20 Budget-Friendly Tips For Planning A Bachelor Party In Vegas

Planning a bachelor party can be a daunting task, especially when you’re trying to keep costs in check. The Las Vegas Strip and the word “budget” are like two enemies that rarely see each other in the same sentence!

Luckily, being just a stone’s throw away from Vegas, and with Papu having lived in Vegas for five years during his prime college party days (also when he was at his poorest), we’ve got a ton of insider knowledge and firsthand experience.

Our Los Angeles-based friends have planned and attended countless bachelor parties, and with their help, we’ve gathered our top pro tips to help you plan an unforgettable, budget-friendly bachelor party in Vegas.

From securing the best deals to avoiding overpriced scams, here’s everything you need to know to celebrate without breaking the bank.

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Book early and stay mid-week if possible.

Yes, yes, these tips are both obvious and lame, which is why we’ve grouped them into one. So we can just get ’em out of the way.

First off, you’re going to want everyone to book their flights and hotels well in advance to secure the best rates. Booking 3-6 months in advance can save up to 30% on airfare and hotel rooms.

We are earlybird planners and book stays at hotels all the time. 8 times out of 10, the hotel rate we book 6+ months in advance is cheaper than any rate closer to the travel date.

Early bookings can mean the difference between paying $140 per night instead of $250 per night. Plus, many hotels on the Strip offer some sort of “Book Early & Save” pricing on room rates.

Secondly, room rates from Sunday night to Thursday night are going to be significantly lower than Friday and Saturday night stays. Do with that what you will — I know it’s not easy to get days off!

Avoid conference dates and festival weekends.

Yes, weekend rates can be significantly higher due to higher demand. But you know what else causes room rates to skyrocket? Conference weekends, fight nights, and festival weekends.

If possible, schedule your bachelor party for a time when there are no major events, conferences, or festivals… unless you plan on attending them. This can significantly reduce accommodation costs.

For example, one of the most expensive times to visit is during the Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) weekend. EDC is one of the largest electronic dance music festivals in the world, held annually in Vegas in late May.

For a 3-night stay during a regular weekend, you might spend around $600-$1,000 on a room at a 3- to 4-star hotel. For a 3-night stay during EDC weekend, the same room could cost $2,000 or more.

Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is another one to avoid! This is one of the largest trade shows in the world, attracting tech professionals and enthusiasts to Las Vegas every January.

PRO TIP: To stay up to date on all the latest happenings in Vegas, you can check out our monthly guides to Vegas. Depending on when you’re looking, some of them might reflect last year’s info, but they’ll give you a decent idea of conferences and festivals happening during the month.

Can’t avoid a major weekend? Consider staying off-Strip.

Consider staying off the Strip or in nearby cities like Henderson, where rates might not be as heavily impacted by major events.

Yes, you might be paying more for Uber/Lyft rides to get to all the action on the Strip, but if staying off-Strip can save you almost $1k on lodging, that’s a pretty worthy trade-off!

Here are a few of our favorite off-Strip alternatives:

• Desert Rose Resort – free parking, no resort fee, all-suite rooms perfect for larger groups
• Durango Casino & Resort – Station Casino’s newest hotel, super hip and trendy
• Palace Station Hotel & Casino – ugly exterior but renovated rooms, close enough to the Strip, free parking

Penthouse suites are going to cost you way too much money.

Penthouse suites can easily run you $1-2k per night. Which is ridiculous when you’re traveling on a budget!

Here’s what you should do instead.

If you want a central party room that’s spacious enough for everyone to gather in for pregaming, you only need to book ONE upgraded suite that’s large enough to accommodate visitors (aim for a room that’s 800+ square feet with a living area).

Maybe, assign this room to the groom-to-be to share with his best man or close family members. From there, just get standard 2-queen rooms for a majority of the other guests.

Don’t forget to factor in resort fees and parking costs.

When you start doing the math for finding a hotel that fits within the budget everyone’s comfortable with, do NOT just look at the per night rate. Get to the page with the total AFTER all the crazy resort fees have been factored in.

Resort fees can range anywhere from $28 to $50 per night, depending on how bougie/luxurious you get with the hotel. For a 3-night stay, that could mean an extra $84 to $150 per room. Need multiple rooms to fit all the guys? Now you see it adding up!

