Free walking tours are my new favorite way to explore a city, even a city like Vegas where I have been many, many times. I was so happy to come across this brochure and even more excited when my over age 65 parents agreed that they thought this was a fun way to spend a morning. Our planning was a little uncertain so we did not reserve as recommended but were still able to sneak onto the tour. Es, tour guide and owner, reports that groups are usually smaller than 25 people and he had 18 reserved in advance so we were quite lucky.
We used the paid parking at the Mirage and met out in front of the volcano. Es was easy to spot in his red shirt. I was very thankful to find that he had a microphone to make hearing easier. He was even able to give me great before the tour advice on where the fastest nearby Starbucks was. Es reported that he grew up locally and had lots of experience working as a hotel concierge, but it was clear he had also done his research into Vegas history. His picture book was also helpful to show us what Vegas looked like previously.
Even though I have been to Vegas on multiple occasions, I still learned lots of things I did not know. It had also been a few years since my last visit so I was able to get info on all the new things as well. I would recommend doing this towards the beginning of your trip so you can take advantage of all the great info to purchase show tickets and choose which buffets to eat at.
The tour is approximately 2 miles long and ends near the Tropicana. There is a bathroom stop close to the end. My dad urinates frequently and was able to find multiple bathrooms around the route and catch up to everyone else easily. Make sure you tip Es, he's pretty great!