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The cafés, benches, and slot-machine seats within the shopping complex are good for relaxation and people-watching (see The Forum Shops at Caesars).

More than 1,000 fountains perform a water ballet above Lake Bellagio, in defiance of the parched, baking desert that surrounds the city. Soaring as high as 240 ft (73 m) in the air, the cascading water is choreographed to classical music. Bellagio and the other properties in the Mirage group use incandescent lighting rather than neon, which helps make the Italian village surrounding the lake a lovely backdrop for the dancing waters.

The breathtaking choreography of the fountain displays at Bellagio offers some of the best free entertainment in Las Vegas.

Extraordinary as it seems, an entire attraction – including a 3-D movie – has been built around these tiny, candy-coated chocolates.

In keeping with MGM’s lion theme, the hotel has a glass viewing station in the midst of a lion enclosure, allowing you to stand face to face with the king of beasts. Three of the 30 or so animals, Goldie, Metro, and Baby, are descendants of the original Leo, who posed for the famous MGM movie logo.

Ferocious roars sound a warning as you approach the glass viewing tunnel.

This is Las Vegas at its lavish best: after dark, every 15 minutes, the “volcano” at the Mirage blows its top (see The Mirage Volcano).

Take a table at the sidewalk café, soak up the atmosphere, and enjoy the view of Bellagio’s fountain show.

The Eiffel Tower and Arc de Triomphe are faithfully and impressively reproduced at Paris Las Vegas Hotel, albeit on a smaller scale than the originals. Buy fresh baguettes from a street vendor, and nibble to the strains of tunes by the great Maurice Chevalier, as interpreted by a wandering accordionist.

It may not be quite the real thing, but well-observed touches lend the place a characteristic joie de vivre .