WAX question

I understand going to zero level and catching the WAX bus downtown..
However, on the return from Downtown to the airport where do I catch the WAX bus ?
Also, what's the average time from Downtown to the airport and does the WAX stop at both terminals ?
I'm flying SouthWest and think it uses terminal 2 ??
Any and all help Is appreciated as this will be my first trip using WAX !
Thanks and I hope you enjoy your visit.
Robert

Catch the WAX for the airport right outside Binions, across the street from Fremont. No need to buy a ticket, they accept cash. I've mentioned this before, but we flash our WI DL and only put a buck in for the over 60 crowd. 8 WAX trips now and no driver has said anything but the announcement that plays on the bus says it has to be a RTC approved ID.

Figure about ~ 30 minutes to the airport. The last time I took it they only stopped at one terminal, the one at level zero. But, at that time, I don't think the other terminal stop had started yet. Wait for bus guru Dewey to reply.

What Joe said. Check the schedule @ the stop for accurate arrival time. Rather than look it up on line (my mistake) take a pic of the schedule and refer to it if your phone is so enabled. Travel time was 35 minutes for me on a Monday close to noon trip. About 3 stops and you are there. Whatever the terminal is, the first stop is at ground zero and you exit the bus and head off to the right to go through the double doors and head to the ticket counters etc. and I flew SWA as well.

I travel poorly the first time when depending on signs or memory of descriptions given on line. It was easy and you can be where you need to be within 10 minutes at a leisurely pace once exiting the bus. Good luck...

You can check the schedule in front of Binions and arrive just ten minutes before the WAX in order to avoid a long wait. It often comes every hour.
I know some travelers have been surprised by schedule changes, but I expect by now the schedules are accurate. There is usually a working RTC person at the Binions stop, so stop by and ask if the posted times are accurate.
There is no Terminal 2.
Terminal 1 is where most of us get off. That is where US flights are served.
Terminal 3 is for those who are flying outside the US, perhaps going home to Canada or England.

The WAX will stop first at terminal 1 and 3-4 minutes later stop at Terminal 3.
It is unclear how long it waits there before heading back. But if you did miss your stop, you can get a free airport shuttle back to Terminal 1. You will know that stop because it is where you will have caught the bus on your way in to Vegas.

Also, if you are new to buses, that Binions stop serves many buses. Be certain to get the WAX.
And during your stay it is a fine place to start a bus journey. Any bus that stops there will stop also at the Bonneville Transit Center where many routes start. So rather than looking for where they have moved the Boulder Highway bus stops, you can just grab the first thing that stops at Binions and find the Boulder Highway buses at the BTC. It is a bit of backtrack, but a safe bet. And if you are early for what you want, you can go inside where there is air conditioning to wait.

Here is a chart of the WAX schedule and route. They have doubled it up with the Centennial express so it can be hard to read.
http://www.rtcsnv.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/AirportBrochure_0114_24x11.pdf

Other routes are also here
http://www.rtcsnv.com/transit/routes-maps-schedules/

You might like arranging a bus adventure while you are in Vegas. Ask us if you have one in mind. We have done many of them.

Finally, when planning to ride buses in Vegas try whenever you can to avoid the Deuce. It gets crowded during normal waking hours.

On Google Maps you can select a bus, and it'll give you the schedule, and the route as well.

dewey089 said:

Also, if you are new to buses, that Binions stop serves many buses. Be certain to get the WAX.

Finally, when planning to ride buses in Vegas try whenever you can to avoid the Deuce. It gets crowded during normal waking hours.

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Be certain to get the WAX when you arrive as well. It is easy to get on the deuce and unless you specifically ask if it's the WAX, the bus driver may not be much assistance. We asked, but didn't specify the WAX so he said, "sure, I can get you downtown." We drug our suitcases on the duce and had an adventure! lmao.

The WAX from downtown to the airport was a completely different experience - excellent!

Is there aproblem with luggage (small) on the strip to downtown ...forgot the name ...

No problem on the Deuce or the WAX for us. There was plenty of room on the WAX, the deuce, not so much - but we made it.

OK...I'll be solo on my upcoming trip, and I'll be staying at the Plaza. So - for the first time ever, I'm planning to try the WAX out of Terminal 3 (flying Frontier). If I'm understanding the schedule-map correctly, I go to T3 bag claim, out the doors, walk down to the rental-car area & I'll see the WAX stop.
Wondering how far it is from the door out of bag-claim to the stop...also - is the bus stop obvious? I don't want to be wandering around outside in August for any longer than necessary!
One more thing - if I'm on the 3:39PM bus out of T3, on a Monday afternoon, about how long before getting to Carson/4th?
...oh yeah - just one LAST thing - is it better to walk the length of Fremont to get to the Plaza, or should I stay on the bus and wait for it to get to the Binion's stop?
Thanks, in advance, for y'alls help.

topcard said:

OK...I'll be solo on my upcoming trip, and I'll be staying at the Plaza. So - for the first time ever, I'm planning to try the WAX out of Terminal 3 (flying Frontier). If I'm understanding the schedule-map correctly, I go to T3 bag claim, out the doors, walk down to the rental-car area & I'll see the WAX stop.
Wondering how far it is from the door out of bag-claim to the stop...also - is the bus stop obvious? I don't want to be wandering around outside in August for any longer than necessary!
One more thing - if I'm on the 3:39PM bus out of T3, on a Monday afternoon, about how long before getting to Carson/4th?
...oh yeah - just one LAST thing - is it better to walk the length of Fremont to get to the Plaza, or should I stay on the bus and wait for it to get to the Binion's stop?
Thanks, in advance, for y'alls help.

