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Las Vegas, United States, top 10 things to do (Wimup travel guide)
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Top 10 Things To Do in Las Vegas

Country
United States
Best months
Mar · Apr · Oct · Nov
Population
~660K
Language
English
Budget / day
$150–320
Quick answer

Three days is right, four if you want the desert too. Give the first evening to the Strip on foot, from the Bellagio fountains through the Forum Shops to Sphere. Day two is downtown, where the city began: the Mob Museum, the Neon Museum's boneyard, and Fremont Street after dark. Day three leaves the valley for Red Rock Canyon or Hoover Dam. Eat off the Strip at least once, and book the shows before you fly.

Las Vegas Travel Guide

▶ Video guideOpen the film page (14:48) →

Las Vegas reads as one street and is not. The Strip is 4.2 miles of resorts in the townships of Paradise and Winchester, outside the city limits. The Las Vegas that has a mayor sits north on Fremont Street. Around both is a valley of 2.4 million people, and the Mojave starts where the last cul-de-sac ends.

The 10 best things to do in Las Vegas

Walk the Strip after dark, Las Vegas, United States
1

Walk the Strip after dark

Boulevard· Las Vegas Boulevard South, Paradise, NV 89109

The Strip is 4.2 miles of Las Vegas Boulevard South, and it is not in Las Vegas: it runs through Paradise and Winchester in Clark County. Walk it northbound in the evening, once the heat has dropped: the Bellagio lake, the Roman fronts at Caesars, the Exosphere over Sands Avenue. Distances lie out here, and the crossings are all bridges.

Time3 hr
CostFree
Best atEvening
TipUse the pedestrian bridges rather than looking for a crosswalk
↗ WebsiteMap
Fountains of Bellagio, Las Vegas, United States
2

Fountains of Bellagio

Free show· Bellagio, 3600 S Las Vegas Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89109

An 8.5-acre lake, 1,214 nozzles, water thrown more than 460 feet up, and one song per show. They have run free in front of the resort since it opened in October 1998, repeating through the afternoon and more often after dark. The lakeside rail is the obvious spot and the worst: take the pedestrian bridge.

Time20 min
CostFree
Best atAfter dark
TipCheck the day's schedule before you plan an evening around it
↗ WebsiteMap
Open in Maps
3

Sphere

Venue· 255 Sands Ave, Las Vegas, NV 89169

Sphere opened on 29 September 2023 with a U2 residency and rearranged the skyline in one move. It stands 366 feet high and 516 wide, wrapped in about 580,000 square feet of LED. Inside, a wraparound 16K display faces 17,600 seats, 10,000 of them haptic. Two ways in: a concert, or the daytime Sphere Experience.

Time2 hr
CostTicketed
Best atEvening
TipThe Exosphere costs nothing to watch and changes content all evening
↗ WebsiteMap
Fremont Street Experience, Las Vegas, United States
4

Fremont Street Experience

Pedestrian mall· 425 Fremont St, Las Vegas, NV 89101

Five blocks of old downtown under a canopy 1,375 feet long, hung 90 feet over the street. The Viva Vision screen up there runs free light shows nightly from six until two. Underneath are the casinos the city started with, three stages of live music and a zip line. Louder and cheaper than the Strip.

Time2 hr
CostFree
Best atAfter 6pm
TipCome on a weeknight
↗ WebsiteMap
The Neon Museum, Las Vegas, United States (Wimup)
5

The Neon Museum

Museum· 770 Las Vegas Blvd N, Las Vegas, NV 89101

More than 200 rescued signs in an outdoor boneyard behind a lobby that is itself an exhibit, the salvaged shell of the La Concha Motel. Some signs are restored and lit; most are not, and the unrestored half is the better one. Rust, dead bulbs and the names of resorts imploded to make room. Entry is by timed slot.

Time1 hr 30 min
CostTicketed
Best atAfter dark
TipBook the night slot
↗ WebsiteMap
The Mob Museum, Las Vegas, United States (Wimup)
6

The Mob Museum

Museum· 300 Stewart Ave, Las Vegas, NV 89101

The building is the first exhibit: the former federal courthouse of 1933, whose second-floor courtroom held a Kefauver Committee hearing on organised crime in 1950. The museum runs the story from both sides, the syndicates that skimmed the early casinos and the prosecutions that took them apart. Unusually careful with evidence.

