parking attendant's tip. During busy times, you might have to wait a few minutes for your car to be retrieved, so plan accordingly. If that's too much of a problem you could opt for self service parking. Some hotels, particularly downtown, charge for self serve parking, but let you validate the ticket at their casino, so you get if for free anyway.