Whether you’re taking a cab from the airport to your hotel, or riding from one end of the strip to the other, many cab drivers will ask if you want to take the freeway. The freeway sounds fast, but it’s the long way, and it nearly always costs more than taking other routes.
I read a notice inside of several of the cabs out there that says cab drivers are legally required to take the shortest route unless the passenger requests a specific route. Cab drivers know that the freeway sounds like the fast option, so they ask you if you want to go that way. If you say yes, they are within the law to take you the longer route since you requested it. Make sure you turn down the freeway offer unless you want to spend more time in the cab and more money on the fare.
I did have one instance where a cab driver took the freeway without me asking. It was blatantly obvious that he was doing something wrong, and when I asked why we were getting on the freeway, he simply ignored me. We asked him to take us from Mandalay Bay hotel back to where we were staying at: the Aria hotel and casino. It’s pretty much a straight shot on South Las Vegas Boulevard, but he looped around and got on the freeway. I probably could have reported him, but it just didn’t seem worth it. The best course of action in this situation is to tip him appropriately – hardly at all.
If you’re unsure of whether the freeway is the quickest route from Point A to Point B, simply type it into MapQuest. Simply select the “shortest route” option, and tell the cab driver to take that route.
