Las Vegas has a number of exhibits and attractions that can be experienced and enjoyed by visitors of all ages at no cost.  The iconic and maybe most recognizable sign in the world is the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas Sign at the southern end of the Las Vegas Strip.  No trip to Las Vegas is complete without a visit to this legendary sign and a photo, maybe even one with Elvis.  A small area in the median of Las Vegas Boulevard allows for visitors to park, walk around and take photos with the sign day or night.  Another less known but worthwhile landmark is the Las Vegas Boulevard Gateway Arches sitting at the base of the Strat tower.  Standing 80 feet tall, the illuminated arches with motional and changing colors serve as the gateway to the City of Las Vegas and the historic downtown area.  Just north of the arches on the Las Vegas Boulevard Gateway is an artistic representation of all that is representative of Las Vegas, the Las Vegas Arches Compliment Showgirl Sign.  The artistic display features a giant set of dice, poker chips, the city of Las Vegas logo and two larger than life 26-foot-tall showgirls that are lit up at night.  This is a great unique spot to get photos either during the day or evening to post, making all your friends and family jealous of the fun you are having in Vegas.

An iconic centerpiece of the Las Vegas Strip, the Fountains of Bellagio are a beautiful masterpiece of art and engineering in a complex and massive water feature.  Water shoots to 460 feet high throughout the 1,000-foot-long display with synchronized motion, music and lights.  The fountains with the Bellagio in the background are an ideal location for photography or just a romantic backdrop.  Free showings are every 30 minutes on weekdays from 3:00pm to 8:00 pm and every 15 minutes from 8:00 PM to midnight.  Weekends and holidays are every 30 minutes from noon to 8:00 pm and every 15 minutes from 8:00 PM to midnight.  Just across from the hotel front desk of the Bellagio lies a spacious area with a 50-foot glass ceiling and framework consisting of green oxidized copper set in floral patterns.  This is the Conservatory & Botanical Gardens which is a free demonstration of seasonal displays that are set to the surrounding trees, ponds, bridges and gazebos.  Every season the 120-person horticulture staff designs an exhibit using flowers, starting with traditional designs of the Lunar New Year celebration.  The Spring composition features a palette of colors of flowers and plants associated with spring in the creation of the featured display, while summer has a collection of fragrant flora making up the exhibit.  Thanksgiving design artistry celebrates the orange, yellow, brown and gold colors of fall foliage.  The holiday display commences right after Thanksgiving weekend, when the conservatory’s colors and flowers are transformed for Christmas.

Rising from the Mirage lagoon on the strip is a mountain that seems placid but has a hidden secret.  As the birds start to sound off and music plays, the Mirage Volcano awakens breathing fire into the sky and fiery “lava” flowing down the sides.  Feel the heat of the eruptions nightly from 8:00 to 11:00 pm on the hour.  Be sure to see the volcano while you can as the Mirage has been sold and current plans for the new casino include removal of the icon that has been in place for over 30 years.  The Lake of Dreams show at the Wynn is a 5,500 LED light and sound experience with puppetry set on the 3-acre Lake of Dreams with the 90-foot waterfall and 1,500 surrounding pine trees.  Complimentary shows are nightly every half hour after dusk.  A spectacular Waterfall Atrium between the Palazzo and the Grand Canal Shoppes at The Venetian Resort has a two-story waterfall and gardens and is the perfect setting for relaxation and photos.  The atrium display and gardens have rotational seasonal displays of flowers and foliage that are representative of Chinese New Year, spring, summer, fall and winter.  Italy comes to Las Vegas at Streetmosphere in the Grand Canal Shoppes at The Venetian Resort.  Free live shows with opera, music and dance performances in the Italian streets of the shops by the canal occur every 15 minutes daily.  The Gondolier March occurs every morning and afternoon with a parade through the Italian architecture shops and to the North Canal, with all singing before beginning the day.

The ARIA Fine Art Collection is an eclectic gathering of paintings sculptures and large installation displays of a variety of genre integrated into the Aria Resort & Casino.  The collection of 20 exhibits is a self-guided tour with information about each piece and artist.  A map with the locations and description of the works within the CityCenter campus can be downloaded electronically, or a hardcopy can be obtained from one of the hotel concierges.  Standing at the entrance of Aria Resort & Casino welcoming guests is Lumia, a water fountain with twisting streams of water lit with an energetic palette of colors.  The outside lobby has Focus, the beautiful, curved stone water wall with a changing flow that results in a pleasant soothing sound to arriving guests. 

