Why Is Las Vegas So Much More Than Casinos?

What's going on everybody, this is IslandHopperTV and today we're coming to you from Las Vegas, Nevada with the 40 best things to do heading into 2025. There is a few new attractions here in Las Vegas so stick around all the way to the end. Coming to you from the southwestern part of the United States, first up is The Sphere. Speaking of new attractions, this year opened in 2023 and it's absolutely spectacular. From the outside you can see it light up at night and in the afternoon but in the inside you can get a great show. Whether it's a concert, a UFC event, or a show, be sure to google what's going on at The Sphere when you're in town. The Sphere is attached to the Venetian Resort. One of the absolute best ways to see Las Vegas is by helicopter. There is the Papillion Helicopter Company or Maverick Helicopters with some of them going all the way out to the Grand Canyon South Rim which could be worth it for some of you who want to see the beautiful Grand Canyon from bird's eye view. And another awesome experience which I've done several times is rent a limo for you and your friends or your family and loved ones. Prices start at $80 an hour and go all the way up to $200 an hour depending on the vehicle and the experience. Now let's head over to Fremont Street. This is an awesome street that lights up colorfully. They've got zip lining going on under here. They've got lots of casinos and it keeps getting better every time I go back to Fremont Street. Definitely worth checking out. It's a lot more condensed than the Strip so this is a better walking street than the Strip if you're just looking to see a lot in a small area without feeling like you're having to walk several miles to see so much like you'll get on the Strip. And this area is in downtown Las Vegas. They have the Container Park which is a nice place to walk around do some shopping and eat. Also they have the Mob Museum which is one of my favorite museums I've been to anywhere in the country. You're going to learn so much about the history for Las Vegas and how the Mafia built this city that you love so much. And not to glorify organized crime but the truth is the Mafia did build this city and then they were taken down by the FBI, the CIA, and the intelligence agencies in the United States. And here at the Mafia Museum, the Mob Museum, you will learn all about that. Ticket prices are $35 for adults. If you're looking for a place to stay down here in downtown consider the Golden Nugget. They have the slide where you actually slide right through an aquarium with sharks swimming over you. Pretty cool for the kids I'd say. And the Golden Nugget is easily within walking distance to Fremont Street. Now we're actually headed to Area 15. So this is another cool place for the kids to go. Now prices vary here. It is free to get inside the actual Area 15 as long as you have a level zero experience pass. But then there's different experiences and that's what you're paying for. So depending on what kind of experience you want to do, the Origin Quest, Meow Wolf, or a scavenger hunt. And then next door they have the Illuminarium. This is another attraction right here at Area 15 that you can check out. Then it goes without saying, but when you come to Vegas do some casino gaming. One of the reasons why Vegas exists is because of these casinos. Whether you're playing Baccarat or Blackjack, Texas Hold'em, any sort of poker game, card game. And then you have roulette and of course slots. Almost all hotels are going to have a casino attached here in Las Vegas. You can definitely save money if you stay off of the Strip. But let's talk about walking the Strip. So you don't have to stay at a hotel on the Strip to actually come down here and walk the Strip obviously. But if there was ever an area that I would highly recommend you walking, I would say start around Planet Hollywood and go in either direction. Because that seems like it's the center part of the Strip right now. But the Strip keeps growing and getting bigger and bigger as time goes by. Walking the Strip might not be for everyone, so another great way to see the Strip is to cruise the Strip in a limo, or a taxi, an Uber, or a Lyft. But definitely try to do either a walking tour of the Strip or at least cruise the Strip, especially at nighttime. My favorite time to do it is right there at sunset because the colors are just really popping out and it's very vibrant around that time. And as we continue to show you around Las Vegas, if you're enjoying this video so far, please consider subscribing to the channel and liking the video as we continue to show you around. Now we're going to talk about Las Vegas shows. Cirque du Soleil continues to be a popular show here. You also have Blue Man Group, David Copperfield Magic Show, Criss Angel, Danny Osmond. So much to see here in Las Vegas for shows. Depending on the show, you could easily get it for as low as $20 or all the way up to $150 and even beyond that. But not all shows are expensive because the Bellagio Water Show is completely free. You can easily watch it from the Strip or along the side of the Bellagio