24 Things You Need To Know About Las Vegas and the Nearby Strip

Exactly what occurs in Vegas ... well, you understand the rest. But here are 24 truths about Sin City you likely have not heard.

1. The majority of Vegas' iconic hotels aren't technically situated in the city of Las Vegas. A great part of the Las Vegas Strip-- and the renowned "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign-- 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 oversized 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 a good idea the town boasts 14 of the world's 20 biggest hotels.

5. There's so much realty 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 below the city. Miles of tunnels-- initially built to protect the desert town from flash floods-- home numerous homeless homeowners.

7. The strip's Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel and Casino got its name from founder-- and legendary mobster-- Bugsy Siegel's sweetheart. Starlet Virginia Hill passed the nickname "The Flamingo" because of her red hair and long, thin legs.

In the mid-20th century, Las Vegas possessed its own set of prejudiced Jim Crow laws, which-- with the exception of low-wage service tasks-- kept African Americans out of the growing city's hotels and gambling establishments. 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 ended up being the city's first interracial casino. Legendary boxer Joe Louis, a part owner, declared, "This isn't really the opening of a Las Vegas hotel.

In the 1950s and early 1960s, Las Vegas was understood for putting on a various type of show. Las Vegas' Chamber of Commerce saw a moneymaking opportunity, and decided to distribute calendars advertising detonation times and choice viewing places.

11. Famous recluse Howard Hughes checked out the strip's Desert Inn on Thanksgiving Day 1966, leasing the whole top two floors. When he overstayed his 10-day reservation, he was asked to leave. Instead, he started negotiations to buy the 715-room spot. His purchase was complete three months later on.

12. FedEx founder Frederick W. Smith saved the delivery company with a trip to Vegas. In 1974-- three years after he created the company-- the Yale grad took the venture's last $5,000 and turned it into $32,000 with a weekend of blackjack. His, er, gamble provided the company enough cash to stay afloat.

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

Nevada see it here law specifies that video slot makers need to pay back a minimum of 75 percent of the loan transferred on average. (Though it's worth keeping in mind that in New Jersey, house to betting capital Atlantic City, it's 83 percent.).

15. It takes approximately 10 minutes to capture a marital relationship license at the bureau in downtown Las Vegas, which is open every day from 8 a.m. up until midnight. No marvel some 10,000 couples wed in the city monthly.

16. Let them consume ... shrimp mixed drinks? More than 60,000 pounds of the shellfish are consumed in the city every day. That's greater than the rest of the country-- combined.

17. The half-scale model of the Eiffel Tower, located outside Paris Las Vegas, was originally planned to be full-size, but due to the close proximity of the airport-- just three miles-- it needed to be diminished down. On the other hand, the Luxor Las Vegas' Sphinx is in fact bigger than the initial Excellent Sphinx of Giza.

18. At 50 heaps, the bronze lion outside the MGM Grand Hotel is thought to be the biggest bronze sculpture in the western hemisphere.

19. The distinct 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 features a heavy equipment playground 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.

At Vegas diner Heart Attack Grill, waitresses dress in nurses garb and patrons can buy an 8000-calorie quadruple bypass hamburger with a side of flatliner french fries. In 2013, one of the area's routine customers passed away ... from an apparent heart attack.

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


Many of Vegas' renowned hotels aren't technically situated in the city of Las Vegas. A great portion of the Las Vegas Strip-- and the well known "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign-- are actually situated in an unincorporated municipality called Paradise, Nevada.

One destination that is within Las Vegas city limitations: Vegas Vic, the large neon cowboy that presides over downtown's well known Fremont Street. The strip's Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel and Casino got its name from founder-- and legendary mobster-- Bugsy Siegel's sweetheart. In the mid-20th century, Las Vegas had its own set of prejudiced Jim Crow laws, which-- with the exception of low-wage service jobs-- kept African Americans out of the growing city's casinos and hotels.

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