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How Early Do You Start Packing for Vegas?

Discussion in 'Misc. Vegas Chat' started by Flowers, Jan 19, 2021.

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  1. Flowers

    Flowers VIP Whale

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    I always have a small bag that has Vegas-only items in it like player cards, coupons, a silver wallet I tend to use only in Vegas, etc. but today I started putting some "outfits" aside that I think I'll want to wear for my trip, which starts 13 weeks from this Friday.

    One of my personal goals over the next three months is to take off the extra weight I've gained over the past couple of months and finally reach my goal weight (it will require discipline but it's a reasonable and healthy goal) and so I've also included the white swimsuit and cover up I purchased a year and a half ago but have yet to wear . . . . Probably a bit TMI :ssst:, but any other obsessive packers out there?

    I've also started writing my packing list and have settled on my "colors" for this trip, which are white, pink, some orange, and black, though I have tan hiking shorts/pants and a tan t-shirt for Death Valley. It actually helps to see it laid out and I've already started to cut back so that I'm not doing the crazy overpacking like I normally do.

    This is also a massive stress reliever for me as it is so much fun.

    Anyone else this obsessed with early packing for Vegas?
     
    Last edited: Jan 19, 2021
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  2. MCann

    MCann I can't complain, but sometimes I still do...

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    Very early, unless I have a late flight; then I'll wait until after coffee and couch potatoing a bit. I usually plan ahead what, in general, I'm going to pack, but dont actually pack until 24 or fewer hours out. I do have a whiteboard with Vegas and air travel packing lists that I consult to make sure I have all the necessities.
     
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  3. Flowers

    Flowers VIP Whale

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    Wow, I would be so stressed! But I'm sure the packing list really helps. So, you're a big planner like I am but packing is quick and right before the trip. Interesting.
     
  4. Running late

    Running late High-Roller

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    I start a packing list and planning out outfits maybe a month before, and start packing a week before so I can make sure everything is laundered and ready to go.

    I enjoy the planning part, from outfits to activities, when I'm thinking about the trip it gets me even more excited for it.
     
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  5. NotFromConcentrate

    NotFromConcentrate It’s a Cassowary :)

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    I am always a last-minute packer. I can barely do it even the night before. Somehow I need to run through the "what do I need starting TODAY" scenario in the moment, and cannot simulate that mindset in advance.

    Now, I've downsized a considerable amount in the past year or so... which has involved separating "regular use" items from "specific instances" items. Better understanding the latter has been super liberating in a lot of ways, because it forces the question of "Well, if you can't think of a specific instance in which you'll need this... why have it at all?". Naturally, a lot of Vegas-specific things have fallen into the "specific instances" category, which include player's club cards, ACG/LVA books, video poker strategy cards, and a wad of US $1 bills since you need lots of those in Vegas. As a result, those items that are not "regular use" are now easy enough to round up and place in my suitcase. Too bad I haven't gone on any Vegas trips since December 2019, and haven't had a reason to put that to use just yet :blink:

    Without going into too much detail (everything's ok though), I've actually been living out of a suitcase for the past couple of months and am somehow perfectly okay with that simplicity... I barely miss anything that I don't have with me, save for a couple of sweatshirts. Naturally, I intend to have slightly more than a suitcase worth of things as a matter of course (as much as my inner former shopaholic screams "YOU WILL CAVE!" as I type that, lol)... but the point is that being accustomed to having a fairly fixed list of what I need to have with me on any given day (passport/cards, rotations of shirts/socks/underwear, jeans/shorts/sweatpants, toiletries, computer, sleeping mask, steamer, at least one Alexa device) it would be relatively easy to go off of that list which covers at least 80% of my needs, simply "throw in" the pre-curated Vegas items selection, and then there are only small gaps to fill in with discretionary items.
     
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  6. Basil

    Basil VIP Whale

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    Usually catching an early AM (6-7) flight and start to pack the night before, around 8 or 9. So I guess about 10 hours?

    In the before times, I traveled a lot for work, so packing only takes 15 minute or so. Grab boxers, put in suitcase. Grab shirts, put in suitcase, etc. All of the "little things" I'd need in Vegas, I need for work travel also, so they're already in my backpack. Only extra Vegas-specific is my players cards, but I keep those in a card wallet when I'm home, so just toss that in the backpack also. In the morning I put the last toiletries in the bag and throw that in the suitcase, and pack up the CPAP. Laptop, power cord, and phone charger go in the backpack. And I'm good to go.

    Edit to add: for me, the clothes are straightforward, so there's no real "thought" involved. For X days, I pack X+1 polos, X+1 boxers, and a few pairs of Jeans. If the weather looks really hot, I'll throw in a couple of pairs of shorts. If it's winter, throw in a sweater or something for the trip home.

    I don't have multiple outfits for multiple purposes in Vegas. After years of bringing nicer clothes and never using them, I gave up. A clean pair of jeans and a polo works in all but a couple of restaurants, and I don't go to clubs.
     
    Last edited: Jan 19, 2021
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  7. Sparky4

    Sparky4 VIP Whale

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    I love it! My niece that I meet every May in Vegas can be 95% packed a full week before our trip. I generally start Tuesday for a trip leaving in Friday. Thanks to a generous $5 top dollar machine in the HL at Caesar’s a year and a half ago (my high school friend and I each put $100 in and with $10 left in the machine we hit the 3 double diamonds and won $8k, my friend took home the cash, I went to Bellagio to my favorite salesman Daniel and he hooked me up!) I have a great LV Neverfull Tote that I start my packing with stuff I want to take on the plane. Hubby starts ironing his clothes, mid week, then we put everything in the front bedroom of the house along with the suitcases. We used to have to wait to pack until we took the dog to the puppy spa because she got stressed when she saw the suitcases, now we pack there because it’s what we’re used to, the pup has been gone almost a year and a half. Hubby is a list maker, he starts it at the beginning of the week and we check them off as we pack them. Glasses - check, chargers-check, players cards -check. Well darned if once I left the Never Full on the counter in the kitchen. :bang:.....now hubby has the Never Full on his check list.
     
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  8. dmr

    dmr Registered Abuser

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    Well, I keep one bag semi-packed all the time. When I'm not traveling I keep it in the trunk of my car as an emergency overnight bag. So, I guess you can say that I've already started packing for my next LV trip, long before I intend to go there.
     
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  9. ReTriggerMe

    ReTriggerMe Stand Up to Jewish Hate!

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    Night before, at bedtime. But my trips are typically 3 nights. And I have an obsessive need to never check luggage.

    Certain things always remain in my backpack, like some travel size personal items, folding readers and a spare set of glasses, a card case with all players cards, travel tech gear like charger cables. My travel coffee gear and my toiletries bag stay in my luggage; I make certain no empties in toiletries night before, add fresh ground coffee in a baggie.

    I lay out clothes for trip. I force myself to eliminate some items. I put some items into travel vacuum bags. Even with elimination... never have I ever come home having worn every single item I brought. I pack into either a soft side or hard side cabin approved roller bag (aware of how tight some overhead bins are on some equipment) and my backpack. Departure morning, I make a stop in my den as I leave to stow tablet, phone, that charged overnight, cords, into backpack.

    I pack to return home morning of check out.
     
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  10. Headache 21

    Headache 21 i don't wanna grow up, i'm a toys'r'us kid

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    I schedule out so much of my damn trip months in advance and then go and wait till the last minute to pack.

    I'm an enigma.
     
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  11. VegasGroove

    VegasGroove VIP Whale

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    I have a Vegas backpack at the ready with essentials (it's dusty now). Then the night before my flight, I throw in a few clothing pieces, zip it up and set it by the door.
     
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  12. DaiLun

    DaiLun R.C., L.C., and A.A.N.G.

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    "You're a girl", so my packing strategy won't apply to you. My bag is partially packed from the last trip, all I need to do is replenish what I used from the previous trip, pack as many collared shirts as necessary, and in the summer, long pants if necessary.
     
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  13. 44inarow

    44inarow VIP Whale

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    This isn't specific to Vegas, but I have to (or at least, had to, back when the world made sense) travel a fair amount for work, so I generally have a garment bag packed at all times. Suit, couple dress shirts, couple blazers, underwear and t-shirts, etc. Full set of toiletries in there as well. I could probably be at the airport in an hour if need be.
     
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  14. smerrian

    smerrian View from Bally's

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    This is me. I pack the night before. I pack a carry-on suitcase for a 2-week trip and usually have extra room. I don't like polos so it's 8 t-shirts and 3 button downs to wear over them. One pair of jeans that I'm wearing on the plane. One pair of shorts. A swim suit. My dop kit. Coupon books. Players cards for every casino in the city. My CPAP. Out the door. (Always have a rental car and stop at laundromat half way through trip.)
     
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  15. vegas superfan

    vegas superfan VIP Whale

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    If I start early, it is only because I am anxious to go. So yes, it is normal for me to start early.

    Packing honestly takes less than half an hour. Refill the liquids and Q-Tip holder, throw clothes in and go. I pack the same "outfits" every trip as I don't really own any outfits and just need the same t-shirts and same shants I brought on my last 6643765466 trips.
     
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  16. mjames1229

    mjames1229 # of visits includes only trips w/ hotel stays

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    Ditto. If I am taking a later flight, I will pack on time to be ready to leave. Mostly, I don't want my shirts too wrinkled. I roll them up, but still...

    My biggest thing to remember to gather are the creature comforts that can't necessarily be gathered too early... Chromebook and charger AND MOUSE (the touchpad mouse is diabolical), phone charger, glasses (I prefer glasses, but I wear contacts when I masked-up for long periods, like travel and gambling), sunglasses, belt (I always wear sweatpants on a plane for comfort), etc.

    For the most part, all the advance planning revolves around laundry and downloading content for viewing on the plane.
     
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  17. mjames1229

    mjames1229 # of visits includes only trips w/ hotel stays

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    I used to do that, now I just take the two I use the most; Caesars and Boyd. Anything else I will just get a replacement when I arrive. This is made especially easier as self-serve card print kiosks keep popping up.
     
    USBC Nationals are back in Vegas
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  18. Calder

    Calder VIP Whale

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    Our February annual is four days / three nights, so I travel in a 25 liter backpack that fits under the seat on the plane. Same clothes every year (though I guess no hockey sweater needed in '21, dammit). Only thing in the TSA baggie is two bottles of 5-Hour Energy drink for the long first day (we generally hit McCarran around 8-9am).

    No tablet, no computer, no tie, no sport jacket, no swim suit, no spare clothing. Just a carload of low-rolling downtowners zipping around the valley in a rental.
     
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  19. SMG

    SMG VIP Whale

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    I always keep my checkin bag partially packed with the basics so I don't have to start packing at the last minute. A few days before a trip, all I have to do is throw in a few extra items based on the weather conditions and I'm good to go. The only things I can't pack until the last minute (or night before) are my electronic devices, cameras, etc. that I carry in my backpack, since I use a lot of that stuff everyday.
     
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  20. carolineno

    carolineno VIP Whale

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    This year I'm obsessing a bit more on the food side of my trip, and I blame YOU @Flowers :poke: ;):pand all your yummy food pictures:love: lol. But I do start mentally planning outfits quite early.

    I've been trying to downsize my "stuff" quite a bit but clothing is my weakness. I resisted the idea that I have a "uniform" but it turns out I do, so I'll be bringing my uniforms. Cardigan with or without glitter, t-shirt or oxford, and jeans/slacks/skirt, the end. I'll bring one dress for nice dress dinners, but hmm it might be warm, so maybe I will need two...:ssst: see this is how over-packing starts lol.

    I have started my list of incidentals - vitamins, water bottle, zip locks, insulated bag etc. I am lazer focused on bringing home pastries for some reason. Maybe because I've been on a diet since Jan 1. lol.

    I try not to actually pack until the night before, but mentally it starts early. As light as I pack, I still always overpack!
     
    Ladies getaway, somewhere on the strip with a pool :)
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