Time2 hr 30 min
CostTicketed
Best atMorning
TipStart in the courtroom on the second floor and work down
↗ WebsiteMap
Red Rock Canyon, Las Vegas, United States
7

Red Rock Canyon

Conservation area· 1000 Scenic Loop Dr, Las Vegas, NV 89161

Past the last street in Summerlin the valley floor stops and a wall of Aztec sandstone starts, banded red where iron has stained it. Most people see it on the 13-mile one-way scenic drive, which takes an hour if you never leave the car. Leave the car: Calico Tanks and Ice Box Canyon are short walks off the loop.

TimeHalf day
CostTicketed at the entrance
Best atEarly morning
TipThe scenic drive uses timed-entry reservations for much of the year
↗ WebsiteMap
Hoover Dam, Las Vegas, United States
8

Hoover Dam

Landmark· Hoover Dam, US-93, Boulder City, NV 89005

726 feet of concrete wedged into Black Canyon, finished in 1935, holding the Colorado back to make Lake Mead, and still generating. The Bureau of Reclamation takes people down into the powerplant. Traffic no longer crosses the crest: US-93 uses the memorial bridge downstream, and its walkway is where the view is.

Time3 hr
CostTicketed
Best atMorning
TipPark on the Nevada side and walk the bridge before you queue for anything
↗ WebsiteMap
High Roller at The LINQ, Las Vegas, United States
9

High Roller at The LINQ

Observation wheel· 3545 S Las Vegas Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89109

550 feet tall on a 520-foot rim, the tallest observation wheel in the world when it opened in 2014. One rotation takes thirty minutes, long enough for the valley to resolve: the Strip below, the Spring Mountains west, the grid running out to desert. It sits at the head of the LINQ Promenade, where you can sit outside.

Time45 min
CostTicketed
Best atSunset
TipBoard in the half hour before sunset
↗ WebsiteMap
AREA15, Las Vegas, United States (Wimup)
10

Omega Mart at AREA15

Immersive art· AREA15, 3215 S Rancho Dr, Las Vegas, NV 89102

A supermarket that is not one. Meow Wolf filled a warehouse west of the Strip with invented products, and behind the shelves are doors into a connected world you wander rather than tour. It sits inside AREA15 with a zip line and bars. The one attraction here that rewards going slowly.

Time3 hr
CostTicketed
Best atAfternoon
TipOpen things
↗ WebsiteMap

7 of the 10, mapped

Las Vegas · 7 spots

Las Vegas travel FAQ

How many days do you need in Las Vegas?+
Three nights is the standard answer and it holds: one evening on the Strip, one day downtown, one day out of the valley at Red Rock Canyon or Hoover Dam. A fourth buys a longer drive, to Valley of Fire or Death Valley in the cooler months. Beyond five days most people run out of appetite.
When is the best time to visit Las Vegas?+
Spring and autumn. March, April, October and November give daytime temperatures you can walk in and evenings warm enough to sit outside. July is the problem month, with average highs around 104F. Rainfall is negligible. Winter is mild in the day, cold after dark, and the best season for the desert parks.
Do you need a car in Las Vegas?+
Not for the Strip and downtown, where walking, the Deuce bus and rideshare cover the corridor. You do need one, or a tour, for what makes the trip worth taking: Red Rock, Valley of Fire, Mount Charleston and Hoover Dam all sit beyond any transit route. Renting for a single day is the usual compromise.
What is a resort fee?+
A mandatory daily charge most Las Vegas hotels add on top of the room rate, covering wifi, the pool and the gym whether you use them or not. It is usually not in the price on a booking site and is collected at check-in. Add it to every quote you compare, along with parking if you are driving.
Is Las Vegas worth visiting if you do not gamble?+
Yes, and most of this guide assumes you will not. The resident shows, the museums downtown, Sphere, the restaurants on Spring Mountain Road and the desert an hour in three directions all stand on their own. The casino floor is what you walk through to reach the rest.
The houses

Best casinos and resorts in Las Vegas

Six resorts worth walking into whether or not you gamble, from the 1966 original to the oldest casino downtown.
Caesars PalaceCenter Strip

Caesars Palace

Opened 1966

Jay Sarno opened it on 5 August 1966 and invented the themed Las Vegas resort. The Colosseum, the Forum Shops and a front that keeps the joke.

↗ WebsiteMap
BellagioCenter Strip

Bellagio

Opened 1998

Opened in October 1998 and reset what a Strip resort was expected to be. The fountains, the Conservatory replanted five times a year, and a ticketed art gallery.

