okay so i just landed at harry reid its still vegas to me honestly and im already kinda fried from the whole travel day but i figured id drop some thoughts here because navigating this place can be a real trip and its kinda confusing if youve never been before or if its been a while and youre like me just trying to get to baggage claim without literally walking in circles and thats a real possibility here believe me i almost did that once but anyway its basically two main terminals terminal 1 and terminal 3 and they handle different airlines so the first thing you always gotta check is which one youre flying out of or into because that dictates basically everything else and honestly they are pretty far apart but connected by shuttles and stuff but its not like lax where its mostly one big horseshoe its more like two separate mini airports trying to be friends which is sweet but also a bit of a headache sometimes you know.
Navigating the maze
so for terminal 1 thats where you usually find like southwest and spirit and allegiant and some others and it has concourses A B C and then there’s D gates which is kinda separate but still considered T1 in a way and then terminal 3 handles most of the international flights and a bunch of other big carriers like delta united american things like that and it primarily has the E gates and then also shares the D gates concourse and honestly its a lot to take in when youre just trying to find your gate or your ride and the signage is okay but its not always super clear especially when youre rushing or youre tired and its like are these two D gates the same D gates or are they totally different D gates and the answer is usually they are the same actual D gate concourse but accessed from different terminals so its a bit of a brain twister when youre trying to figure out where youre going and its a good idea to just look at your boarding pass really carefully for the gate number and then the terminal its listed under and sometimes its not super clear which terminal is which at a glance but follow the signs for your airline and you should be okay mostly but keep an eye out.
The long trek between gates
now this is where it gets interesting especially if you have a tight connection or youre just curious about stretching your legs and not being stuck on a shuttle forever because sometimes you have options and sometimes you dont and its just how it is here in vegas but its good to know what to expect honestly:
- between A, B, and C gates (within Terminal 1): yes, you can totally walk it. its all connected pretty easily airside and its actually kinda nice if you have some time to kill you can browse the shops or grab a coffee without much hassle and its fairly straightforward.
- from Terminal 1 (A, B, C) to D gates: no, you definitely cant walk this one. you are absolutely stuck waiting for the tram and it goes underground and its pretty quick but if youre late its gonna feel like forever so plan accordingly its not a short walk at all its a whole separate section.
- between E gates (within Terminal 3): yes, you can walk around the E gates area its all connected up there and its a pretty big concourse with lots of space and shops so again if you have time its a nice walk if you need it.
- from Terminal 3 (E) to D gates: no, again you cant walk. you will need to take another tram and it also goes underground to connect you to the D concourse so its not like you can just pop over its a separate ride but its efficient.
- between different D gates (if youre already in the D concourse): yes, once youre in the D concourse itself you can totally walk between any of the D gates its basically one big horseshoe shaped concourse and its pretty huge but very walkable inside that specific area.
- between Terminal 1 and Terminal 3 (the actual terminal buildings): no, you cant just walk between the main terminal buildings airside. if youre making a connection between flights where one is T1 and the other is T3 and they are different airlines or something it usually means you have to go landside collect any bags you might have and then take a free terminal shuttle bus which is honestly a bit of a pain but its free and runs pretty frequently but its a whole process so dont plan on a quick dash between these two if youre like me and prone to delays or just generally slow because its a time consuming thing to do.
so yeah basically check your gate your concourse and your terminal and dont be afraid to ask someone if you are totally lost because its a big airport and its designed to handle a lot of people but sometimes that just means its confusing for the individual person but hey at least there are usually slot machines everywhere to distract you while you wait and thats pretty unique i guess and honestly i think i just need to get to my uber now so good luck with your travels everyone and maybe pack some extra patience for your connections here.