I'm only interested in specific things hence why I'm only debating it. I would like to put a face to those behind Vegas Pro, maybe attend a couple of seminars, check out some of the boutique filmmaking gear vendors, scope out possible gear purchases for this year but other than that, not too keen on Vegas in general. Been there for other conventions and after 2 days I couldn't wait to leave TBH.
OK, that made me laugh, you really haven't been to NAB before. NAB is more fun than Disneyland, you'll see a lot of things that you didn't even know interested you.
I was only there once but I Ioved it. Think of it as being in the biggest toy/candy store you've ever dreamed of. I spent 3 days on the show floor and that was definitely not enough time to do anything more than wander from booth to booth and ask the odd question.
The year I was there show hours were 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. so your evenings were free to wander the city.
A trip to the old part of Las Vegas (aka Fremont Street) is a must see!!
As ddm said, comfortable shoes are a must.
You'll be able to get a free show pass from your choice of vendors closer to show time.
I found the best thing about going to NAB was spending time getting hands on with the gear that I was never going to get to use such as OB vans, all the radio kit in the north hall and all the high end gear in general.
One thing to keep in mind, it's a show not a technical seminar. Don't expect to find many of the people who design the gear on the stands. The smaller vendors yes, the bigger ones quite surprised me with how hard it was to find anyone with detailed knowledge of any of the technical details about the gear they were trying to sell. On the other hand being able to pick it up, twiddle knobs etc. is something you cannot experience over the Internet.
I quite like Vegas and some of the industry parties .... :)