↗ WebsiteMap
The VenetianCenter Strip

The Venetian

Resort and expo

Indoor canals with gondolas, a painted sky that never changes hour, and the Grand Canal Shoppes above the floor. Sphere sits directly behind it.

↗ WebsiteMap
Wynn and EncoreNorth Strip

Wynn and Encore

Opened 2005 and 2008

Two connected towers at the north end, from 2005 and 2008, run to a quieter standard than the rest of the Strip. Awakening plays in its own theatre.

↗ WebsiteMap
Resorts World Las VegasNorth Strip

Resorts World Las Vegas

Opened 2021

The first resort built from the ground up on the Strip in over a decade, opened in June 2021: one 59-storey tower, around 3,500 rooms, and Zouk.

↗ WebsiteMap
Downtown

Golden Gate

Opened 1906

One Fremont Street, open since 13 January 1906 as the Hotel Nevada with ten rooms, and the oldest continuously operating casino in the city.

↗ WebsiteMap
After eight

Best shows and nightlife in Las Vegas

Four resident productions that have outlasted the resorts around them, plus the magicians and the club that set the going rate.
Center Strip

O by Cirque du Soleil

Bellagio · since 1998

Built into Bellagio for the 1998 opening and running ever since, staged in and above a pool whose floor rises and falls between acts.

↗ WebsiteMap
Center Strip

Mystère by Cirque du Soleil

Treasure Island · since 1993

The company's first resident Las Vegas production, premiered at Treasure Island on Christmas Day 1993 and still playing. The one to take children to.

↗ WebsiteMap
South Strip

KÀ by Cirque du Soleil

MGM Grand · since 2005

Opened at MGM Grand in 2005 around a stage with no floor: a gantry deck that tilts to vertical and is fought over. The engineering is the show.

↗ WebsiteMap
Center Strip

Absinthe

Caesars Palace · since 2011

Spiegelworld's circus in a tent pitched in front of Caesars Palace, running since 2011. Adults only, and close enough to the ring to be nervous.

↗ WebsiteMap
West of the Strip

Penn & Teller

Rio · since 2001

At the Rio since 2001, the longest-running headline act at a single Las Vegas hotel. They explain the trick and it still works.

↗ WebsiteMap
North Strip

XS at Encore

Nightclub

The Strip's benchmark nightclub, opening onto the Encore pool deck so the party moves outside. Resident DJs and table minimums that read like rent.

↗ WebsiteMap
Where to eat

Best restaurants in Las Vegas

Three of these are nowhere near the Strip, which is the single most useful thing to know about eating here.
East of the Strip

Lotus of Siam

Northern Thai

Northern Thai cooking, the argument for eating off the Strip since 1999. Saipin Chutima took a James Beard award in 2011; order the crispy duck khao soi.

↗ WebsiteMap
Center Strip

Restaurant Guy Savoy

French

Savoy's only restaurant outside France, on the second floor at Caesars Palace, and the highest-ranked Las Vegas kitchen on La Liste's 2026 list.

↗ WebsiteMap
Chinatown

Raku

Japanese robata

Charcoal robata on Spring Mountain Road under Mitsuo Endo, and the reason Chinatown became a dining destination. Small plates, late hours, book ahead.

Map
Esther's KitchenArts District

Esther's Kitchen

Italian

James Trees's seasonal Italian restaurant on South Main Street, in its larger Arts District room since March 2024. Bread, pasta, a real dining room.

↗ WebsiteMap
Center Strip

Bacchanal Buffet

Buffet

The buffet that survived the format's collapse, open at Caesars Palace since 2012, with kitchens cooking to order rather than holding trays.

↗ WebsiteMap
West of the Strip

Golden Steer Steakhouse

Steakhouse

Red booths on West Sahara Avenue, each named for a Rat Pack regular who used it. The sign says 1958; the newspaper archive says January 1962.

↗ WebsiteMap
Daytime

Best pools and day clubs in Las Vegas

The pool deck is a Las Vegas venue in its own right, running roughly from spring to early autumn.
North Strip

Encore Beach Club

Wynn and Encore

The Wynn side of the argument: tiered pools, cabanas on three levels, and daytime sets from the DJs playing XS after dark.

↗ WebsiteMap
Center Strip

Marquee Dayclub

The Cosmopolitan

On the roof at the Cosmopolitan, with bungalows, plunge pools and a view straight down the centre of the Strip. Retractable roof in winter.

