The buck starts here

With thousands of hotels and competition high between them, it is easy to get some good meal-and-stay deals in Las Vegas, so long as you avoid holidays and weekends. Photo / LVNB

My wife and I are flying into LA for a week's package holiday but we'd like to extend it for a few days and try our luck in Vegas. How long does it take to drive to Vegas from LA and would it be best to book accommodation through our travel agent or online?
Ricky Quinn

It's a 4-hour drive from Los Angeles to Las Vegas. Greyhound has regular bus services from downtown LA to Vegas, which take closer to six hours ($77).

With over 130,000 hotel rooms, there's something for every budget in Vegas. Competition among hotels is rife out of holiday periods and during the week, so try to plan your trip with that in mind, and try to avoid any big conventions if possible.

There are many internet sites offering hotel rooms, so you're probably best going directly to the hotel sites for the best rates and the most secure bookings. It's all about the gambling buck in Vegas. That means you can find some really good meal, drink and room deals.

We'd also recommend a trip to the Grand Canyon - a great opportunity to see one of the most amazing places on earth. There are dozens of tour companies that do overnight trips from Las Vegas.

Much more than beaches
I am accompanying my boyfriend to Mauritius where he is attending a conference for four days. Can you recommend things to see and do in Mauritius? I don't really like sitting on a beach all day and I'm not a diver, although I do like snorkelling.
Alannah Patterson

The biggest mistake anyone could make would be to assume that Mauritius is for beach holidays only. While you'll probably enjoy some of the finest beaches and sand-rimmed lagoons in the world, there's so much more to Mauritius.

Begin by exploring the island's fascinating colonial past in the myriad mansions and museums. With its spectacular setting between mountain peaks and the vast blue of the Indian Ocean, Port Louis is the island's hustling and bustling multicultural capital.

It's Africa's wealthiest city. Wander the chaotic backstreets, soak up the sights, sounds and smells of the famous Central Market, stroll through Chinatown and admire the wonderfully preserved colonial buildings.

The best museum is the Blue Penny Museum, which takes in the history of Mauritius' exploration, settlement and colonial period. When hunger takes over you'll need to choose from Chinese, Indian, French, Creole or African food.

The dramatic virgin forests of the Black River Gorges National Park is home to over 300 species of flowering plants and nine bird species unique to the island. You can take a bus through the park and stop for great views along the way, but the best way to see it is on foot. Grab a map or hire a guide from the main visitor centre.

Some of the most wonderful scenery and wildest landscapes are in the relatively undeveloped south. The fishing town of Mahebourg is worth a visit, as is the delightful old biscuit factory to its north. Buses go to Mahebourg from Port Louis every half hour.

The coast from Mahebourg to Baie du Cap has some of the country's wildest and most beautiful scenery, especially the section from Souillac to Le Morne. There are basalt cliffs and sheltered sandy coves, waterfalls and traditional fishing villages. Behind the coast, sugar-cane fields and forests blanket the hillsides in a patchwork of green. There are buses every half hour from Mahebourg to Souillac. Buses heading along the coast to Baie du Cap depart hourly.

Visa needs for Tibet
My wife and I have just returned from a great trip to Vietnam but we did not have time to visit Sapa, north of Hanoi. We are thinking about flying to Hanoi in April and catching a train to Sapa. Is it possible to travel by train from Sapa to Lhasa? What are the visa requirements for Tibet?
Alex McKenzie

You cannot travel directly from Sapa to Lhasa. You will have to enter Tibet from China. Current travel restrictions state that all foreigners wanting to visit Tibet must be part of a group, though a group can constitute only one person.

You must also buy a Tibet Tourism Bureau (TTB) permit. Most travellers buy a group tour package through a budget travel agency, though on arrival in Lhasa these "groups" disband.

The cheapest and most direct way for you to get there is to buy an air package to Lhasa from Chengdu for around $500, which includes the flight, the semi-mythical TTB permit (which you'll never see) and usually the transfer to Chengdu airport. You can also fly into Lhasa from Zhongdian (Shangri La) in Yunnan by first arranging the ticket and permits through a travel agency in Kunming.

From Sapa you will need to return to Hanoi to travel over the border crossing into China. Trains from Hanoi to Beijing depart twice a week and cross the border at the busy crossing known as the Friendship Pass. You can obtain your Chinese visa in Hanoi. There have been reports of train tickets to Beijing being very expensive in Hanoi. If this is the case, instead buy a ticket from Hanoi to Pinxiang, and then in Pinxiang buy a ticket to Nanning or beyond.

You can travel by train from Nanning, which is one of the stops on the Hanoi-Beijing route, to Kunming (train number K393, 14 hours) and Chengdu (K142, 37 hours).

As part of your planning, be sure to read the travel advisory for China (specifically Tibet) at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade's Safe Travel website (www.safetravel.govt.nz).