Fremont Street Experience Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Fremont Street Experience
Fremont Street
Construction
Glitter Gulch
The FSE with the neon lights on in 2010 with The Las Vegas Club on the left which closed in 2015 and was replaced by the Circa in 2020
Owner	FSE, LLC
Length	0.8 mi (1.3 km)
Location	Las Vegas
East end	Las Vegas Boulevard
West end	Main Street
Construction start	September 16, 1994
Completion	July 1995
Inauguration	December 14, 1995
Other
Designer	Jon Jerde

The Fremont Street Experience (FSE) is a super cool walking area and attraction in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada. It covers five blocks of Fremont Street, including the famous "Glitter Gulch" area.

The main attraction is a huge, curved roof called a canopy. It's 90 feet high and about 1,375 feet long. This canopy puts on amazing light and sound shows.

Even though Las Vegas is known for bright lights, all the casino lights under the canopy turn off for each show. This makes the light show even more impressive! You can also catch free concerts on three different stages. The FSE is a popular spot for tourists and hosts the city's big New Year's Eve party. It's also home to the exciting SlotZilla zip lines.

Exploring Fremont Street's Past
Awesome Features to Explore
Casinos and Hotels on Fremont Street
Images for kids
See also

Exploring Fremont Street's Past

Fremont Street in 1983

Fremont Street has a lot of "firsts" for Las Vegas! The first hotel, the Hotel Nevada (now Golden Gate), opened here in 1906. It also had the first telephone in 1907 and the first paved street in 1925.

The very first gaming license in Nevada was given to the Northern Club on Fremont Street. Other firsts include the first traffic light, the first elevator (at the Apache Hotel in 1932), and the first tall building (the Fremont Hotel in 1956).

For many years, the western part of Fremont Street was famous for its bright lights. All the amazing neon signs gave the area the nickname "Glitter Gulch."

The Fremont Street Experience in 2025

By 1992, most visitors were going to the Las Vegas Strip. Downtown hotels and casinos wanted a new attraction to bring people back. They decided to create the Fremont Street Experience.

A company called FSE, LLC, which is owned by several downtown hotels, was created to build and manage it. Architect Jon Jerde designed the canopy. Another architect, Mary Kozlowski, came up with the brilliant idea for the light show on the canopy's underside.

The canopy was a huge project. On September 7, 1994, a five-block section of Fremont Street was closed to cars forever. Construction began on September 16. The giant roof started to take shape in February 1995, and the last piece was added in July 1995.

The amazing light show officially opened on December 14, 1995. The first New Year's party under the canopy was held on December 31, 1995.

In 1996, a cool horse-and-rider neon sign from the old Hacienda hotel was placed at the FSE's east entrance. It was added by the Neon Museum.

The sound system was made even better in 2001. In 2004, a big upgrade added a 12.5-million LED display with many more colors. This made the shows even more spectacular!

These improvements have helped downtown Las Vegas become a popular place again. More than 60% of visitors come to downtown because of the light and stage shows.

In May 2019, a $32 million renovation began for the video screen. New LED lights made the screen four times clearer and seven times brighter. This upgrade was finished in December 2019, with a special unveiling on New Year's Eve.

In 2020, a system was added to the canopy and cameras to help police detect gunshots in real-time. By the end of 2024, 22 new cameras were activated to scan license plates on streets near the FSE.

Part of the movie Anora, which won an Academy Award, was filmed at the Fremont Street Experience in 2023.

Awesome Features to Explore

Viva Vision: The World's Biggest Video Screen

The "canopy" that holds the Viva Vision show stretches over the Fremont Street Experience. It runs from Main Street to Fourth Street. This giant screen is held up by 16 strong columns and many struts.

The canopy has 130,000 square feet of display space, making it the world's largest video screen! It started with about 2.1 million lights. After the 2004 upgrade, it had over 12 million LED lamps.

The newest Viva Vision display, unveiled in December 2019, is even better. It has over 49 million energy-efficient LEDs. It's seven times brighter and four times clearer than before. This means you can even see shows during the day!

Inside the canopy, there are 220 speakers with 550,000 watts of power. Light and sound shows happen every day from 6:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. on the Viva Vision screen.

The SlotZilla Zipline

SlotZilla zip lines above the street

Welcome to Fabulous Downtown Las Vegas Nevada sign

SlotZilla Zip Line: Fly High!

SlotZilla is a super fun, 12-story zip line attraction at Fremont Street Experience. It looks like a giant slot machine!

"Flyers" can choose from two levels. The lower "Zipline" is 77 feet high and goes halfway down the mall. The upper "Zoomline" is 114 feet high and goes the entire length of the mall (1,750 feet). On the Zoomline, you fly "superhero-style" on your stomach!

SlotZilla cost $17 million to build. Its launch tower has huge dice, a martini glass, a pink flamingo, fake video reels, a giant arm, and two 37-foot-tall showgirls. One of the towers also has a "Welcome to Fabulous Downtown Las Vegas" sign.

The Pedestrian Mall: Fun for Everyone

Fremont Street became a walking-only mall in September 1994. When the light and sound shows aren't playing, music fills the air. There's also free live entertainment every night on three stages throughout the mall.

Neonopolis: Shopping and More

Neonopolis is a shopping complex right at the end of the FSE pedestrian mall. It's where Las Vegas Boulevard South meets Fremont Street. It's a great place to explore!