↗ WebsiteMap
North Strip

Ayu Dayclub

Resorts World

The newest of the big four, at Resorts World, built around a proper stage rather than a DJ booth on a balcony. Weekend afternoons through the season.

↗ WebsiteMap
South Strip

Palm Tree Beach Club

MGM Grand

The MGM Grand pool complex, two large saltwater pools and daybeds rather than a dance floor. The gentlest of the four if you want a swim.

Map
The valley

Best neighborhoods in Las Vegas

Five districts that explain how a resort corridor and a city of 2.4 million people share one valley floor.
The StripClark County

The Strip

Paradise and Winchester

4.2 miles of Las Vegas Boulevard South in Paradise and Winchester, which is why the resorts answer to Clark County. Everything is built to keep you indoors.

Map
Downtown and Fremont EastDowntown

Downtown and Fremont East

Where the city started

The original city and the only part inside the city limits. Fremont East runs six blocks of bars and small stages at a fraction of Strip prices.

↗ WebsiteMap
Downtown south

The Arts District

18b

Known as 18b, south of downtown around Main and Charleston: galleries, breweries and the best independent restaurants in the valley, plus First Friday.

↗ WebsiteMap
Spring Valley

Chinatown

Spring Mountain Road

Three miles of Spring Mountain Road, designated in 2000 and pan-Asian rather than Chinese: Thai, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese and Filipino kitchens in strip malls.

Map
SummerlinWest valley

Summerlin

Master-planned west side

The master-planned west side, 22,500 acres of villages and trails running up to Red Rock Canyon. Downtown Summerlin is its walkable core.

↗ WebsiteMap
Out of the valley

Best day trips in Las Vegas

Five drives, none longer than two and a half hours, and every one of them the opposite of the Strip.
Valley of Fire State ParkNortheast of the city

Valley of Fire State Park

State park

Nevada's oldest state park, northeast of the city, where the sandstone turns the colour the name promises. The Fire Wave is the signature walk.

↗ WebsiteMap
Arizona

Grand Canyon West and the Skywalk

Around 125 miles

About 125 miles southeast on Hualapai land, two hours by road, with a glass horseshoe cantilevered past the rim. This is not the national park.

↗ WebsiteMap
Seven Magic MountainsSouth of the city

Seven Magic Mountains

Public art, free

Ugo Rondinone's seven stacked columns of painted boulders, 30 to 35 feet high, standing off Interstate 15. Free, on BLM land, up since May 2016.

↗ WebsiteMap
Mount Charleston and Lee CanyonNorthwest of the city

Mount Charleston and Lee Canyon

Spring Mountains

The Spring Mountains northwest of town, where Charleston Peak reaches 11,916 feet. Lee Canyon runs lifts in winter and trails the rest of the year.

↗ WebsiteMap
Death Valley National ParkCalifornia

Death Valley National Park

Around 120 miles

About 120 miles west, two hours via Pahrump. The lowest, hottest and driest place in North America, and a day trip only from late autumn to spring.

↗ WebsiteMap
Retail

Best shopping in Las Vegas

Two resort malls, one outlet centre and one plaza built out of shipping containers.
The Forum Shops at Caesars PalaceCenter Strip

The Forum Shops at Caesars Palace

Over 160 shops

More than 160 shops and restaurants under a painted sky that cycles from dawn to dusk whatever the hour outside. The spiral escalator is half the reason.

↗ WebsiteMap
Grand Canal ShoppesCenter Strip

Grand Canal Shoppes

Over 160 retailers

Another 160-plus retailers along an indoor canal at the Venetian, with gondolas working it and singers on the bridges.

↗ WebsiteMap
Downtown west

Las Vegas North Premium Outlets

Over 180 stores

An open-air centre of more than 180 stores west of downtown, close enough to combine with the Arts District. Punishing in July.

↗ WebsiteMap
Fremont East

Downtown Container Park

Independent shops

An open-air plaza in Fremont East built from stacked shipping containers, with a 55-foot steel praying mantis that throws flame after dark.

↗ WebsiteMap
What's on

Festivals & annual events in Las Vegas (2026)

Time your trip around the city's biggest dates.
Early January

CES

The consumer technology show fills the convention centre and half the Strip. Hotel rates double and taxi queues run an hour.

March

Pennzoil 400

The NASCAR Cup Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, north of the city off Interstate 15. The 2026 running was on 15 March.

May

Helldorado Days

The city's western heritage festival, launched in 1935 to pull Hoover Dam workers into town. Parade and rodeo.

