Not many people think art when they hear about Sin City.
And yet, there’s a budding art scene right in the heart of downtown Las Vegas thanks to the arrival of Life is Beautiful, a music, culinary and art festival.
The festival started in 2013 as part of an effort to transform downtown Las Vegas into a cultural center and has become one of the most anticipated annual events over the last years.
Since Life is Beautiful has launched, it helped to reinvigorate downtown Las Vegas and brought many international street artists to the area who gave it a splash of color by creating some of the best Las Vegas murals.
How to see Las Vegas murals
If you are visiting Las Vegas from out of town, you will need to take an Uber or rent a car make your way to Downtown Las Vegas where most murals can be found. I recommend renting a car, because it will allow you to visit many cool places near Las Vegas and also see some of the best national and state parks in the area.
To rent a car in Las Vegas, I recommend DiscoverCars, a great car rental company with thousands of cars at flexible rates. You can pick up your car in Las Vegas airport after landing.
Where to stay in Las Vegas
Whether you are going to spend a few weeks exploring Las Vegas and surrounding areas, of just a few days, you will need a good place to stay. There are many hotels in Las Vegas for all budgets and types of travelers.
Best hotels on Las Vegas Strip
The Strip is home to some of the most famous hotels in Las Vegas such as the LINQ, a photogenic stay with a pool, photogenic rooms and the unbeatable location in the heart of the Las Vegas Strip; Paris Las Vegas Hotel & Casino that offers a great view of the Bellagio fountains; and ARIA, an eco-sustainable property that offers treatment rooms, massages, and salon services in addition to several outdoor pools.
Best hotels in downtown Las Vegas
Downtown Las Vegas (shortly DTLV) is the historic Las Vegas where most of fun stuff was prior to Las Vegas Strip. Many visitors come to DTLV to visit some of the best museums like the Mob Museum, the Neon Museum or the Old Mormon Fort. The area is also home to the famous Fremont Street, as well as the Las Vegas Arts District with many colorful murals and the Container Park where you can find many restaurants.
Some of the most popular restaurants in downtown Las Vegas are The D Las Vegas, Circa Resort, one of the newest hotels in Las Vegas and the tallest structure north of the Las Vegas Strip and the Golden Gate, a historic hotel along the Fremont Street.
Best hotels on North Las Vegas strip
The North Las Vegas strip is home to many budget hotels in Las Vegas. While many hotels in the heart of Las Vegas Strip tend to be more expensive, the northern end has many less expensive accommodations where you can stay for a fraction of the price. Some of the most popular stays in the area are SAHARA and Circus, Circus Hotel.
PRO TIP: Don’t confuse downtown Las Vegas and the Las Vegas Strip. The Las Vegas Strip is a home to big-name hotels, sprawling shopping centers and famous entertainment venues, while downtown Las Vegas is an older part, where the city actually started and it has many historic hotels and points of interest.
This colorful mural is located at 211 N. 7th Street.
The graffiti-covered wall stretches through the entire parking lot and is one of the favorite photo spots among tourists and locals in downtown Las Vegas.
While many buildings had murals prior to arrival of Life is Beautiful in downtown Las Vegas, the area became a real mecca for street artists from across the globe who were commissioned to do these murals when the festival was established.
And thanks to this trend, you can now see that many hotels, restaurants and other buildings downtown Las Vegas have been also revamping the outside with cool murals.
Walk a few blocks east of the famous Fremont Street Experience, and you will find yourself surrounded by all sorts of cool street art comparable to murals in Austin or Los Angeles.
And if you want to explore the Las Vegas murals, you should take your camera and spend a couple of hours walking around downtown Las Vegas in search of cool street art.
So, here are a couple of places near downtown Las Vegas where you can find some nice graffitis.
Create a perfect outfit for your mural photoshoot!
PRO TIP: The sun is really strong in Las Vegas even during the shoulder season. That’s why I highly recommend putting on sunscreen if you decide to spend a few hours outside hunting for the best Las Vegas murals.
Charleston Boulevard
To get to Charleston Boulevard, you need to take Interstate-15 north from the Las Vegas Strip and take an exit at Charleston Boulevard.
The best way to do that is by taking Uber or renting a car in Las Vegas. Another option is to take a bus from the Las Vegas Strip. Many places located away from the Las Vegas Strip can’t be accessed by walking, so you need to either pay for a taxi or rent a car, especially is you want to explore some of the best places near Las Vegas.
After taking exit at Charleston Boulevard, continue driving east and when you see the brightly colored building that says Love Las Vegas, find a parking spot along the road. Some spots are metered, but there are also plenty of free parking spaces.
Make a right turn on S. Casino Center Boulevard around the block to see some cool murals. If you are staying in one of Las Vegas Strip hotels, you might be tempted to walk, however, I recommend you catch a taxi or an Uber, as the area north of Las Vegas is not always safe to walk around, especially at night.
