Las Vegas is something of an odd bird when it comes to gay nightlife. On the one hand, it has all the elements of a city that you would think might be teeming with gay clubs: a huge leisure and business following (GLBT and otherwise), a giant contingent of locals who work in the entertainment and hospitality industries, and a round-the-clock passion for revelry (that's right...bars here are generally open 24/7). On the other hand, most visitors to Vegas - whether gay or straight - focus their energy on the Strip.
With queer-fave entertainers like Elton John, Barry Manilow, Bette Milder, Margaret Cho, Kathy Griffin, and others performing here regularly (some of them with semi-permanent gigs), and many of the city's top casinos presenting marquee shows and musicals every night, the city's gay bars have plenty of competition. De rigueur among fans of drag, by the way, is La Cage (Riviera Hotel, 2901 Las Vegas Blvd., 702-794-9433), which features Frank Marino as a scarily convincing Joan Rivers along with a huge cast of female-impersonator all-stars channeling everyone from Cher to Liza. And don't forget the trendy mainstream clubs and lounges in the Strip's top casinos - they may draw a mostly straight crowd, but plenty of gays and lesbians frequent these spots, too.
All told, Las Vegas has about 15 gay bars, many of them clustered together in a small quadrant along Paradise Road just north of the airport and south of the gay-popular Hard Rock Hotel - an area often dubbed the "Gay Quarter" or "Fruit Loop." A less alluring little posse of neighborhood-y gay bars is situated in a large and rather bland shopping complex called the Commercial Center - it straddles the 900 block of E. Sahara and E. Karen avenues, a short drive east of the northern (icky) section of the Strip, and a bit southeast of (icky-ish) downtown. The Commercial Center should be noted, however, for one wonderful asset - it's home to one of the most legendary Thai restaurants in the West, Lotus of Siam (953 E. Sahara Ave., 702/735-3033), which happens to be extremely gay-friendly.
So what are the coolest gay nightspots in Vegas? Probably the biggest event to transform the city's gay scene was the opening in 2004 of a bona fide gay disco on the Strip, Krave (E. Harmon Ave. just east of the Strip, 702-836-0830), inside the Planet Hollywood Casino (the club is actually adjacent to the southern exit of the hotel's Miracle Mile Shops). Krave has all the verve of a classic Las Vegas Strip nightclub - cool lighting, cushy lounge chairs, a great sound system, a big stage, and steep cover charges. For all its acclaim, the crowd and staff are surprisingly friendly and pleasant, and Krave draws a nice mix of women and men of all ages. On Saturdays Krave also hosts an extremely popular "girls who like girls" party, Candy Bar. It's a fun place to dance or hobnob, and a great asset for the city's gay scene. Adjacent to Krave, the NYC-import Lucky Cheng's (702-733-6444) is an endearingly campy spot for saucy drag cabaret and tasty Pan-Asian food.
The aforementioned Fruit Loop is home to a bevy of lively gay bars, the most popular being the Gipsy/Piranha Nightclub/8 1/2 Ultra Lounge/Suede Restaurant complex (4633 Paradise Rd., 702-379-9500), a festive, sceney, something-for-everyone establishment. 8 1/2 and Piranha are adjacent to one another, Gipsy is a just north, and Suede is in the shopping center across the street that's also home to the rough-and-tumble leather-Levi's bar, The Buffalo (702-733-8355), which serves up strong, lovingly prepared, cheap cocktails and beer. Completing the Fruit Loop quadrant, a popular place called Freezone (702-794-2300) pulls in many of the same barflies who frequent Krave, Gipsy, et al - there's more of a lesbian following, here, too.
The previously described Commercial Center has a handful of mostly locals'-oriented spots - Badlands Saloon (702-792-9262) for country-western tunes; Las Vegas Lounge (702-737-9350), a hit with the transexual crowd; the bearish Ramrod (702-735-0885), which is probably the most popular of the bunch; the kinda usually empty Spotlight Lounge (702-696-0202); Hawk's Gym (702-731-4295), a rowdy, leather-centric bathhouse; and Entourage (702-650-9191), the former Apollo Spa, which is the more mainstream, buff-boy gay bathhouse in town.
LV has a handful of other notable gay bars around town. For country-western dancing, by far the most popular draw is Charlie's Las Vegas (5012 Arville St., 702-876-1844), a close relation of the various Charlie's country bars in Denver, Phoenix, and Chicago. This is a festive spot with exceedingly friendly bartenders. Another good bet is Goodtimes (1775 E. Tropicana Ave., 702-736-9494), a low-keyed neighborhood joint in the same shopping center as the crazy-kitschy Liberace Museum (702-798-5595), a must for anybody who's ever pined to own a genuine chiffon keyboard scarf or pewter Liberace collector spoon - both of these items are available in the fab gift shop. Goodtimes is an especially good time on Monday nights.
That leaves a handful of additional neighborhood joints - places you probably wouldn't take your mother (even if she's a member of PFLAG). This is Vegas, after all, and many of the locals' bars around town possess a certain sleepy (sometimes seedy) countenance, especially as you venture farther from the Strip. There's Snick's Place (1402 S. 3rd St., 702-385-9298), which has been around since 1976. It's the oldest gay bar in the city, but not exactly a thrill ride. Other neighborhood spots include Flex (4347 W. Charleston Blvd., 702-385-3539), with its touch-friendly stable of randy strippers and underwent a nice makeover in 2008; the old-school Eagle Las Vegas (3430 E. Tropicana Ave., 702-458-8662) leather bar; and the vaguely Latin-favored Backdoor Lounge (1415 E Charleston Blvd., 702-385-2018).
Finally, although it's not truly a gay bar, the city's only gay men's resort, Blue Moon (2651 Westwood Dr., 866-798-9194), does have a quite frisky and fun social element - there's a clothing-optional pool and Jacuzzi, and a 200-square-foot steam room to, uhhh, warm up in...cuz it's so cold in Vegas. Although mostly overnight guests hang out here, day passes are available.
