10 Tips for riding the Monorail during CES

Ride the Monorail? Yup, ride the monorail. It's convenient, and it gets you to the convention center before the buses and taxis. Here are 10 tips for getting around easily on the monorail.

1. Get your ticket(s) the night before. Trying to get your ticket(s) the day of the convention is bad news. Everyone else is doing that too, and there are a limited number of vending machines.

2. Keep on the lookout for the Free ride passes. It's not always going to happen, but when it does take advantage of it.

3. Try going the opposite direction. If there are too many people going in the direction you want to go, try going the other direction. Since the monorail is a loop, you will get to your destination (most likely with a seat) and in most cases get there sooner than waiting in line.

4. Leave a little early. There is a big crush of people 45 minutes before the convention opens. Leave a little sooner and get a seat for the ride.

5. Have your ticket ready. Before you get to the gate, have your ticket out and ready. (Tip: Blue side up and White arrow forward.) This will get you through the gates faster and let you get down to the platform for that train that is just pulling in.

6. Listen for the announcements. There is an announcement for just about everything. The trains tell you what station you are pulling into, and the next stop. The stations tell you how long the time is between trains and when a train is arriving at the platform.

7. Pretend that you are a sardine. These poor fish get a bad rap, they don't mind being in a space in close proximity to one another. If you want to get there is a short amount of time, sometime you have to squeeze in.

8. This brings us to doors. Stay away from the doors. The station doors need some space, people are going to get off of the train when it pulls in, they need somewhere to go. So leave some space for them to get out. The train doors will not close if you are in their way. So, if you want the train to depart, stay out from between the doors and do not lean against them.

9. Courtesy is contagious. Be courteous to the other passengers, you feel good about it later. Give up on sitting down if you do not absolutely have to. Keep in mind that there are tourists that are also riding the system and they want to actually see the sites. Everyone paid to be on the train, remember that.

10. Don't forget your stuff. Everyday someone leaves something on the train or platform. Just keep track of your stuff, especially your cell phone and room key we get a lot of those.

Overall, you can have a good experience on the monorail if you follow these simple tips. One last tip for free: Smile! Everyone will have a better ride.