Atlantis’ tragic story is told with fire, water and dueling animatronic characters who fight for control over the kingdom in The Fall of Atlantis Show in the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace.  Another must see is the 50,000-gallon saltwater and its more than 300 exotic fish it houses not far from the show. Circus Circus Hotel and Casino has been entertainment for the whole family for many years, and at the center of it all are the Free Circus Acts.  Acts are part of the world’s largest permanent circus and include high flying trapeze, silk aerial, strongmen, balancing, juggling, dance and circus clown performances.  Daily shows are at the center stage of the Carnival Midway from 1:30 pm to 8.30 pm Monday through Thursday and 11:30 am to 11:30 pm Friday and Saturday. The world’s largest Coke Bottle stands on the Las Vegas Strip in front of the Coca-Cola Store and MGM Grand.  Get a free picture with the gigantic bottle and the iconic polar Coca-Cola Polar Bear while exploring the multi-level store.  Not far from the Coke Bottle and MGM Grand is a 28,000 square foot, four level, first ever store of everything M&M’s, M&M’S Las Vegas.  The front of the store has giant colored M&M brand characters on a massive display and an M&M’s NASCAR replica race car can been seen on the fourth floor, which are both perfect for free photos.  If your sugar craving hasn’t been satisfied, a short walk across the Strip to New York-New York Hotel & Casino and you will find Hershey’s Chocolate World Las Vegas.  The 13,000 square foot store houses a giant Hershey Kiss display and Statue of Liberty sculpture constructed of nearly 800 lbs of pure Hershey’s Milk Chocolate.  Ethel M Chocolates is a Las Vegas area (Henderson) original and manufacturer of fine chocolates for over 40 years.  The Ethel M Chocolate Factory has self-guided free tours via a new viewing aisle that provides an up-close look at the chocolatiers creating the tasty treats as well as the machines used.  The viewing aisle gives access to a look into pecan brittle being made by hand daily in Ethel’s kitchen and satin crèmes, caramels, and peanut butter fillings.  It may not seem like it would be the home to Nevada’s largest Botanical Cactus Garden but be sure to visit Ethel M Chocolates’ onsite 3-acre free collection of cacti and succulents.  The garden has over 300 hundred species including specimens from the American Southwest, Australia and South America.

Another no cost wildlife display of birds, turtles and fish is in the 4 acres of gardens, streams and waterfalls at The Flamingo Wildlife Habitat in the Flamingo Las Hotel and Casino.  Visitors can become one with nature in the serenity of the habitat and its beautiful flock of Chilean Flamingos, exotic waterfowl, Brown Pelicans, local songbirds and hummingbirds which call it home.  Sturgeon, turtles, Koi and Albino catfish inhabit the streams and are a must see of the habitat.

Only in Vegas can you see Mermaids, and even better yet, for free.  The Aquarium at Silverton Casino Hotel has been named a “Best Free Attraction in Las Vegas” with its more than 117,000-gallon tank, thousands of tropical fish and of course live swimming Mermaids interacting with guests.  Not too far from the Mermaids at Silverton Casino Hotel in the adjacent Bass Pro Shops, an 18,000-gallon freshwater aquarium contains live Koi.  A flowing canyon river has sturgeon, turtles, bluegills and even ducks within an indoor simulated wilderness habitat that also includes three other tanks that are home to bass, catfish and trout.

The Fremont Street Experience is the heart of historic downtown Las Vegas and is an exciting five blocks of entertainment in a pedestrian mall on Fremont Street from the east entrance at Las Vegas Boulevard to the west end on Main Street.  Among the bright flashing lights, street performers, casinos and SlotZilla Zipline, stands the main attraction of the Fremont Street Experience, Viva Vision. Viva Vision has 49.3 million LEDs, a 600,000-Watt sound system and is the world’s largest video screen at 90 feet wide and spanning 1,375 feet, 90 feet above the ground.  Free featured entertainment including Viva Vision light shows every night from 6:00 pm to 2 am on the top of the hour and three stages of live music make Fremont Street the place to be for a nightly party.  The downtown stages are also home to some of the biggest names in music with the free yearly Downtown Rocks Concert Series starting in the Spring and extending into the Fall.  While down on Fremont Street, stop in the Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino to see the Hand of Faith gold nugget.  The nugget is the largest in existence, the second largest discovered, and the largest discovered with a metal detector.  Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino purchased it for over a million dollars from the individual who discovered it in Australia.

