Budget travel works like most things, the more time you are willing to invest in researching and comparing prices, the more you are likely to save.
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As a general rule it is safe to say that using prearranged travel packages
is usually not the least expensive way to do things; but in order to really
save money by piecing your vacation together yourself, it takes a lot of
time and work on your part. This may not be worth the effort for someone
just planning to spend a weekend in Las Vegas hotel or someone that has
to be there on a particular date with little advance notice. In these
situations, using a package deal is probably the best way to save at least
some money on your trip.
What do you mean by 'Package Deal'?
A simple package deal just combines the cost of your plane ticket to Las
Vegas with the cost of a hotel room and usually results in a discount below
the list price for both the ticket and the room. While you can find very
basic package deals like this, most package deals today include a lot more.
The idea from the perspective of the hotel casino is to try to keep you
actively spending your money with them for your entire trip, so they will
frequently offer you all sorts of discounts, coupons, vouchers, and other
incentives to encourage you to use their casino, eat at their restaurants,
and enjoy their shows and other entertainments.
The package deal will save you a bit of money, but it is not designed to
represent your best interests; instead it is designed to reflect the
interests of the package sponsor (usually the hotel casino). This means that
many package deals have very strict terms - meaning that each part is only
valid on particular days or that you are required to do this or that - that
must be followed. Failure to follow the terms precisely may result in the
rest of your package being revoked, which obviously works out well for the
hotel casino once you are stranded in Las Vegas. Admittedly most package
deals are not that aggressive against their customers, but it is important
to carefully read over the package deal's terms and conditions before you
purchase it.
Different Types of Package Deals
By far the majority of package deals are those that have been organized and
arranged by the hotel casinos. These package deals are likely to save you
money but are also specifically designed to "direct" where you go and how
you spend money by offering incentives and imposing terms and conditions on
your enjoyment of the package. If this does not bother you then there is no
problem. There are also a lot of package deals organized by travel agencies
and the airlines. These package deals are much less likely to try to
"direct" your vacation and may include a "grab bag" of incentives that will
give you a great opportunity to explore more than one place in Las Vegas.
In respect to the actual types of packages deals on offer, this is virtually
impossible to quantify because there are so many package deals available.
Beyond the basic ones designed to encourage you to spend money at a
particular hotel casino, there are also a huge number of more specialized,
niche package deals designed to appeal to very specific groups of people.
These can range from Christian conventioneers to men wanting to explore the
Las Vegas gay scene or from single women interested in seeing a male review
to senior citizens looking for the best nickel slots. The number of niche
specific packages is truly endless, but you can expect to pay more and save
less with these niche oriented packages.
