10 Reasons Why You Will Move Back to Las Vegas – Part 1

So, Vegas is no longer “your thing”, and you’ve decided that it’s time to get out of Sin City. But, did you know, that Vegas will most likely lure you back? It’s true.

Sheryl Crow’s song Leaving Las Vegas depicts a person who decided that they were over Las Vegas, with lyrics like, “I’m leaving Las Vegas. And I won’t be back. No I won’t be back. Not this time.”

Well, I grew up grew up in Southern California and have lived in Las Vegas on and off for 20 years. Yes, on and off… 4 different times. One time wasn’t my choice, as I was too young to decide, but the other 3 times were definitely my decision.

Why leave and come back so many times you might ask? Well, part of you instinctively feels that the grass is greener somewhere else. Then you go to that somewhere else and find that it isn’t grass at all, but weeds. Well, not everywhere, but you know what I mean.

Before you leave Las Vegas, you may want to read further to know what you’re in for. On the flip side, if you’re looking to move to Las Vegas, read on to know what to look forward to.

Because I decided to give details about each reason on the list, I’ve split the 20 Reasons list I was going to make, into two parts. The list is in no particular order.

10 Reasons Why You Will Move Back to Las Vegas – Part 1

1. You No Longer Hang Out With Showgirls – The Las Vegas Showgirl. Glorified in movies and showcased on television, she epitomizes this city and some of them… are you friends. Which is pretty cool to everyone else in the world, but to you, she’s just Steph.

   You see Steph works in one of the hottest shows in Las Vegas AND she’s also a gogo dancer at one of the hottest nightclubs in Las Vegas. So, not matter what, you’re getting FREE entry to see her perform in the show or at the nightclub.

   No other city offers the diverse entertainment Vegas does, all on a 4 mile stretch of road. The more you put yourself into “the scene”, the more friends you will make, and the more freebies you will receive.

   So, if you leave Las Vegas, wave goodbye to all your showgirl/entertainer friends.

   

2. You Can No Longer Avoid Tourist Traffic – You know that awesome feeling you get as you’re driving southbound on the 15 freeway on a Friday night, on your way from Vegas to LA, and all you see are the thousands of other cars coming the opposite direction. You get the same awesome feeling when you’re driving northbound on the 15 freeway on a Sunday afternoon from LA to Vegas.

   While you might sympathize with the other drivers, you’re also glad you’re not in THAT traffic. This traffic occurs every weekend, like clockwork. Throngs of people are going the exact same way you are.

   That’s the advantage of living in a city that brings in 40 million tourists a year. When it’s your “weekend”, you’re typically going the opposite direction as everyone else.

   So, if you leave Las Vegas, there will be no more avoiding tourist traffic.

   

3. No More Prime Rib Dinners at 4am – You’ve been partying all night. You leave the nightclub and all you see is that bright flashing sign… Prime Rib dinner for $9.99. Mmmm, doesn’t that sound good? The problem is, most cities do not have this savory luxury. Why? Because they’d lose too much money.

   You see, the reason Las Vegas can sell you a Prime Rib dinner for $10, is because they can handle taking the loss on the food. Casinos just want to get you in the door, eat your food, and hope that you’ll gamble and lose a $20. Prime Rib for $10 is a great way to do that.

   You aren’t the only one who gambles in Las Vegas, casinos do too. If you’re smart, you’ll take them up on their cheap food offers and walk right out the door when you’re done.

   So, if you leave Las Vegas, there will be no more getting Prime Rib at 4am.

   

4. You Can’t Gamble in Grocery Stores Anymore – You can’t gamble in the grocery store?! NOPE! For those of you that have never been to Las Vegas, or have just stayed on the Strip, you may not know that there are slot machines in the local grocery stores here. You know, in case you get the itch to gamble after you just purchased food for your new healthy diet. It’s always interesting to see the cast of characters that drop money into grocery store slots.

   Not only that, but you can find slot machines in the convenience stores as well. Need a candy bar? Why don’t you stay a while and drop a $20 in the machine? You never know, you may win.

   If you have ever flown into or out of McCarran International Airport, you have probably noticed that you can play slot machines in the airport too. You have to be entertained somehow while you’re waiting for your delayed flight.

   So, if you leave Las Vegas, there will be no more gambling in the grocery store.

   

5. Not Everything is Open 24 Hours – Something funny happens when a Las Vegas local visits other cities. You’re comfortable enjoying your alcoholic beverage in a nightlife venue, listening to your favorite music, when around 2am some guy approaches you with a plastic tub wanting you to dump your drink in it. You are floored at such a practice. Why? Because Las Vegas doesn’t have a “Last Call”.

   Other cities don’t operate like Vegas. Partly because they don’t want to, but partly because their constituents typically have normal lives and schedules. In Las Vegas, every shift is covered, Day, Swing, and Graveyard. With 40 million tourists flocking to Vegas each year, they naturally want their needs met at all hours of the night.

   Because of the odd work schedules Las Vegas locals have, they also need services open at odd times, i.e. grocery stores, gyms, banks, child care, etc. With this though, you’ll find that other cities are not as convenient as Las Vegas and you may end up just staring at the ceiling at 3am.

   So, if you leave Las Vegas, it may be hard for you to go where you want, when you want.

