{"id":164,"date":"2009-01-13T06:39:00","date_gmt":"2009-01-13T12:39:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.orbitz.com\/blog\/2009\/01\/las-vegas-vacation-top-10-free-activities\/"},"modified":"2018-05-31T14:20:05","modified_gmt":"2018-05-31T19:20:05","slug":"las-vegas-vacation-top-10-free-activities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.orbitz.com\/blog\/2009\/01\/las-vegas-vacation-top-10-free-activities\/","title":{"rendered":"Las Vegas vacation: Top 10 free activities"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Las<\/a> By E.C. Gladstone<\/em><\/p>\n

Despite many cynical visitors’ impressions that everything at Las Vegas hotels<\/a><\/strong> is expensive, truth is, you don\u2019t need to bleed money in order to have a good time here. In fact, all around town — and on the Strip in particular — there\u2019s an excess of free fun attractions<\/strong>, for families, couples, or anyone else.<\/p>\n

Prove it, you say? OK, I will:<\/p>\n

10)<\/strong> Circus Circus<\/a><\/strong> midway<\/strong>: One of the first free attractions on the Strip, the CC presents a rotating cast of classic circus performers<\/strong> every hour from 11 a.m. to midnight daily.<\/p>\n

9)<\/strong> Flamingo<\/a><\/strong> wildlife habitat<\/strong>: Over the property’s 15 acres of tropical gardens roam multiple bird species (flamingos, swans, cranes, penguins, etc.), while schools of fish swim in the ponds. Every morning at 11 a.m., curators offer a free presentation<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

8)<\/strong> Bellagio<\/a>\u2019s Conservatory & Botanical Gardens<\/strong>: The ever-changing floral displays here are always a thing of magnificent wonder<\/strong>, entirely changed 4-5 times a year by over a dozen horticulturalists. Bellagio\u2019s Dale Chiluly glass ceiling in the adjacent hotel reception, and the free Richard Macdonald art exhibit <\/strong>in the lobby of O Theatre are also both worth your time.<\/p>\n

7) Silverton Lodge aquarium<\/strong>: Featuring 4000 tropical fish (plus stingrays and sharks)<\/strong> in 117,000 gallons of salt water, the octagonal tank presents afternoon\/evening interactive shows with mermaids and scuba divers. There are also jellyfish in the Mermaid lounge and a few more tanks in the adjoining Bass Pro Shops\u2026Another impressive 50,000 gallon salt water aquarium can be found behind the animatronic Fall of Atlantis statues<\/strong> (a bit clunky themselves, but worth seeing once perhaps) inside Forum Shops at Caesars Palace<\/a><\/strong>. And if you happen to be at the Mirage<\/strong> or Mandalay Bay<\/a><\/strong>, both have nice fish tanks in their reception areas.<\/p>\n

6)<\/strong> MGM Grand<\/a> lion habitat<\/strong>: This enclosed habitat inside the casino must be seen (from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily) — first, just to believe that there are actually real lions in there<\/strong>, and then to catch their handlers at play with the fearsome cats (usually more awake at night).<\/p>\n

5)<\/strong> Fremont Street Experience<\/a>\u2019s VivaVision<\/strong>: The 1500-foot-long video \u201cceiling\u201d running along downtown Vegas\u2019 five-block casino corridor presents six different shows<\/strong> on the hour from dusk to midnight, including tributes to Queen and Kiss. There are also other free shows along the pedestrian-only street.<\/p>\n

4)<\/strong> Treasure Island<\/a>\u2019s<\/strong> Sirens of T.I.<\/strong>: Another Vegas institution, the Strip-side performance (nightly: 5:30, 7, 8:30 and 10) combines acrobatics, pyrotechnics, drama and a bit of sex appeal<\/strong> atop battling pirate ships.<\/p>\n

3)<\/strong> WYNN Resort<\/a>\u2019s Lake of Dreams<\/strong> (across from the Parasol Down bar): A unique nightly multimedia show combining music, lighting, special effects, huge animatronic puppetry, and more.<\/p>\n

2)<\/strong> Mirage <\/a>Volcano<\/strong>: After a $22 million revamp, the iconic Mirage volcano has been reborn as a massive, explosive fire and water display<\/strong> (visible from the Strip nightly from dusk to midnight) with a soundtrack by Grateful Dead\u2019s Mickey Hart. Definitely worth 7.5 minutes of your time.<\/p>\n

1)<\/strong> Bellagio<\/a> Fountains<\/strong>: No trip to Vegas would be complete without taking in the moving Fountains of Bellagio on the 8-acre Strip-side lake. Computer choreographed to a changing repertoire of music, their revamped water cannons can now shoot water as high as 460 feet<\/strong>! They \u201cperform\u201d every half hour from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. (starting at noon on weekends), then every 15 minutes until midnight. So, no excuses.<\/p>\n

Honorable mentions:<\/strong> The Rio<\/a>\u2019s<\/strong> Show in the Sky<\/strong> (hourly 7 to midnight, Thurs. through Sun.) \u2026watching The Venetian<\/a>\u2019s Grand Canal gondoliers<\/strong> as they serenade their passengers, and seeing the \u201cstreetmosphere\u201d operatic performances and human statues<\/strong> in St. Mark\u2019s Square \u2026 runway fashion shows at the Fashion Show Mall<\/a><\/strong>\u2026the Ethel M Chocolate Factory<\/a><\/strong> free self-guided tour & botanical cactus garden.<\/p>\n

Insider tip:<\/strong> If you know who to ask, or where to look, it isn\u2019t impossible to find free passes to The Quad<\/a>\u2019s Auto Collection<\/strong>, a truly impressive array of cars from thepast 100 years that is even worth paying for, if you have to!<\/p>\n

Related Orbitz resources:<\/strong><\/p>\n