There are two types of shopping centres (malls) in Las Vegas. Normal shopping centres, which you will find plenty of up and down the strip, so no need to travel anywhere. And, Outlet Malls, which are much more fun, but are situated off strip so you will need to get public transport or a hire car to visit them.
‘Normal’ Shopping centres (or Malls):
Fashion Show Mall: Fashion Show Mall is the largest Shopping Centre on the strip and is located next door to Treasure Island and opposite Wynn. It is probably the most interesting shopping mall to a UK visitor as it features all of the US stores that you have heard about, but that we don’t have in the UK (or very few of in the UK). This includes Macys and Nordstrom department stores. Well worth a visit if you want to take in some US style shopping. There are also a number of interesting restaurants here, for example, Strip Burger, which does some excellent burgers at reasonable prices and also has outside seating. California Pizza kitchen, which is a US chain restaurant (there is another branch in Mirage). Chipotle Mexican Grill (another US chain), RA Sushi at the front of the centre has outside seating and a great happy hour. There are also branches of Subway, Jamba Juice, Panda Express and Wendys for quick cheap meals.
Miracle Mile: Miracle mile is slightly more interesting aesthetically than Fashion Show Mall, but has less stores. It is attached to Planet Hollywood. It has mainstream stores such as Gap, American Apparel, French Connection, Guess, H&M, Urban Outfitters etc. It also has some great restaurants for cheap meals. Blondies Sports Bar and Grill does an all you can drink happy hour 3-6pm for $20, you can have spirit and mixer or draft beer. Cabo Wabo cantina is a Mexican restaurant at the entrance to Miracle Mile and has a nice terrace overlooking the strip. There is a burger restaurant courtesy of Cheeseburger Las Vegas. La Salsa Cantina does amazing value for money breakfast deals and 99c bloody marys.
Forum Shops at Caesar’s Palace: The maze like Forum Shops (once you are in you may never find your way out again, take a ball of string!!) is famous for it’s upscale shopping and Caesar’s Palace themed decoration. Shops here include Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Apple, Banana Republic, Coach, Diesel, Jimmy Choo, Mac and Victoria’s secret, so if you hit it big on the tables you know where to come. There is also a branch of Cheesecake Factory here. The excellent US chain restaurant.
The Linq: A small restaurant/shopping area that runs down towards the Vegas big wheel ‘the high roller’. Shops here are boutique type shops that sell sunglasses, shoes, gift items, that kind of thing. There are also a number of restaurants including Chayo Mexican kitchen and Yard House that serves American food and an incredible number of draft beers.
Mandalay Place: Mandalay Place is a shopping mall that doubles as an inside walkway between Mandalay Bay and Luxor. It isn’t huge, but there are some nice little shops and restaurants. It is quite good for unusual shops and gifts. The restaurants I have covered in detail in the Mandalay Bay section of restaurants.
Wynn Esplanade: Wynn has a number of very upscale shops on its property. Some are situated at the entrance of Wynn from the strip, the others are along the walkway that joins Wynn and Encore. Shops include Alexander McQueen, Cartier, Chanel, Chloe and Manolo Blahnik.
Bellagio Shops: Yet another very upscale selection, shops at Bellagio include Tiffanys, Dior, Prada and Armani.
Cosmopolitan shops: For the trendy young things the Cosmopolitan shops are the place to be. There aren’t many of them, but the ones they have are ‘cool’. For example, All Saints, Monogram and Stitched.
Grand Canal Shoppes at the Venetian: Another huge and beautiful shopping mall (in a Vegas way), Venetian shops have shopping, dining and a Venetian gondola ride. You can often watch people get married here while you are shopping. A rare experience in the rest of the World. Shops here range from mainstream to upscale and include Banana Republic, Barneys, Burberry, Christian Louboutin, Kate Spade New York, Ralph Lauren and Thomas Pink. I have included the restaurants in detail in the Venetian and Palazzo section of Restaurants. Madam Tussauds Las Vegas is also located here.
Outlet Malls:
Premium Outlets North: My preferred Vegas outlet mall is North of the strip near downtown. The mall is open air (they have misters in the summer, but if you get hot and bothered easily perhaps try the outlet South of the strip which is air conditioned!) You can get some good bargains here if you shop around from loads of great brands. Outlets here include, Armani Exchange, Adidas, American Apparel, Banana Republic, Calvin Klein, Converse, Diesel, DKNY, Gap, Guess, Levis, Nike, Puma, Reebok, and Tommy Hilfiger.
