The Legoland theme park in Carlsbad, California, has unveiled a "Miniland Las Vegas," a two-million Lego-brick recreation of the Strip, including Luxor, New York-New York, Excalibur, Mirage, TI, Tropicana, MGM Grand, Venetian, and Paris' Eiffel Tower and Las Vegas balloon sign.
Visitors walk down a path that runs through the middle of the mini-city, with the casinos towering above them. And the detail, we've heard, is astounding, right down to the carvings on the Clock Tower at the Venetian and the façade of Tangerine at Treasure Island.
The model of the Stratosphere is 20 feet tall and actually has a tiny working Big Shot. The MGM Grand lion is composed of 1,250 Legos. The hotel pools have water in them. Two thousand four-inch Lego figurines -- showgirls, partyers with neon green drinks, even leafleteers handing out girlie fliers -- populate the place.
Fiber-optic message marquees advertise the Mirage dolphins and fake production shows (in a few cases, the Miniland designers put themselves up as the headliners -- see photographs below). The monorail is represented. The Mirage volcano erupts. Limousines drive in and out of the hotel porticos. Newlyweds emerge from the Little White Chapel at the press of a button.
Miniland Las Vegas was built by a team of 15 designers in Carlsbad and at Lego headquarters in Billund, Denmark, over three years, at a cost of more than $1 million. It's the biggest scale model in the Legoland park, which is located 40 miles north of downtown San Diego and features more than 50 rides, shows, and attractions. Park admission is $57 for adults, $44 for kids under 13; two-day passes are also available.
Photographs appear courtesy of RandomSanDiego.com.
