I was looking back over my old "Vegas safety tips" posts and found that I neglected to mention a few of the most important ones in my book:
Write your room number or floor number on your room key. These days, the convenience of magnetized key cards for hotel rooms comes with a price: there are no room numbers on the cards because they are reusable and/or disposable. To make sure you don't forget your room number - or, if you're like a few people I know (and I'm included in this bunch) and have double-booked yourself into more than one hotel room per night to take advantage of comps at different properties - use a permanent marker to put your room number OR the floor number directly onto the card. That way, every time you pull it out of your purse, wallet, or pocket, your room number/floor number is conveniently displayed for you and will help to jog your memory lest you forget where you should be headed. If you received a key holder or folder from check in, just keep one of your keys in the folder and both items securely with you.
An additional safety note regarding the room keys: I would suggest either putting just the floor number on your key OR the last two or three digits of the room number instead of the whole number, just in case you DO lose the key and someone else picks it up. Putting just enough information on the key to help you remember your room number or floor number is what you want to do in order to stay safe.
Don't admit you're all alone when traveling solo (or even if you're just spending the day alone). Whether you're a regular solo traveler, it's your very first solo trip, or if your spouse/significant other is not in the same hotel/casino with you at the moment, it's more than okay to lie to strangers. Tell anyone who asks that your spouse just went to the bathroom or to get your coat or to pick up tickets for a show. There's no need to let anyone know that you're alone, except for the check in agent at the hotel if you've booked a hotel room by yourself. It's no one else's business, and it's safer to let people think that there's someone waiting for you right over there.
Please don't try to help the cocktail waitress do her job! The balancing act she maintains with her tray is an art form - do NOT upset that balance by trying to grab your drink from her tray unless she specifically asks you to! Why? Because you'll literally upset the balance of the rest of the drinks on her tray, and someone - maybe you, maybe someone else - will end up with drinks on their head or in their lap. She will get your drink to you, and she'll get everyone else's drinks to them as quickly as possible. So don't rush it.
That's all for now. If I think of anything else, I'll be sure to pass it on.
And, don't put your room key in a magnetic money clip.
ReplyDeleteYes! Good point. Putting your magnetized room key in or near anything else that is magnetized will de-activate the key. It can be quite a PITA when you're trying to get into your room at 4:00 a.m. (or any time, for that matter).
ReplyDeleteDeann said: Don't admit you're all alone when traveling solo (or even if you're just spending the day alone).
ReplyDeleteSomeone once told me, if ever traveling alone always yell into the room "Bye, see ya later" when your leaving for the day. It appears to others there must be someone staying in the room with you.
Personally though, I never feel unsafe in Vegas.
Susan
Another good idea, Susan, absolutely. I hadn't thought of telling the room goodbye. Like you, though, I've never felt uncomfortable anywhere in Vegas, and I hope I never do!
ReplyDelete