Las Vegas Attractions, with a
decided-but-not-exclusive bent toward art, architecture and culture
Originally prepared by Patricia McRae and Jeanne
Brown for the ARLIS-Mountain West Regional Meeting
November 7-9, 2001. Updated March, 2003.
Walking Tours
Provided by the Las Vegas Review Journal:
More On-Your-Own Walking Tours/ The Strip and Downtown
There are a variety of FREE trams running between several resorts that will
make your walking tour more pleasant. To take a tram enter one of the listed
sets of resorts and ask directions to the Tramstop from any hotel employee.
The tram routes are:
- Excalibur-Luxor-Mandalay Bay
- MGM Grand-Bally's
- Monte Carlo-Bellagio
- Mirage-Treasure Island
Click on a name from among these select resorts for a brief summary of some
of the highlights each venue has to offer. They are arranged starting from
the south end of the Strip heading north.
Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino/Four Seasons Hotel
- Shark Tank aquarium with exotic sea life
- Aureole Restaurant- boasts a 4-story-tall wine tower and elegant dining
atmosphere
- House of Blues Restaurant- outsider art from the Deep South
- Restrooms at China Bay have small TV screens imbedded in the wall and other
features!
- Rum Jungle Lounge- the walls are aflame and water runs downs them, too
Luxor Hotel and Casino
- King Tut’s Tomb Exhibit - a scale replica of Tut's tomb, not to be missed
for $5 admission
- Imax Theatre -- you are literally strapped in for one amazing ride!
- Giza Galleria -- shop for souvenirs and authentic Egyptian antiquities
- Impressive monumental sculpture and pylon gate welcome the visitor to the
interior
- Luxor's Sphinx is larger than the Sphinx of Giza
Excalibur Hotel-Casino
- From here you can take the tram to Mandalay Bay and Luxor, or in the evening
watch a Wizard battle the Dragon in the moat! Lots of dry ice fog and it's
FREE
Tropicana Resort and Casino
- Exotic Parrot Exhibit -- stroll among brilliantly plumed parrots
New York-New York Hotel and Casino
- Visit Greenwich Village with steam rising out of the manhole covers (how's
that for authenticity?)
- Roller Coaster -- do the loop-the-loop above The Strip!
MGM Grand Hotel/Casino
- Giant Coke Bottle and Coke Museum
- M&M Museum -- can M&M's really talk? Find out!
- MGM Lion at the Strip entrance -- 7 stories high and the largest bronze
statue in the world
- Many world-class chefs, including Emeril, cook up fabulous meals here
Monte Carlo Resort and Casino- lovely shops and a regal interior
The Aladdin Resort and Casino (Now called the Planet Hollywood)
- Desert Passage (shopping) is now the Miracle Mile Shops
- Desert Passage included the Indoor Rainstorm- no need for an umbrella, but it regularly pours in Desert
Passage
- Desert Passage included Street Performers, bicycle taxis -- be entertained by tumblers, dancers
and acrobats or be "cycled" to the Commander's Palace to dine
Paris Las Vegas Resort and Casino
- Eiffel Tower -- the view of the Strip is spectacular
- Le Village Buffet- outstanding provincial French cooking and oo-la-la, those
desserts!!
Bellagio
- The Fountains at Bellagio- the 1,240 fountains shoot as high as 240 feet
in the air, choreographed to 79 different pieces of music. Shows every half
hour 3pm-8pm, every quarter hour after dark until midnight and it's FREE
- Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art [exhibit Oct. 6 - Feb. 3: "Alexander Calder:
The Art of Invention" 8am - 11pm daily]
- The Conservatory- this FREE, breathtaking floral extravaganza will astound
you
- Dale Chihuly’s Glass ceiling sculpture (Fiore di Como)
- Picasso Restaurant -- not only one of the Top Ten Restaurants in America,
but it is decorated with original Picassos
- Dale Chihuly Glass shop
- Via Bellagio Shops -- world class shopping including Tiffany's, Hermes,
Chanel, Armani
Bally's-Las Vegas
- Tram between Bally’s and MGM Grand; at Bally’s enjoy the ambiance of an
older mega-resort [Bally’s used to be called MGM Grand, by the way]
Caesar's Palace
- Forum shops -- Ann Taylor, FAO Schwarz, Feragamo, Bernini to name a few
- Forum shops ceiling depicts the sky, changing from dawn to dusk in one hour
- Race for Atlantis 3-D Imax Ride
- Numerous replicas of monuments such as Michelangelo's David, the
She-Wolf of Rome, Augustus of Prima Porta, Belvedere Apollo
Flamingo Hilton
- Not Bugsy Siegel's original, even more spectacular
Harrah's Las Vegas
- It's always Mardi Gras at Harrah's
MGM Mirage
- Volcano erupts every 15 minutes, dusk to midnight, visible from the Strip
- Monumental sculpture of Siegfried and Roy on the street facing the Strip
- White Tigers exhibit, inside the Casino and FREE
- Arboretum- bursting with orchids and bromeliads, and FREE
- Siegfried and Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat- $10 for both, a self-guided
zoo tour
Treasure Island at the Mirage
- Buccaneer Bay Pirate Show on the Strip performed every 90 minutes 4-11:30
pm. and it's FREE
Venetian Resort-Hotel-Casino
- Hermitage Las Vegas Museum
- Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum -- in a desert? Yes, you'd better believe it!
