24 Things You Must Understand About Las Vegas and the Nearby Strip

Exactly what occurs in Vegas ... well, you understand the rest. Here are 24 realities about Sin City you likely haven't heard.

1. Most of Vegas' iconic hotels aren't technically situated in the city of Las Vegas. An excellent portion of the Las Vegas Strip-- and the well known "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign-- are really situated in an unincorporated municipality called Paradise, Nevada.

2. One attraction that is within Las Vegas city limits: Vegas Vic, the large neon cowboy that commands downtown's renowned Fremont Street. It's the largest mechanical neon check in the world.

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

4. ... So it's a great thing the town boasts 14 of the world's 20 most significant hotels.

5. There's a lot realty for tourists to make the most of, it would take an individual 288 years to invest a night in every hotel room in the city.

6. There's a secret city underneath the city. Miles of tunnels-- originally developed to secure the desert town from flash floods-- home hundreds of homeless locals.

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 nickname "The Flamingo" since of her red hair and long, thin legs.

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

9. 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, stated, "This isn't really the opening of a Las Vegas hotel. It's history."

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 promoting detonation times and choice watching areas.

11. Famous recluse Howard Hughes examined 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. Rather, he began settlements to purchase the 715-room area. His purchase was total 3 months later on.

FedEx creator Frederick W. Smith conserved the shipment business with a journey 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 phone numbers than any other city in the United States.

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

15. It takes roughly 10 minutes to catch 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 eat ... shrimp cocktails? More than 60,000 pounds of the shellfish are consumed in the city each day. That's greater than the remainder of the nation-- integrated.

17. The half-scale design of the Eiffel Tower, situated outside Paris Las Vegas, was initially planned to be full-size, but due to the close distance of the airport-- simply three miles-- it needed to be shrunk down. On the other hand, the Luxor Las Vegas' Sphinx is in fact larger than the initial Fantastic Sphinx of Giza.

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

19. The distinct gold color of the windows at the Mirage Hotel originates from actual gold dust.

20. There are 3933 guest rooms at Bellagio Las Vegas-- more than the number of homeowners in the city of Bellagio, Italy.

21. Not into gambling establishments? The city likewise features a heavy equipment play ground where building and construction lovers can drive around bulldozers for fun.

22. Before his death in 2009, Michael Jackson was checking out doing a Vegas residency. He prepared to promote it with a 50-foot robot-likeness of himself that would roam the Nevada desert.

23. At Vegas diner Heart Attack Grill, waitresses gown in nurses attire and customers can order an 8000-calorie quadruple bypass hamburger with a side of flatliner french fries. (Fried in pure lard!) Sadly, in 2013, one of the area's routine clients died ... from an evident cardiac arrest.

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


Many of Vegas' iconic hotels aren't technically located in the city of Las Vegas. An excellent part of the Las Vegas Strip-- and the well known "Invite to Fabulous Las Vegas" indication-- are actually situated in an unincorporated town called Paradise, Nevada.

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

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