The Downtown Las Vegas Alley is a unique urban gallery walk of the hidden collection of street artwork of murals, sculptures and landscaping in a T-shaped network of alleys behind bars and restaurants on East Fremont Street between Fremont, Carson, Las Vegas Boulevard and 6th Street.  Located at the far eastern end of East Fremont Street is an open-air shopping center constructed of you guessed it, 43 repurposed shipping containers and 41 locally manufactured Xtreme cubes!  Downtown Container Park is a collection of 38 unique retail shops, boutiques, restaurants and bars, live entertainment and games.  Visitors are greeted by a giant 40 feet tall and 30 feet wide Mantis which shoots flames from its antennas six stories into the sky and has a built in 4,000-watt surround sound system.  Sundown is when the Mantis comes to life beginning with a drum circle and operates until closing, weather permitting.  The Lawn has a variety of daily activities and events and is the open area guests gather for the live entertainment stage, a graffiti wall with an illuminating “DTLV” sign, lounge chairs for relaxation and life-size Lego blocks and checkers board game. Overlooking the Downtown Container Park from the center is The Treehouse, where children and adults alike will enjoy the boardwalks making their way through the tree, a 33-foot-tall slide and the NEOS play system.

A few miles south of Fremont Street is home to an area not likely known to many Las Vegas visitors and one of Vegas’ best kept secrets, The Arts District.  The Arts District or 18b (18 blocks) is a quarter in Downtown Las Vegas known for galleries, shops, restaurants, bars and performances.  At the center of the gallery and performance experience are Art Square and The Arts Factory building.  The buildings are home to studios where visitors have the unique opportunity to meet and discuss works with artists and photographers, poetry readings and music and theatrical performances in Art Square Theater and Cockroach Theatre, all in one place.  First Friday is a monthly arts and cultural festival in the Arts District that occurs every month on the First Friday of each month. This exciting gathering of local artists and their work, food trucks, crafts, vendors and musicians make First Friday a great way to celebrate the start of every new month with local culture.

The Neon Museum is home to more than 200 of Las Vegas’ most famous signs of years past in its famous boneyard, but a free self-guided 24-hour public art tour can be taken to view iconic signs of the collection like the Hacienda Horse and Rider at Las Vegas Boulevard and Fremont Street, the Silver Slipper and the Bow & Arrow Motel and Binion’s Horseshoe near the La Concha Visitors’ Center at the McWilliams Avenue, Society Cleaners, the Lucky Cuss Motel and the Normandie Motel along Las Vegas Blvd between Ogden Ave and the 95 overpass, the 5th Street Liquor at Garces Street and Casino Center Boulevard and the Landmark Hotel Paradise Road near the site of the old casino.  The museum’s Visitor’s Center, the historic former La Concha Motel’s unique exterior architecture can be viewed without entry.

It is free to enter Monday through Thursday and prior to 10 pm Friday and Saturday into AREA15’s hangarlike building for a surreal assemblage of paid immersive art, exhibits, virtual reality experiences, rides, shopping and food all under a giant hangarlike building with characteristics of those associated with Area 51.  Prior to entering the alternate reality that is AREA15, wander through a free giant permanent 3D outdoor art and sculpture gallery including a giant robot, bird in flight and airplane wreckage in Art Island.  Upon entry, visitors experience a welcome assault on the senses of bright fluorescent moving colors synchronized to music and sounds, touch, and tastes with magnificent food and drinks.

The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is home to Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art providing free entry to all exhibitions, workshops, lectures, and community activities.  Collections include The Barrick Art Collection, The Barrick Cultural Collection, The LVAM Collection and The Vogel Collection.  Works in The Barrick Art Collection include artists with connections to Las Vegas and were created in Southern Nevada.  Beginning in 1969, The Barrick Cultural Collection is composed of American Southwest, Mesoamerica and Pre-Columbian cultural objects.  The LVAM Collection includes the works of national and international artists, as well as UNLV graduates.  Dorothy and Herbert Vogel donated 50 contemporary works from their impressive collection as part of their program to donate 50 pieces to one institution in every state, of which comprise The Vogel Collection.

The Shelby Heritage Center has a free tour self-guided tour of its 15,000 square foot museum with over 30 Shelby vehicles, the history of Shelby’s origin in 1962 and its legendary founder Carol Shelby.  The Heritage Center is next to the 150,000 square-foot production facility where visitors can witness vehicles being modified in the shop or take a paid VIP behind the scenes custom tour.

Military history aficionados will be in heaven while experiencing the free outdoor museum of military vehicles and aircraft at the five-acre facility of Battlefield Vegas.  Exhibits provide visitors with history of equipment used in various wars in the impressive outdoor collection of tanks, Humvees, helicopters, armored vehicles and trucks.  Onsite is a large collection of machine guns from past wars that can be fired in the range with professional instruction and guidance.

Seven Magic Mountains is an impressive, colorful, man-made landmark rising from the desert floor in the Ivanpah Valley created by internationally renowned Swiss artist Ugo Rondinone.  This large art display standing more than 30 feet high in the stark desert landscape includes seven towers created from colorful painted boulders that are unique artistic experience in the backdrop of a remote location.