If you exit the Gold Coast at the closest door to the Rio, then cut through
the GC parking lot, cross the street in the middle (instead of at the
intersection), and then go through the Rio parking lot and into the Rio, the walk
will take you about 5-10 minutes. I would estimate this as less than 1/4 of a
mile. However the Rio is a big casino, and if at this point you would then
want to walk all the way to the other end of the Rio (toward Masquerade
village), your walk would be longer. Fortunately you can sit down as soon as you
enter and rest.
So unless you really have trouble walking, I would think most people could
easily make this walk. You'd have a harder time walking from one end of
Caesar's Palace (at the Forum shops entrance) to the other end of Caesar's (the
new Augustus tower).
Cutting through the parking lot at the Rio buffet exit of the Rio is the big
trick to making this walk shorter.
If you were to walk from the Rio to the Palms, the distance is about twice
as great. I'd estimate that at more like a 20-25 minute walk. Still doable
for most people, especially if you take a break and sit down at the Gold Coast
for a few minutes, which is what I do, since I have arthritis in my knees.
Your couple does have a car available though - so why not just take it? It
isn't that far to drive from the Rio to the Barbary and back.
Another thing they can do is walk from Barbary to Harrahs and then take the
Rio shuttle. That walk is about the same distance as from GC to Rio. But
you can stop and sit down at various machines on your way inside the Flamingo
Hilton. Unfortunately the Harrah's shuttle pickup area is in the back of
Harrah's, requiring a walk all the way down to hotel check in and outside to the
bus area. That makes the whole walk longer than the GC-Rio route.
By the way - taxis are another alternative between any points. Take the
Barbary to Gold Coast shuttle - then take a $3 taxi over to the Rio if necessary.
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