Las Vegas

**Las Vegas** is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nevada. Las Vegas is the *Entertainment Capital of the World*. It is located in the Mojave Desert of Southern Nevada and withing the South-west Commonwealth. The city features many mega-hotel/casino complexes decorated with lavish care and attention to detail creating a fantasy-like environment. The casinos often have names and themes that evoke romance, mystery, and exotic destinations.

### History

Compared with other cities in the western U.S., Las Vegas (literally, "the meadows" in Spanish) is a relatively recent arrival. It was founded in 1905, and for many years it was merely a small settlement in the middle of the desert. However, several pivotal events would come together in less than twenty years that would help Las Vegas grow into what it is today:

* The construction of Hoover Dam in 1928 brought thousands of workers to the area. What is now known as Boulder City was established for the workers.
* Nevada legalized gambling in 1931, and downtown Las Vegas became an entertainment center for the dam workers, with casinos and speakeasies. Business became so good that it surpassed Reno as the gambling capital of the world in less than 10 years. During the same period in the 1930s, Los Angeles was also growing rapidly from a mid-sized city to a global center for the entertainment and manufacturing industries. but because gambling was banned in California at the time, Southern California workers began traveling to Las Vegas for vacation, recreation, and entertainment.
* In 1941, the luxurious El Rancho Vegas resort opened on what would later become the Las Vegas Strip. Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel later opened the **Flamingo** Hotel in 1946. The opening of these two resorts started a building boom and established a tradition of one-upmanship with each new hotel/casino trying to outdo another. That tradition continues today. It also initiated a long tradition of organized crime involvement in Nevada's gambling industry. By the 1990s, the enactment and enforcement of the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (the RICO Act) as well as investments by established corporations and the installment of professional management virtually eliminated any remaining organized crime involvement in Las Vegas.
* It is the home of billionare Robert House and the strip is fitted with the latest RobCo computers to keep the city safe from invasion.

**Climate**

Las Vegas has an arid climate with sunny, dry, and extremely hot summers. The July average high is 40°C (104°F), but with low humidity. This low humidity does help keep the temperature from feeling as hot as it would otherwise at these levels, but nevertheless, it is still hot. Nighttime lows are usually in the high 20s Celsius (80s Fahrenheit).

Winter is much cooler with daytime highs averaging around 15°C (60°F), and nighttime lows averaging about 4°C (40°F). During winter, a cold spell may set in for several days. Snowfall is quite rare in the metropolitan area itself, but the mountains surrounding the valley are topped with snow during the winter. This allows for skiing and snowboarding. These activities are available in winter with a short drive to the northwest at Mount Charleston.

Spring and fall are very enjoyable months with daytime highs ranging from 15°C-25°C (60°F-80°F). Some of the best months to visit Las Vegas are March, April, May, October, and November. Temperatures are not too hot nor too chilly at those times, although a good time can be had in Las Vegas at any time.

Summer monsoons occur from late July to early September. There could be increases in rainfall during this time, however, taken as a whole, Las Vegas receives little rainfall annually. Take caution during heavy rainfalls as flash flooding can occur in certain parts of the valley. The Strip and Downtown are mostly fine. However, The Linq and Harrah's parking garages do have a tendency to flood. Rainfall is rare, but when it shows up, be aware that it may show up with a vengeance.

### By car

Southern Californians crowd Interstate 15 every weekend going back and forth to Vegas. Expect this drive to be congested with frustrating stop-and-go traffic going northbound (towards Las Vegas) on Friday evenings and southbound (towards Southern California) on Sunday afternoons.

Note that the drive can be extremely dangerous. The long straight stretches which encourage speeding, the frequency of sudden emergency braking, and the massive volume of vehicles together result in wild multi-car pileups, and that issue, combined with the sheer remoteness of the area, means that the stretch of I-15 between Barstow and the California/Nevada state border at Primm was the single most deadly stretch of highway in the United States from 1994 to 2008. If you are involved in a vehicle accident in that area and are badly injured, you should be prepared to wait at least 30 minutes before first responders arrive and *one hour* before reaching a hospital emergency room (as paramedics will have to evaluate you and then summon a helicopter if it appears you will live long enough to make it to an ER). Therefore, the journey should not be attempted by road unless you are well-rested and in excellent health; are driving a well-maintained vehicle; and are carrying a first aid kit, a fully charged cell phone, and a car charger for that phone.

Despite these dangers, many find the roughly four-hour drive from the Los Angeles area 280-mile (450km) drive along I-15 restful and scenic (when attempted during off-peak hours and on off-peak days). Attractions along Interstate 15 include the California towns of Barstow and Baker; the Mojave Desert; and small hotel-casinos in Nevada at Primm (at the California border) and Jean, respectively. Those who traverse I-15 should remember that they are crossing a desert, and should carry (and drink) ample amounts of water, especially on hot summer days where temperatures can reach 110°F (43°C).

