Las Vegas

An oasis in the middle of a desert,

Las Vegas is America's gambling capital.

Creation

Meyer Lonsky is the creator of Las Vegas. He was born in 1902 in Grodno in Poland. He settled down in a Slum in Lower East side in New York in 1911. At the age of sixteen, he created his own gang.

Lansky Luciano was one of his childhood's friend. In 1930 and 1940, Lansky and his associates opened casinos in Louisiana, Cuba and Las Vegas in 1942. Around 1947, there were 23,000 inhabitants to whom players coming from California must be added : in 1950, more than 8 million tourists went to Las Vegas.

At that time, people could come to get married in 2 minutes. Divorces could be settled in 6 weeks, There were luxury hotels at 4 dollars a night, prostitutes, alcohol and, obviouslygames.

Today, Las Vegas is a city of 1,3 million inhabitants. It is a game town. Supported by the federal state, Las Vegas is in constant evolution. There are more and more hotels and gambling places.

In 2003, the valley of Las Vegas counted 1,583,172 inhabitants.

Geography

Situated in the north of the Nevada desert. Las Vegas is in a vast region containing the biggest part of Nevada and some fragments of California, Utah, Oregon... Las Vegas is located in the southern part of the state of Nevada. It is approximately 80 km east of the Californian borders and

50 km from the West of Arizona.

The city is divided into 2 big parts : the town center and the "  Long Strip": a long corridor of hotels and casinos. 85 % of the water of the city is drawn from the Colorado river. This constitutes a major problem as far as agriculture is concerned because in 2010, the river will be dry which will create problems of water and air pollution.

History

The Spanish found the name "Las Vegas" which means " the meadows " or " the fertile valleys ". The Mormons abandoned the site in 1857. The American army built a fort there in 1864. The town was officially born on May 15th, 1905. Gambling was legalized in 1931 and the first casinos were built a decade later. « The Flamingo », created by a godfather from the Mafia, was the first luxury casino-hotel.

The world's capital of entertainment has become a holiday resort. Hotels-casinos with themes offer surprising discoveries. For example, there are now more than 60 greens for the golfers.

The geographic situation of Las Vegas is, in fact, an inescapable passage for those who wish to discover the western natural miracles of the United States.

The climate

310, is the average number of sunny days in the city. Between May and September, the rate of humidity is extremely low and can become difficult to bear for sensitive people.

The average temperature during this period is 35°C with a little difference between day and night. Winters are mild. Yet, one day during the Christmas holidays, the city woke up under thin layer a of snow !!

Economy

Las Vegas is one of the first tourists' destinations in the world, that is why there are many hotels. But other factors account for the economy of Las Vegas, such as gambling, obviously, but also the restaurants, the spectacles and the various entertainments which are offered.

Hotel and Casinos

Las Vegas is known all over the world for its casinos. Most of these are also high capacity hotels. Casinos offering games of money remain however forbidden to the minors (less than 21 years old in the United States). Hotels-casinos divide up on two zones:

Downtown, the town center, with the most former casinos and the brilliant attraction Fremont Street Experience. Strip, sometimes called also South Strip or, officially, Las Vegas Boulevard, a long boulevard extending of the town center southward in the direction of Los Angeles. It is there that are situated the biggest hotels-casinos, most récen.

Aéroports :

The city is mainly served by the international Airport McCarran which supplies the commercial flights in the valley of Las Vegas. The airport is also of use to the private planes, to the flights of international passengers and to the flights of freight.