Bright, effervescent and often quite thrilling, it’s easy to argue that Las Vegas is the world’s capital of hedonism. It can be all that and more, but it can also be a great place to spend time with your family and friends, seeing the desert, the Grand Canyon, and enjoying some of the crazy sights of Las Vegas from the point of an audience, rather than a participant. Where you stay in Las Vegas will influence whether you’re part of the show of watching it, so choosing the best neighbourhood for the trip you have planned is paramount. We’ve done a lot of the work for you in our guide to the neighbourhoods of Las Vegas. So sit back and enjoy the wonderful ride!
The Strip is the frenetically palpitating heart of Las Vegas, a roughly four mile stretch of road lined with casinos, bars, hotels, restaurants, high end boutiques, and all sorts of entertainment. The Strip unofficially starts at the “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign to the Stratosphere Tower. Along its route your’ll pass many of the main Vegas resorts: The Venetian, The MGM Grand, The Bellagio, The Palazzo and Caesar’s Palace, among others, and they’re all working hard to grab your attention with big-name shows, fancy restaurants and striking gimmicks. So it’s a super colourful and over the top four miles. Lots of people come to Vegas and don’t need to leave The Strip, there’s certainly plenty to see! families may be interested in Adventuredome indoor amusement park, or the Big Apple Coaster? It’s also a hub for the rest of the Downtown area, and the departure point for tours to the Hoover Dam, the Valley of Fire State Park and even the Grand Canyon. And The Strip is surprisingly family friendly as well - especially considering how exciting the nightlife is.
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The southern end of The Strip is the most action packed end: it’s got SIX different Cirque du Soleil productions, some of the bigger namers in musical residencies, a number of restaurants with chefs recognised globally, and some seriously high-end shopping opportunities. This is the place to stay if you’re looking for the FULL VEGAS experience. The South Strip is within walking distance of all the main sights and attractions within the city itself: the Eiffel Tower, New York New York - for the rollercoaster, Hershey’s Chocolate World with its 800pound chocolate statue of the Statue of Liberty, and the Venetian and Luxor Hotels, and the most famous casinos, clubs and restaurants. South Strip is also the closest neighbourhood to Mandalay Bay, which has an 11 acre pool with a real sand beach and a wave machine - and you thought you weren’t going to have a beach holiday in Vegas! South Strip also has the Titanic Exhibition - which has several sections of replica Titanic, as well as genuine artefacts, and GameWorks, one of the world’s largest video game arcades.
If the southern end of The Strip is the most action-packed then the northern end has to be the quieter option. On The Strip around The Stratosphere are some more affordable Vegas hotel and resort options, and as you merge into the Downtown area you’ll find the wedding chapels, karaoke bars and pawn shops, so it’s a different atmosphere. Adventuredome, the indoor amusement park behind Circus Circus, is an attractions your kids might be asking about. Great for more affordable food and drink options too, as well as accommodation. And you’re closest to the golf courses.
Beyond the north end of The Strip is Downtown Las Vegas, the historic centre and business district, also known for its casinos, glamorous hotels, nightlife, restaurants and boutique shopping. The Fremont Street Experience is a five block pedestrianised shopping precinct and hub for casinos, restaurants and hotels. As well as having some simply fabulous neon signs and light-up decorations, it’s where many folk start their tour of Vegas. To the east is the artier part of Downtown, where you’ll find vintage and second hand shops, and a cooler, up-and-coming dining scene. This is also where you can find the Smith Centre, which hosts the Las Vegas Philharmonic Orchestra, and touring shows from Broadway. And the unusual, but highly interesting, Mob Museum, and the Neon Museum, which has a collection of lights which date back as far as the 1930s. Imagine that. If you’re bringing your family to Vegas you might want to stay in the neighbourhood within a neighbourhood: Symphony Park in Downtown Las Vegas, which radiates from the blocks around the Smith Centre, and includes the Discovery Children’s Centre and a raft of family friendly cafes and restaurants.
Las Vegas’ Arts District is north of The Strip, a long, thin neighbourhood that’s a hub for art galleries and studios, plus indy fashion and design brands, and some great vintage and boutique boutiques. After you’ve perused the galleries and done some shopping the Arts District invites you to sample something fresh in one of its sophisticated international eateries or cool kids cocktail bars. Or you can head to a hip craft brewery
Chinatown Las Vegas is west of The Strip, along Spring Mountain Road and surrounds, and is a fantastic base for food lovers. Las Vegas has some really super places to eat and drink, but Chinatown offers real variety as well, and it’s not just Asian businesses either, there’s a pretty global perspective. One of our Gurus mentioned Partage - known for French fine dining, and Sparrow & Wolf, where they try a bit of everything and anything! While Chinatown is rich in restaurants it’s relatively poor in accommodation, but there are some options, and plenty of options on The Strip/ Chinatown borders.
Summerlin is a more residential neighbourhood that stretches between The Strip and Red Rock Canyon and Mt. Charleston. It’s well connected to central Las Vegas via the Summerlin Parkway, and it’s only about 15minutes in the car to The Strip. Summerlin used to be mostly residential, but in recent years more hotels, resorts and retail parks have sprung up, and now it’s certainly worth a visitor’s consideration. Summerlin has lots and lots of parks too - in fact there are more than 230, plus ten golf courses. And there are hiking and biking trails to match the number of parks. The Red Rock Canyon is very close to Summerlin, and offers an ideal landscape for hiking, biking and rock climbing of all types.
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Technically still its own city, Henderson is in the Las Vegas valley, so as Vegas expands, Henderson becomes more Vegas - but with inordinately more walking, hiking and biking trails - and plenty of parks for those trails to run through. The city is within the Mojave desert, and is surrounded by rolling hills, with the McCullough Range in the foreground with its black, volcanic rock. Its climate is a desert climate, and the vegetation and wildlife are typical of the Mojave. Henderson has a bird sanctuary, so that element of wildlife is easy to appreciate. So Henderson offers a very different atmosphere and stay to Las Vegas proper, but it’s very easy to get to Las Vegas from here. It’s also easy to get to Lake Las Vegas, another environment worth exploring. Henderson also has Nevada’s largest outdoor amphitheatre, which hosts an annual Shakespearian festival, as well as lots of musicians, so you don’t have to head to Vegas proper for all your entertainment.
