Partying in Vegas Compared to Miami

Move over Sin City, the Magic City is taking over!  Once the self-proclaimed party capitol of America, Las Vegas has dropped to number 5 in a recent Maxim Magazine poll about America’s top party towns.  The new hedonistic spot: Miami.  With world famous nightclubs, fashion icons, music industry leaders, and scores of special events, it’s no wonder Miami knocked Vegas off it’s pedestal.  But what’s it like to party in Vegas compared to Miami?

As a SoBe elite or simply just someone not used to paying a cover in Miami, you become accustomed to certain luxuries. Living in America’s number one party city can really spoil you.  You spend every weekend club hopping at all the premier spots and you view the concept of waiting in line as a supreme insult. You have every promoter on speed dial, regardless of venue, and no matter how exclusive, ‘the door guy’ is; he’s only a text message away.  You always have a table to sit at but never purchase any bottles because you’re really that cool.  Yet, there comes a time when all of the glitz and glamour of South Beach becomes repetitive, even for a rockstar like you.

So you pack your weekend gear and (hopefully) hit the mile-high club to Las Vegas, the former top party locale of America. But get ready: you’re in for a culture shock as Sin City is worlds away from the South Beach nightlife you know and love.

VEGAS LINES ARE REALLY LONG - BE PREPARED TO WAIT

The first thing you should be prepared for when you arrive on the strip is the sheer amount of people and lines and more people and lines. With hoards of visitors, convention-goers, curbside spectators, hookers, and Elvis look-alikes, the place is packed with people everywhere!  Lines for hotel check-ins, lines for cabs, lines for restaurants, lines for casinos, and of course, lines for nightclubs. What I am referring to is not that mob of people packed up like sardines in front of a velvet rope that is common at places like Cameo, Mansion, Opium and Space but actual single file lines that go from the front door of the nightclub all the way through the casino; you know the kind of lines you see snaking around the attractions at Disney or a porto-potty at Ultra. And you might be thinking that you’ll only see these lines during special events and peak travel times, but au contraire mon frere- this is Vegas and lines are commonplace at every nightclub, regardless of the day or event.

For instance, the mega-club Pure inside Cesar’s Palace has three different lines. One exclusively for women, one for tables, and then there is the line for everyone else. The average wait time in a Vegas nightclub line can be anywhere from two to three hours depending on the night and your time of arrival.

I know what you are thinking though. You are gorgeous and well dressed and of course you smell nice and besides you’re from South Beach.  Maybe knowing someone in the South Beach club scene has shown you that name dropping and tipping can sometimes get you past the waiting and maybe even the cover (which in Vegas is between $20-$50 per person) but you will soon find out that things are a tad different in Sin City.  All name dropping may get you there, I repeat ‘may’, is advancement in the line but odds are, you’re still going to have to pay the cover.

You see, most Vegas nightclubs (and by most I mean the good clubs) discriminate by charging a cover to everyone who presents an out of state ID. So it really doesn’t matter if you are part of a group of ten sexy ladies from Seattle or a cat-walk model from New York, or even your fabulous South Beach elite self.  Unless your ID says ‘State of Nevada,’ you will be charged. 

DON’T FRET THOUGH, YOU DO HAVE OPTIONS

So how do you bypass the lines and just have fun? Well, you have options such as VIP packages available for advance purchases which allow you to cut the lines and walk right into the club or you can hope against hope to be discovered by a feature unique to the Vegas nightlife, the Hunter-Gatherers.  Well sort of, they’re similar to hosts on South Beach but as local, you’ve probably never even heard of these folks.

These Hunter-Gatherer groups are 2-5 person teams that troll the areas outside of hot nightclubs targeting groups of people who appear to be big spenders.  They tend to look for groups that are loitering outside and look undecided about whether or not they want to brave the long lines. These H-Gs are well dressed and well spoken and can walk you and your entire party right into the club. But like anything else in Vegas, money talks.

While outside of a club to meet up with my posse of seven South Beach nightlife regulars, we were approached with an invitation to bypass the waiting for a nominal $500 with the added caveat that we would still have to ante-up the cover charge.

All of this scouting, hustling, and negotiating is to push some people to purchase a table. And even then you’ll be waiting in a line except this time it’s for the table service.  Also, brace yourself for the two bottle per six head count rule which is standard practice in Vegas clubs.  So expect to shell out the $1,000 for the same two bottles of vodka that would cost around $600 back in the 305.

Another major difference to the desert traveler is that the majority of Vegas nightclubs are housed within the casinos themselves. So unlike South Beach, where your limo lets you out at the front door of a premier spot to be gawked at like the true diva you are, in Vegas you exit your stretch and begin your trek through a labyrinth of casino lights/sounds/hookers/clamor in search of the club entrance. This is especially true for popular Vegas nightclubs Tao, Pure, Light, Jet, and Tryst.  Your $500 limo entry has just been reduced to nothing more than a taxi stop at the front of a hotel.

LAS VEGAS DRESS CODES ARE SHALL WE SAY, LAX

Perhaps the greatest difference, and truly the most difficult to understand is the people you will be dealing with. Sure South Beach doormen may be rude, crude, and unbelievable to the masses who are denied entry back home, but they do a great job of keeping nightclubs filled with good looking and well dressed people. This translates into a club being exclusive (Vice, Set, Suite, and Mynt come to mind). You don’t find this in Vegas. There you party in nightclubs while rubbing elbows with tourists who bring their own sense of dress/style or lack there of.  So while you’re wearing your new Sky dress with Manolo’s and your pal is head to toe Gucci, your pals to the left are sporting Wranglers, boots (sans the fur) complete with Stetsons and on your right, a bachelorette party of divorcees whose last nightclub outing was Studio 54 circa 1980.  Be prepared my fellow Miamian, you are a very long way from the South Beach fashion police.

The differences then beg the question whether or not a trip to experience the Vegas club life is worth it now that Miami is the #1 party spot and Vegas has dropped to #5.  If you have money to spend, friends to spend it with, and the state of mind that your South Beach status and connections aren’t going to help you, then yes, take a trip to Sin City.  But really, with that attitude, your rockstar self could actually party anywhere.  And of course, while what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, remember South Beach never sleeps!

Shaun Gold is the premier nightlife guru and promoter in South Beach. He can be found Thursday-Sunday at some of the hottest venues. If you would like to bypass the long lines and the cover charge as one of Shaun’s VIP guests, then RSVP at www.celebxp.com.

Related Links: • Miami Nightlife • 6 Tips For Getting in Nightclubs Quick • Pure Nightclub Related Categories: Miami: Travel News, See more articles by Shaun Gold Was This Post Helpful? Please Share It With Others! Tweet

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