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Pick Your Departure Time Carefully When Driving To and From Vegas

July 1, 2009 at 1:25 PM | by | Comments (0)

Last week we drove out to Las Vegas from Los Angeles and boy, was it a doozy. While we were happy to save on airfare (weekend tickets to Vegas start at around $150 round-trip; gas was about $75), we just happened to choose the worst times to leave Los Angeles on the way out there and to leave Las Vegas coming home.

We left on Thursday at 4:25pm from Santa Monica which is prime traffic time in L.A. but we couldn't skip out of work any earlier. This was also the day that Michael Jackson died and everyone was flooding the Westside to camp out at the UCLA Medical Center. So try to avoid departing on a day that a major pop icon dies in Los Angeles. For instance, when Britney kicks the can in Malibu, put off your trip for another few hours or possibly a day, if her death was "too soon."

It took us about two hours just to get outside of Los Angeles proper. We arrived in Las Vegas at 10:45pm.

And this wasn't the scenic Route 66 route. No, this was the 10 to the 15, a highway-only route that would get us to Vegas in about four hours.

On the bright side, you can do about 90 mph on Highway 15 once you cross into Nevada but you will have to factor in some time for traffic on The Strip. Thanks to the crowds and construction, riding on Las Vegas Boulevard will slow you down a bit.

Most casinos and hotels in Las Vegas have free self-parking. We even found free valet parking at the Planet Hollywood. But cruising around Vegas can be a little tricky, again because of the crowds and crazy construction. We suggest leaving your car parked in the garages and just walking on foot like all the other tourists. Check out VegasChatter's tips here on getting around town.

When it comes to leaving Las Vegas (cue the Sheryl Crow song), you have two options: Leave early in the morning or late at night. Whatever you do, do not leave at 2:30pm. That's what we did. We arrived in Los Angeles at 9pm, no thanks to the senseless "agricultural inspection checkpoint" that slowed a congested two-lane traffic down to stop and go for about 20 miles.

We have another Do Not Do for you: Do not stop at the Mad Greek Cafe in Baker. We had heard this place was a good stop and with billboard ads for miles along the 15 we thought we'd check it out. We placed our order and then went to the ladies room which was under construction. The walls were all torn up and then we saw some cockroaches. Since the bathrooms were on the back side of the kitchen, we gagged and raced to the counter to cancel our order. Then we got the f*ck out of Baker. Instead we stopped for a known quantity about an hour away in Barstow: The double-double from IN-N-OUT.

In the end, flying to Las Vegas is a heck of a lot easier but it was a huge relief not to have to fight the hungover and reeking of booze crowds at the airport on Sunday. Plus, we had the freedom to leave whenever we wanted. We just happened to choose the worst time. Next time, we'll know better.

Related Stories:
· Road Trips [Jaunted]
· How to Get Around The Strip By Car [VegasChatter]

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