Vegas can be very cold in December so be prepared for that.

December is normally the cheapest month to go to Vegas if booking hotels direct. However I believe there is a rodeo in early December so I would check the date of that as it will push up room rates and the place will be full of cowboys. Just checked and it runs 1-10 December.

I would suggest booking direct with a hotel now before room rates rise as you only pay the first night's accommodation and can cancel without penalty up to 72 hours before arrival. Keep checking for offers which will come out near the time as you can either call up and get the better rate or cancel and rebook.

The shops will be closed on Thanksgiving, but the Black Friday sales start in the early hours of the following day.

luci

Thanks Luci

We were planning on arriving on the 1st, lol.. just had a look at the Rodeo information, thank you..

We last went to Vegas in june and it reached 108 degrees while we were there far too hot for us.. is it jumper wearing weather in the days aswell as evenings in december time?

Do you know how long the sales last? Do they last in to december? Thanks again

I haven't been at that time of year, but from what I have read, it can be coat, gloves, scarf and hat weather. They had snow in Vegas 2 years ago and it wasn't just a covering.

Not sure how long the sales last, but I don't think they last for weeks as they do in the UK.

luci

Thanks Luci

For the sales in November, in Vegas, if you REALLY want bargains, you must be there for Black Friday, which is the Friday following Thanksgiving (which is the last Thursday of November)

The sales start at 3.00am ( or possibly earlier) and there are stupendous bargains, often only for that day. I bought a Ipod 4th G, 8GB, from Walmart for $187, AND I got a $50 Walmart giftcard too!

The Galleria Mall was heaving, apart from the fact that my watch said it was 3.50am, you wouldn't have known. All the shops open, msuic playing, cafes open...............

.............an experience for your bucket list!

Hello,

Thanks for that, but unfortunatley we wont be there that time now, my husband has to take his holiday earlier on so we will be going in earlier november now & will probably fly home just before thanks giving or that week anyhow, thats the new plan, Lol..

On another note we shall miss rodeo week, which i think maybe a good thing?

Sancho Proudfoot wrote:

For the sales in November, in Vegas, if you REALLY want bargains, you must be there for Black Friday, which is the Friday following Thanksgiving (which is the last Thursday of November)

Just a minor correction: Thanksgiving is actually on the fourth Thursday of November. Usually, this turns out to be the last Thursday in November but not always.
To add my two cents about Black Friday, I really don't think it's worth it unless you are going to be saving hundreds and hundreds of dollars. The queues (a.k.a. the cattle lines) are horrendous and, frankly, my time isn't worth it. Remember, it's only a bargain if you would have bought it even if it wasn't on sale!

The sales do indeed last into December at many stores, but of course a lot of the items will have been sold by then. Even so, I personally think that's preferable because the queues will have died down.

That's just my opinion. Some people love the sales and don't mind waiting an hour in line or getting into hair pulling matches over the last 300-threat count quilt that's on sale.

Snort.

By the way, I was being (mostly) facetious in the post above!

I quite love the shopping in America anyway sale or no sale you can always find a bargain

Were going to be there earlier in November now so we will miss thanksgiving and the black friday sales.. Maybe another year!! Lol.. As you have mentioned tho, if things sell out quickly & dont think i could be doing with the extra long queues etc, wouldnt really want the mad rush of everyone while on holiday trying to grab everything etc as you say..

Have you been to san francisco? Did you like? If you have been lol..

This is loads to do in San Francisco. However don't do as we did and walk to the Golden Gate Bridge. I swear it kept moving backwards the more we walked towards it.

If you are intending going to Alactraz I would strongly suggest you book online in advance as it usually sells out. We hadn't booked and were lucky enough to be able to book tickets there for the following day, but it is often booked days in advance. There is also a night tour which is supposed to be more atmospheric and I think it visits parts of the prison not accessible on the day tour.

China Town is really good and we had a great meal there.

luci

I wouldn't recommend walking TO the Golden Gate Bridge either. You can drive there and park on the North side of the bridge. You can then walk ACROSS it. Or at least, walk part way across it. I've never walked all the way over, only half way.

I agree about Alcatraz. I think it's a "must do" attraction. I've done it twice but never at night. There is a package that also includes Angel Island. I did that the second time and found it quite interesting. You get great views of the Golden Gate Bridge from the water when taking the boat trip from Angel Island over to Alcatraz. Oh, and Luci is right about booking in advance. You CAN get away with it usually...but it's not worth risking. I was lucky the second time. The only reason I even went to Angel Island was because that was the only option/package they had left on that day (but it was more expensive).

Not only did we walk TO the bridge, we then walked over it. And back again. However a very kind local took pity on us, there were 4 of us, and gave us a lift back to the centre.

Just remembered another thing. We were going to do a helicopter sightseeing trip, but it was cancelled due to the fog/low cloud.

luci

Hello,

Thanks, we will definatley been doing Alcatraz that is one of my main must do`s in san francisco.. Will also book in advance no you two have said, Thanks again..

Id also seen a tour package which included Angel Island with Alcatraz, wasnt sure at the moment though..

Any other good tours you could recommend whilst there?

Im looking forward to going back to Las Vegas aswell, it was so hot whilst we were there last year, we didnt do loads.. so im going to make a to do list for there aswell, make sure we get it all in.. Lol..