Famous the world over the Las Vegas Strip shines bright with larger than life neon signs and twinkling lights stretching as far as the eye can see. Las Vegas and neon are synonymous you can’t have one without the other. Therefore, it makes perfect sense that there would be a museum dedicated to the preservation and history of the city’s iconic neon signs.
Are you a fan of vintage signs, twinkling lights, faded splendor, or history?
If you answered yes to any of these, or if you’re like me, all of them, The Neon Museum is the place for you! They do an amazing job of preserving Las Vegas’ storied past through the care and conservation of these signs, remnants of a bygone era.
As you might imagine the Museum is very popular and is available to visit via guided tours. Tours are offered both during the day and in the evening, but they fill up quickly, so planning ahead is a good idea.
A sunset tour allowed us to see the signs in daylight and after dark, which gave us the chance to see the signs lit up!
Our guide, Tandy, clearly loved her job, and her passion for the signs was clear.Her tour was not only informative, but full of fun Las Vegas anecdotes and stories.
The Stardust, Moulin Rouge, and Sahara are just a few of the names you might recognize as you wander through the Museum’s Boneyard. The Stardust hotel opened in 1958 and closed in 2006. It is said that it’s iconic sign could be seen from up to 60 miles away.
The Moulin Rouge was the first desegregated casino, and played a large part in helping the Las Vegas civil rights movement. Although the hotel has been closed since 1955, and the buildings were demolished, they still maintain their gaming licesnse by operating onsite every two years.
The Sahara was the 6th hotel resort to be built on the Las Vegas Strip and was in operation until 2011 when it was sold. Many famous people stayed and performed there including: Jerry Lewis, Frank Sinatra, Abbot & Costello, and The Beattles.
Tips & Advice:
- There is NO shade in the Neon Boneyard and it can be incredibly hot both day and night. Bring water.
- For safety reasons there is no self-guided tour option. Book ahead to ensure your visit.
- Only seven of the signs are in working order, however all the signs are lit beautifully via ground lighting.
- The signs are incredibly large and due to space restrictions it wasn’t always possible to get the big picture.
- The Neon Museum is located about 4 miles north of the Las Vegas Strip, not far from the Fremont East District where you’ll find a large amount of amazing street art on display.
- Of course we visited the gift shop where we found fun treasures to remember our visit by. I can’t wait to see my new ornament on the tree come holiday time!
Pin for later:
