How safe is riding the bus on the Strip and downtown?

Why is it called the "Miracle Mile"? Is there a mile of shopping?

It seems like there's always a discussion somewhere that goes something like "Why can't a hotel with 2,000 rooms guarantee a simple request?" So, recently I Googled around a bit and learned that on average Las Vegas hotels ran at about 87.1% capacity in 2013. To me that means a 2,000 room hotel would have something like 258 rooms "available" on any given day. That sounds like a decent number, but how many are typically reserved by casino marketing, are unavailable due to damage, are undesirable for some reason, etc.? The more I thought about it the more it seemed that even with 2,000 rooms 87% occupancy has got to be pretty close to the practical maximum. Am I right or way off?

I read on a travel-review site that Palms Place has decided to unlock access to the room balconies. Is this true?

I just got a message on my cell that there’s a new Las Vegas area code. How come I haven’t heard about this before? Did it just happen? And what’s the deal with having to dial 702 now?

Now that marijuana is legal in Colorado and Washington, what are the chances it will become legal in Nevada?

I am interested in purchasing a timeshare in Las Vegas. Most of the major companies are now going to a "point system"; I would just like to reserve the same week(s) every year (the "traditional way"). Are there still such units available? (I don’t like the point systems since the value of the points can be changed by the company; you are at their mercy when they decide to change the rules!)

I saw in today's news that Clark County's population surpassed 2 million. But what about the the city? How many people live in the entire metropolitan area including North Las Vegas, Summerlin and Henderson?

You ceaselessly – and incorrectly – refer to the "Las Vegas Valley." Here’s a geology/geography lesson: A valley is an elongated depression in the earth’s surface carved out over a protracted period of time by the moving water of a river. No, the Colorado River doesn’t qualify because it’s too distant. The Las Vegas metropolitan area is situated not in a valley but in a "bowl" or "basin," surrounded by mountains on all sides. Look up at the horizon and check it out.

Your question of the day from April 5, 2014 led me to ask this question on pool access for non-hotel guests or specifically for locals. Which hotel pools are open to the public, or locals, at no charge and which ones have just a modest charge similar to the $10 mentioned at Bally's?