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

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

1. Many of Vegas' renowned hotels aren't technically located in the city of Las Vegas. A good part of the Las Vegas Strip-- and the renowned "Invite to Fabulous Las Vegas" indication-- are actually 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 an advantage the town boasts 14 of the world's 20 greatest hotels.

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

6. There's a secret city underneath the city. Miles of tunnels-- originally developed 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 creator-- and famous mobster-- Bugsy Siegel's sweetheart. 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 prejudiced 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.

9. In May 1955, the Moulin Rouge made history when it became the city's very first interracial gambling establishment. Famous fighter Joe Louis, a part owner, stated, "This isn't the opening of a Las Vegas hotel. It's history."

In the 1950s and early 1960s, Las Vegas was understood 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.

Famous recluse Howard Hughes examined into the strip's Desert Inn on Thanksgiving Day 1966, leasing the whole leading two floors. When he overstayed his 10-day reservation, he was asked to leave.

12. FedEx founder Frederick W. Smith saved the delivery company with a trip to Vegas. In 1974-- three years after he produced here 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 business enough cash to remain afloat.

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

14. Need to hope? Nevada law mentions that video slots need to repay a minimum of 75 percent of the money deposited on average. (Though it's worth noting that in New Jersey, the home of gambling mecca 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. 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 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 initial Terrific 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 unique gold color of the windows at the Mirage Hotel comes from actual gold dust.

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

21. Not into casinos? The city also features a heavy equipment play ground where building and construction lovers can drive around bulldozers for enjoyable.

22. Prior to 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 wander the Nevada desert.

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

24. From outer space, the Las Vegas Strip appears as the brightest spot 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 famed "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" indication-- are in fact situated in an unincorporated area called Paradise, Nevada.

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

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