Las Vegas is hosting its first F1 race, and the prep is so in-your-face that it's giving some people travel regret

21.09.2023 - 10:07 / insider.com

Las Vegas is gearing up for its first-ever Formula One race on November 18 by building a temporary street track. In the lead-up months, as popular attractions are blocked by construction and scaffolding, some tourists regret the timing of their visits to the city.

Temporary grandstands are being constructed at the lake in front of the Bellagio, blocking the resort's famed fountains from view, according to the Las Vegas-based broadcaster 8 News Now. Three-day hospitality access tickets to these grandstands are on sale for $11,247 per person by MGM.   

The Mirage — a high-end casino resort in Las Vegas — told 8 News Now that it would close its famed volcano attraction until December 8. Construction on the roads near Sands Avenue and Las Vegas Boulevard is also ongoing, making these areas difficult for cars and pedestrians to access, per 8 News Now. 

A video posted on TikTok by Jennifer Gay, a Las Vegas-based content creator who goes by the handle @vegasstarfish, showed construction sites across the Las Vegas strip. The video later showed several of the city's tourist attractions — including the Bellagio Fountain and the volcano at The Mirage — fenced up and inaccessible to tourists. The video was posted on Sunday and has garnered 5.3 million views at the time of writing.

"The Las Vegas Strip is almost unrecognizable today," Gay said in the video.

Several TikTok users said they're upset they're visiting the city right before the Grand Prix and can't check out the famed attractions. 

"I was planning on staying at the bellagio for the fountains in November for my birthday," one user wrote.

Another user commented: "I've spent so much money. Did not know about this until now."

Other users defended the event, saying that the race is actually a good thing for Las Vegas's tourism. 

"People who don't know how popular F1 is clearly don't know how much goes into it. The point is that the track is on the strip," one user wrote. 

The Las Vegas Grand Prix is scheduled to take place from November 18 to 20. Some 100,000 spectators are expected to attend the event this year. The race is scheduled to run every year until 2032, per the motorsport news site Autoweek. 

The City of Las Vegas Government, The Mirage, Bellagio, and Gay did not immediately respond to requests for comment sent outside regular office hours.