DK Travel : Las Vegas

The Entertainment Capital of the World offers just about everything: the world’s largest hotels; the brightest stars in show business; shops and restaurants that rival any on earth. It’s true, too, that the lights are brighter in Las Vegas. Yet you don’t have to go far from the glamour and glitter to find the natural beauty of lakes and the desert as well.

Deer

The unmistakable stiff-legged jump and large ears of the mule deer distinguish it through your binoculars from its graceful relative, the white-tail deer.
Desert Indian Shop

Ninety-five percent of the merchandise is made by Native Americans, primarily members of the Zuni, Navajo, and Hopi tribes. Hand-crafted articles include Hopi kachina spirit dolls and Navajo rugs.
Desert Passage

Italian cashmere at Manrico, men’s European designer apparel at Casablanca Clothiers, and Alegre are among the upscale clothing stores. A fresher breath in merchandising comes from shops such as Tommy Bahama, which captures the joie de vivre of the tropics.
Desert Passage Harbor Gate Rainstorm

This is certainly one of the city’s more unusual attractions: an indoor rainstorm falling on a 155-ft (50-m) merchant ship.
Desert Passage Pedicab

Pile into a pedicab with your friends and have a passerby snap the shutter.
Desert Willow Golf Club

This challenging course is carved from the foothills of the Black Mountains and surrounded by hazards and hilly terrain.
Dice-Decorated Clocks

Made of bright blue lucite, glittery gold plexiglass, brass, wood burls, or any other material known to man, these clocks – with dice marking the hours – fall into the genre of Las Vegas kitsch. Other tacky items include toilet seats inlaid with playing cards and poker chips, and tissue box covers with gaming motifs.
Dolphin Show and Secret Garden of Siegfried & Roy

These two attractions come as a package. Watch the dolphins give a brief but characteristically perfect performance, then go on a tour, which includes underwater viewing. The Secret Garden is an oasis of trees and greenery, with unusual residents, including an elephant, a snow leopard, panthers, Bengal tigers, and rare white lions. You are allowed to stay in the garden as long as you like.
Don Laughlin’s Riverside Resort, Laughlin

A total destination resort. Unusual features include two classic auto showrooms and an antique slot machine display. There’s also an RV park with full hook-ups.
Downtown After Dark

Late Afternoon

Begin your excursion in the mid- to late afternoon, with a flying visit to the Mormon Fort (see Old Las Vegas Mormon Fort Historic Park). Allow more time if you are a history buff.

Next, head south to browse the Bonanza Gift Shop. Take a look around Pawn Shop Plaza while it is still light, then, as dusk deepens and the lights of Fremont Street begin to beguile, start exploring the Glitter Gulch nightlife.

Try dining at one of the top restaurants in downtown, such as Lily Langtry at the Golden Nugget Casino (129 Fremont St), with its black-and-white decor, or the romantic Hugo’s Cellar at Four Queens ( 202 Fremont St).

Nighttime

After dinner, stroll along Fremont Street’s pedestrian promenade, stopping in at the shops that catch your eye and the vendors’ carts that capture your fancy. If gaming’s your pleasure, step inside the El Cortez Hotel’s casino (600 Fremont Street).

Check out the train station at the Plaza, then wander down to Main Street Station. Pick up a brochure here with a map and list of treasures – including street lamps from Brussels and a portion of the Berlin wall – that are incorporated into the building’s decor.

Back at Fremont Street Experience , watch a light and sound show, then head to Stratosphere (see View from Stratosphere Tower) to top off the night with a stunning view of the city.

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Hotel price categories

For a standard, double room per night (with breakfast if included), taxes, and extra charges.
- under $50
- $50–$100
- $100–$150
- $150–$200
- over $200