- Canal shops- world class shopping and dining along a canal with gondolas
floating by and singing gondoliers
La Concha Motel (closed, unique shell was moved to the Neon Boneyard in 2007)
- Built by P. Williams the famous African-American architect
Stardust Hotel and Casino (sorry...closed 11/06, imploded 3/07)
- Wayne Newton appeared here exclusively
Circus Circus Hotel-Casino-Theme Park
- First of the themed mega-resorts
Sahara Hotel and Casino
- Newly remodeled but preserving the Sahara desert theme
The Stratosphere Casino Hotel & Tower
- Highest Las Vegas building, great views
- Elevator to the top of the Tower to dine at the Restaurant, ride the roller
coaster or the big shot bungy ride.
Various Wedding Chapels-
- Tie the knot in various styles- from your car or in costume
Fremont Street (downtown)
- Neon experience! Plus near this is where the five neon signs that constitute
the unique outdoor Neon Museum are situated (look for the waving cowboy atop
his horse). Plus the Fremont Street Experience will be hosting Lightscapes
II, about five minutes of an artist’s expression in neon, sponsored by the
Las Vegas Arts Commission.
Art, Architecture and Attractions Off the Strip
Las Vegas Art Museum (shares building with the Sahara West
Library, Westside of Vegas)
http://www.lasvegasartmuseum.org/
UNLV Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery http://www.unlv.edu/Colleges/Fine_Arts/Facilities/Donna_Beam_Gallery/
UNLV Barrick Natural History Museum (and gallery) http://hrcweb.lv-hrc.nevada.edu/museum/
- Permanent exhibit of Native American and natural history materials
Old Las Vegas Mormon Fort State Historical Park http://www.parks.nv.gov/olvmf.htm
Libraries designed by famous architects http://www.lvccld.org/about/locations.html
- Clark County Library on Flamingo (close to UNLV) - Michael Graves
- Sahara West Library and Art Museum - Meyer, Scherer and Rockcastle
- Downtown Library and Lied Discovery Children’s Museum - Antoine Predock
UNLV Lied Library - Leo Daly is the architect of this spectacular
state-of-the-art library
Lied Library: http://www.library.unlv.edu/index.html
Photo construction timeline: http://www.library.unlv.edu/info/newlib/index.html
Sunset Station (Henderson): according to Buildings of Nevada
(Oxford University Press, 2000), Sunset Station’s Gaudi Bar is "a marvel
of stained glass, tile, and curvilinear forms reminiscent of Antonio Gaudi’s
Casa Mila in Barcelona." Dazzling ensemble of stained glass, tile and ironwork
make this lounge unforgettable. Gaudi would toast it.
Rio Resort's Masquerade Show in the Sky -- sky-high FREE extravaganza,
moving above your head with lavishly costumed revelers riding New Orleans style
"floats". For $9.95, be a reveler and don a costume yourself. After,
ascend to the VooDoo Lounge for refreshments or visit the world's largest public
wine cellar.
http://www.las-vegas-shows-reviews.com/rio-masquerade-village-show.htm
Liberace Museum (5-minute drive from UNLV) is undergoing expansion
to accommodate the cars, costumes and pianos. You'll never see more rhinestones
in one place. http://www.flatwaremedia.com/liberace/museum.cfm
Ethel M's Chocolate Factory (and Desert Botanical Garden)
a chocolate factory in the desert? Yes, and at the end of the FREE tour enjoy
a FREE sample in the company store http://www.ethelm.com
Shopping
Caesar's Palace Forum Shops
Fashion Show Mall
Desert Passage at the Aladdin
The Canal Shops at the Venetian
Via Bellagio Shops at the Bellagio
Belz Factory Outlet Stores (south of the Strip on LV Blvd.)
Fashion Show Mall on the Strip (north of Treasure Island)
World's Largest Gift Shop
Landscapes and Gardens
UNLV Arboretum http://hrc.nevada.edu/arboretum/
- The entire campus is designated an arboretum. Selected trees are identified.
UNLV Xeric Garden http://www.unlv.edu/facilities/landscape/xeric.html
- Also referred to as the desert garden. Near the Lied Library.
Las Vegas Springs Preserve http://www.lvspringspreserve.org
- Restoration of the original Las Vegas meadows. Referred to popularly as
the future Central Park of Las Vegas. Opens 2005.
Las Vegas Valley Water District Desert Demonstration Gardens http://www.lvvwd.com/html/spec_proj_gardens.html
Ethel M Chocolates Botanical Cactus Garden
City of Henderson Water Reclamation Facility and Bird Viewing Preserve
- Birds native to Nevada as well as migrating birds are happy on these 147
acres.
Out-of-Town Attractions (within 60 minutes drive)
Hoover Dam
Red Rock Canyon
Spring Mountain Ranch State Park
Valley of Fire
Lake Mead National Recreation Area
Mount Charleston
Boulder City - walking tour: http://www.lvrj.com/lvrj_home/2001/Jun-24-Sun-2001/living/16348368.html
Out-of-Town Attractions (farther than 60-minute drive)
Death Valley
Grand Canyon
***********Gray Line Tours http://www.graylinelasvegas.com/
- Tours of areas outside and inside Vegas, including $9 round trips from strip
hotels to the airport, and helicopter tours of the strip. (prices as of 2001)
Updated:
05/03/2007
Thursday, 03-May-2007 15:30:01 PDT