The Vanlifer's Guide to 24 Hours in Las Vegas
The city of Las Vegas is known for being an expensive and extravagant place. But that doesn’t mean that it’s not a city where you can find interesting places, great people, outdoor adventures, and awesome new experiences…. even if your vanlife budget has you on a tight timeline.
As iconic casinos on the Las Vegas Strip resume 24-hour operations, different parts of Sin City are coming alive once again. This means there are plenty of things to do in just 24 hours in the city.
Affordable and friendly digs
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Larger cities can be an intimidating place to try vanlife. However, if you need a place to park your van and crash for the night, there are lots of affordable and conveniently located hostels within the city of Las Vegas. You can even use your trip to the city to treat yourself to a real bed and shower in one of these affordable overnights.
Hostel Cat is one of the most popular for its many amenities and close proximity to the Vegas Strip.
Sin City Hostel is an institution and one of the oldest in the city. The basic rooms at these hostels average from $20 to $30 per night. Apart from being nice places to stay, they’re also where you can find like-minded nomads and backpackers.
For something a little higher end but still basic hotel accommodation by Vegas standards, The Carriage House is a little off the Strip behind the MGM Grand Casino. You’ll pay more here than any hostel, but far less than any of the other nearby resorts (without having to sacrifice location!).
Discover hidden gems around the city
CREDIT: Wendy Berry under CC BY 2.0 License – No changes were made to the image.
If you think Las Vegas is just about casino gaming, you’re in for a treat.
Have you ever wondered what happens to the old neon casino and business signs that get replaced with modern signage? You can find most of these retired signs at The Neon Boneyard. It’s best to go after dark if you want to see the signs lit up. You can also contact them ahead of time to get combo tour passes to the Mob Museum, which is an awesome place to learn about Sin City’s dark past.
Meanwhile, if you’re looking to kick back to some Latin music while sipping mezcal or tequila (at reasonable prices!), check out the Ghost Donkey tequila bar.
Art lovers should add Seven Magic Mountains to their 24-hour to-do list. This art installation features 30-foot stacks of fluorescent-colored boulders in the middle of the desert and is easy to hit on your way in or out of town.
And what’s a trip to Las Vegas without the Fremont Street Experience?! If street performers, character actors, and light shows are your thing, the light tunnel of Fremont Street is a can’t miss (and you can do it totally free!).
These are just a handful of the budget-friendly curios. For more, check out these Hidden Gems in Las Vegas: Sin City’s Best Kept Secrets.
Explore any casino you want to
Apart from next-gen slot machines and casino floor games, there are still plenty of other reasons to check out what’s inside a casino. Especially if you’ve never been inside one.
Within modern casinos, you can find different restaurants, nightspots, specialty stores, free hourly shows, and other attractions.
Much of this is because of how online slots have dominated the market through innovative offerings, which means that brick-and-mortar casino resorts have had to do a lot of catching up. Combining elements of bingo and slot machines, the Slingo titles on Foxy Games are proof of how online casinos are successfully innovating to gain more players. With this type of competition, brick-and-mortar casinos have been trying their hardest not just to reopen, but to offer live entertainment in order to attract guests.
From signing famous bands or artists for residencies to tapping into Vegas' local independent music scene, reopening casinos are finding different ways to create unique experiences for their visitors.
In short, whether or not you’re looking to play a couple slots or other games yourself, you’re bound to find something that interests you inside any of the Strip’s reopened casinos and lounges.
Just don’t get too caught up and spend all your 24 hours in Vegas there. Remember, casinos are intentionally designed to be windowless so you’ll lose track of time!
Before You Drive Away…
Las Vegas is a place you have to see to believe. It truly is a different world and even if it’s not exactly your world, we think it’s something everyone should experience once in their life… even if only for 24-hours.
Don’t let the vastness of the city and the expensive price tag on many of its attractions dissuade you from checking it out. Vegas has plenty to offer in the traveler’s or vanlifer’s budget.
Just be cautious and drink responsibly, meaning don’t drink and drive (even though your house is a van!). What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas… including you if you crash your house!