Another cool mural is Fear No Fate by the artists Trstan Eaton.
It’s located between 6th and 7th Streets on the side of El Cortez Hotel and Casino. The mural depicts a Las Vegas show girl in a classic headpiece and has a vintage vibe to it. If you look carefully at the headpiece, you will see a dice, several casino chips and a hidden sign that says “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas.”
Fremont Street
Now walk a couple of blocks north toward Fremont Street.
There are some graffitis along Fremont Street and before you get there, so you will have plenty of cool photos before you get to graffiti-rich area. The area has become popular with tourists and locals who come here to take photos, so you are likely to run into other art lovers, especially if you happen to be there on a weekend.
Downtown Las Vegas also has a fun history! If you want to learn some of it, book a Fremont Street Tour through Get Your Guide!
As you get close to Downtown Container Park, a large shopping and dining center, you will see a big mural at the intersection of Fremont Street and N 7th Street. It’s located inside a paid parking lot but you can still go ahead and take a few shots.
Cross Fremont Street and walk along along N. 7th Street to continue your tour of Downtown Las Vegas murals.
The murals along N. 7th Street in downtown Las Vegas are one of my favorite, because they are fun, colorful and photogenic!
N. 7th Street is like an open-air museum with cool artwork on both sides of the street with some of the most famous artworks in the area.
For example, at the intersection of N. 7th Street and Ogden Avenue, you can find a mural on the side of the blue motel building that was taken from a comic book. The mural has a sad to feel to it and is located right across from the El Cortez Hotel and Casino.
All the graffitis on hotels, restaurants and other businesses give this place a real hipster vibe.
This is also a newer mural in Las Vegas that has recently replaced the long-time work Love Forever of D Face. It’s located along N. 7th Street across from El Cortez Hotel and Casino.
One of the most unique murals along N. 7 Street in downtown Las Vegas is 3D mural by Felipe Pantone that features a building with a lightning in the middle and geometric patterns on both sides.
Remember to keep your eyes peeled because some of the murals are located in random spots. For example, this cool mural recently popped up on East Carson Avenue right behind Downtown Container Park.
The Snail Mural
You might not notice it at first, but some Las Vegas murals actually have a deep meaning to them and were created to provoke certain thoughts.
One of them is a mural by the artist called Alex Diaz at 7th Street. The mural portrays a snail that has big skull on its back. The mural is actually pretty intricate and if you look up close you will see numerous details that might not be very obvious at first.
If you decide to continue east on Fremont Street, you will also see some nice graffitis on random buildings. Prepare to get creative and take some killer shots for your social media!
Where to stay in downtown Las Vegas
If you want to have a good time at Fremont Street and check Las Vegas murals, you might consider booking a hotel in downtown Las Vegas.
While this historic area has plenty of famous hotels such as Downtown Grand Hotel And Casino, you can also find less expensive downtown Las Vegas hotels not far from the murals! One hotel that you might consider is a boutique hotel called The Downtowner. This budget hotel has basic amenities, and is located within walking distance to Fremont Street, so you will not have to stay a fortune on your accommodation.
Las Vegas cultural corridor
If you book a hotel in downtown Las Vegas, you should check Las Vegas cultural corridor, an area that is known for its collection of museums such as Neon Museum or Natural History Museum. However, this area is also known for its impressive street art. These graffitis are also the result of Life is Beautiful, and if you visit Las Vegas often, you can spot new murals almost every year.
For example, this huge lizard mural is located right along Stewart Avenue.
You can easily get to it if you just keep walking north on N. 7th Street and make a left turn when you get to Stewart Avenue. The mural is just a few blocks down the road on the right side and is actually located at 598 Steward Avenue.
Make sure to check out a fun mural by Mark Dew located between 6th and 7th Streets. This graffiti was created for the first Life is Beautiful in 2016 and it portrays Linus, the cute Peanuts character and a lyric from the Wu Tang Clan that reads, “Life as a shorty shouldn’t be so rough!”
Atomic Liquors
If you would like to visit a historic bar downtown Las Vegas, head straight east on Fremont Street.
Atomic Liquors is a historic bar decorated in retro style that is super popular with locals and tourists alike. Not many visitors know about it although it’s a quick 5-minute walk from Fremont Street. And the good news is that there are several murals nearby. One of them is located right across from the gas station at the intersection of Fremont Street and 10th Street.
This colorful mural is located in front of Atomic Liquors at 1020 Fremont Street.
Why Las Vegas murals should be on your list
Las Vegas is famous for many things, however, as the city is becoming more diverse, it’s slowly starting to change its old reputation of a party town. Las Vegas murals is one of the recent additions to Sin City’s long list of things to do, and if you want to explore the lesser-known part of the city, you should definitely put them on your Las Vegas itinerary!
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. At no cost to you, I might earn a small commission if you make a purchase through the links in this article.