This is a town of comps, freebies, and perks — free drinkies for gamblers, free suites for high rollers. Your eyes can drink for free here, too: the lights of the Strip, stunning desert geology, the Bellagio Conservatory, Hoover Dam. Let’s stipulate all of those and — while grimly accepting the reality of paid parking — see what other no-cost fun can be had:
Akhob: Instead of a museum, James Turrell’s astonishing, colored-light installation is tucked away in the Louis Vuitton store in the Crystals mall on the Strip. Admission is free, but you must reserve a spot at 702-730-3150.
Eataly: This food court in Park MGM “often has free wine and food samples so you can sip and savor as you’re browsing,” says City Cast Las Vegas lead producer Sonja Cho Swanson. Like an upscale Costco!
Don't Tell Mama: “Some of the best local city talent” ply their rousing trade at this dueling piano bar and open mic joint in Neonopolis, according to reader "skmcasey." No cover.
- My pick: People-watching on Fremont Street — it's the thickest part of the human stew, and utterly fascinating.
UNLV: The university is a veritable hive of no-cost amenities available to student and public alike, says reader Soni Brown: “Free movies, performances, gallery-level art, museum, talks, receptions … free walking track, and more.”
Wetlands Park: We could’ve put a lot of outdoor facilities on this list — Sloan Canyon! free walking trails at Springs Preserve! — but went with this because it has a counterintuitive quality: a wetlands park in the arid desert. Maybe that’s what makes it, in the words of City Cast Las Vegas co-host Vogue Robinson, “eerily magical.”
