The Best Full-Day 1 Tours COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL 05__9781118287538-ch01.indd9781118287538-ch01.indd 7 55/16/12/16/12 33:17:17 PM 8 The Best in One Day y d d d w FremontFremont StreetStreet v v t l l k 0 0.5 mi P S B B ExperienceExperience l 15 a in St g g B g r FremontF St t a d re n n vvd m i i i n l M on e K 0 0.5 km K B t K Bl C C S r r r t ille eer e e ev A AltaAlta DrDr Bonn v t y h n DOWNTOWND O W N T O W N w t t e kkwy t u Las Vegas uth d C P S L L L n St d d h Monorail a o v t n n r l n i i iinon Cen Full-Day Tours 3 t t G B a s landl rt r r 13t1 Free monorail a s y a a a r C a g a M M e MaryM V ARTSARTS s Vegas Blvd DISTRICTDISTRICT a CharlestonCharleston BlvdBlvd LaL CharlestonCharleston BlvdBlvd To Red Rock Canyon/ (GATEWAY(GATEWAY Bonnie Springs Ranch DISTRICT)DISTRICT) r DD HuntridgeHuntridge Dr 1 Luxor The Best oo CircleCircle ParkPark t h S c 2 Excalibur n aa RRancho 3 MGM Grandy WyomingW Av yomin w g A v k OakeyOakey BlvdBlvd 4 New York–NewP York n i d d Pkwy d 15 Pkwy d a n MainM St 5 CityCentera l lan lan y r StratosphereStratosphere 6 Cosmopolitana M Mary of Las VegasMary 7 Paris Las Vegasahara Av SaharaSahara AAvv SaharaS Av Saharaahara AAvv 8 PalacePalace La Creperie StationStation 9 Bellagio Water Fountains r d 10 Bellagio D R o l h ia 11 Bellagio Conservatory c r n t CircusCircus a s RanchoR Dr u LasL12as VegasVeCaesarsgas Palace d CircusCircus LasLas n CountryCountry ClubClub IndustrialI Rd RivieraRiviera VegasVegas 13 The Mirage HotelHotel 15 NORTHN O R T H 14 The Venetian Desert Inn STRIPS T R I P LasLas VegasVegas 15 Wynn Las Vegas R TrumpTrump InternationalInternational d d ConventionConvention DesertDesert InnInn RdRd R EncoreEncore CenterCenter 16 Wynn Buffet e s FashionFashion ShowShow LasLas VegasVegas i d v MallMall ) WynnWynn GolfGolf a r A P WynnWynn A Sprin I andand a g n Paradise Rd P Paradise Mtn. Rd R 16 Rd Paradise LasLas o T 15 CountryCountry TreasureTreasure S sson BoulevardBoulevard VegasVegas ClubClub n E TheThe IslandIsland e MallMall H T PalazzoPalazzo wenw ( SandsSands AvAv S TwainTwain AvAv TheThe MirageMirage 14 VenetianVenetian 13 Harrah’sHarrah’s ForumForum ShopsShops ImperialImperial PalacePalace CaesarsCaesars PalacePalace D FlamingoFlamingo MID-M I D - 12 V L L STRIPS T R I P Flalamingomingo B B RRdd t S BellagioBellagio S Bally’sBally’s PlatinumPlatinum S A A y y y r St G G ParisParis 9 10 11 Terrible’sTerrible’s w e E E c 8 k V V n CosmopolitanCosmopolitan P S S HardHard RockRock encee PlanetPlanet d rr p A A 7 6 n r HotelHotel & CasinoCasino L L D SpS HollywoodHollywood n a D UNIVERSITYU N I V E R S I T Y land Pkw Pkw land land l L a Dr y rr n CityCenterCityCenter r tt HarmHarmono Av OFO F NEVADA,N E V A D A , i n Av Harmonarmon Av t a aat r SignatureSign ature atat nn 5 LASL A S VEGASV E G A S Mary M Mary a i S M MGMMGM GrandGrand Sin kk MonteMonte l n nnk a a a CarloCarlo v e P r ThomasThomas & MGMMGM o aara F DeanD Martin Dr Koval Ln K Koval Koval Ln Koval r MackMack CenterCenter NewNew York–York– GrandGrand a dised Rd 4 i NewNew YorkYork 3 cana AAvv s cana AAvv TrTroopicanapi e TrTroopicanapi R d v v v t A A ExcaliburExcalibur 2 A TropicanaTropicana MotelMotel 6 S n r r St St r r o e s son son c LuxorLuxor n SOUTHS O U T H n en en 15 e e ence MCCARRANCARRAN ence w 1 STRIPS T R I P p S Sw INT’LINT’L AIRPORTAIRPORT Sw S Sp Hacienda Av Sp THEhotelTHEhotel MandalayMandalay BayBay FourFour SeasonsSeasons To Henderson Russell Rd Previous page: Caesars Palace, a prime example of the Las Vegas(Green V themealley Ran hotel.ch Resort, Ritz-Carlton & Sunset Station) 05__9781118287538-ch01.indd9781118287538-ch01.indd 8 