Featured image credit: Troutfarm27
Las Vegas’ Area 15 has been inspiring eye-popping, or eye-rolling, depending on who you ask, responses since it opened its doors in 2020. Part arcade, part shopping mall, part immersive art installation, the Instagram-baiting complex has seamlessly integrated itself into the fabric of the Las Vegas tourist scene in a relatively short time. There’s no shortage of things to do at Area 15. Its attractions can keep pace with your interests if your energy (and money) hold up. But some experiences are a little more worthwhile than others. Let’s take a look at the top three fan favorites.
Update – September 2024:
If you weren’t screaming for Area 15 before, give it time. The City of Las Vegas is banking big on Area 15’s tourist-attracting powers by expanding the collaborative attraction nearly 40 acres to the north. In addition to retail space, office space, and a hotel, the expansion will introduce Universal Destinations & Experiences’ first permanent horror attraction. Horror Unleashed will immerse guests in a multi-faceted fright experience similar to the company’s highly successful Halloween Horror Nights. But unlike the seasonal scares of Horror Nights, Horror Unleashed will offer a year-round opportunity for Vegas tourists and locals alike to scream their lungs out. In a good way, of course.
Wink World
Wink World is one of the lowest-priced immersive art installations that Las Vegas’ Area 15 hosts. Think infinity room but amplified in true Las Vegas style. It takes about 20 minutes to explore the 1,500-square-foot space bordered by mirrors and populated with items set aglow by black lights. The attraction is divided into six timed rooms, each with different visual themes.
Designed by Blue Man Group founder Chris Wink, Wink World holds a similar audiovisual energy. And while it may sound like it’s all just a bunch of black lights and mirrors, the experience is very much visually saturated. Expect the closest thing you’ll find to stepping into one of those black light posters you’d see at Spencers in the ‘90s. But with Wink at the helm, you can expect a true multimedia experience.
Lost Spirits Distillery
NOTE: Lost Spirits Distillery announced its closure at the end of April. So if you want to experience this icon of Las Vegas’ Area 15, you better get there by their final performance on April 29!
While the kids can’t come along for this one, it’s easily worth the price of a sitter and admission… if you drink, that is. At its core, Lost Spirits Distillery is just that… a high-quality rum distillery. But it gives resorts and casinos a run for their money with a vaudeville-inspired show that’s just as intoxicating as the spirits in your glass. Rum tasting is included in your admission, but you likely won’t regard those tickets as cheap. But since you feel like you’re exploring a lost jungle tomb or haunted house, you’re not likely to find another tasting experience like this in the world.
Pro tip: eat dinner before attending, because your ticket gets you a lot of high-proof rum for an empty stomach. Lost Spirits is a tasting tour you’ll want to remember. Some have described it as a drunken Disneyland, others as Willy Wonka’s Rum Factory, but we assure you, Lost Spirits is its own unique thing. Go in as blind as possible!
Meow Wolf’s Omega Mart
This isn’t the first time we’ve talked about Omega Mart on the JohnHart blog, but what can we say? It’s worth talking about. Meow Wolf has built a reputation across the country with awe-inspiring art installations that take oddity to new heights. So when it was announced they’d be creating an experience for Las Vegas’ Area 15, anticipation was through the roof. While many would agree it’s the least impressive of Meow Wolf’s permanent exhibitions, it’s still arguably the most impressive attraction that Area 15 offers.
Without giving too much away, Omega Mart is an alternate dimension supermarket. Hundreds of artists labored to create bizarre supermarket products that stock the shelves. But for the observant visitor, a cryptic story unfolds through a series of clues hidden in the products. Price of admission can be a bit much if this doesn’t strongly fit your idea of a good time. But most of the visitors who make time for Omega Mart spend hours in its labyrinthine aisles.
