I've always found Virgin Holidays to be on the expensive side compared to a DIY, even with any Virgin discount (i.e. 10%). Some people (hello my Brother) like the security of having something booked, a price that will not be affected by exchange rate peaks and troughs but I'm not so sure.

Teecee should be able to point you in the right direction of the management company they used for their stay at the Signature last year which shaved quite a bit of the price the MGM direct were looking for. Personally, it's Vegas and I like a gamble so I would make the flights a priority and book now, everything else can wait until nearer the time when offers will be more readily available. You may want to book a rate with the Signature now to cover any eventualities, but please make sure it is cancellable. They will only normally take one night deposit now, which will be refunded if you find a better deal nearer the time.

For my trip to Vegas in September 07 I started looking in July for deals and there were plenty about for most properties.

Good luck with whatever you decide on.

I have to agree with your husband.

With the current exchange rate I don't think you will make up the difference on this occasion of buying separate USD price components of the holiday. Virgin Holidays are coming out £350 cheaper so why not book that and just settle back, relax and just look forward to your holiday. By buying as a package from Virgin you are also going to be ATOL bonded - something well worth considering in this day and age.

Me too, I think I would go with the Virgin option. It's already a big saving of £350, I am not sure how much more you realistically expect to save off of this and the other way is a gamble.

Plus in these 'credit crunchy' times you have the security of a package, that would be covered under the package tour regulations if anything went wrong. It would be a no brainer for me.

I don't suppose anybody thought travel city direct and XL would go under as they had been doing cheap deals to Florida for years, but they did.

If it was any place other than Vegas I would agree with Traveller and Doepsmc completely. However, Vegas hotels are a totally different kettle of fish and I've always found amazing deals for August and September by waiting until a few months before departure.

Of course if you are going to stick with the Signature then great (it seems expensive to me though), but what about if a cracking Venetian, Palazzo, Wynn or Encore deal comes up in July for September dates???

Just last August I foolishly turned down the average Vegas temperature deal for a suite at the Venetian, which was coming out at $100 on the weekdays we were in Vegas (higher at weekends). That proves there is value to be had out there.

I personally would book the flights and take the chance....but that's just typical me.

I'm split. Normally for Vegas I would say, book the flights and wait for offers. However I'm not sure you would save as much as £350 doing it that way. The price you are seeing direct with the Signature is probably the maximum it would cost. It may come down $30 a night which is $240 for the 8 nights so you would be better with the Virgin deal if it is definitely a one bedroom suite at the Signature you want.

However as jwhiting says, there may be some good offers at other 5* hotels nearer the time.

Here are a couple of links to previous hotel discussion HERE and for September last year HERE

luci

Personally I would not even bother with virgin.

I know you have to make your way from Belfast but there is a flight from Manchester with US Airways via Philly for £400 and to save £400 per person is a good start

I wouldn't even think about accommodation until the offers come out

John

If you do decide to book with Virgin, go through a cashback site like http://www.quidco.com to get 4% cashback.

luci

Thank you all for your replies.
We have decided to go DIY!

We booked the flights and hotel yesterday. We didn't get an email confirmation from the hotel yet (Signature), is this normal?
Also, if we need to cancel the hotel, to re-book a better offer, how do you do it? We can't find a way to do it on the website, nor can we find an email address for the hotel to ask. Any ideas?

Many thanks

We received an email confirmation from the Signature quite quickly, within a couple of hours or less, from signaturemgmgrandinfo@lv.mgmgrand.com

There wasn't a confirmation number, but it clearly states all the booking details.

I would suggest emailing that address to check they have your reservation. You can also check your credit card account online to see if the first night's deposit has been taken.

The telephone number for information on their website is 001 877 612 2121.

luci

That's brilliant Luci, thanks very much for your quick reply!

Well in my opinion (sorry it's a bit late)! You have done the right thing.
Firstly, I booked two weeks in the Signature last September through Luxury Suites International and I saved $1000 on what MGM were asking directly. I can't remember the exact figure but I'm sure it cost me something like £1100 for the two weeks in the Sig. I stayed in a Junior suite, which, by the way is lovely and certainly more than adequate for a couple. I've put a review on it in the Hotel section on here.
To get that price, I booked initially through MGM themselves.......then cancelled when I found a good deal with LSI. Then, 2 weeks before we were due to go, LSI dropped their prices again by another $500 or so. I called them directly and asked if they could adjust my price and they said to cancel my first booking and rebook the second deal. I found them to be excellent, with comms being very very fast between us and I had a few questions that were answered very quickly too.
One thing to bear in mind is that the Signature use a completely different computer system to MGM Grand, so don't contact MGM for info on the Sig. If you get a players card for MGM, you won't be able to use it against your Signature room, I could only get free buffet deals from them.

For your dates, LSI will currently do a Junior suite for the 20-28th Sep for $1462 (£1082)
When I first spoke to LSI, I asked them if they would do me an extra discount as I was staying for two weeks - they did this. They will also offer a discount for a 7 or 8 days stay so be prepared to call them directly to haggle with them. Remember, 75% of the Signature is privately owned and everyone wants to make money so they will be willing to drop a bit.

If you were to eventually book through LSI, don't worry if you don't get confirmation immediately......I panicked last year as I didn't get conf. so I called LSI and they said that the room is confirmed 10 days before you arrive. I had no issues whatsoever.

Congratulations and have a great trip.........and remember to come back and write a trip report!!

Cheers,

TC