DK Travel : Las Vegas : The Strip

Walk along the Las Vegas Strip and you’ll see that some of the best things in Las Vegas life are free – especially when it comes to sightseeing and entertainment. It costs nothing to walk through the hotel-casinos, and you can window-shop to your heart’s content in their shopping promenades. The hotel architecture makes for an attraction in its own right: where else would you find an Egyptian sphinx, a Polynesian paradise, and a medieval castle in the same block? In addition, almost every hotel-casino has some sort of free entertainment going on outside its doors.

Tower, the Venetian

More on Shows More on The Strip More information on Getting Around in Las Vegas

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Studio 54

Even celebrities have to eat: serious star-hunters should book a table at Studio 54 nightclub or one of the city’s Gourmet Restaurants.
The Big Theme Hotels

The five largest and most extravagant hotels are Bellagio, The Venetian, Aladdin, Mandalay Bay, and Paris (see Paris Las Vegas). Smaller than these, but still extraordinary in their dedication to a theme, are Caesars Palace, New York–New York, Treasure Island, and Excalibur.
The Forum Shops at Caesars

Listen in on conversations between the robotic statues of Bacchus, Venus, Pluto, and Apollo at the Festival Fountain, and watch a mini-drama performed by another group of statues – Neptune and his feuding children – at the Atlantis Monument between the Cheese-cake Factory and Race for Atlantis. The show also features huge winged beasts and a dazzling, hi-tech wrath-of-the-gods firestorm. Some of the shops, too, provide entertainment: pop into Magic Masters and look out for a secret door leading to the replica of Harry Houdini’s library.
The Mirage Volcano

With displays like this, it is hardly surprising that the Mirage, when it was built in 1989, is said to have triggered the 1990s hotel-building boom. The man-made, multimillion-dollar volcano spews fire 100 ft (30 m) into the air every 15 minutes, every evening. Ingenious lighting and steam effects convey the drama of lava flows, while loudspeakers broadcast vivid sound effects.
The Sphinx at Luxor

It would be a shame (if hard) to miss the 10-story sphinx (larger than the original) guarding the Luxor Hotel-Casino. The best view of this Las Vegas landmark is as you come in to land at McCarran International Airport.
The Venetian’s Gondoliers and Minstrels

The gondoliers sing as they pole their boats, and when not on the water they roam the casino harmonizing Italian arias.
Treasure Island

Top of the bill is the spectacular pirate battle staged regularly at the hotel entrance (see Treasure Island Sirens of TI).
Treasure Island Sirens of TI

This free show, staged at the entrance to the Treasure Island hotel, is a favorite with visitors to Las Vegas. The 23-minute crowd-pleaser showcases the beguiling and beautiful “Sirens of TI”, who tempt and lure a band of swashbuckling pirates. From lively sword fights and acrobatic feats of derring-do to dazzling pyrotechnics and a rousing song-and-dance finale, this show is a hit, drawing huge crowds to their evening performances.
Treasure Island, Venetian, and Bellagio–Bally’s Footbridges

Hop across Las Vegas Boulevard without playing traffic roulette, and enjoy marvelous vantage points of the mêlée below.
Tropicana

Island music, exotic birds, and waterfalls make this complex a tropical paradise.

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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