Travel Adventures: Las Vegas Part 1: Making You Way Around Town

So you want to visit Las Vegas? Well to get the most out of your stay you will want to read on.
Las Vegas is unlike any other city in the US as it is not filled with bookstores, coffee shops, offices, and boutiques but large expansive and luxurious casinos and hotels.

Please refer to this 2013 Las Vegas map for landmarks mentioned in the remainder of the article. Fremont Street is not shown on this map as it is farther away.

The strip: There are technically two strips in Las Vegas and they are not within walking distance of each other.
The first is "Fremont Street, aka: The Old Strip" which features casinos such as the 4 Queens, Golden Nugget, The Fremont Hotel, and Lady Luck. Fremont street is the strip shown in most Hollywood movies and is the location of the over head light changing canopy.
The second strip is "Las Vegas Boulevard aka: The Strip" which features resorts such as New York, New York, MGM, Bellagio, Monte Carlo, Treasure Island, and more. I have only visited Las Vegas Boulevard so I will only write about my experiences here.

Each year I visit Las Vegs the strip has changes. There is constant construction with the tearing down of old hotels to make way for new ones. Please keep this in mind and always ask your prospective hotel if there is any nearby construction before booking. Since there are always new hotel casinos popping up make sure you have an updated map before you go.

Las Vegas Boulevard is a 6 lane highway with an island of palm trees in the middle of the East and Westbound lanes. It is not a street you can safely cross. The only way to cross the street is to find an escalator which will take you up to an elevated pedestrian bridge. There are only two of these on the strip. One is located in front of Bally's/Bellagio and the other is in front of MGM Grand/New York, New York.
From one end of the strip to the other is a hike. From the Four Seasons Hotel to the Stratosphere you are looking at 6.1 miles one way! Plan accordingly. You may also want to visit some hotels off the strip such as The Rio or Palms. There are free shuttles that can take you there. Take advantage of these! I know one of the shuttles picks you up right at Paris Las Vegas's side entrance. These shuttles get very full so be patient. The cabs are very expensive but this is not unlike any other city in the US. The rates are based on time and distance. Good luck with that!

One final note, make use of the public monorail. It is an inexpensive way to travel the strip. http://www.lvmonorail.com/