🏆 Las Vegas, NV Travel Guide
Las Vegas Vacation Guide
Strip mega-resorts, free fountain shows, world-class Cirque du Soleil productions, and desert day trips to Red Rock Canyon and the Grand Canyon, all mapped out by category so you can plan your trip around what you actually want to do.
🏆 82 Attractions & Activities
🍲 75 Restaurants
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Hotels
87 verified hotels and resorts across the Strip, Downtown, and off-Strip Las Vegas.
Things to Do
82 verified attractions — free Strip shows, Cirque du Soleil, museums, and desert day trips.
Restaurants
75 verified restaurants — Michelin-legacy fine dining, celebrity chefs, and old-school Vegas institutions.
Getting to Know the Area
Downtown & Fremont Street
Off-Strip & Convention Center
Henderson & Lake Las Vegas
Summerlin
Red Rock Canyon & the Desert
The Strip is the postcard image of Las Vegas — the mega-resorts, free fountain shows, and neon that most visitors come for. Downtown, centered on Fremont Street, is more compact and walkable, with a grittier, old-school Vegas character and its own light-and-sound canopy show. Off-Strip and the Convention Center area hold chain hotels and locals casinos convenient for business travelers. Henderson and Lake Las Vegas, southeast of the Strip, are quieter and more residential, home to upscale locals resorts. Summerlin, to the west, anchors the city’s other major locals resort corridor near Red Rock Canyon. And the surrounding desert — Red Rock Canyon, Valley of Fire, Lake Mead, and Mount Charleston — offers a completely different pace within an hour of the Strip.
Planning Tips
- Budget at least 3-4 days. A day covers the Strip’s free attractions alone; add time for a show, Downtown/Fremont Street, and at least a half-day desert day trip.
- Book shows, top restaurants, and popular hotels well in advance. Cirque du Soleil productions, celebrity chef restaurants, and Strip resorts all fill up, especially around major events like Formula 1 race weekend.
- Consider your area carefully. The Strip is the classic choice but can be loud and expensive; Downtown, Summerlin, and Henderson offer a calmer, often better-value alternative within easy reach.
- A few well-known names have recently closed, imploded, or are mid-transition. We verify current operating status on every listing in this guide, including major hotel and restaurant closures you may not have caught yet.
How many days should I plan for a Las Vegas trip?
3-5 days covers the Strip’s free attractions and at least one show, plus a Downtown/Fremont Street evening and a half-day desert day trip — add more if you want to fit in the Grand Canyon or explore Henderson and Summerlin at a relaxed pace.
Is The Mirage still open?
No — it closed permanently in July 2024 and is being demolished and rebuilt as Hard Rock Las Vegas, targeted to open around 2027. It doesn’t appear in our Hotels guide for that reason.
How does NME choose which hotels, restaurants, and attractions to feature?
We verify each listing directly against its own official site and current operating status rather than relying on aggregator lists, and we exclude anything we can’t confirm is still open. Read more on our methodology page.
