How does Las Vegas celebrate Christmas? Streets tell a story

By Daniel Rothberg

Published Friday, Dec. 25, 2015 | 11:45 a.m.

Updated Friday, Dec. 25, 2015 | 2:58 p.m.

Christmas Day 2015. Las Vegas.

In a town with a mayor who on this year’s holiday card depicted her husband (a former mayor) as a street performer in an adult diaper, Christmas Day for some is just another day in a relative paradise. Unlike most U.S. cities in which the economic pulse pauses for the holiday, the 24/7 bloodlines to the Las Vegas Valley — the casino and tourism industries — carry on.

The Sun today chronicled the non-traditional Christmas celebrations in Las Vegas.

Longhorn Casino, 3:42 p.m.

Simon & Garfunkel is playing when I walk in. The music switches to a disco song. "It's busier than I thought," says a cocktail waitress taking orders around scattered slot players. Near the back bar, the NBA game is on a projection screen: Cavs vs. Warriors. About a dozen men sit around the bar. One is wearing red-and-green Christmas plaid. He leans over to say something to a neighbor.

The Bellagio, 2:48 p.m.

The gardens are packed with tourists, artificial snow, polar bears (made of flowers) and an igloo. Dozens of visitors, many with selfie sticks, wait in a line to walk through a snow simulator or push their way through a crowd to take a picture before an ornamental Christmas tree that's flanked by oversized nutcrackers and poinsettia.

The Strip, 2:36 p.m.

At the center of the Strip, between the Bellagio and Paris, the street is as congested as it would be on a normal Friday afternoon. Traffic is gridlocked. Despite the wind, tourists clog the streets. Two street performers, dressed as showgirls with Santa hats, are joined by a Mr. Claus. They just arrived.

"There's a lot of people out, which is surprising," one said.

Miracle Mile Shops, 2:28 p.m.

Post-Christmas morning shopping. With most of the stores open, shoppers stand on people movers to enter the mall. Inside, it's bustling.

Tacos El Gordo, 1:25 p.m.

It's on the Strip in a mall sitting in the shadow of the Encore. It's packed. Behind the glass windows, decorated with paintings of candy canes and snowmen, are nearly 40 people waiting for their $2.10 tacos. Two friends from Vancouver, British Columbia, who are "escaping Christmas," are in line in front of me.

"It hardly feels like Christmas," one says.

No tables are open. Parents roam around with red cafeteria trays, looking for seats to eat lunch, with a view of the Trump International Hotel looming on the other side of the Strip.

At the register, the cashier packages my tacos to go. I eat in my car. There's Christmas music on the radio.

Little Darlings, 1:08 p.m.

No cars in the parking lot. Closed.

Huntridge Tavern, 12:01 p.m.

I order a coffee. All regulars, the bartender says of the dozen patrons sitting at the bar.

"Merry Christmas," one man says when he walks in. "I don't know why I'm happy." We chat. He's here once a week. His girlfriend of six years died last week. He tells me about coming to Las Vegas from Barstow, Calif., with a toolbox, a suitcase and his dog. He has a Jack Russell terrier. We chat about his time as a plumber in Henderson and Summerlin. We chat about his time as a truck driver, when he visited 48 states and Canada. He shares a story about what it means to be spiritual.

The bar fills out. It's festive. There's a plastic Santa, Christmas lights, a tree with disco ball ornaments. Three men chat around Game King machines in the corner. An NBA game is on: the Bulls vs. the Thunder. A group of eight walks in. They came from a wedding.

Graceland Wedding Chapel, 11:37 a.m.

Twelve weddings today. Five last night. An Elvis impersonator at the chapel off Las Vegas Boulevard is helping to marry a Brazilian couple. Clapping from inside the chapel can be heard at the reception area. They take photographs. After the ceremony, their Elvis, Brad Collin, says "it's awesome" to be working there on Christmas.

"It's a blessing for the couples," he says. "They always take a bit of Vegas home with them."

Fremont Street Experience, 11:06 a.m.

Darth Vader waves a mismatched blue Luke Skywalker lightsaber in front of a Christmas tree at the center of the promenade.

"I like doing this and people like having me here," says James, the street performer who has played the "Star Wars" character several times on past Christmases. He says people tend to be more generous with their tips on the holiday, which is just starting. On the usually packed Strip there are only a few other performers. One prepares sheet music on a green stand. Another performer, dressed as Minnie Mouse with a Santa hat, says she arrived only a few minutes ago.

Frankie's Tiki Bar, 10:25 a.m.

"I had my Christmas on a Tuesday," says Tanya, the bartender working the Christmas Day shift. The early-morning rush has dissipated, and it is quiet. She says things will probably pick up around 3 p.m. There are three patrons at the bar, including the graveyard bartender who is still wearing a Santa hat. His wife walks in. She is carrying presents for the bartenders. Everyone claps. One person says, "It's from Santa Claus."