24 Things You Should Learn About Las Vegas and the Close-by Strip

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

1. The majority of Vegas' iconic hotels aren't technically located in the city of Las Vegas. A great part of the Las Vegas Strip-- and the famed "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign-- are really situated in an unincorporated municipality called Paradise, Nevada.

2. One destination that is within Las Vegas city limits: Vegas Vic, the oversized neon cowboy that commands downtown's famous 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 a lot property for tourists to benefit from, it would take a person 288 years to invest a night in every hotel space in the city.

6. There's a secret city below the city. Miles of tunnels-- originally built to safeguard the desert town from flash floods-- home numerous homeless residents.

7. The strip's Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel and Casino got its name from founder-- and famous 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 had 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 hotels and casinos. 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 became 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."

10. In the 1950s and early 1960s, Las Vegas was understood for placing on a various kind of program. At the Nevada Test Website, simply 65 miles northwest of the city, the United States Department of Energy would evaluate nuclear devices. Las Vegas' Chamber of Commerce saw a moneymaking chance, and decided to distribute calendars promoting detonation times and choice viewing places.

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 reservation, he was asked to leave.

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.

13. Do not disrupt: Vegas has more unlisted telephone number than any other city in the United States.

14. Factor to hope? Nevada law specifies that video slots should repay a minimum of 75 percent of the cash transferred typically. (Though it deserves keeping in mind that in New Jersey, the home of betting capital Atlantic City, it's 83 percent.).

15. It takes approximately 10 minutes to catch 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 each month.

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, 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 shrunk down. In contrast, the Luxor Las Vegas' Sphinx is actually larger than the original Great Sphinx of Giza.

18. At 50 tons, the bronze lion outside the MGM Grand Hotel is believed 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 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 advertise it with a 50-foot robot-likeness of himself that would stroll the Nevada desert.

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

24. From external area, the Las Vegas Strip looks like the brightest spot on Earth. Who cares if it's not actually in Las Vegas?


Most of Vegas' iconic hotels aren't technically situated in the city of Las Vegas. An excellent portion of the Las Vegas Strip-- and website the renowned "Invite to Fabulous Las Vegas" indication-- are really located in an unincorporated town called Paradise, Nevada.

One attraction that is within Las Vegas city limits: Vegas Vic, the oversized neon cowboy that administers over downtown's renowned Fremont Street. The strip's Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel and Gambling establishment got its name from founder-- and legendary 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 tasks-- kept African Americans out of the growing city's casinos and hotels.

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