You've been asked to plan the stag do. You've never planned one before. You know it's Vegas. Everyone in the group has an opinion. Here's the exact 12-week timeline I give every organiser who WhatsApps us for the first time - the order of operations that makes the trip feel effortless instead of stressful.
12 weeks out - lock the dates and the group
Before you book a single thing:
- Confirm the stag and the groom's flexibility. Which weekend, hard-no dates, whether he'd prefer avoiding a specific fight card or F1 weekend that would triple hotel prices.
- Confirm headcount. The difference between 8 and 14 guests changes the entire trip - hotel type, transport, table size, budget model. Get a rough headcount before touching prices.
- Set a per-head budget band. Most UK stags land £600-£1,500 per head on-ground (not counting flights and hotel). Anchor early so nobody joins expecting £300.
- Announce the trip formally. Group WhatsApp with the dates, budget band, and a firm 4-week deposit deadline.
10 weeks out - flights, hotels, ESTA
In parallel:
- Flights. Book direct BA / Virgin to Las Vegas (LHR/LGW to LAS). Non-stop is worth the money on a 10-hour flight with a group. Avoid connections through the US East Coast - one delay wrecks the trip.
- Hotel. Pick based on where you'll spend nights, not on the Strip map. If you're doing XS / Encore Beach Club: stay at Wynn Encore. Marquee / Cosmopolitan pool: stay at Cosmo. Big group in one place: Resorts World or Cosmo suites. Book directly with the hotel, not through a tour operator - you'll get better rates and better room control.
- ESTA. Everyone in the group applies at esta.cbp.dhs.gov. Deadline: 3 weeks out. See our ESTA guide for the process.
We do not book flights or hotels for you - that's deliberate. You pick the room you actually want; we handle the trip around it.
8 weeks out - talk to a concierge
This is where a Vegas concierge earns their fee. Reach out with:
- Dates and hotel
- Headcount and rough budget
- What the groom actually wants (clubs? pool? fight? show? all of the above?)
- Any hard constraints (nobody drinks, one guy vegetarian, groom hates dubstep)
A good concierge (us) comes back within a day with a proposed itinerary: which club tables to hold, which dayclub cabana, dinner reservations, transport plan, and per-head cost. You review, edit, and confirm.
Do this 8 weeks out because A-tier tables at popular venues (XS Friday night, Encore Beach Club Saturday) start disappearing 6 weeks out. The concierge holds them for you against a refundable deposit.
6 weeks out - deposits and confirmations
- Collect deposits from the group. We handle deposit collection for the group - one link per person, each lad pays his share by card. If you're doing it manually, plan for one lad to be a nightmare about it.
- Confirm the concierge itinerary. Pay the planning deposit.
- Book dinners directly if you're doing a mix (Resy / OpenTable / Wynn app). Concierge handles the difficult ones (Delilah, Carbone).
- Book transport for arrivals: SUV or party bus airport transfer for the group.
4 weeks out - the details
- Confirmation of everyone's flight details - so transport is right-sized to arrivals.
- Dietary requirements captured for the dinner venues.
- Contingency plan if someone drops out (usually one does). Terms of your deposit forfeiture.
- Group WhatsApp brief - the itinerary, hotel info, tipping guide (see our tipping post), dress code (see our dress code post), what to bring, what not to bring.
- Groom's speech / roast prep if that's a thing you're doing. Nobody remembers this on the trip.
1 week out - final
- Confirm final headcount to the concierge (they'll pass to the venues).
- Everyone screenshots their ESTA approval.
- Cash for tipping - $200-300 per person in $5s and $20s, withdrawn in Vegas airport arrivals (not at your bank in the UK - they'll charge stupid FX).
- Anyone who hasn't confirmed final payment is removed from the trip. This is not personal, it's operational.
- WhatsApp: hotel address, first-night meeting spot, timing.
On-trip - the concierge role
Once you land, we take over. WhatsApp is the channel - one thread with the planner. Changes on the fly (someone's hungover, want to swap the Saturday plan, need a helicopter Strip flight added, "the groom just wants to go home and sleep") are all normal and expected.
The stag doesn't touch the money. You (the organiser) handle the group card; the concierge invoices you at end of trip for anything that ran over the deposits.
Sample 4-night budget - 12 lads, Signature tier
- On-ground concierge programme (tables, cabana, transport, planner): £10,200 (~£850/head)
- Hotel: ~£1,800 per room for 4 nights at Cosmopolitan (twin share = £450/head)
- Flight (BA return LHR-LAS): £650-£900/head
- Dinners paid at venues: ~£120/head
- Tipping: ~£150/head
- Personal spend (drinks off-table, casino, incidentals): £300-500/head
Total per head: £2,500-3,000 for a properly-executed 4-night trip. This is the real number, not the "£800 stag" number some tour operators quote and then bolt everything on.
Step-by-step
- 01
Lock dates, headcount, budget
12 weeks out. Confirm the groom's flexibility, get a rough headcount, set a per-head budget band before touching prices.
- 02
Book flights, hotel, ESTA
10 weeks out. Direct BA/Virgin non-stop LHR/LGW → LAS. Hotel chosen based on which venues you'll spend nights at. Everyone applies for ESTA.
- 03
Talk to a concierge
8 weeks out. Send dates, headcount, budget, what the groom actually wants. Concierge returns a proposed itinerary within a day and holds A-tier tables against a deposit.
- 04
Collect deposits and confirm
6 weeks out. Group pays via a single deposit link per lad. Concierge deposit paid. Dinners booked. Airport transport booked.
- 05
Handle the details
4 weeks out. Flight details captured, dietary requirements, contingency plans, dress code brief, tipping brief, group WhatsApp.
- 06
Final week
1 week out. Final headcount confirmed to concierge and venues. Everyone screenshots ESTA. Cash for tipping withdrawn in Vegas airport arrivals.
- 07
On-trip
Concierge on WhatsApp for the trip. Groom doesn't touch the money. Organiser handles the group card. Concierge invoices at end of trip for anything over deposits.
Questions
Frequently asked
- When should we start planning a Vegas stag do?
- 12 weeks out is comfortable. Anything less than 6 weeks and you'll struggle to get A-tier club tables and pool cabanas at premium venues. If it's a special date (F1 weekend, NYE, heavyweight title fight), start 4+ months out.
- Do you book the hotel and flights for our stag?
- No - that's deliberate. We don't sell flights or hotels, which keeps us out of ATOL/ABTA regulations and keeps you in full control of the two biggest line items. We recommend the right hotel for the venues you're going to and you book it direct. Better rates, better room control.
- What's a realistic per-head budget for a Vegas stag do?
- £2,500-3,000 per head all-in for a properly-executed 4-night Signature-tier trip: flights + hotel share + on-ground concierge + dinners + tipping + personal spend. Groups who quote £800 stags are quoting flights + hotel only and glossing over the actual on-ground spend.
- What if someone drops out?
- It happens on nearly every trip. Terms of our deposit forfeiture are set at 4 weeks out - before that, we redistribute the deposit across the group; after that, the dropping-out person forfeits their share. Set this expectation with the group early so nobody's surprised.
- Do you handle group admin - deposits, passports, dietary requirements?
- Yes. We handle deposit collection and group admin end-to-end. One link goes to you, each lad clicks through to pay his share by card, submit passport details and ESTA approval, pick dietary requirements. You never chase a WhatsApp.