To get here you can take your hire car if you have one. It isn’t far and quite easy to find (2 miles north of stratosphere). If you don’t have a hire car, a taxi is certainly an option and wont break the bank, especially if you make savings with your shopping! There is a taxi stand at the mall, and you can easily pick up a taxi from your hotel.
Alternatively get the bus (RTC bus) – From the outlet mall the stop is near the Disney store. To get to the outlet mall you can get the strip and downtown express. It picks up from stops all along the strip from Mandalay Bay, right up to Wynn. There are also stops at the Sahara monorail station and Stratosphere. Buses are every 15 minutes and you must buy tickets before you board from the machines at the bus stops.
Alternative bus routes – The above bus can get very busy, these two alternative bus routes may be a little quieter. Centennial Express – picks up from a bus stop near TI, Venetian and the Wynn on Westbound Spring Mountain road (see bus timetable at bus stop). Or the Westcliff airport express near Tropicana, Excalibur, New York New York and MGM Grand picks up at a bus stop on Westbound Tropicana Avenue. (see bus timetable at bus stop).
Las Vegas premium outlets South: This is owned by the same company as the outlet mall in the North, but is South of the strip from Mandalay Bay. This is an inside centre and is air conditioned. I find the North outlet ‘prettier’, but on a really hot day it may be easier to shop here! It has similar shops to the North outlet, including, Adidas, Banana Republic, Calvin Klein, Converse, DKNY, Gap, Guess, Hugo Boss, Levis, Nike, O’Neil; Polo Ralph Lauren, Puma and Tommy Hilfiger.
Again, the easiest way to get here is by hire car if you have one. This mall is extremely easy to find, just carry on down the strip past Mandalay Bay. The mall is further down past the airport on the same road on the left hand side. Again, a taxi will easily get you here.
By Bus – The stop at the mall is near to the Nike Store. From the strip you need the RTC downtown and strip express going south, stops are all the way down the strip, there is also a stop at Golden Nugget and Stratosphere. Buses are every 15 minutes and you must buy a ticket before you board from the machine at the bus stop.
Bus 117 goes from South Point casino only to the mall. Bus 217 goes from Silverton Casino only to the mall.
Primm (Fashion outlet of Las Vegas): An alternative to going to one of the two Vegas outlets Malls is to have a day out at Primm.
Primm is located roughly 40 miles south of Mandalay Bay on the Nevada/California border and has an outlet mall and 3 casino hotels. The drive should take between 40 minutes to an hour. Some people swear by the fact that the Primm outlet shops carry cheaper prices than their Vegas equivalent and this may indeed be true.
Outlets at Primm include – American Eagle, Banana Republic, Calvin Klein, Coach, Converse, DKNY, Guess, Gap, Lacoste, Levis, Nike, Polo Ralph Lauren, Puma and Tommy Hilfiger.
To get to Primm unless you have a hire car, you will need to get the ‘shoppers shuttle’.
You can pick up the shuttle from LVH, Fashion Show Mall, The Venetian, Miracle Mile shops at Planet Hollywood, or Tropicana. It costs $15 round trip per person.
The shuttle runs Monday – Saturday.
It picks up at LVH at 9am, Fashion Show Mall at 9:05am (outside forever 21), Venetian at 9:10am (at ground transportation lobby), Miracle Mile at 9:15am (by self parking garage entrance), and 9:20am at Tropicana (North Entrance).
It returns from the outlet mall at 2:30pm leaving enough time to shop and perhaps take in one or two of the casinos.
Chemists/convenience stores on the strip: There are a number of Walgreens and CVS stores scattered up and down the strip (like bigger versions of Boots). These are very useful for all sorts of things. Paracetamol, shampoo, deodorant etc etc. Cheap snacks, they sell prepacked sandwiches, crisps etc. Cheap soft drinks. Soft Drinks can be very expensive in casino shops, they are much cheaper in these convenience stores, and some of them also do a fine line in cheap tacky souvenirs. You can find branches of Walgreens, just past Planet Hollywood, opposite City Centre. Just North of MGM Grand. At the front of Venetian opposite Treasure Island. CVS is located between Monte Carlo and Mandarin Oriental.