We’re going to Las Vegas for the holidays and it should be fun. Due to problems with my in-law’s house we were not able to visit them, instead we’ll be meeting them in Las Vegas. Why Las Vegas? It’s cheap, near to my BIL, and warmer than where we are at.
So what will the hurt be? We’ll be staying for 10 days including airfare we paid $460/per person including all taxes. Great deal. Unfortunately however it’s on US airways and if we want to take a suitcase it will cost $15/bag/one way. Thus we aren’t sure if we will be taking a suitcase.
Our second biggest expense is our dog boarding. I am thinking it will cost us around $350 for the 10 days and $100 for grooming for the two dogs. I won’t count the $100 grooming because we usually get it done anyway and it is timed typically when we take vacations.
So for 10 days we’re looking at spending $1270 + food + entertainment. I’m thinking $100/day budgeted for the two of us to eat out should cover it = $1k. And for entertainment, I think we’re catching at least 1 show @ $300/two people and gambling $100/each, although my DH would prefer to catch a second show and so might I. I know many people save money by not doing anything but I don’t know when we’ll go back again so I’ll take the opportunity while it’s offered.
So for 10 days we’ll be spending $2770 or $3k. Ouch, it’s a lot when you look at it like that.
If we had gone to visit my DH’s parents we would have spent $600 each for plane tickets plus the dog boarding would be $350 anyway = $1550. And yes when we visit my in-laws they expect us to pay for food and stuff so $1k extra. The only thing that we might have saved on is not going to a show or doing any entertainment. I know many people save when they visit their parents (and we do when we visit mine), but my in-laws are a bit different from most. As for going to Hawaii, the tickets would be about $3k alone anyway, so it’s a moot point.
I’ll do a running total after we get back. But for now I’m super excited that we are going to warmer weather and got a fantastic deal on the plane tickets and hotel. And frugal tips are appreciated.
9 responses so far ↓
1 Erica // Dec 15, 2008 at 2:43 pm
May I ask why you board the dogs? A college aged dogsitter would cost half of that. Better yet, Craigslist an probably help you locate ones with grooming skills which would slice the cost of that as well.
2 LivingAlmostLarge // Dec 15, 2008 at 3:28 pm
Because my DH is worried that someone will not take our dogs out enough if they housesat. Then we’d come home to two dogs with UTI from not being walked enough and let out enough.
Saving money short term isn’t worth it to go to the vet long term. And quite a few friends have housesitters but usually it’s other friends. And you really have to to trust them.
MOST people we know do not walk their dogs 3x/day during the winter. We do it 365 days a year. Never skipping a walk. Can you honestly say that you know people who are that responsible like clockwork?
There are pretty much only 3 people we trust to watch our dogs. My two cousins and my BIL and of course our parents. But other than that, we don’t know any other dog owners as religious walkers as we are. And both living in San Diego and the North East.
3 tiffanie // Dec 16, 2008 at 10:44 am
Hubby and I went to Vegas in September for our 2 year anniversary. If you plan on going to any shows, look for the “Tix4Tonight” ticket booths…you can get discounted prices on most of the shows if you buy the day of. We saw Phantom of the Opera and got our tickets from one of those booths for 1/2 price, and it was for 3rd row seats! Definitely a money saver when you figure some shows cost $100-150 each. If you can get tickets for $60-80, it’s a great money saver!
Hope you have a great time! We’re going back in a few weeks (Jan 5) to visit my brother and his family who live there. We’ll be staying with them, so no hotel costs this time! yay!
4 LivingAlmostLarge // Dec 16, 2008 at 12:59 pm
Thanks for the tip! I will check it out definitely.
5 Meg // Dec 16, 2008 at 1:46 pm
So…you’ll be gone for 10 days and you’re considering not taking a suitcase just to save $30 – which is only 1% of your estimated travel budget? That seems a bit extreme – will you just wash and rewear items? If so that may end up costing almost as much as bringing a suitcase…
I’ve been there around the holidays several times, and you can get a lot of free entertainment out of walking the strip and seeing all the various “shows” on the street and in the malls. The Bellagio in particular has the fountains but also usually a great set up inside of Christmas trees or life sized gingerbread houses or something similar.
Downtown can be fun, too. You can see the giant gold nuggets at the Golden Nugget and watch the Freemont Street experience, plus there are a few old school (and much cheaper) spots to gamble in that area.
But honestly I think it would be really tough (or get really boring) to go to Vegas for 10 days, especially on $50 a day per person… For a few days it could work, but after 5 or so I would be about sick of walking around and not being able to buy or do very much of the stuff around me (gambling, rollar coasters, shows, shopping, spas, expensive restaurants…)
If you’re not big gamblers (which you must not be with a “maybe” gambling budget of $100) then I’d just skip that altogether and go for another show. You can see a good show for less than $150 a person, thought, even ones like the cirque de soleil (or however you spell it).
6 Meg // Dec 16, 2008 at 1:48 pm
Oh, you might take a day and rent a car (or take a shuttle?) to the Hoover Dam. I’ve never done it, but i hear it’s amazing and it’s probably a relatively cheap way to burn a day.
7 LAL // Dec 16, 2008 at 5:15 pm
I’ll be likely doing hoover dam and going to see red rock canyon and a few other hiking trails nearby. My BIL will be driving and my cousin lives in Vegas.
Maybe my DH can gamble, but I’d prefer to avoid it completely. I have a lot of bad memories of being broke and gambling. That and my mom went to jail for it sort of. Well child welfare services because they were running a game out of her house and so they were taken away.
But all in all I’m not against people responsibly gambling. I just am a bit hesistant.
Actually I’ve travelled very lightly before. We went to China with pretty much 2 handcarries for 3 weeks. It was easier. I sort of like packing light. We’ll see.
8 Anonymous // Dec 18, 2008 at 1:18 pm
We spent $2400 for an all inclusive trip to the Carribean at a nice resort and didn’t even have to carry our wallets anywhere. All the nice meals and entertainment were included. Just as a comparison. I don’t know what I’d do in Vegas for 10 days.
You could take a big suitcase for the 2 of you. that would help.
Bring your own breakfast stuff to eat in your room or shop at a grocery.
9 LivingAlmostLarge // Dec 18, 2008 at 1:29 pm
All inclusive wouldn’t work because it has to be for my in-laws and BIL. So it would cost more per person because he’s an extra 5th wheel.
Also $2400 plus $400 dog minimum= $2800 either way. And how many days in the caribbean and where did you fly from Anon?
We’ll see how things play out.
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