Las Vegas: Gifts and souvenirs
Ancient Creations Grand Canal Shoppes, The Venetian , 3355 Las Vegas Blvd S tel 414-3701. Sun-Thurs 10am-11pm, Fri & Sat 10am-midnight.An antiques store with a fascinating difference; these are real antiques, dating back in some cases thousands of years. The exact stock varies of course, but can include Roman water jars priced at $18,500, Greek statuettes for $2400, or a 1611 edition of the King James Bible at $99,000. Individual coins from the Classical world can cost as little as $25. Ancient Creations has other branches in the Desert Passage and the Appian Way Shops at Caesars .
Bonanza Gift Shop
2460 Las Vegas Blvd S tel 385-7359. Daily 8am-midnight.
Located at a busy intersection, across from the
Sahara
and a few blocks south of the
Stratosphere
, the self-proclaimed "World's Largest Gift Store" is not all that big really, but it's the best single outlet for all those tacky souvenirs you'd hope to find in Las Vegas. Beyond the predictable array of used playing cards from all the casinos (costing $1), gaming boards, fuzzy dice, whoopee cushions, fart candy, postcards, and male and female nudie ballpoint pens, you'll find a more surreal world of Las Vegas snowstorms, Elvis clocks, and inflatable aliens, plus every permutation thereof, if not exactly alien Elvises trapped in snowstorms.
Gamblers General Store
800 S Main St tel 382-9903 or 1-800/322-2447, Daily 9am-5pm.
For a truly authentic Las Vegas souvenir, you can't do better than the Gamblers General Store a few blocks south of downtown. As well as selling old slot machines for $999 - be sure to check the list of states where it's illegal to possess one even in your own home - and full-sized craps table for $4000, they have felt mats with roulette, blackjack, and craps layouts for $40, and packs of cards from all the casinos for 99ยข. There's also a large library of books on gambling, detailing techniques for blackjack, craps, horses, and even slots, though paying $20 for a photocopied pamphlet explaining why you'll never win has to be a waste of money even by Las Vegas standards.
Las Vegas's best stock of Elvis memorabilia can be found at Elvis-A-Rama; and don't forget the gift store at the Liberace Museum either.
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