Traveling on a budget and don’t want to pay all the pesky resort fees? Check out these resort fee-free hotels on or near the Las Vegas Strip.

Leverage group discounts for shows, activities, and excursions.

If you’ve got a group big enough, you could actually score cheaper rates for show tickets and other things of that nature.

For example, a lot of the best shows for bachelor parties offer group rates for groups of 21 or more people.

Many venues offer 10-20% discounts for groups, so with these group discounts, you can save $20-$30 per person per show.

Take advantage of happy hours.

Las Vegas is the land of happy hours!

If you’re not planning to dine at a steakhouse each and every night, why not try to plan a few meals and pre-game during happy hours to enjoy discounted food and drinks?

Many restaurants and bars on the Strip offer 50% off food/drink during happy hours (which typically run anywhere from 2-6pm).

We love Happy Hours for their money-saving potential — you can easily reduce meal costs from $50 to $25 per person.

Skip the cocktail bars and get Fat Tuesdays instead.

Save money on pricey cocktails by getting yardstick-sized drinks at Fat Tuesday, where you can enjoy delicious frozen drinks at a fraction of the cost.

With locations conveniently located around the Strip, Fat Tuesday offers large, refreshing drinks that are perfect for keeping the party going without emptying your wallet.

Have one celebratory meal, then eat casual food for the rest of the trip.

To make your Vegas bachelor party special without breaking the bank, plan for just one celebratory meal at a top restaurant and enjoy casual dining for the rest of the trip.

This approach allows you to experience the best of Las Vegas dining without overspending.

At the very beginning or very end of the trip, treat yourselves to a memorable meal and savor the luxury, then explore the many affordable (and delicious!) casual food options available at Las Vegas’ many food halls, for example.

Honestly, there’s a lot to love when it comes to casual food in Vegas. And most of them are local restaurants off the Strip!

We love Sushi Neko (all-you-can-eat made-to-order sushi), Tacos El Gordo, The Taco Stand, Tang Tang Tang (mom-and-pop Korean restaurant), Island Flavor (Hawaiian), Herbs & Rye, and lots more.

For recommendations on the best Las Vegas Strip restaurants for bachelor parties, check out our curated list below.

Skip the cocktail bars and pre-game in the room.

A handle of whiskey can cost $25 to $80 in a store versus $300+ in a restaurant/bar.

Buy alcohol from a liquor store and pre-game in your hotel room before heading out. Buying in bulk from stores like Lee’s Discount Liquor (a local institution for cheap alcohol!) saves significantly compared to bar/club prices.

Skip the table at the dayclub, get a cabana at your hotel pool instead.

Instead of paying top dollar for a table at the dayclub (like Marquee or Encore Beach Club), save big and enjoy a more relaxed atmosphere by opting for a cabana at your hotel pool instead.

Some hotel pools, like ARIA’s Liquid Lounge or Flamingo’s GO Pool, have live DJs too.

The cabanas offer privacy, shade, and often come with amenities like dedicated service and complimentary drinks, giving you a VIP experience without the hefty dayclub price tag.

Skip the strip club and get “in-room entertainment” instead.

Instead of making every guy pay $40-50 admission to get into a strip club, then buy drinks, then throw money at the ladies, you can opt for in-room entertainment instead.

These packages can cost anywhere from $300 to $700, depending on how many girls you want to book for the night.

They’ll usually include an hour or so of fun, where the man of the hour sits front row and center, gets humiliated, plays naughty interactive games that everyone will be a part of, etc.

Alternative idea: For about $60 per person, you could also opt for the award-winning topless burlesque show at The Flamingo.

Skip the limos, use those rideshare apps instead.

Promoters who know you’re planning a bachelor party will try to sell you on limo rides to places like nightclubs and strip clubs for a per person cost anywhere from $30-$60 per person.

This is absolutely insane when you consider that a rideshare car will cost you that much in total!

By opting for rideshare services, you can save a significant amount of money while still enjoying convenient and comfortable transportation. If anything, just upgrade to the nicest car they have on the app.

Use the savings to enhance other aspects of your trip, like watching another show, buying more drinks, or putting the money towards a table at the club.

Use rideshare apps over taxis, unless surge pricing is in effect.

