One of the most exciting and pleasurable aspects of a trip to Las Vegas, the gambling paradise in the Nevada desert, is the chance to spot in the flesh some of the most famous locations from some of Hollywood’s biggest movies.
Before you throw yourself headlong into your Vegas experience, why not stand on the viewing bridge that looks onto the synchronized fountains of the Bellagio, just as Danny Ocean’s gang did at the end of Oceans Eleven , to think of beating the house and scooping the big one?
Once you’ve done that, though, you’ll need something to set your pulse racing – how about a trip to Circus Circus, the casino resort that was infamously invaded by Raoul Duke and his accomplice Dr Gonzo in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, to see the circus acts that really do take place above a netted ceiling that covers the main casino floor.
This was also the casino where Austin Powers and his confidante Vanessa sneak inside, in Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery. Not far away is the Riviera Casino, featured both in Martin Scorsese’s Casino and in campy nineties cult classic Showgirls.
But perhaps the most revered of all Las Vegas casinos to appear on film is the Tropicana; this was where Michael Corleone, who eventually inherited the family business from Vito Corleone in The Godfather cut his teeth, learning the trade, and was featured extensively in the first film, and is a magnet for all those who adulate Francis Ford Coppola’s Mafia classic.
While playing casinos games at an online casino might be quicker, cheaper and just as fun (click here for an example), one thing you have to give Las Vegas is its Hollywood cachet: around every corner is another piece of cinema history to test your memory and delight your senses!