Vegas attracts millions of tourists each year. With its endless entertainment and relaxed booze laws, people go to Vegas with the intention of having a good time and bring back awesome memories to share with their friends at the bar (after filtering through what stays in Vegas).
Tourists that flock here come with a carefree attitude and indulge themselves in the highlights of Vegas. While it’s true that the Strip is a relatively safe place with plenty of police and CCTV’s, a tourist hub will always attract crime and scams.
In this article, we’ll be going over some safety tips you need to digest before packing your bags and leaving your innocence behind!
Don’t leave tourist attractions
Vegas was built on the back of organised crime. While it’s overall safety has increased over the years, there are still remnants of gang-related crime outside of the major tourist attractions.
With all that the Strip has to offer, you shouldn’t find any excuse to explore where the lights don’t reach at night. In fact, seeing how bad the local economy has been doing, people have gotten more desperate and we would advise you against visiting these places totally, even during the day:
- Downtown Las Vegas (Fremont Street has gotten safer, but avoid wandering off course)
- East Las Vegas
- West Las Vegas
- Huntridge
- Naked City
On the Strip, you may be risking being pick-pocketed if you’re not careful. But if you visit any of the places we’ve listed, you could be gambling with your safety as robbery and assault can be more common.
Only Carry What You Need
As a general rule of thumb, avoid carrying a lot of cold hard cash. Pickpockets strive in Vegas as tourists are always too distracted with what’s going on around them. Don’t bring your wallet if possible.
Keep some small change in one pocket and your credit card and some ID in the other. Ladies: Just take a small bag with immediate needs.
If you need your wallet, Keeping it in front of you is a must, and wrapping a rubber band around it makes it so much harder for your wallet to slip out of your pocket.
Leave your valuables in the safe box in your hotel room. Snap a picture before you shut the vault, in case you’re unfortunate enough to get the rare cleaner who has the key to the safe. If you’re still not convinced, ask the front staff if they could keep your valuables for you.
Keep an eye on your chips
When you own the gaming tables, always be weary of your surroundings and keep an eye out on your chips. If you need the toilet, don’t leave them unattended and ask the dealer to watch over them. Some chip thieves work in pairs; one would distract you by “accidentally” dropping something while the other would sweep some chips off your table.
The casino may not be liable for any of your losses and you will have a hard time getting your winnings back.
Don’t listen to strangers
Context comes into play but when someone walks up to you saying they know of a hot machine, avoid them immediately! This is a classic scam in which someone tries to convince their victim by saying they know someone who works on machine maintenance at a casino and knows it’s due to hit anytime soon so you should go for it.
Use rational thinking, and understand that it doesn’t make any sense why he would ask a complete stranger to win when they can do it themselves. If this happens, don’t feel intimidated. Call security immediately and they will bugger off.