21 Best Nightlife in Center Strip, Las Vegas

All hail Victor Drai, classiest of Vegas nightlife sultans. The wild scene inside this after-hours titan is closer to a dance club or a rave than to a lounge, even though its four rooms with two music formats are as gorgeous as any lounge in town. The vibe of decadence can reach an extraordinary pitch, but this, of course, is exactly how an after-hours club should be, right? Besides, you'll be hard-pressed to find a more beautiful insider crowd anywhere within the city limits.

You’ll need to access a hidden door in the back of the Block 16 food hall at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas ( Look for the small donkey on the otherwise plain door), but employees will help you find it if you get stuck. Once inside, you’ll find yourself in a tiny space with a gigantic collection of mezcal and tequila. The food menu’s limited to nachos, but they’re quite creative, with choices like black truffles with white cheddar, and mole chicken with cheddar and red cabbage.

Leave your designer handbags on the bar; this is a place to see and be seen. Sophisticated clientele frequent this piano lounge, where a different expert each day (check the website and pick your favorite) tickles the ivories of a one-of-a-kind, art deco–style Steinway grand while patrons sup on trendy offerings like the Poof!—a pairing that reflects Las Vegas bars' current fascination with all things smoky, with a cocktail of Bulleit rye, apple brandy, and sweet vermouth, placed under a smoky dome alongside duck confit croquettes. Caviar is, of course, a given, featured in tacos and the Bellagio Martini, served with an Ossetra cigar.

True to its name, this swanky lounge sits under a chandelier with 2 million crystals, which makes it the largest chandelier in town (and, perhaps, the world). The bar is separated into three levels, and each has a different theme and menu. Level 1—dubbed Bottom of The Chandelier, for those of you scoring at home—is a high-energy space, with offerings like the Wheel of Fortune, with rum, mezcal, smoked strawberry, and hibiscus aperitivo. Level 1.5 is dedicated to hand-crafted cocktails for the "true experience seeker," like the Cigar Lover's Manhattan, which comes with a cognac-infused chocolate cigar and the admonition to "take your sweet time." On Level 2 you can get a Champagne Socialist, which also contains spiced pear, vanilla liqueur, citrus, and coco chai syrup. If you're particularly adventuresome (and you can get a seat on the first floor), try the off-menu Verbena cocktail with a "Szechuan button." This desiccated flower from Africa numbs your mouth to make flavors more potent; it also prompts you to down your cocktail in mere seconds. All three levels offer excellent people-watching opportunities. Level 1 is open 24/7; the others have more limited hours.

Who knew you could have an alibi almost all night long in Las Vegas? This cocktail lounge offers just that—it's open until 3 am nightly—along with bottle service and DJ entertainment Friday through Monday, as well as a creative cocktail list. Alibi is perhaps best suited to those who want a VIP-style experience without waiting in a long line or shelling out extravagant prices.

The inventive cocktails snag the spotlight at this hidden gem tucked away at the back of The Cromwell. Try the Bunny Bubbles, with Benedictine liqueur, raspberry puree, pomegranate juice, and Champagne, or one of the extensive collection of bourbons, Scotch, and other whiskeys (and whiskys) from all over the world. There's also a selection of light bites.

This full-service cigar shop reproduces the decor and atmosphere of El Floridita, Ernest Hemingway's favorite Havana watering hole. Its sophisticated lounge, which obviously specializes in rum drinks, is a great place to enjoy your smoke.

A staircase leads revelers straight from the Paris casino floor up to this French-inspired nightclub on the roof of the resort. It's bordered with glass walls to provide optimal views of the Strip—and allow for lots of Instagram-worthy photos. The Rooftop has VIP tables, bottle service, and plenty of room for dancing under the stars. It's open from 10 pm to 2 am, Friday and Saturday, and reservations are required; call or book online.

Victor Drai wants your business day and night, and he nabs it with his multiuse space 11 stories up at The Cromwell. Drai's boasts a rooftop day- and nightclub with eight pools and cabanas for basking in the sun or dancing to the beats under the moon. It's huge, too, clocking in at 70,000 square feet with 7,000 square feet of digital screens, two VIP balconies, four bars, and every imaginable seating option. Go ultraswanky at one of 150 VIP tables.

The innovations continue in Las Vegas, and this incarnation includes full concerts from hip-hop stars like French Montana, Nelly, Future, Fat Joe, Trey Songz, and even Chris Brown. The 70,000-square-foot venue sits on top of the resort, replete with a pool with some pretty amazing views of the Strip.

Circles are a big theme at this lounge that fronts Koi restaurant. The motif is repeated in the ceiling and in light patterns projected on the walls, plus the circular banquettes that are great for big groups and lousy for small ones. Be sure to visit during happy hour from 5 to 7 pm, Tuesday through Saturday, when mixologists oblige by offering signature drinks for reasonably discounted prices.

