Las Vegas, Nevada is one of those places you either love or tolerate. But since we’d all be better served to find the brighter side of things in this life, I try to find beauty in whichever place I go.
It doesn’t always seem as easy in a place like Vegas where you’re dodging bachelorettes and bros, gamblers and lushes, but there are a lot of cool photo finds in Sin City.
I always like the idea of turning these Instagram photo tours into sort of travel scavenger hunts, adding food stops and other fun things in along the way, so if that’s what you want to do, check out my previous post on Things to do in Sin City other than sin, for a look at what to add to your Insta tour.
Otherwise, here are the best finds I’ve uncovered for color Instagram photos in Las Vegas.
1. Seven Magic Mountains
This might be my favorite Instagram stop in Las Vegas. It’s so perfectly odd, just like the city itself. The art installation that is Seven Magic Mountains was done by Swiss artist Ugo Rondinone, and intended to reflect a sort of abstract human form of natural formations, like these rock towers resembling hoodoos in the badlands. The work was only supposed to be up until May of this year, but it’s become so popular that people are fighting to keep it going. So far, they’re saying it will be up for at least all of 2018, but it’s worth going to see soon in case someone changes their mind.
2. Welcome to Las Vegas sign
This one is a must if you’re coming into Vegas. The Welcome to Last Vegas sign is out on its own passed Mandalay Bay, but you can pay $8 for a 24-hour pass on the Deuce bus, which will take you up and down The Strip all day long, and you can ride as many times as you want. *Pro-tip: don’t stand in line to pay anyone who wants to take your photo in front of the sign. Just stand off to the side and take it yourself for free.
3. New York-New York
I may be biased, but I think New York-New York is one of the most fun hotels to photograph. It’s like a Barbie playhouse version of the real Big Apple. There’s a roller coaster here too if you want to break up your Instagram tour with some adventure.
4. Mirage pool
The pool at Mirage is easily one of the best on The Strip. It’s got waterfalls and lagoons, quiet spots and mingling spots—everything you could ever want from a pool, really. There are also endless different photo ops to be found here for those posts that reflect your vacation vibe. The pool is for hotel guests only, but it would be well worth staying there if you’re not in town for that long to rack up the lodging charge.
5. Neon Museum
The Neon Museum is one of those quirky relics of a Las Vegas past. It’s got neon signs from old casinos dating as far back as the 1930s. Take a tour and a guide will tell you about each sign and the unique story of who created it and what inspired it.
6. The Strip
The Las Vegas Strip is a wonderland of weird. Most of the things you see here you probably wouldn’t want to photograph for the ‘Gram, but fun shots of the funky hotels and casinos often work.
7. Las Vegas Boulevard
Las Vegas Boulevard is the main drag that runs through the city. It spans from the Welcome to Las Vegas Sign to The Strip to Downtown Las Vegas and more. All along it, you’ll find weirdly photogenic creepy motels and old school signs worth getting snaps of.
8. Fremont Street Experience
If it were possible for Las Vegas to get any more odd, it would happen at the Fremont Street Experience. It’s five blocks of “entertainment” that ranges from live concerts to ziplining over the pedestrian mall to surveying “nuns” with their breasts exposed (yes, you read that right). It’s worth the visit just to know what it’s like.
9. Art on Fremont Street
Once you’ve emerged from the designated Fremont Street Experience area, walk Fremont Street itself to find interesting public art all around. No matter the day, the place always has a sort of deserted feel, which seems to jive well with its general weirdness.
10. Downtown Las Vegas murals
There are murals galore (a personal favorite find for me) in Downtown Las Vegas. You’ll see them along Fremont Street, as mentioned above, and when you venture off onto little side streets all right in the same 4-block radius. You can use Container Park as a point of reference for where to begin, and you’ll start seeing murals all around you. Container Park is also an offbeat shopping center built out of shipping containers, so there’s that when you’re done too.
