You all were so helpful with my last question I thought I would ask another. How is the vibe in December? I've only gone during the summer. Are the clubs still fun or is it kind of dead? If we go to a show will there be a small audience?
I cannot speak to the clubs, but generally it is a dead time everywhere, which is good if you like deals and hate crowds, bad if you like those ultra-busy holiday weekends and the crowds and action they bring. I really enjoy Vegas in the off times. There is still fun to be had, only without the crowds and lines. Keep in mind, if you are into fine dining or other high-end things, a lot of Vegas restaurants close for a week sometime during the month to give workers time off. Same with the shows. Not all will be closed at once, but if you have your heart set on something, make sure it will be open before you book.
Jugdish is right. Rok wasn't even open at NYNY in Dec. when I went last year. It was the first year I moved from Nov. to Dec. for this Holiday Gift Shoppe and all of Vegas during the week was slow. The weekend picked up some but still not normal LV shoulder to shoulder down the streets. I loved that slow time too Jug and we are going in December from now on.
If you go around the week of Christmas it's good, and it's busy. But the first few weeks of December, I'm guessing because it's like $15 a night to stay anywhere it's probably pretty dead LOL. But, in general if you go on a weekend there is always something going on. There is always a party on Friday and Saturday night. If you are looking to go clubbing, go on those nights. I've only been to Vegas once on a Sunday night, it wasn't in December. But it was REALLY dead everywhere. Every other trip I've taken there was a sizeable crowd everywhere.
Early december has some HUGE shows opening Shania twain Faith hill and Tim Mcgraw Coco in peepshow that might bring a few more people this year i know ill be there and picked those dates for Shania
Went 2 years ago for New Years Eve (of course busy and lines everywhere) Went last year second weekend in December during the rodeo finals and busier than I thought it would be. Not a real noticable change than most visits I have had. Going this year Nov. 30 through Dec. 6th as I'm running the Half Marathon room deals all over the place, but expect at least the Fri - Monday to be busy as I know the race is getting close to being sold out. Personally, I love the summer visits the most as Vegas pool season is my fave., but I really love my December trips too. Unless you go Christmas week, I would be surprised if you were disappointed. Of course, if the clubs are the most important part, definitely go on the weekends.
The rodeo can mean that rooms are booked quickly, especially in the cheaper places I like to stay, but the cowboys seem to spend all of their time at the rodeo or the bar. The tables seem mighty empty, and do other places I tend to go. If you book early, you can still get a deal. I have gone the past two rodeo weekends (not for the rodeo, it coincides with a big college football weekend I like to bet). The rates downtown for that weekend were low when I looked two weeks ago. Sadly, I will not be making it this year. I was too late on asking for the time off from work, so I will have to settle for the January bowl games instead. As for the poster that agreed, noting the club he or she wanted to go to was closed, I will only note that major restaurants and clubs will be open whenever you go. It is just that the one particular one you wanted to go to might be closed. They stagger the shutdowns, so it is not like the entire city is closing down at once.
We are going SWOTY (Slowest Week Of The Year) on purpose....we love to have no lines and hop around without crowds. This would be the week AFTER the rodeo and BEFORE Christmas. Most of the shows we want to see are dark that week, many shows still playing...just not the ones we want. Check the calendars ahead of time would be my advice. Weeknights/weekends are of course going to be totally different also.
We went last year, on a spur of the minute trip. We arrived the Sunday the rodeo was ending. After that Sunday everything really died out, a lot of restaurants were not open, crowds were down etc. I could live with that, the worst part was the weather, we hit a bad snap. It was cold and rainy for three days, the day we were leaving it was beautiful and 60 though!! For me the crowds and closures were not bad, there were still plenty of people by real world standards, I just couldnt handle the weather. I like to hop around and get outside and this really dampened that!
This is when we usually go. We usually fly back either Christmas day or the day after, depending on what the airfares are.
We used to go the week before Christmas while we were in college (this was usually the week after finals). Somewhere it was referred to as "golden week". It was the cheapest week of the year for us college students. During this week, I remember a lot of people movers and escalators were shut down for maintenance, as well as the mgm lion habitat, and the pirate show at TI was drained for repairs. It was a good cheap time to go. I remember the vibe still being good in the casino and clubs. I remember one year we left the university with a -40 windchill, and arrived to 60 degree weather in Vegas. We were the only ones walking around in shorts and tank tops haha.