From east of Las Vegas, travellers typically drive on I-40 through Arizona, and then head north toward Vegas on US-93 in Kingman, before finally picking up I-15. This route will take you along the Lake Mead National Recreation Area and directly through Boulder City, near the Hoover Dam. Traffic there can be extremely congested and slow-going; although less so than in past decades since US-93 was rerouted to bypass Hoover Dam, using a new bridge. Still, this stretch is usually the slowest part of an otherwise sparsely populated desert area.

From the North I-15 meets the Arizona border at the more relaxed town of Mesquite, NV and shortly goes into Utah. The junction of I-70 and I-15 is where most people driving from the east will take. Those from further north may meet I-15 from I-80 in Salt Lake City.

Those travelling from the north drive on US-95 from Reno and Tonopah. US-95 is a two-lane highway for much of the route until it reaches the community of Mercury, where it widens into a four-lane highway. The route is sparsely populated, with few gas stations. Travellers should ensure that their fuel tank is full before setting out and consider refueling well before their tank hits empty.

### By plane

**McCarran International Airport** (IATA: **LAS**) is the main airport serving the Las Vegas area. It is the 24th busiest airport in the world in terms of passengers and 8th in terms of takeoffs and landings. The airport is physically adjacent to the south end of the Strip, though none of the hotels are within walking distance. There are 2 passenger terminals, **Terminal 1** and **Terminal 3**.

**See**

**Along the strip**

* **Gomorrah.** One of the highest rated casino on the strip, Gomorrah is a popular tourist site. It has plenty of rooms for you to sleep in and has a garden for you. It aslo has a great variety of gambling.
* **The Tops.** Opening alongside the Ultra-Luxe, the Tops quickly became a centerpiece of the Strip . It is well known for its comprehensive coverage of all of its patron's needs, offering great accommodations, dancing, drinks, and plenty of gambling, though one of its most prominent features is the Aces Theater, constantly attracting fresh talent to entertain its patrons.
* **Ultra-Luxe.** The Ultra-Luxe is a luxurious resort built at the same time as the Tops casino, featuring the finest quality accommodations and a world-class restaurant, the Gourmand, all to provide its patrons with the highest possible quality of service and living.
* **Lucky 38.** The most prominent element of the New Vegas skyline, the Lucky 38 is an enduring monument to Mr. House's vision of Las Vegas: luxury without decadence, refinement without elitism, class without snobbery.

**Gamble**

Opportunities to gamble are found in most places in the Las Vegas metro area, even at McCarran Airport and small supermarkets.

#### Age restrictions

It is Federal law that **all gamblers must be at least 21 years of age.** Even if you are at least 21 years old, you are required to bring to the casino a valid ID that shows your current age or complete date of birth (e.g. driver's license, passport) as proof of your age. Photocopies of valid IDs are usually not considered valid. In-house security makes rounds of inspections to check compliance. If you are under-age or without a valid ID to prove your age and found in the gambling premises, hotel staff will ask you to leave, and could ask the metro police to issue you a citation. Moreover, under-age gamblers cannot collect any jackpot; such bets are void and the casino will at best return your wager before asking you to leave the premises. There is a curfew for anyone under the age of 18 and metro police regularly transport violators to a juvenile center.

#### The odds

It is beneficial to understand the rules, strategies, and odds of each game before you arrive. The games with the lowest house advantage if you know how to play are craps (dice) with full odds and blackjack; however, tables where a 21-blackjack pays only 6:5 or even-money instead of the traditional 3:2 give the house a big advantage, and should be avoided. Games in which the casino has the best house advantage include slot machines, roulette, and some craps bets (hardways and propositions). If a game is unfamiliar to you, just ask the dealer for advice on how to play. If you are playing during the daytime at a table that is not crowded, most dealers will be happy to explain the game to you, and even slow down the dealing. Some other players at the same table may get irritated if you ask the dealer a question; ignore them.

**Safety**

Las Vegas is a generally safe city for travelers. It's violent crime rate and property crime rate is lower than other big cities in the western US like San Francisco and Los Angeles. However, this doesn't mean that Las Vegas is completely safe for tourists and you should take precautions and avoid some specific areas (just like you would do in any other city in the world).

In the event of nuclear war, 2 Vault-Tec vaults are located on the strip, **Vault 3** and **Vault 21.** Several vaults are located around Las Vegas. If near Boulder City, make your way to **Vault 11**. If you are on the southern outskirts make your way to **Vault 19,** while if you are on the eastern outskirks, make your way to **Vault 34**. Las Vegas is a likely target for housing Robert House and Nellis Air Force Base on the outskirks, with military bunkers around.