What’s New on the Vegas Strip

Since American engineer George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr. built the first rotating observation wheel for the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893, it seems that there’s been constant competition to top his 264-foot tall achievement. Just two years after the original Ferris Wheel started turning, the Great Wheel (308-foot tall) in London, England, opened.

These Ferris wheels are, however, dwarfed by our 21^st innovations. The London Eye, which opened in 2000, is 443-foot tall, while the Singapore Flyer, which started turning in 2008, hit the 541-foot mark, making it the tallest Ferris wheel on earth.

The South-East Asian island nation, though, is about to be topped and the city doing the topping is none other than Las Vegas. Caesars Entertainment Corporation is currently building a Ferris wheel on Sin City’s Strip known as the High Roller. The outer wheel of the towering structure, which will reach the 550-foot mark, began to be installed in September.  This is the final stage in the High Roller’s construction, and the attraction is scheduled to open the doors of its 28 glass capsules to punters in early 2014.

The centerpiece of the $550 million LINQ shopping mall development situated between Flamingo Hotel and the Harrah Hotel-Casino on the Strip, the High Roller will offer those who choose to ‘roll with it’ stunning views of Sin City all the way out to Red Rock Canyon. A spokesperson for Caesars recently told Time magazine that a ride in one of the Ferris wheel’s capsules will cost approximately $30.

Check out some footage of the High Roller and the LINQ shopping mall to get an idea of what the complex will look like:

“It’s going to be a part of your visit to Las Vegas if you ride it or not,” High Roller Project Director David Codiga told Time. “It’s more or less impossible not to see if you come here.”

However, despite Codiga’s excitement, would-be high rollers should be aware that they won’t be visiting the tallest place in Las Vegas – only the tallest Ferris wheel in the city (albeit also on the planet!).  The Stratosphere Hotel’s Observation Tower, which reaches a height of 1,149 foot, will remain the tallest observation tower in Vegas by far. Sure, it may not move, but, as far as we can tell, the High Roller’s capsules don’t feature fine dining of the caliber of the Stratosphere Tower’s Top of the World Restaurant.

What do you think of the High Roller? Will you ride the world’s tallest Ferris wheel? Tell us in the comments section!