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Coming from the airport, the WAX bus stops on 4th street. across from the east side of D and about ~200 ft from Walgreens. That's where you want to get off. There is one more stop on 4th, before the WAX heads out towards Suncoast, but that would be out of your way. Pickup and dropoff are on two different streets downtown.

I find The SDX with luggage is hard during crowded times because you are fighting the folks boarding while you exit with luggage.
When I ride the Deuce, I position myself in those seats facing the exit door. This makes the aisle clear for travel at stops and it make exiting fairly simple. No one enters at the door.

The WAX is built for luggage and had never been the least bit crowded when I rode from the airport to downtown. I don't know Terminal 3 except what we have all read on the RTC site.

The WAX is more than twice as fast as taking the Deuce to downtown, but it only has the one pickup on Tropicana at NYNY. It hops on the expressway and heads downtown. The Deuce stops and loads and unloads at every stop along the strip and fights strip traffic. Choosing the WAX from NYNY is the best bet as long as you don't have too long a wait. They only come every hour.

topcard said:

OK...I'll be solo on my upcoming trip, and I'll be staying at the Plaza. So - for the first time ever, I'm planning to try the WAX out of Terminal 3 (flying Frontier). If I'm understanding the schedule-map correctly, I go to T3 bag claim, out the doors, walk down to the rental-car area & I'll see the WAX stop.
Wondering how far it is from the door out of bag-claim to the stop...also - is the bus stop obvious? I don't want to be wandering around outside in August for any longer than necessary!
One more thing - if I'm on the 3:39PM bus out of T3, on a Monday afternoon, about how long before getting to Carson/4th?
...oh yeah - just one LAST thing - is it better to walk the length of Fremont to get to the Plaza, or should I stay on the bus and wait for it to get to the Binion's stop?
Thanks, in advance, for y'alls help.

Click to expand...

You could get off at the bonneville center before the 4th and carson stop, it's about 6 blocks south of the nugget, not a bad walk, I've done it a couple times. To the plaza it might be about the same distance as the carson stop, but less crowded.

dewey-wife and i would like to try a few of your bus adventure suggestions for our september trip-thanks.

Say, hit me with a PM when you finish and tell me how things went. I miss some posts. Happy travels.

I have a related question regarding the WAX route. It shows a stop at MGM, do they drop you close to the entrance for check in or am I going to look like the tard' that I am, wheeling luggage all around los wages???

Also - confused on whether luggage can even be taken on the WAX - anyone?

Luggage can be taken on all Vegas CAT buses. But you do the taking and there are not separate storage areas. You hold it on your lap or in front of where you sit. Sometimes you can store it in the area reserved for wheel chairs, but if they take on a wheel chair rider, than you have to take your bag again.
The WAX is especially designed for luggage with long rows of seats built facing the center of the bus so that the aisle is twice the width of a normal bus. The bus is the airport bus, so they know people will have luggage. And there are few if any wheelchairs on this bus as it just stops twice and then heads downtown.
The worst bus for any luggage of any size is the SDX because when you exit with your luggage you are swimming upstream against folks who are entering the bus.
Other buses have dedicated exit doors. Take the Deuce, for example. If you board and negotiate getting down the aisle and in one of those side seats that face the exit door, there is room for luggage in front of you and your exit will be easy.

I'll let folks who know the MGM checkout location comment on whether getting off at the Tropicana and Koval stop is closer, or riding to the NYNY and negotiating the crossovers makes the most sense for ease of check in. Those two stops are the only stops before downtown. If you do decide to stop at Koval, be certain to notify the driver or push the button or both as that stop is often passed by. The major stop is NYNY.

dewey089 said:

... I'll let folks who know the MGM checkout location comment on whether getting off at the Tropicana and Koval stop is closer, or riding to the NYNY and negotiating the crossovers makes the most sense for ease of check in. Those two stops are the only stops before downtown. If you do decide to stop at Koval, be certain to notify the driver or push the button or both as that stop is often passed by. The major stop is NYNY.

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Three weeks ago, going from the Orleans to downtown, we took the 201 from Arville, got off at Koval, and crossed over Tropicana to the MGM WAX stop. On prior trips, we've always gotten off at the Trop and crossed over to the NYNY WAX stop. (Depending on the weather, timing, and our moods, we sometimes cab from the Orleans to NYNY.)

We'll probably go back to the NYNY stop on future trips, as it seemed a longer walk getting to the Koval stop. However, when taking the WAX from the airport and transferring to the 201, we'd probably opt for Koval, as it's less crowded and provides a better chance of getting a seat on the 201.