Vegas isn't just slot machines, you know? From kids' fun to popping clubs, here are the best things to do right now.
LessIf you know anything about Vegas (or you've watched The Hangover), it’s likely you’ll have the image of Caesars Palace burned into your brain. This iconic resort is at the heart of Vegas, and boasts a massive shopping center, a popping club and around 4,000 rooms. Some of the more luxurious villas go for $15,000 a night, but the most famous is the Nobu Villa, with a terrace and game room, where the likes of Justin Bieber, Drake and Taylor Swift have laid their heads.
Remember when we said Vegas was an adult playground? Well, we weren’t lying. And here’s a good example. Head northwest from the north end of the Strip, and you’ll find this 'heavy equipment playground'. Literally, a place to jump in a life-size Tonka toy and play bulldozer, digging trenches, stacking huge tires, building mounds and more. Choose from a 315CL hydraulic excavator or a Caterpillar D5G bulldozer. Your inner child will thank you.
Just left of the Strip, you’ll find this spectacular arena, which gave birth to Vegas’ first professional sports team, NHL’s Las Vegas Golden Knights, in 2017. If you time your trip with the NHL season, you can head to the massive T-Mobile Arena for a game. Often, there are some famous faces (previous performers have included Billy Joel, The Killers and Nicki Minaj).
The Great Depression-era landmark that dammed the Colorado River and created Lake Mead, The Hoover Dam looms large in Las Vegas history, and the 726-foot-high curving cement facade makes for a striking view, whether you take a guided tour, walk along the bridge, or view it from a boat on Lake Mead. It took five years and 21,000 men to build the mighty dam on the Colorado River, and it’s worth stopping by to see the fruits of their labor.
Come for Bellagio, stay for the fountains. Bellagio’s signature dancing fountains are arguably the most popular attraction on The Strip. The geysers—more than 1,200 in all—are nestled in the eight-and-a-half-acre lake in front of the resort. Set to music, the fountain erupts every half-hour in the afternoon and every 15 minutes throughout the evening until midnight. Not just free, the aquatic spectacle immortalized in Ocean’s Eleven is truly priceless.
The Venetian is an ever-expanding resort and entertainment complex with indoor and outdoor gondolas and larger-than-life décor. Inside, St. Mark’s Square is replicated, with costumed characters and gelato stands under a perpetually sunny sky. Bask in lavish comfort here, as The Venetian boasts some of the roomiest suites on The Strip and has multiple pools in Italian-inspired gardens.
Can you believe that during the 50s, people would saunter into the streets along The Strip, still clutching their Cuban Sunsets, and watch as enormous atomic mushroom clouds appeared on the horizon and arced skyward? The history and development of America's nuclear weapons program are both hypnotic and horrifying. And strangely enough, Las Vegas was close to the heart of it. A visit to this museum should absolutely, unequivocally be on your Sin City Must Do List.
The whole reason Vegas is even where it is is right here. The Las Vegas Springs Preserve is built around the original water source for the city, the Las Vegas Springs. Known as the Birthplace of Las Vegas, the springs offer enough fun things to do to fill a whole day, with activities for children, bike rentals to further explore the area, the Nevada State Museum, Origen Museum, and a variety of other exhibits.
Las Vegas has a habit of blowing things up when they get old, musty, or simply unprofitable. While the city’s vintage architecture has often been reduced to rubble, many of its iconic neon signs have been saved from that fate and set aside at the acclaimed Neon Museum. Book a tour to wander among the relics, hearing tales of eccentric billionaires, long-gone landmarks, and the characters that helped make Vegas, Vegas.
Aficionados of old-school arcade games should make a beeline for the peculiarly beautiful Pinball Hall of Fame (which recently moved to a new location), a wonderland where you can admire—and play—more than 150 operational pinball machines, from throwback games to modern wonders. Bring your quarters.