Some really great Vegas information (Revised 1-5-2006)

Note Vegas is changing so fast I can't keep up with it.
Some of these links will take you to the latest info.

If you want a list of all the hotels, go to LasVegas.com, Click Hotel-Casino Guide in the left column, or go to RJ's hotel listings
See if you can find the info on our new hotels being built. They are building new ones, remodeling old ones and imploding others so fast it's impossible to keep up. If you want to see implosion videos, check the Las Vegas Review Journal site.
New York/New York
Monte Carlo
Boulder Station
Texas Station
Bellagio
Mandalay Bay

For a complete list of hotels go to this site including ones under construction with renderings or photos

The Venetian
Paris

Park Place Entertainment owns a number of these hotels.
Click here for their main site.

Hyatt Resort at Lake Las Vegas

Aladdin

DESERT INN DIED

Sunset Station is one of a number of resorts owned by Station Casinos. They also bought the Fiesta in North Vegas and converted the Reserve in Henderson to a Fiesta Casino.
Their other Station casinos are the Palace, Boulder, Texas and Santa Fe. Links to all of them are on the main Station Casinos page.
Green Valley Ranch

Check out this page for a list of attractions for kids
Circus Circus is the oldest roller coaster in town and still one of the best. (Link revised 7/99) Circus Circus Enterprises has changed its name to Mandalay Resort Group which lists 15 casinos/resorts. One of these is the Gold Strike in Jean, not to be confused with the old Gold Strike near Boulder City that burned down in 98. They have now rebuilt and renamed the Hacienda since the old Hacienda name was not in use. A story from the archives of the LVRJ Las Vegas Review Journal says they expect to open late in 99, which they did. The link is huge, so if you are interested, go to the LVRJ site and search the past issues for Gold Strike. The Hacienda has been operating for some time now and seems successful. At least the food is good. It even has a movie theater. The closing of Hoover Dam to all but passenger cars has hurt the traffic to the Hacienda. They are in a state of flux with restaurants and employees. Even with the re-opening to tour busses and RV's, the hotel is floundering. Only time will tell if they can stay afloat.

Casinos with Roller Coasters:

Buffalo Bill's (at the state line to/from LA - 45 minutes South of Vegas). It is the second tallest in the world at 210 ft. with a 200 ft drop that feels like free fall. (9-24-2003 Note: on the way back from LA today, the billboard said it was 250 Feet!!) Buffalo Bill's is part of the Primadonna Resorts at the Nevada/California state Line on Highway 15. The Resorts include  the Primm Valley Golf Club.

Stratosphere tower with a coaster and a big shot and a new attraction called (Click here to find out). The Big shot has 4 rows of chairs around the uppermost spire 1000 ft up. 16 people are strapped in chairs out in the open facing away from the tower (4 per side) and shot up in the air toward the top of the tower to free fall down and bounce 3 times like a bungee jump. (not for weak hearts!) Just watching this from the freeway produces goosebumps.
Just below the Big Shot and above the inside and outside observation deck is the coaster. It's a short mild ride if you keep your eyes closed and ignore the fact that you are being propelled around the top of a building about 1000 feet above ground out in the breeze.
The new ride promises the worst (or Best) scares yet.
New York, New York has a nice coaster that wraps around the outside of the casino.

Definitely the most daring ride was the Sky Screamer (aptly named) at the MGM. This was added in 97 and matches or exceeds the Big Shot in adrenaline pumping. The only thing better than the Screamer is actually bungee jumping or parachute jumping. The Screamer is expensive. If you don't have the guts to ride it, at least go watch others do it. Entrance to the MGM theme park is now free. If you do open the wallet, be sure to include a video of the riders. It is a 15 minute video of the actual setup and complete ride with all the sounds made by the riders. But be prepared. Your kids may use language you don't expect! This is the best souvenir of my grand kids we've ever had. Plan at least 2 hours for just this ride alone. (9-24-2003 Note: Not sure this attraction is still open. MGM closed the theme park some time ago.)

Some facts about our area (Revised 9/24/03)

Las Vegas proper is not very big. Most of what appears as city is county.
The Las Vegas valley is over 1.5 million population and growing at a rate of 50 to 60 thousand a year.
Henderson (which includes Green Valley) is largest city in population in Nevada and has been the fastest growing city in the US for years.
Boulder City (non-official web page) is largest city in square miles in Nevada with a population of around 15,000. We used to be a "one traffic signal" town. On August 4th, 1998, the town added a second light. As you enter town from Vegas, a new intersection was created to extend Adams Blvd. Turning right (South) here provides a shortcut to the Boulder City Hospital, Veterans Cemetery and the Boulder City Municipal Golf Course(s) (Soon to be 2). You can now turn left as well and go North to the new Veterans home which was supposed to open in early 2002. This has been a government fiasco.
Boulder City has lots of Golf Courses. Its hard to keep up with the growth and name changes.
Check the Boulder City page for updates.

We now have 2 major grocery stores. Albertson's  opened a new shopping center/mini mall at the main light. Von's has enlarged to be more competitive. The Central Market in downtown BC still has an old fashioned butcher shop and makes home deliveries.
Boulder City is the only town in Nevada where gambling is illegal and a slow growth has helped keep a small town atmosphere.
Check out the Boulder City site for more info on the town and it's surrounding attractions. There is some great info on Hoover Dam.
BTW, check out the photos on the BC and Hoover Dam sites.
Also check the links on the Websites page

Contrary to belief, prostitution is NOT legal in Las Vegas and about 14 counties in Nevada.
Prostitution is legal in some other counties in Nevada but not Clark County (Las Vegas, Laughlin, Boulder City (Official page), Henderson, Mesquite)
Pahrump is in Nye County and probably the fastest growing area outside of Las Vegas proper. Nye county allows prostitution.

Lake Mead is the largest man made lake in the US. As of January 2002, it is as low as I've seen it in 12 years.
Hoover Dam is a site worth visiting, but the visitor center and tours were closed on Sept 11. It did reopen in December for limited tours. Check their web site for current details.
Also visit the Hoover Dam Museum site for some interesting facts about Hoover Dam.
The Boulder City Hotel Has been restored and is now again being used as a hotel with limited rooms.
It houses some offices, the Chamber of Commerce, shops and a restaurant. The Chamber will be moving into new offices across the street sometime in 2003.

If you want information about cities, counties, states and countries,
check out the Official Cities Sites run by a private couple. (Link revised 7/99)