Fast times in Sin City

It takes something really special and not a little over-the-top to stand out in Las Vegas, but each year the Formula 1 arriving in town does just that. This year marks Audi’s first appearance in ‘Sin City’ as a works team with the Audi Revolut F1 Team looking to add more points to what has already been a tremendous debut season. But while the action on the track may be the main attractions, there is no reason why all aspects of your trip shouldn’t be just as memorable. Whether you are planning a last minute dash to catch this year’s Las Vegas Formula 1 Grand Prix (November 19 – 21) or looking a little further down the track, we have assembled some of the more ‘interesting’ accommodations on offer in the adult playground of the world, with 10 of the best in Vegas.

Luxor

The Luxor’s giant 30-storey pyramid of smoky-dark glass is a Las Vegas landmark guarded by a Sphinx and approached along an avenue of palm trees and ram-headed gods. A jaw-dropping atrium occupies the entire pyramid’s interior. The theme of the original Luxor is now toned down and has vanished from guest rooms, but huge pharaonic statues, stuffed life-sized camels, occasional archaeological décor, and a huge swimming pool framed in replica temple columns remain. Cleopatra was unlikely to ever have been offered margarita popsicles poolside, however.

Excalibur

Next door, King Tut gives way to King Arthur at a turreted castle with purple and orange conical roofs, approached across a gigantic carpark and drawbridge. The theme is realised on too tight a budget to have the biggest impact, and it would take more than some medieval ‘shoppes’ and suits of armour to evoke Arthurian legend, but Excalibur is budget and family friendly, with an attractive tropical-style pool, a Tournament of Kings that showcases jousting, and a kitschy and humorous attitude that will appeal to children.

New York New York

The most comprehensively themed budget hotel in Las Vegas packs in several mini-skyscrapers including an Empire State Building, Brooklyn Bridge and Statue of Liberty. It doesn’t stint on the detail either, from the mailboxes, subway signs and fire hydrants to the ‘steam’ rising from floor grates, décor of the rooms and New York-themed restaurants. The Big Apple roller-coaster that swoops across the hotel’s exterior and into the casino interior is one of the city’s best if old-fashioned thrill rides.

Paris Las Vegas

New York New York was the first themed city but just as eye-catching is Paris, where a half-sized Eiffel Tower rises over the top of a mini-Arc de Triomphe, Palais Garnier opera house and Montgolfier hot-air balloon in a clever arrangement of limited space. The exterior has a priceless asset in Mon Ami Gabi brasserie, one of few locations on the Strip where you can sit outside and watch the world go by. Cobblestones, fountains and metro signs add to the effect, and the Paris has the most fully realised themed menus, with French food galore.

Bellagio Resort

In 1998 this hotel development helped shake off Las Vegas’ decline, reenergised the Strip and kickstarted the city’ luxury accommodation trend. It has since become one of its most iconic hotels, not least for the dancing fountains that provide the best free entertainment in town. The theme is admittedly odd –  Italian lakeside village on the outside and at the Mediterranean-styled, cypress-shaded pools, ornate opulence on the inside, from the spectacular glass-blown flowers that cover the lobby ceiling to the art collection. Carbone Riviera is a much-lauded Italian-American restaurant with particularly good seafood.

Caesars Palace

Enter this labyrinthine hotel and you’ll be transported back to ancient Rome as imagined by 1960s Hollywood. Expect an Appian Way, statues of emperors and goddesses, frescoes and mosaics, and a Forum filled with shops under a blue-domed, sky-imitating ceiling that changes from dawn to dusk every hour. The seven swimming pools, modelled after Pompeii’s baths, are extravagant monuments in marble. Casino staff wear gladiator and other Roman costumes, and the Bacchanal Buffet is legendary in its variety. Kitsch and campy, but luxurious and amusing too.

Mandalay Bay

This gold-coloured hotel isn’t so much a themed hotel as a theme park that enables you to wander from Red Square to a ‘tropical’ beach, Asian-inspired spa and American steakhouse.  Perfect, then, for the uncommitted looking for variety – and one of the city’s best pool scenes. Another of the highlights is the famous walk-through Shark Reef Aquarium, which houses some 2000 critters and a pseudo-shipwreck but is best known for its leopard sharks. The Bay’s other notable entertainment is a Cirque du Soleil production based on Michael Jackson music.

Circus Circus

If movies give the impression that Las Vegas is all gambling and debauchery, then this very family friendly hotel with its Big Top shows otherwise. It’s far from the best accommodation, but kids will love its carnival atmosphere, arcades, and performances at the world’s largest permanent circus. Indoor amusement park The Adventuredome features several rollercoasters (one has a double-loop and double corkscrew), more genteel rides and wandering clowns. Outside, you get waterslides, a splash park and some kick-back cabanas.

Flamingo Las Vegas

Bang in the centre of the Strip, the Flamingo has an unbeatable location and reasonable price tag even if it’s overshadowed by more luxurious, grander resorts. Willie Wonka meets Barbie in the pink-hued décor. Its lush gardens are a bonus – and yes, feature live flamingos. The hotel opened in 1946 – though it underwent a huge renovation in 2018 – and is for those seeking retro charm, old-fashioned glamour and glitz, and heritage acts such as Wayne Newton. Even the steakhouse has vintage appeal.

The Venetian Resort

The façade of this hotel packs in six of Venice’s most recognisable buildings, including the Campanile and Doge’s Palace, as well as a Rialto Bridge and a stretch of canal. Every hour homing pigeons are released to flap about the square. Inside, you can boat along another canal in a gondola. Is it outrageous? Undoubtedly. But when you’re sitting tucking into your gnocchi and a gondolier floats past singing Italian opera, there’s only one sure bet in Las Vegas – you’ll have a smile on your face.