   

6. No More Free Entry Into Nightclubs – While we’re somewhat on the topic of nightlife, let’s talk about the advantages of being a Las Vegas local when it comes to nightclubs. Because Vegas is a 24 hour town, tourists may be in Vegas on any given day. It’s not just a weekend paradise that shuts down during the week.

   Las Vegas has a tendency to take care of the locals. With that comes something in the nightlife industry called Industry Night. Industry Night originally started to give people that worked in the nightlife “industry” something to do during the week, because they most likely worked all weekend. Specific clubs were open Monday – Thursday to cater to those workers. Well, now they are open to everyone. For locals, show your Nevada ID and you’re typically comped entry. Plus, during the week, the lines to get in aren’t as long.

   Comped entry for locals “typically” doesn’t happen on the weekend, as that’s when clubs make a majority of their money. But, be that as it may, you may find it difficult to get free entry into a top notch nightlife venue anywhere else in the world.

   So, if you leave Las Vegas, you can kiss free entry into nightclubs goodbye.

   

7. Not as Much Money in the Service Industry – If you live in Las Vegas, there’s a pretty good chance that you’ve worked in the service industry. There are many jobs that can qualify in this sector, but the ones I’m referring to are the jobs in which you make tips. In some parts of the country, wages and tips earned in some service industry jobs are equatable. But in Vegas, some of these jobs are in a league of their own.

   People that have jobs such as bellman, valet attendant, “doorman”, cocktail waitress, bartender, etc. make significantly more money than their counterparts in other cities. Combine that with the low cost of living in Las Vegas, and these are pretty plum jobs.

   There are two downsides to having one of these kind of jobs though. The first downside is that because they are such plum jobs, you’ll find that people rarely ever leave them. I mean, why leave a job that pays so well and is relatively easy. Hence why you sometimes will see people in their 60’s, close to retirement, doing these jobs. That means it is harder for you to move up to a better schedule or more money, should you wish to keep doing the job.

   The other downside to having the one of these kinds of jobs, is that you’re pretty much stuck in Las Vegas. Why? Well, the pay that you receive other places for these jobs isn’t the same as Vegas. So, your skill set of running around to get cars for people, or serving them drinks, typically doesn’t equate the same to other cities.

   So, if you leave Las Vegas, your service industry wage can dramatically reduce.

   

8. Housing is Much More Expensive – Las Vegas is a pretty unique city. It’s unique because of how inexpensive it is to live here, similar to living in a typical low population town, except it has a population of 2 Million people. Couple that with the fact that we have the Las Vegas Strip at our door step which we can go to at anytime.

   With all the amenities a Las Vegas local has at their fingertips, world-class shopping, dining, and entertainment, they would find it very difficult to match it in another city at the same housing price point. Let’s take Los Angeles and New York for example. To rent a studio apartment in either of those cities can easily cost you $1,500 a month. In Las Vegas, that studio apartment is at least half of that, if not more. If you want to buy a house, again, the cost of the home is at least half of what it costs in either of those two cities, if not more.

   Do you love the nightlife, shopping until you drop, eating at world-renown chefs restaurants, and watching unbelievable entertainment, while not having to pay a lot to live somewhere? Then Las Vegas is your place.

   So, if you leave Las Vegas, look for the amount you pay for housing to go up.

   

9. Humidity Does Ruin Your Hair Do – Ladies, and some guys too, this one is for your. One of the great things about Las Vegas, is that it doesn’t rain here that often. Which means that we have very low humidity. We are what you call a Dry Heat. I hear comedians make fun of Las Vegas when we say we have a Dry Heat, but in my opinion, it’s much better.

   Think of it this way. The difference is like being in an oven all day or in a sauna all day. I’ll take the oven every time. Plus, in Vegas, you can hide from the heat by hanging out in the shade. You can’t hide from humidity and neither can your hair.

   Women are constantly saying how they love Las Vegas, because after they’ve spent an hour on their hair, getting it just right, it stays that way the whole night. This is vastly different than a place with a lot of humidity. Your hair goes from straight, to afro, in 2.5 seconds.

   So, if you leave Las Vegas, you’ll probably have to rock a ponytail… all the time.

   

10. Customer Service is No Longer Top Notch – What do you get when you have multi-million dollar, sometimes multi-billion dollar hotel complexes fighting for the same dollar? You get awesome customer service. Since the Las Vegas Strip is only 4 miles long, the hotels know that you can go right next door should you want to get better service than you’re currently receiving.

    Everything from hotels, restaurants, nightclubs, stores, and shows are all fighting for your dollar. So, they make sure that their staff always treats their customers well. Unfortunately, this adage isn’t practiced in much of the rest of the world, or at least on this kind of scale. It’s what makes those 40 million visitors continue to come back year after year.

    Las Vegas may have lost some of it’s “first name basis” charm, simply by growing up and becoming a world-class resort destination. But, the service industry still knows that the customer is what helps pay their bills and they go out of their way to make sure that each and every visitors is having a great time.

    So, if you leave Las Vegas, a dismissive attitude tends to be what you receive.

    

Well, I hope you’ve enjoyed the 10 Reasons Why You Will Move Back to Las Vegas – Part 1 list. Part 2 will be coming out soon, so keep an eye out for it.