24 Things You Should Learn About Las Vegas and the Neighboring Strip

What happens in Vegas ... well, you know the rest. However here are 24 realities about Sin City you likely haven't heard.

1. The majority of Vegas' renowned hotels aren't technically located in the city of Las Vegas. A great part of the Las Vegas Strip-- and the renowned "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" indication-- are in fact located in an unincorporated town called Paradise, Nevada.

2. One tourist attraction that is within Las Vegas city limitations: Vegas Vic, the extra-large neon cowboy that commands downtown's well known Fremont Street. It's the biggest mechanical neon indication in the world.

3. More than 41 million visitors cycle through Sin City each year ...

4. ... So it's an excellent thing the town boasts 14 of the world's 20 biggest hotels.

5. There's so much property for travelers to benefit from, it would take a person 288 years to spend a night in every hotel room in the city.

6. There's a secret city beneath the city. Miles of tunnels-- initially constructed to protect the desert town from flash floods-- house hundreds of homeless residents.

7. The strip's Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel and Gambling establishment got its name from creator-- and famous mobster-- Bugsy Siegel's girlfriend. Actress Virginia Hill went by the label "The Flamingo" due to the fact that of her red hair and long, thin legs.

In the mid-20th century, Las Vegas had its own set of inequitable Jim Crow laws, which-- with the exception of low-wage service tasks-- kept African Americans out of the growing city's hotels and casinos. In 1952, acting legend Sammy Davis Jr. took a dip in the whites-only swimming pool at the New Frontier Hotel & Casino.

In May 1955, the Moulin Rouge made history when it became the city's first interracial casino. Legendary fighter Joe Louis, a part owner, stated, "This isn't really the opening of a Las Vegas hotel.

In the 1950s and early 1960s, Las Vegas was known for putting on a different type of show. Las Vegas' Chamber of Commerce saw a moneymaking opportunity, and decided to distribute calendars promoting detonation times and option watching areas.

Legendary recluse Howard Hughes checked into the strip's Desert Inn on Thanksgiving Day 1966, renting the entire top two floors. When he overstayed his 10-day booking, he was asked to leave.

FedEx creator Frederick W. Smith conserved the shipment company with a trip to Vegas. In 1974-- 3 years after he developed the business-- the Yale graduate took the endeavor's last $5,000 and turned it into $32,000 with a weekend of blackjack.

13. Do not interrupt: Vegas has more unlisted contact number than other city in the United States.

14. Factor to hope? Nevada law mentions that video fruit machine must pay back a minimum of 75 percent of the money deposited on average. (Though it's worth noting that in New Jersey, home to gambling mecca more info Atlantic City, it's 83 percent.).

15. It takes roughly 10 minutes to nab a marriage license at the bureau in downtown Las Vegas, which is open every day from 8 a.m. until midnight. Not surprising that some 10,000 couples wed in the city monthly.

16. Let them eat ... shrimp cocktails? More than 60,000 pounds of the shellfish are consumed in the city each day. That's higher than the rest of the country-- combined.

17. The half-scale model of the Eiffel Tower, situated outside Paris Las Vegas, was initially prepared to be full-size, however due to the close distance of the airport-- simply 3 miles-- it needed to be diminished down. On the other hand, the Luxor Las Vegas' Sphinx is really bigger than the original Fantastic Sphinx of Giza.

18. At 50 loads, the bronze lion outside the MGM Grand Hotel is believed to be the largest bronze sculpture in the western hemisphere.

19. The distinctive gold color of the windows at the Mirage Hotel originates from real gold dust.

20. There are 3933 guest spaces at Bellagio Las Vegas-- more than the variety of citizens in the city of Bellagio, Italy.

21. Not into gambling establishments? The city likewise includes a heavy equipment play area where building enthusiasts can drive around bulldozers for fun.

22. Before his death in 2009, Michael Jackson was looking into doing a Vegas residency. He planned to market it with a 50-foot robot-likeness of himself that would stroll the Nevada desert.

23. At Vegas restaurant Cardiovascular disease Grill, waitresses gown in nurses clothes and customers can purchase an 8000-calorie quadruple bypass burger with a side of flatliner fries. (Fried in pure lard!) In 2013, one of the area's regular customers passed away ... from an apparent heart attack.

24. From outer space, the Las Vegas Strip appears as the brightest area on Earth. Who cares if it's not in fact in Las Vegas?


Many of Vegas' renowned hotels aren't technically located in the city of Las Vegas. A great portion of the Las Vegas Strip-- and the famed "Invite to Fabulous Las Vegas" indication-- are in fact situated in an unincorporated town called Paradise, Nevada.

One tourist attraction that is within Las Vegas city limitations: Vegas Vic, the large neon cowboy that presides over downtown's famed Fremont Street. The strip's Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel and Gambling establishment got its name from creator-- and famous mobster-- Bugsy Siegel's sweetheart. In the mid-20th century, Las Vegas had its own set of inequitable Jim Crow laws, which-- with the exception of low-wage service tasks-- kept African Americans out of the growing city's casinos and hotels.

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