Las Vegas Strip

A 6.8 km stretch of giant themed casino resorts, famous for its dazzling neon at night.

Even though everyone calls it Las Vegas, most of the Strip actually lies just outside the city limits, in two towns called Paradise and Winchester. The Strip grew up in the Mojave Desert beside an old highway to Los Angeles, and today it is one of the most visited tourist areas on Earth. Besides casinos, which are for adults only, people come for shows, restaurants, fountains, shopping and the bright skyline. Most of the road is also a national scenic byway.

History

The road was once part of Highway 91 between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. On 3 April 1941 the El Rancho Vegas opened there, the first full resort on what became the Strip. It had 63 rooms, mostly bungalows, a swimming pool, horse stables and a tower topped by a windmill with neon-lit blades that drivers could see at night. Other hotels followed, such as the Flamingo in 1946. A police officer and businessman named Guy McAfee nicknamed the road 'the Strip' after the Sunset Strip in his home city of Los Angeles.

From hotels to mega-resorts

In the early days the hotels were low buildings spread out around a central casino. Starting with The Mirage in 1989, they grew into enormous mega-resorts, and in the 1990s more than a dozen opened, including themed ones like Luxor, built in the shape of a pyramid, and Excalibur, which looks like a castle. Newer attractions keep arriving: just east of the Strip, the Sphere, a huge round arena with a giant wraparound video screen inside, opened in 2023. The well-known 'Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas' sign at the south end was put up in 1959.

Visiting today

Many visitors simply walk the Strip to look at the buildings and free outdoor shows. The fountains at the Bellagio dance to music in a large lake, and pedestrian bridges carry people over the busy road. A monorail runs along the east side of the Strip for about 6 kilometres, and double-decker buses called The Deuce stop near every resort. At night the neon signs and giant screens light up the whole boulevard.

On the globe

The model shows a row of giant themed resort hotels along the Las Vegas Strip. Zoom in to see the different building shapes lined up along the boulevard.