To rent a car or not rent a car; that is the question!

We%26#39;re staying in Vegas for the first time over Easter Weekend- booked hotel and flight, now debating renting a car.

We%26#39;re young and energetic and have walked all over Europe and we%26#39;re centrally located at the Mirage... BUT I really want to have the option to enjoy the DT/Fremont St. area as well as some off strip restaurants. (options might include... Hash House a go go, Lotus of Siam and Rosemary%26#39;s Restaurant)

I%26#39;ve heard that driving on the strip is a nightmare, but also heard that taxis are steep. This probably comes up a lot on this board... thanks for your patient replies for we first timers!

To rent a car or not rent a car; that is the question!

and the question has been asked thousands of times...

do a search, sort results by date, you will get more posts to read than you (hopefully) have time for.

I do not rent - I don%26#39;t like the traffic and do like the convenience of a limo or taxi if limo not required. Cost is not the deciding factor for us - convenience and time are.

We are off strip every trip, still don%26#39;t rent. We did years ago-don%26#39;t any longer, it%26#39;s not fun and takes more time in the long run.

Do you drink alcohol? That%26#39;s a consideration

many like to rent a car. it%26#39;s all personal choice. what suits your needs?

To rent a car or not rent a car; that is the question!

We%26#39;ve been to Las Vegas many times. We%26#39;ve only rented a car once. We were at the Mirage that time. We never took it out of the parking garage the whole time we were there. Some people do enjoy having a rent car. We%26#39;d just rather take a taxi. The drivers know all kinds of short cuts through parking lots and even parking garages to get you where you want to go. We usually go downtown, too, although we stay on the strip -- usually at Venetian or one of the Harrah%26#39;s properties. It%26#39;s easy to get a cab downtwon and back at most any time of the day. You can always get one downtown at the Golden Nugget and all the hotels on the strip have taxi waiting to take you wherever you want to go at a moments notice. The only time the taxi lines are long is after a big show -- even then the lines move quickly. At the airport, you may or may not have to wait in line for a cab. Sometime the lines can be long, but, again, they move fast. We usually take a ';car'; to our hotel and back. You can reserve one in advance or get one on the spot. We%26#39;ve never had to wait even 5 minutes for one of them. They cost more, but are very convenient. The traffic is just so bad that we don%26#39;t like to drive in it. You may hear from other who like having a car, but we don%26#39;t. Have fun!

If your first trip is just a few days I would say don%26#39;t bother. There is so much to see that you won%26#39;t have time to do much off-strip. And on the Strip you don%26#39;t need one.

You can still spend one night Downtown, but once you get there you would just park the car and walk everywhere anyway.

If you are looking for a car for one day only to go downtown, see my post ';Hertz Buy None-Get One'; for PC#%26#39;s (I can%26#39;t ever seem to be able to paste links). You should be able to get a free weekend day from a hotel.

Thanks, did the search earlier but there are tons of specific posts about rental cars (where, when, best price, etc.) that I just got lazy and decided to post.

I was leaning to a ';no'; and feel vindicated even with those three suggestions. Thanks all! No rental car for me... bring on drinks and taxis... and maybe even some busses!

I am one of those ';car'; people. I like to stay, gamble and eat off-strip. I don%26#39;t like to use a slow and crowded bus (Duece), hike to a monorail station or pay for a cab.

You don%26#39;t have to rent a car for the whole time you are there. You can rent it for a day or two in order to see some of the off- strip attractions (defiitely see Valley of Fire- it is sooo worth a trip),visit off strip casinos and eat at off strip restaurants (Rosemary%26#39;s, for sure. It will cost at least $50 cabfare to get there and back). I am quite sure the Mirage has a dollar rental desk.

For your time on the strip you won%26#39;t need a car. You can walk to the south and north strip casinos from the Mirage.

You can rent one just for the day from your hotel...drive downtown or out to see Red Rocks or something, grab a meal at Lotus of Siam or Hash House or wherever...then rely on walking and taxis the rest of the time.

I generally like the convenience of a car and I am not intimidated by traffic but there are two places I never rent a car, nor will I ever, when visiting- Las Vegas and Disneyworld. But not driving is part of the vacation for me.

I%26#39;m with Bridge here...like to drink, don%26#39;t like to drive...like convenience of limos, taxis, etc. I never rent a car. I have however, rented an exotic car for an afternoon of alcohol free sightseeing. I did this only for the experience of driving the car, not to get around.

Don%26#39;t let strip traffic scare you off. With a little planning and a map, you can get around without ever driving on the strip.