May

EDC Las Vegas

Electric Daisy Carnival takes over Las Vegas Motor Speedway for three nights, running dusk to sunrise.

Late May to mid-July

World Series of Poker

Seven weeks of bracelet events split between Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas, ending with the Main Event.

November

Las Vegas Grand Prix

Formula 1 races at night down Las Vegas Boulevard past the Bellagio fountains. Road closures start days ahead.

December

Wrangler National Finals Rodeo

Ten nights at the Thomas & Mack Center on the UNLV campus, and the week the city fills with hats.

31 December

New Year's Eve

The boulevard closes to traffic and fireworks go up from Strip rooftops at midnight. The busiest night of the year.

Getting around

Las Vegas transport & airports

How to arrive and move around the city.
LAS

Harry Reid International Airport

Five miles from the middle of the Strip and one of the busiest in the country. Two terminals with no landside connection, so check which one your airline uses.

↗ WebsiteMap
RTC

RTC buses and the Deuce

The one bus visitors use is the Deuce: double-deckers along Las Vegas Boulevard between the south Strip and downtown, around the clock. Passes are sold by duration.

↗ WebsiteMap
Rail

Las Vegas Monorail

3.9 miles of elevated track with seven stations behind the east-side resorts, from MGM Grand to Sahara. It does not serve the airport and does not cross to the west side.

↗ WebsiteMap
On foot

On foot, rideshare and the Loop

Walking is the honest answer for the Strip, though a block here can be half a mile. Rideshare uses assigned pickup points in a parking structure. The Vegas Loop runs under the convention centre.

↗ WebsiteMap
Traditional food

Must-try dishes in Las Vegas, United States

The classics to order before you leave.
Shrimp cocktail, Las Vegas (Wimup travel guide)

Shrimp cocktail

The Golden Gate put cold shrimp in a sundae glass for 50 cents in 1959 and sold tens of millions.

The buffet, Las Vegas (Wimup travel guide)

The buffet

Once every resort had one and most have closed. What survives is fewer and better, led by Bacchanal.

Khao soi, Las Vegas (Wimup travel guide)

Khao soi

Northern Thai curry noodle soup, the dish that made Lotus of Siam a destination. Order it with duck.

Tacos, Las Vegas (Wimup travel guide)

Tacos

Nearly a third of Clark County is Hispanic or Latino. Look for the trucks parked outside the markets.

Omakase sushi, Las Vegas (Wimup travel guide)

Omakase sushi

Chinatown carries a dense run of Japanese counters. Small rooms, set menus, reservations that go quickly.

Steak and eggs, Las Vegas (Wimup travel guide)

Steak and eggs

The graveyard special, served through the small hours in casino coffee shops at a price set for night staff.

Prime rib

The casino loss leader that became an institution: cheap beef priced to get people onto the floor.

Pho

Spring Mountain Road runs on it and much of the street serves late. The standard repair for a long evening.

Las Vegas fact sheet

Las Vegas at a glance

The essentials worth knowing before you go.
Country
United States
Region
Southern Nevada, on the floor of the Mojave Desert at about 2,000 feet
Population
Around 660,000 in the city, roughly 2.4 million across Clark County
Founded
Townsite auctioned by the railroad on 15 May 1905, incorporated as a city on 16 March 1911
Nickname
Sin City, and the Entertainment Capital of the World
Language
English, with Spanish widely spoken
Currency
US dollar (USD)
Time zone
Pacific Time, UTC-8, and UTC-7 on daylight saving from March to November
Calling code
+1, with area codes 702 and 725
Airports
Harry Reid International (LAS), about five miles from the middle of the Strip
Power
120V, 60Hz, sockets type A and B
Emergency
911
Ideal length
3–4 days
Getting around
The Strip on foot, RTC buses and the Deuce, the monorail on the east side, taxis and rideshare everywhere else
Tourism board
Official site

Interesting facts

  • The Las Vegas Strip is not in Las Vegas. Its 4.2 miles run through Paradise and Winchester, outside the city limits and its tax base.
  • Nevada legalised wide-open casino gambling on 19 March 1931, while Hoover Dam was already under construction thirty miles southeast.
  • The Golden Gate opened on Fremont Street in 1906 as the Hotel Nevada. It is the oldest continuously operating casino in the city.
  • Clark County counted about 41.7 million visitors in 2024, against a resident population of roughly 2.4 million.
  • Sphere's outer skin covers about 580,000 square feet in roughly 1.2 million LED pucks, on a building 366 feet high and 516 across.

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