Packers-Raiders game at Allegiant Stadium: 10 tips for Packers fans visiting Las Vegas for the first time

Not that anyone ever really needs an excuse to go to Las Vegas, but the Green Bay Packers taking on the Las Vegas Raiders for the first time at Allegiant Stadium is a pretty good one.

That it's a "Monday Night Football" game doesn't hurt.

With Packers fans headed to the game for a long weekend of football and fun, here's a few tips for all the rookies who are suiting up for their first visit to Vegas. You're on your own when it comes to gambling.

At the risk of sounding like a mom, wear comfortable shoes

If you’ve ever done the Las Vegas Strip in uncomfortable shoes, it’s a mistake you’ll only make once. Vegas can require a ton of walking, even getting from one end of the sprawling casinos and resorts to the other can be a hike, and there’s nothing like a blister from a bad choice on Day One to make for a painful rest of your trip. Leave the fashionable footwear to the swarms of young club goers on Saturday night.

Everything on the Strip is farther away than you think

Because the scale of the buildings, signs and video boards is so mammoth (think Lambeau Field-sized and then vertical), it makes the distance between things seem deceivingly close. It’s easy to be in front of The Mirage and look down at Paris Las Vegas Hotel & Casino and see the big illuminated hot air balloon and think it’s a quick walk. It’s not. No such thing. Make sure your Fitbit is fully charged and plan accordingly.

Ope, wait a minute, is that Charlie Berens?

The Wisconsin comedian is making a strategically planned stop on his Good Old Fashioned Tour at 8 p.m. Sunday at The Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas for all those visiting Packers fans looking for a little taste of home. Tickets start at $39.95 at axs.com. If you don’t catch him there, maybe you’ll spot him at a blackjack table, his game of choice. He talked about gambling with his grandma, how “voracious” Packers fans are and ins and outs of a brandy Old-Fashioned sour in a new interview in Las Vegas Magazine previewing his show.

Water and ChapStick are your friends

It’s the desert, not the land of 68-degree dew points like Wisconsin. Even in October.

Don't operate on 'Green Bay time'

What’s Green Bay time? It’s having tickets to a concert at 7:30 p.m. at the Resch Center in Ashwaubenon and leaving your house on the east side of Green Bay at 6:50 p.m., getting across the Fox River, parking, making it through security and sliding into your seat before the opening act goes on. It’s a local perk, and it doesn’t work that way in Vegas. Too big, too many people, too much traffic. If your best estimate is it’s going to take you two hours to get from your hotel to Allegiant Stadium for the game (or to a show or a dinner reservation), allow at least three. In other words, “Lombardi time” x 5 all the time.

A few suggestions for fun things to see and do

The seasonal display of what creative minds can do with endless flowers and an unlimited budgets at Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Gardens never disappoints. It’s free, open around the clock and always worth a walk-through.

The Neon Museum offers a chance to get nostalgic about the Vegas of old by walking through an outdoor boneyard of more than 250 unrestored neon signs. Come by day or for an illuminated night tour.

Stop by The Punk Rock Museum, which opened in April, and see if you can find Green Bay band Boris the Sprinkler's famed antler helmet among the expansive collection of punk memorabilia.

Get a photo of yourself in your Packers jersey in front of the iconic "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign at the far end of the Strip. It's the most tourist thing ever, but you have to.

Prepare yourself for food and drink prices

Everything is bigger in Vegas, including food and drink prices, which have spiked like everything else post-pandemic. The days of cheap all-you-can-eat buffets are long gone, replaced by high-end restaurants that carry the name of every celebrity chef imaginable and cater to high-rollers. There’s every kind of casual dining experience available, too, but just know beers, drinks and food are all Vegas-priced, so try to embrace the mindset for the few days you’re there. You’ll have a new appreciation for a $5 beer or burger at your favorite neighborhood bar when you get back home.

Game day info: Packers pep rally, the Vegas strip and other things to know if you're going to the Raiders game

Venture off the Strip or down to Fremont Street

You’ll often find fewer people, lower prices and more local businesses the farther you get from the Strip, if you have the time and the means of transportation to explore. The Fremont Street Experience downtown is a destination all its own. It has a fun, old-school party vibe and some of the best people-watching in all of Vegas, which is saying something. It boasts the world’s largest LED canopy screen, synchronized to music for shows nightly, and there are live bands on select nights. You’re sure to see plenty of Packers jerseys in the crowd on Saturday and Sunday nights. The LINQ Promenade, directly off the Strip, is a nice stroll of bars, restaurants and shops leading to the High Roller observation wheel, which will take you up 550 feet for a view of all the action.

Expect some disruptions due to Grand Prix preparations

The inaugural Formula One Las Vegas Grand Prix happens Nov. 16-18, and transforming the Strip into a racing circuit is no small undertaking — road paving, pedestrian bridges, track lighting, safety barriers, etc. Lane closures have impacted traffic on the Strip, and cranes, construction and other preparations mean popular free attractions like the Bellagio fountains and The Mirage volcano might not have the usual access.

Keep an eye out for Sphere

Can’t miss it, especially if you happen to be sitting on the right side of the plane as your flight lands at Harry Reid International Airport. At 366 feet tall and 516 feet wide, it’s the biggest spherical structure on the planet and a spectacle even by Vegas standards. Near The Venetian, it opened a week ago with the first of U2’s “UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere” concerts. The 1.2 million LEDs on the 580,000-square-foot panel on the outside of the orb light up to turn it into everything from the moon to a giant blinking eye to a jack-o-lantern. Come to think of it, the Packer “G” would fit perfectly on there.

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Kendra Meinert is an entertainment and feature writer at the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Contact her at 920-431-8347 or kmeinert@greenbay.gannett.com. Follow her on X (formerly Twitter) at @KendraMeinert. 

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Never been to Vegas? 10 tips for Packers fans going to Raiders game