Hotel. But if you wanted to actually dine and have dinner while watching this beautiful show, you can also do that because there are several different restaurants here. Two of the famous restaurants are the Lago, which is a posh Italian restaurant with views of the fountain. And then you have Jasmine, which is an upscale Chinese restaurant. Very luxurious restaurants right here when you're watching the fountain show. And while you're at the Bellagio, you can also walk around the hotel and check out the Bellagio Biosphere Gardens. And that changes depending on the season. So when you're here, you'll see a totally different themed garden than what I saw when I was here. And the Bellagio is actually where the Cirque du Soleil does their show. They also do it at the MGM, but it's all year round here at the Bellagio. So definitely a place to check out while in Vegas. I'd say you can't miss the Bellagio. Now here we are at the Fashion Show Mall. This is right across the street from the Wynn. It's a really cool mall to hang out, chill and get a bite to eat. From here, you go to the Wynn and check out the towers here. They have the Encore and the Wynn. This is a beautiful hotel to stay at. It is a bit expensive, but you can still walk around the property without having to pay anything. You can also visit the casino. This is a luxury property. It's definitely up there, probably in the top five most beautiful properties in all of Las Vegas, if not the entire country. And if I was to rank the top hotels that I would consider staying at, if budget wasn't an issue, I would say the Wynn, the Cosmopolitan, the Aria, the Bellagio, and then the Venetian. But even then, I feel like the Wynn is in a league of its own. Another thing to do is golfing. So the Wynn does have a golf course, but all around Las Vegas, there's plenty of golf courses. I would say if you're coming here in spring or fall, maybe even in the winter, getting out on the links could be a fun activity for you. And since we've already got you outdoors, let's keep going outdoors and check out the Valley of Fire. So there's more to Las Vegas than just going down the strip and doing casinos and partying. There's a lot of activities that you can do, like Valley of Fire. Walking around here, you can see it's a spectacular Mars-looking landscape. Lots of hikes out here. Again, a place I would go in fall, winter, or spring. I would probably avoid here in the summertime because Vegas gets really hot. Here we are at Seven Magic Mountains. This is another interesting landmark or tourist activity. People come out here, visit these colorful rocks. You could see it's kind of out here in the middle of the desert, like a cheesy Las Vegas Stonehenge, if you want to call it that. Anyways, let's head back down to the strip. Here we are at the Venetian Resort. So there's a lot to do here. This is another one of those grand palaces. It's right up there with the Wynn, just not quite there yet. And they also have a really cool canal system. This is the Venice Canal. You can do a gondola ride. Usually, it's something that couples do, but I also see families out there doing it. The price varies, but it's between $39 and $150, depending on how long you want to do it. But if you just wanted to do the bare minimum, 10-minute ride around the pool, it's $39 per person. Also, walking around the Venetian shops can be something that you might find interesting, not just for shopping, but just because it's so cool. They have this sky painted on the roof that really creates an awesome ambiance, good lighting. So this could be something that you want to do in the afternoon, indoors, get out of that Las Vegas heat. Or in the wintertime, when it gets cold, get out of the cold as well. And as you can see, walking around here, there will be the gondola rides where people are getting on and off those little boats. So you can either get on and off here. It's just a fun activity, makes you feel like you're really there in Venice. Also here at the Venetian, they do have the Madame Tussauds Ball of Wax Museum. It's a cool place to go in the evening time or even in the daytime and just take pictures next to life-size wax models. Shaquille O'Neal's here. You also have Frank Sinatra and many of your favorite celebrities. Now here we are at the Circus Circus Adventure Dome. So you can see this is an indoor theme park, lots of rides. Again, a place you take the kids. It's a good activity for the daytime. You spend three or four hours here. They've got several different roller coasters and fast-moving rides. Good way to get the adrenaline flowing and have a good time while you're in Vegas. You do pay per ride, which is around $5 to $12, just depends on the ride or roller coaster. You can get an all-day pass, which is about $60 for those who are 48 inches and taller. Speaking of rides, this High Roller Ferris Wheel is wild. They got these capsules. This thing is huge. I mean, it's got to be one of the biggest Ferris wheels in the entire world and getting in one of these capsules is quite the experience. It does take 30 minutes to do a full revolution. The High Roller is 550 feet tall and one pod