Las Vegas
 

Hi, my husband and I were thinking of going to Las Vegas and probably Hawaii in Dec 2011 ( my 60th) Is it too, too cold? Anyone's experience would help us make our decision. Is 1 week in LV to long?
Tks
Pachet

Pachet, one week in Vegas is to long. UNLESS you are going to mix in a car rental and go to the Grand Canyon for a couple of days. I like to gamble, see shows and eat fancy food and after 4 days I have had enough of the noise,smoke and crowds.If you don't want to take a road trip from Vegas I would spend more in Hawaii, two weeks in Hawaii is not enough time. As far as 'is it too cold' it depends on your perception of cold, I live in Minnesota so my answer would be heck no. Enjoy your trip planning, I see you are getting an early start. ziggypop

We were in LV last December for six days, and we could have used one more day. We didn't go to the Grand Canyon and we don't gamble much. We liked wandering around and through the hotels (Bellagio Conservatory, lions feeding at MGM Grand, Bally Jubilee backstage tour, Eiffel Tower at Paris to see the Bellagio fountain show, shops and shows at the Caesar's Forums, circus acts at Circus Circus, Flamingo Wildlife Habitat, Mandalay Bay Shark Reef, Mirage Dolphin Habitat & Secret Garden, Venetian street performers, Imperial Palace Auto Collection), went to Hoover Dam, Red Rock Canyon, Atomic Testing Museum, Fremont Street Experience, Liberace Museum, Springs Preserve, Clark County Heritage Museum.

The volcano at Treasure Island and Rio's Mardi Gras in the Sky weren't operating while we were there. We didn't go on any rides at NYNY, Sahara, or Stratosphere. We ran out of time before we got to the Valley of Fire and the Neon Boneyard.

December in Las Vegas can be pretty cold. Early December is quiet except for the National Finals Rodeo, which does draw a lot of cowboys and cowgirls to the casinos and convention center. We went last year and had a blast!

Many shows are dark in early December, too. The town starts to kick back up at Christmas, and is in full swing for New Year's Eve!

ziggypop,abram,ChristieP
I so much appreciate all your feed back, thank you.
I know it's early but I am hoping to use exchange points from Accor vacation club for our accommodation, so I need to get in early.
Pachet
from Aussie
Gold Coast

pachet, the temps will be above freezing, (in Vegas) but 80's' in Hawaii. Have you thought about any national parks you would like to visit while in the USA? In my opinion, the Grand Canyon is not to be missed if you are traveling that great of a distance. There are lots of rental car options and tour companies that base in Las Vegas. BTW I start planning very early as well which is why I noticed your dates.

In Dec the pools are closed, since you would freeze in them, and many of the trips you would take out of the city could easily bring you into bad winter weather. Suggest you either stay in Hawaii - or in CA area with better weather - like SD (but still not really beach weather). To take advantage of resort activities in Vegas you really need to wait until April - yes, it's a desert - but a cold weather desert.

We've spent time in Vegas in December and January and found the temperatures quite comfortable, 60's in the day, 40's in the evening. Not beach weather, but much nicer for walking the strip than 100's in the summer. As long as you keep an eye on weather, and avoid possible storms, you can travel in the area safely and visit some of the great National parks that are near by.

Looking at www.weatherunderground.com, last year the December & Jan high temps ranged from 45 to 61 F, with most days in the high 40s. The lows went from 30 to 45 degrees, with most days in the low 40s.

The few times we've gone around the beginning of January it was bitter cold...30s to 40s and windy, and even some snow. Of course I'm from hawaii, so my idea of cold may be a little skewed.

Am very sad to report that the Liberace Museum just closed in mid-October this year. For me, it was one of the highlights of a trip taken to Vegas a couple years ago. One report:

http://www.lasvegassun.com/blogs/kat...ration-longtm/

Las Vegans may think it is cold in winter, but we spent 3 nights there in January (2009) and went swimming every day in the heated hotel pool. Many pools do close but there are some that remain open...you need to check on the hotel websites or phone them...we stayed at Bellagio and the pool is open and heated year round.

bachslunch,
thanks for the info on the closing of Liberace Museum, as that would have been one of the museum's we probably would have visited.
Lcuy, Thanks heaps for the weather chart.

Pachet

My wife and I will be in LV on Christmas day. We will not be visiting any casinos but may stop up at Fremont St. for the light show. We will be finding a few geocaches including some up in the Red Rock canyon. There is plenty to see in the area that requires a rental car for at least 2 days. I got a great deal on Priceline (bid $13/day) for a compact.