This serenely styled lounge is quite literally at the center of the action in Bellagio. It's smack-dab in the middle of the casino floor, which you can view through windows on two sides. Community-style ottomans lend themselves to conversation. At the bar, expert mixologists pour cocktails made with seasonally fresh ingredients. There's live entertainment from 9 pm to 2 am, Tuesday and Thursday, and 7 to 11 pm, Friday and Saturday. DJs spin Friday and Saturday from 11 pm until the venue closes around 3 am.

This cavernous joint boasts three distinctive spaces and seven bars spread across two levels. In The Main Room, stadium-style seating surrounds the dance floor, and four-story LED screens and projection walls display light and image shows customized for every performer. For a more intimate experience, check out The Boom Box, a smaller room (usually featuring something other than house music) with windows overlooking the Strip. On the top level, The Library provides a respite from the thumping downstairs with dark wood, books (actual books!), and billiard tables. A new feature on Sundays is Night Circus with, as the name implies, live circus acts. In spring and summer, the hot spot opens Marquee Dayclub, which features two pools, several bars, a gaming area, and DJs all day long.

Cigars team up with whiskeys (including barrels and flights) and small bites at this respite in the center of the resort. Find up to 1,000 cigars housed in a climate-controlled humidor, one of the largest in the city. If you're a sports fan, take in the fan cave with its 208-inch video wall and lots of screens. You can bring your own cigars; there's a $10 cutting fee. Become a member for discounts on beverages.

This baroque Paris piano bar can get loud, but it's all good fun. Free music flows Thursday through Sunday from 7 pm to 2 am; tip the dueling piano players well if you really want to hear your favorite song. Creative cocktails include the Banana Split Martini and Godiva chocolate–based Midnight in Paris, and cigar lovers can enjoy a smoke in the exclusive lounge area.

Las Vegas club operators are always looking for that perfect party that will appeal to everyone and Omnia definitely goes the distance, with numerous experiences for club-goers—"Omnia" does, after all, translate to "all." This is a 75,000-square-foot behemoth of a club from nightlife heavyweight Tao Group, where the music comes from celebrity DJs like Steve Aoki and Alesso. There's a big emphasis on interactive technology, which extends to the 22,000-pound kinetic chandelier with eight rings that dance with light to the music. The lines to enter stretch through the casino floor with gaggles of trendy youth. The weekend brings Deseo Latin Sundays for that rare Latin experience at a Strip nightclub.

Few views of the Strip are as breathtaking as the one you'll get from this uber-chic lounge on the 23rd floor of the Waldorf Astoria. The room is wrapped with floor-to-ceiling windows, meaning just about every one of the plush banquettes is a winning seat. Mixologists have concocted cocktails themed to southern Nevada (The Spanish Trail, The Boulder Dam), and it's easy to pay a dollar for every floor of that view in a single cocktail. There's also a small menu of bite-size appetizers, such as shrimp tacos, duck-fat french fries, and sushi, and "luxurious experiences" that include Whistle Pig and Remy Martin Louis XIII tastings. Business-casual dress is recommended.

Don’t be deterred if you walk through the door and see a few guys in barber chairs getting haircuts. Just head to the “janitor” door in the back of the room and pass through. The next room—gorgeous and high-ceilinged with crystal chandeliers—reflects Las Vegas’s current fascination with speakeasies, though they were seldom this opulent. There’s bottle service, shooters, and “spiked juices” such as the Bonnie & Clyde, which is Rittenhouse rye, Cointreau, Aperol, and lemon juice and serves two in a souvenir flask. And if you want to, you really can get a haircut, shave, or facial.

Whatever the name—and past incarnations include Hyde and Fontana Bar—this posh ultralounge is prime real estate inside the Bellagio, famous for its front-and-center view overlooking the Bellagio fountains. As the name suggests, the latest incarnation hearkens back to an earlier era, with dinner and live entertainment offered in the same room, which drips with the chic atmosphere of a black-and-white movie from the 1930s.

The Chandelier Bar may be The Cosmopolitan's bar of the moment, but you shouldn't overlook the sleek Vesper Bar, the true mixologist space at the hotel. Name an ingredient, any ingredient, and the talented staff behind the bar can come up with a drink for you. Long-forgotten cocktail recipes are a specialty at this very modern square bar sitting alongside hotel registration.

Different cityscapes ranging from sunset in Hong Kong to night in Dubai to evening in New York City change on huge screens (so you can order a Manhattan while you're looking at Manhattan) that make up the background at this lounge, which offers specialty drinks like a pineapple mule.