Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
9
Bars, Clubs &
Other Nighttime
Diversions
They're of every variety, sinful and non-sinful,
chic and cheap, worth a stop and not
by Kate Silver
W
HILE OTHER CITIES DRAW IMPRESSIVE CROWDS TO SYMPHONIES
,
MUSEUMS
,
and coffee houses, Las Vegas has its own nightlife culture, one that can only be
described (you'll soon understand why) as sparkly, glowing, gyrating, and intoxi-
cating (or intoxicated).
The city comes alive at night, offering as much, if not more entertainment as
in the daytime. At midnight, sidewalks on the Strip are packed elbow-to-elbow
with tourists making their way to the next entertainment stop. It could be a bar
with a three-story-tall margarita-spewing volcano; a nightclub with more religious
statues than any church; or an “ultra lounge” (which is a smaller version of a club)
with light projections that guests can actually manipulate.
And in this “city that never sleeps” (eat your heart out, New York), many of them
never close—or shut down way, way late in the wee hours of the morning. What's
more, there's no Nevada or city law mandating a “last call” for drinks—the liquor
keeps flowing 'til you put a stop to it (or the bartender puts a stop to you).
I'll cover these bars, dives,
lounges, ultralounges, and clubs in
this chapter, both on and off the
Strip. While the nightspots on the
Strip are impressive, it's the places
off the beaten path that show the
true character of Las Vegas. Even
better, most of them are competing
for local dollars rather than tourists' money, so they're much less expensive.
By no means should you limit your nighttime activity to the bars and clubs.
This chapter also highlights live music venues, comedy clubs, piano bars, hot
spots to hear free music, a nighttime tour, strip clubs (male and female), and even
the swingers clubs that help to make Sin City so, well, sinful. If you're interested
in seeing any of the city's permanent shows—Cirque, Celine, Celine imper-
sonators and the like—turn to chapter 8.
“
Resist everything but tempta-
”
tion.
—Oscar Wilde