For the most part, rideshare apps offer predictable pricing and are usually cheaper than traditional taxis. Sure, you’ll have to wait a bit longer for your car (as opposed to jumping into a taxi at the hotel lobby), but you’ll be saving money in the end!

As an example, an Uber ride from the airport to the Strip costs around $15-$20 compared to a taxi’s $25-$30.

There is one caveat though. When “surge pricing” is in effect for services like Uber and Lyft, it may actually cost you MORE to ride with them. During surge hours, we like to weigh our options. We’ve definitely opted for a taxi instead of Uber/Lyft during these popular travel times!

Bring a portable speaker and party in the room.

Bringing a portable speaker for in-room entertainment can be a great alternative to going out every single night. A good speaker (+ that alcohol you bought at Lee’s Liquors) can set the perfect mood for an in-room party, allowing you to have fun without the high costs of cocktail bars and clubs.

Think about it! Investing in a $100 speaker can save you $100-$150 per person on entry fees and drinks.

For much cheaper gaming, dining, and drinking, head to DTLV.

For a more affordable bachelor party experience, venture to Downtown Las Vegas (DTLV) for at least one night of your trip. Friday and Saturday nights are always lively there.

Things are so much cheaper downtown. In fact, this is where most locals go to party and hang (and definitely not the Strip).

The El Cortez offers BOGO (buy one, get one free) specials, and their table game minimums are often as low as $5 compared to $15-$25 on the Strip.

You can also visit Ellis Island Hotel Casino & Brewery or Casino Royale (on the Strip). Both have cheap table games and cheap drinks too. Also, Ellis Island has legendary food specials!

Sign up for casino loyalty programs before your trip starts.

Joining casino loyalty programs like MGM Rewards and Caesars Rewards can lead to substantial savings and perks during your bachelor party. These programs offer members-only benefits, including free play credits, discounted rooms, and comped meals or buffet entry worth $50-$100.

By signing up, you can enjoy these exclusive perks. And even if you don’t get to redeem rewards right away, with all the spend you’ll be doing during the bachelor party, you’ll be able to save up enough points for your next Vegas trip!

Budget for tips.

Sadly, traveling around as a large group of guys doesn’t really do you any favors. (Especially compared to being a group of ladies — being a lady does get you a lot of stuff comped.)

As a bachelor party group, it’s essential to budget for tips, especially in service-heavy environments like casinos, dayclubs, and nightclubs.

This is especially true if you guys are buying a table at the dayclub or nightclub! Tipping at the end of the night is expected.

Don’t forget to tip for valet, taxi rides, housekeeping, and at restaurants and bars! Yup, it can all add up.

Getting a table at the club? Don’t forget all the extra fees.

When you get quoted a table price by a promoter, keep in mind that the table minimum does not include tax, venue fees, or tips. The tax, fees, and tip will cost you an additional 37.5% to 40%, approximately.

To make sure you and the rest of the group budget for this, I’d assume the higher end of the range.

Here’s an example of the math. If you’re looking to book a table that costs $1,500, it’ll actually be closer to $2,100. You’ll wanna do the math ahead of time in order to set expectations on cost.

Be ready to spend loads of money on coffee. Or bring your own.

Most hotel rooms on the Las Vegas Strip don’t come with coffee makers, which means you’ll often have to head downstairs to a lobby Starbucks or another overpriced coffee shop.

And when we say overpriced, we mean it: drinks are typically 30-40% more expensive than at a regular coffee shop.

To avoid these steep prices, consider bringing your own instant coffee. When others go to get their morning fix, simply ask for a cup of hot water, which usually costs around $0.50. This small adjustment can save you a lot of money over the course of your trip.

General Etiquette and Tips For Large Groups

• Anything that requires payment should be handled by a few designated people. Someone needs to be in charge so you’re not trying to split a meal bill 12 ways. You can divvy up the costs and collect payment from everyone once the trip ends.
• Make reservations for any nice lunches and dinners you’re planning. Nice restaurants in Vegas are not very walk-in friendly, unless you’re showing up as a small group of 2-3 at non-peak hours.
• Don’t make participation mandatory for every single part of the trip. That might be way too smothering, especially if people are hungover, not interested in the activity, want some alone time, etc. One way to do it is to make dinners mandatory, and daytime/nightlife activities optional.

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