Location: Caesars Palace
The movies: Rain Man and The Hangover
In terms of the casino floor itself, Caesars Palace makes its most famous Hollywood appearance in Rain Man. After a visually stunning drive through the desert, Tom Cruise’s character takes his autistic brother – played by Dustin Hoffman – to count the cards while the blackjack winnings stack up.
The pair stay in the Forum Tower Emperor’s Suite, which sprawls over two levels. The same suite was supposedly where the unfortunate bachelors in The Hangover stayed as well. It wasn’t actually filmed there – it was a specially created set designed to mimic the suite – but Caesars gets a huge number of enquiries from people asking to stay there. No tigers, and no babies in cupboards are allowed. Oh, and most of the other parts of Caesars seen in the film are the real deal.
Location: The Bellagio
The movies: The Hangover and Ocean’s Eleven
They might not have remembered too much about it, but the characters in The Hangover nipped next door from Caesars to go gambling in the Bellagio – and found the chips to prove it. The Bellagio has a fairly lengthy history as a movie extra, having starred in romantic comedies Lucky You and What Happens In Vegas as well, but its biggest role was in Ocean’s Eleven.
This is the casino that George Clooney, Brad Pitt and the gang were hitting up. Even though the vault wasn’t the real one, most of the other scenes purporting to be at the Bellagio were legit. The staircase that Julia Roberts walks down is no longer there – it was ditched during a refurbishment – but you can still dine at the table where George and Julia shared a meal. It was shot in the Bellagio’s Picasso restaurant – book table 24 if you really want to replicate.
Location: Treasure Island
The movies: Knocked Up and Miss Congeniality 2
Treasure Island goes for a saucy pirate-themed vibe, and the escape from a sinking ship scenes in Miss Congeniality 2 were filmed in the lagoon where the Sirens of TI show used to take place. TI (as the resort likes to be known) is also the spot where Seth Rogen’s character in Knocked Up starts to regret his mushroom intake. The circus scenes where he freaks out feature the performers and odd costumes of Cirque du Soleil’s Mystère show. It’s Cirque’s original Vegas spectacle and the best of the bunch available at Treasure Island.