can hold as much as 40 people. Here we are now at the Caesars Palace. This is one of the oldest hotel casinos in Las Vegas, but still a place that I highly recommend walking around and enjoying. They have the Atlantis Show here and they have this really cool walking area with restaurants and shops. This is actually one of my favorite places to go in all of Vegas. They even have a little aquarium around here with fish on both sides, so really a cool place. Like I said, it's still one of the oldest in Vegas still around. They haven't torn it down yet. Now let's take a look at the Las Vegas Monorail. So this is one way to get up and down the strip. It is 3.9 miles. You can do one ride for $6 each time or just do a one-day pass for $15. One of those hotels that's attached to the monorail is the Aria Hotel. This is another beautiful hotel property to walk around. They've got shops and really an indoor atmosphere that's worth walking around and exploring. It seems more high-tech and sci-fi. This is more of a modern type feeling resort hotel casino. Unlike many of the other hotels in the area, it doesn't actually have a theme, but like I said, it just reminds me of a very modern contemporary hotel casino. Just like the Cosmopolitan Hotel, which is very similar and high-end next door. Now we're going to actually go back out into the outdoors again and we're going to explore the Hoover Dam. Now the Hoover Dam was a modern marvel about 70 years ago and still to this day is known for its engineering. Now here we are at the Stratosphere. So the cool thing about the Stratosphere is that you can go to the top and they have rides up there and these rides are amazing. Known as the top of the world on level 106 and the crazy thing is these rides feel like you're actually going over the edge. They also have jumps off here. For me, my vertigo kicks in, but for some of you this might just be right up your alley. Now here we are. Now here we are at the home of the Las Vegas Golden Knights. This is the T-Mobile Arena. You can watch hockey here. You can also watch concerts and other events and activities here. And nearby here is the Allegiant Stadium. This is where the Las Vegas Raiders play. So if you're in town when the season's on, you can watch a Raiders NFL game or you can watch a hockey game. That's the cool thing about Vegas. They're also bringing the Oakland A's in for Major League Baseball. Now here we are at the Las Vegas sign. This is the famous Las Vegas sign. People come here to take pictures for multiple different occasions, whether it's a or whatever it is. Next up here we are at the New York New York Casino here. This is a really awesome hotel obviously because of the design. It attracts many people here. This is going to be more of an affordable hotel also. I actually stay here the last two times I came to Vegas, but they also have an amazing roller coaster that you can ride. Now the cost to get on here is $14 per person, but they do offer all-day passes for those of you who are interested. The roller coaster goes 67 miles an hour and it's one of the world's first 180 degree roller coasters with a 203 foot drop. Nearby New York is Mandalay Bay. They have two big golden towers here and they have shops, big casino, and they also have a beautiful outdoor pool with a beach. And then they also have the Shark Reef. For those of you who are looking for more of an aquarium experience for the kids, they call it the Mandalay Bay Shark Reef. General admission is $30 per person, but they do offer a variety of different activities and packages. For example, you can do the stingray feed for $65. You can do the Shark Reef shark feed which is $99. That could be fun. Then they have the Shark Reef sea turtle feed for $99. And they have a few different other packages available for those of you who are interested in doing more here at this particular Shark Reef. I'm always amazed when I go to a place that's a desert in the middle of nowhere and they have an aquarium like this of this kind of caliber because, yeah, you wouldn't expect that to be here in Vegas, but it is. Another thing to do while you're in Vegas is check out one of these Las Vegas buffets, all you can eat. I would say that the food has gotten better, but the prices have certainly gone up through the roof for these buffets. They used to be really cheap in Vegas. Generally speaking, Las Vegas is a foodie's paradise. This place is great if you're a foodie, but be ready to bust out the bankroll. And if this is your first time to Las Vegas or you're coming back after being gone for a few years, Las Vegas is changing. It's getting more expensive. It's getting more diverse. They're bringing in sports. With the Oakland A's coming here, they're probably going to have an expansion basketball team with the NBA. Luxury continues to go up. The Strip keeps changing. They're tearing down the Mirage. They're bringing in 40 million tourists per year. I actually did a video about East Las Vegas in Macau, China. If you guys want to watch that one next, you can click the link or watch Free Things to Do in Las Vegas if you're one of those people looking to save some money.