Fremont Street Experience

The Fremont Street Experience is the heart of Downtown Las Vegas and the best place to see the older side of the city. It covers the westernmost five blocks of Fremont Street, from Main Street to Las Vegas Boulevard, and four of those blocks sit beneath a curved canopy around 1,375 feet long and 90 feet high. The light show opened in December 1995, and a major upgrade unveiled at the end of 2019 gave the screen, known as Viva Vision, more than 49 million LEDs and 220 speakers.

The canopy comes alive after dark, with shows running through the evening into the early hours. Between them, the street itself is the attraction. The Fremont Street Experience hosts free concerts and performances on three stages every night, and casinos with long histories line the route, including the Golden Nugget, Binion's, Four Queens, the Golden Gate, Fremont, The D and Circa. Music, crowds and neon make it lively from early evening onwards.

For a bigger thrill, SlotZilla is a 12-storey, slot-machine-themed zipline that launches riders along the mall. The lower zipline runs at 77 feet over about half the street, while the upper Zoomline sends riders lying face down along the full length at 114 feet. Tickets are sold separately and the official site has a ride planner.

Entry to the street is free, so it suits budget travellers and anyone who wants to wander without a plan. It is an adult-leaning, crowded scene late at night, especially at weekends, so families may prefer the early evening. Keep an eye on your belongings in crowds. Allow at least two hours to see a couple of canopy shows, listen to a band and look into a few casinos.

The canopy itself is worth seeing more than once. The 2019 upgrade made the screen about seven times brighter than the version it replaced, and it covers roughly 130,000 square feet, so even a short show fills the whole length of the street above you. Stand near the middle of the mall for the best view of the full screen.

Downtown is a short taxi, ride-share or bus ride from the Strip. Combine a visit with The Mob Museum, a short walk away, and the Neon Museum a little further up Las Vegas Boulevard. The Arts District lies a short ride to the south, so it is easy to make a full evening of Downtown.