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Las Vegas Strip

geography Maturity 7-9 Next article →

The Las Vegas Strip is a famous stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard. It sits in Clark County, Nevada, just south of the Las Vegas city limits.

LVStriptraffic
LVStriptraffic

The area is part of the unincorporated towns of Paradise and Winchester. Many people just call the whole place "Las Vegas." It is known for having many huge resort hotels and casinos.

Vegas Strip viewed from the STRAT
Vegas Strip viewed from the STRAT

These large buildings make the Strip a very popular place for tourists. The area is also a major part of the local economy. Most of the road is even named an All-American Road.

Bellagio Las Vegas December 2013 panorama
Bellagio Las Vegas December 2013 panorama

Visitors have many ways to move around this busy area. You can ride on double-decker buses called The Deuce.

Las Vegas taxi
Las Vegas taxi

There are also free trams that run between some hotels. A monorail train runs along the east side of the Strip. It has stops at places like the MGM Grand and the Sahara.

Pedestrian Bridge in Vegas
Pedestrian Bridge in Vegas

Because there are so many people, there are also many footbridges. These bridges help people cross the big streets safely.

Pedestrian Bridge in Vegas
Pedestrian Bridge in Vegas

On an average day, about 50,000 people walk along the Strip. Taxis are also easy to find at many resorts and malls.

In the early days, the Strip looked very different. The first casino was the Pair-o-Dice Club in 1931.

Gas station Last Frontier hotel
Gas station Last Frontier hotel

The first full resort was the El Rancho Vegas, which opened in 1941. Later, the Flamingo opened in 1946 and 1947.

Gas station Last Frontier hotel
Gas station Last Frontier hotel

A businessman named Guy McAfee gave the area its name. He named it after the Sunset Strip in Hollywood. The famous "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign was built in 1959. This sign sits just outside the old city limits. It is a very famous landmark for people visiting the area.

Over time, the hotels became much larger. These are often called mega-resorts.

Bellagio Las Vegas December 2013 panorama
Bellagio Las Vegas December 2013 panorama

Kirk Kerkorian helped start this era by building very big hotels. He opened the International Hotel in 1969 with 1,512 rooms.

Wynn Casino Las Vegas Gambling Resort
Wynn Casino Las Vegas Gambling Resort

He also built the first MGM Grand in 1973. In 1989, The Mirage opened and changed how the resorts looked.

Wynn Casino Las Vegas Gambling Resort
Wynn Casino Las Vegas Gambling Resort

Later, The Bellagio was built in the 1990s. It cost $1.7 billion to build. This was the most expensive hotel in the world at that time.

Today, the Strip is full of many different things to do. You can visit the Luxor, Excalibur, or Mandalay Bay.

Bellagio Las Vegas December 2013 panorama
Bellagio Las Vegas December 2013 panorama

There are also big shopping areas like the Fashion Show Mall.

LasVegas-CaesarsPalace-Mall
LasVegas-CaesarsPalace-Mall

Some people visit to see shows like Mystère by Cirque du Soleil.

Others enjoy the High Roller Ferris wheel or the Sphere.

Vegas Strip viewed from the STRAT
Vegas Strip viewed from the STRAT

Many visitors also enjoy gambling at the many casinos. In 2019, about 81% of visitors said they gambled while they were there. The Strip continues to change with new buildings and projects every year.

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🖼️ Images & Media (16)
File:Gas station Last Frontier hotel.jpg
Gas station Last Frontier hotel.jpg
File:Nevada National Guard patrols Las Vegas Strip on New Years (2017).jpg
Nevada National Guard patrols Las Vegas...
File:Bellagio_Las_Vegas_December_2013_panorama.jpg
Bellagio_Las_Vegas_December_2013_panorama.jpg
File:Vegas Strip viewed from the STRAT.jpg
Vegas Strip viewed from the STRAT.jpg
File:LVStriptraffic.JPG
LVStriptraffic.JPG
File:Pedestrian Bridge in Vegas.jpg
Pedestrian Bridge in Vegas.jpg
File:Las Vegas taxi.jpg
Las Vegas taxi.jpg
File:Wynn Casino Las Vegas Gambling Resort.jpg
Wynn Casino Las Vegas Gambling Resort.jpg
File:Hakkasan Night Club, Las Vegas.jpg
Hakkasan Night Club, Las Vegas.jpg
File:T Mobile Arena The Strip Las Vegas (29798246202).jpg
T Mobile Arena The Strip Las Vegas...
File:Allegiant Stadium (cropped).jpg
Allegiant Stadium (cropped).jpg
File:Miracle Mile Shops.jpg
Miracle Mile Shops.jpg

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