Free Vegas Attractions on the Strip

Free Vegas Attractions on the Strip: walking along the Strip is definitely great fun. However, there are some areas which are not so easy to walk along nor particularly view-worthy. If you have a lot of time or if you are a fast walker, you could set out a whole evening/night (about 5 hours, considering times for various stops, but those stops would have to be quick) walking along the whole Strip and enjoying all it has to offer for free; but, if your time is limited or if you are unable to walk long distances, then focusing on the main Strip attractions is probably best for you. If you want a bit of history, though, scroll down this page (towards the bottom); otherwise, read on:

Mid to North Strip Free Vegas Attractions. One of the most beautiful Strip areas is where Venetian and Mirage stand. Both resorts, facing each other, offer breath-taking visual stimuli in different ways. Mirage, with its huge tropical waterfalls garden, right at the entrance, is blissful to enjoy day and night, and particularly romantic at night. Every 30 minutes on peak times you can also enjoy the free volcano show, an artificial set of volcanic eruptions; however, the waterfalls and the whole tropical-inspired area is very enjoyable in itself at all times and… Very soothing during hot temperatures! Venetian, on the other hand, provides a totally different type of visual enjoyment:

imitating the stunning city of Venice in Italy (on a smaller scale, of course), you’ll see canals and gondolas at the entrance, as well as replicas of the most famous historical Venetian buildings. Once you go inside, of course, you can indulge in further visual stimuli which include imitation streets, bridges and the renowned St Marco Square (with occasional free shows).

If it’s around Christmas time, Venetian will wow you not only with their Christmas decorations, but also with their ice-skating ring, as part of their ‘Winter Escape in Las Vegas‘.

Further North of Venetian and Mirage, if you are in Vegas with your family you may want to see the ‘world’s largest permanent circus’, which is free of charge. Details on our ‘things to do in Vegas for children and teens‘ page.

Forum Shops at Caesars Palace.  Besides the stores from all famous fashion brands in the world, you will enjoy a stunning area set to imitate the most beautiful streets of historical Rome; the intelligent light work gives you the impression that you are walking along those streets (and squares) at dusk, and everywhere you look it’s a feast for the eyes.  There is a very popular ice-cream vendor but also nice cafeterias and restaurants.  We have a detailed 2016 video walk-through of the Forum Shops on our youtube channel jules at top-buffet.

Free Vegas Attractions:  Mid Strip. This area offers the quintessential views of the Paris resort, with its Eiffel Tower imitation (smaller than the real thing, of course!) and, above all, the magnificent Bellagio Lake (tastefully imitating the Italian lakes with the traditional Italian architecture around them) with its famous Vegas Fountain Show, which you can enjoy every 15 minutes on peak times or 30 minutes on slower times. Inside the Bellagio resort you can also enjoy the stunning flower garden (which becomes fully themed during special celebrations & season change – you can see their Christmas Theme video and their great Thanksgiving theme video)  at their Conservatory, totally free of charge.  Here you can also enjoy musicians playing the piano or the violin (or other instruments):  a classy treat worthy of Bellagio!

The Wildlife Habitat at the Flamingo is definitely a long-standing landmark out of the free Vegas attractions many recommend: though a noisy bar has sprung up almost in the middle of this once-oasis, the Flamingo habitat is still something to see and enjoy. I just wish the pink flamingos, exotic ducks and many species of fish (some huge) had… More room! However, you can still enjoy cute walkways among streams, small-but-cute waterfalls and ponds. There are several benches in the habitat where you can sit and enjoy the atmosphere. It’s usually much quieter during weekdays, as during weekends you can hear the noise from the nearby bar and ‘party pool’.

You can read our dedicated page on mid Strip attractions for more details of both resorts’ attractions. The famous City Center, the ultra modern Vegas complex which includes Aria, Cosmopolitan, Vdara and Mandarin Oriental, does not provide any unique visual stimuli from the outside; the enjoyment is mostly through walking inside, although it’s mainly from single ‘attractions’ such as the famous chandelier inside Cosmopolitan; if you are pressed for time and are not in the area, you can skip this ultra-modern, huge complex, unless of course you plan to visit some specific restaurants, buffets, spas or clubs in the complex. We have dedicated pages on ‘best of Vegas’ to hopefully help you on that too.

2016 marked the creation of the Park; it’s not an attraction per se but it can be a pleasant, refreshing de-tour for those walking along the Strip.  I particularly love the waterfall seating area.

South Strip Free Vegas Attractions. Here you can enjoy the outside (and inside) of the New York and New York resort, a mini-replica of the famous city and, after that, the Disney-esque Excalibur resort, inside and inside (a Disney-style castle); if you get on the free monorail from Excalibur, the next stop is Luxor: if you are a new-comer to Vegas, you will enjoy this themed resort (Egyptian Pyramid), inside and out. The first time I visited Vegas I was very impressed by Luxor, as I was by all the other themed resorts in Vegas. If you stay far away from South Strip and have very little time, you may have to skip Luxor, since going from South to North Strip takes time unless, of course, you decide to go by taxi or car.  Soon you will also enjoy a brand new area (with pebbled paths and squares, all ornated by real trees) between the New York New York resort, which has already greatly improved outside, and Monte Carlo:  it will all look as if you were walking around an upscale area of a town, with a variety of restaurants, bars and cafes.  It’ll be somewhat similar to the Linq area, only – if all plans come to fruition as expected – it may be even more beautiful and ‘classy’.

 Historical landmarks which are Free Vegas Attractions. The obvious and the real gems for the historical oriented. The obvious and still somehow on the ‘Strip’ (albeit very, very south, beyond Mandalay Bay, south of Russel Road), is the world-famous ‘welcome to Las Vegas’ sign, built in 1959; it can be enjoyed totally free of charge; you can park your car right there and take a photo of this historical spot. Less obvious but in our opinion a must-see for those wanting a real ‘time-machine’-type experience is the historically-rich Main Street Station hotel and casino, in downtown Vegas. We have a link to its dedicated page which you can find just below the following. Before you go, though, we invite you to share this page, if you found it useful, thank you

Free historical attractions in Vegas.  You may also find it useful to read our Things to do in Vegas on a Budget page, our Romantic Vegas page, our Haunted Vegas page, our Vegas for children page, our Fremont Experience page, our Mid Strip page, our general must-see/must-do in Vegas page, our Vegas Attractions ‘Secrets’, Ghost Town near Vegas and our Peaceful Vegas Spots page