How Far Away is Mandalay Bay From the Strip and Is It Close Enough To Walk to It?
By Steve Beauregard
Many Las Vegas visitors, especially those booking a stay at Mandalay Bay, get the impression that the resort is far away from the action, and they’ll wonder how far it is away from the Strip.
In reality, Mandalay Bay is ON the Las Vegas Strip, albeit on the extreme southern end of it.
There are no definite set boundaries for the Strip, but it’s widely acknowledged that the Strip consists of that portion of Las Vegas Boulevard that runs from Mandalay Bay to the South, and ending on the north end at the Stratosphere. (The Las Vegas Strip’s official name is Las Vegas Boulevard).
Not only does Mandalay Bay mark the beginning of the Strip on the south side, for many drivers coming into Las Vegas from California, it marks the start of Las Vegas.
In fact, you can walk from Mandalay Bay to the iconic “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign which is just down the street from the hotel.
Therefore, Mandalay Bay is actually on the Strip. That doesn’t mean, however, it’s in the heart of the action though. For example, the distance from Mandalay Bay to the Bellagio is 1.3 miles.
What it is close to however, is the main south Strip hub: the intersection of Las Vegas Boulevard and Tropicana Avenue.
This is the bustling corner that is home to the Excalibur Hotel and Casino, the Tropicana, New York – New York, and MGM Grand.
In fact, Mandalay Bay is just around a 10 to 12 minute walk to this corner, as it’s just over 1/2 mile to this action-packed corner of the Strip.
Better yet, there is a free tram that runs from Mandalay Bay to the Excalibur, dropping you off just outside the hotel on this intersection. From there, you are just catty-corner from the MGM Grand.
Alternatively, you could just walk over to the NY-NY side and walk a little north (about five more minutes) to the Park MGM. From inside the Park MGM, you can hop on another free monorail that goes to both the Aria and the Bellagio.
Please also keep in mind that Mandalay Bay is not in the hinterlands for those of you who don’t want to walk, as Las Vegas has an excellent Strip bus system called the Deuce, that can whisk you to the middle of the Strip fairly quickly and inexpensively. There is a bus stop for the Deuce right across the street from Mandalay Bay.
All that being said, Mandalay Bay is quite a haul to north Strip casinos. It is, for example, over 2 and 1/2 miles to the Wynn – not a pleasant walk in Las Vegas heat. The Las Vegas Monorail at MGM Grand however, makes this a doable trip, as the monorail traverses all the way north to the Sahara Las Vegas Hotel & Casino, stopping along the way at Paris, and at Harrahs, among others stops.
In addition, hotels within the Mandalay Bay resort complex, such as the Delano, are a little further walk from the Strip. Still, it’s less of a walk from the Delano to the Strip than it is from say, the Aria to the Strip, and everyone considers the Aria to be on the Las Vegas Strip.
So with convenient bus transportation, and two free trams, a stay at Mandalay Bay, even being on the south end of the Strip, means you’re never too far away from the action and excitement of Las Vegas Boulevard.
And with the new home of the Las Vegas Raiders, (Allegiant Stadium), being located just across the Interstate, and accessible via a pedestrian walkway, it seems Mandalay Bay will continue to be a popular and convenient resort for Vegas visitors for years to come.
(Photo courtesy of Prayitno via Flickr).