55/16/12/16/12 33:17:17 PM 9 f all you know of Las Vegas is the Strip, that’s okay—that’s The Best Ireally all you need to know. This stretch of Las Vegas Boule- y d w Fremont Street v t vard South is the heart of the city—sometimes it’s mistaken for the l k P S B Experience l a in g r F t a d re city itself. That’s an understandable error, because here is what n v m in One Day i n l M on e K B t C S r r t Vegas is all about: mammoth hotel casinos, glittering with electricity ille e e ev A Alta Dr Bonn v t y h D O W N T O W N n w t e k t u d C P S both real and metaphorical. See nothing else and you will see Las L n d d h a o v t n r l n i n i 3 t G B a s l Vegas. START: The main entrance to the Luxor. r 1 a s y a r C a g a M e M V ARTS s DISTRICT a ★ Charleston Blvd L Charleston Blvd 1 Luxor. With its glass pyra- To Red Rock Canyon/ (GATEWAY Bonnie Springs Ranch DISTRICT) r mid-shaped main building (designed D Huntridge o Circle Park by noted architect Veldon Simpson), t S nch complete with a 315,000-watt light a R y W yomin w g A beam emanating from its peak, this v k Oakey Blvd P n i d hotel is an appropriate introduction a n M a l to all things Vegas. There’s a touch y r Stratosphere a of historical accuracy (say howdy to M those replicas of the Sphinx and ahara Av Sahara Av S Sahara Av Cleopatra’s Needle), there’s more Palace Station than a bit of braggadocio (that light beam is allegedly visible from r d D R space), and it’s all a bit weirdly o l h ia c r wrong (not least because Luxor n t Circus a s R u Las Las Vegas d Circus execs have done their best to make n I Riviera Vegas Country Club the place more “chic” by obliterat- N O R T H Hotel ing the interior traces of Egypt in a Desert Inn S T R I P Las Vegas R 30-story pyramid). @ 20 min. 3900 Trump International d d Convention Desert Inn Rd R Encore Center y e Las Vegas Blvd. S. 888/777-0188 s Fashion Show Las Vegas i d v or 702/262-4000. www.luxor.com. Mall ) Wynn Golf a r A A marvel of modern design, CityCenter P Wynn Sprin I and a g n Mtn. Rd R P T Las Country o cost over $9 billion. Treasure S s Boulevard 2 Excalibur. Though its interior’s Vegas Club n E The Island e Mall H T Palazzo w King Arthur mythology has been ( Sands Av S Twain Av in the daytime, glowing at night, and Mirage The toned down over the years, this cas- Venetian enormous at all times. The biggest tle-shaped resort is still one of the Harrah’s Forum Shops hotel in the U.S., it certainly is the largest in Vegas and continues to Imperial Palace Caesars greenest. A stately 100,000-pound Palace D Flamingo M I D - give a sense of what the city was V L S T R I P Flamingo (45,359kg) bronze lion guards the B Rd like at its kitsch-and-cash height. t Bellagio S Bally’s Platinum entrance beneath high-tech video S A Note the battlements, the draw- y r G Paris Terrible’s w e E screens. Once upon a time, this was c k V bridge, and even a moat, though n Cosmopolitan P S Hard Rock e Planet d r p A the pinnacle of the ill-conceived— n r Hotel & Casino L the spoilsports ditched the larger- S Hollywood n D a D U N I V E R S I T Y l L a y and hastily discarded—“Vegas is for r n CityCenter r t Harmo O F N E V A D A , i n Av Harmon Av than-life Merlin that used to over- t a a r Sign ature at L A S V E G A S n M a i families” campaign, but today it look the realm. @ 20 min. 3850 Las S M MGM Grand k Monte l n caters to more adult-oriented n a y a Vegas Blvd. S. 800/937-7777 or a Carlo v e P r Thomas & MGM o a F D tastes. @ 25 min. 3799 Las Vegas K r Mack Center 702/597-7700. www.excalibur.com. New York– Grand a d Blvd. S. y 800/929-1111 or 702/891- i New York cana Av s cana Av Tropi e Tropi 3 MGM Grand.