Thanks,
Craig

Sara Benson: Absolutely, although a day trip is really rushing it—make sure you get a very early start! Otherwise, an overnight stay in Death Valley will give you more time to explore and to soak up a fantastic sunset and sunrise. If you're a fan of desert scenery, there are great outdoor-oriented places closer to Las Vegas, such as Red Rock Canyon (see my answer to Portland, Maine, above) and Valley of Fire State Park. Just across the Utah border, Zion National Park is almost the same distance from Las Vegas as Death Valley, and can also be visited as a day trip. For first-time visitors who love hiking and the outdoors, the most popular excursion is to the south rim of the Grand Canyon—if you haven't been there yet, I recommend it highly. Although it's a significantly longer day trip than to Death Valley, there are organized bus tours that you can take, which makes the excursion a little less tiring, if you're willing to sacrifice your travel independence and just go with the flow (e.g., there probably won't be much time for hiking around or down into the canyon).

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Shawnee, Kans.: How efficient and reliable is the public transportation in Las Vegas? If I want to fly in for a short trip, can I easily get from the airport to a strip hotel using the public transit?

Sara Benson: To get around Las Vegas without a car, you can rely on a combination of taxi, bus and monorail rides. Occasionally, it may be faster to just hoof it up the Strip, rather than waiting for a double-decker Deuce bus or wending your way through a purposefully confusing casino to the monorail stations hidden out back.

But that's only once you've already gotten to the Strip. Coming from the airport, public buses do not travel directly to Strip, although they do connect with a few inconvenient monorail stations and eventually downtown's transportation center. Your cheapest option is to take a free airport shuttle, if your hotel offers one. Otherwise, airport shuttle buses are relatively inexpensive (charging from $6 per person to the Strip), but notoriously slow. If you take a taxi to the Strip, expect to pay at least $15 to $20 or maybe more, depending on your destination.

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Lincoln, Nebr.: What would you consider to be a good, reasonably-priced, central or accessible location for someone to stay if they don't plan to rent a car?

Sara Benson: See my answer to Shawnee, Kans., above. If you stay anywhere along the Strip, you won't need a car. Some off-Strip casino hotels such as the Orleans, Rio and Hard Rock provide free guest shuttles to take you to and from the Strip, although they don't run around the clock. Downtown casino hotels are another option, as long as you're prepared to take taxis or ride the slow double-decker Deuce buses south to the Strip.

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Washington, D.C.: I am going with 5 other ladies in December for 4 nights/3 days. I want to stay at the MGM, but a friend of mine seems to think that the Mandalay Bay is the best of the 2. Can you tell me? I am going on a package deal (hotel/flight) but I want a nice bed (2 queen size), smoking, and separate shower/tub, which I see MGM has. Let me know what you think. It is costing us $532.00 for this package including transfers to and from the airport, which is also close, right?

Sara Benson: The airport is reasonably close to the south end of the Strip, where both the MGM Grand and Mandalay Bay resorts are located. Which hotel is better is a moot point—what matters is the room type that your package deal is offering you. The most basic hotel rooms at the MGM Grand do not offer the same upscale amenities as the freshly renovated rooms that you'll find at Mandalay Bay. Both resorts have amazing pool complexes, but only Mandalay Bay has an artificial beach. In my opinion, the MGM Grand has better-value restaurants, including some designed by star chefs Wolfgang Pack, Michael Mina and Joel Robuchon. The MGM Grand also has its own monorail station and is closer to the rest of the Strip. Mandalay Bay has eclectic shopping in the adjacent Mandalay Place shopping mall, as well as sky-high lounge Mix, which has a glass elevator and sunset views of the desert and mountains.