15 Best Bars in Center Strip, Las Vegas

All hail Victor Drai, classiest of Vegas nightlife sultans. The wild scene inside this after-hours titan is closer to a dance club or a rave than to a lounge, even though its four rooms with two music formats are as gorgeous as any lounge in town. The vibe of decadence can reach an extraordinary pitch, but this, of course, is exactly how an after-hours club should be, right? Besides, you'll be hard-pressed to find a more beautiful insider crowd anywhere within the city limits.

You’ll need to access a hidden door in the back of the Block 16 food hall at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas (look for the small donkey on the otherwise plain door), but employees will help you find it if you get stuck. Once inside, you’ll find yourself in a tiny space with a gigantic collection of mezcal and tequila. The food menu’s limited to nachos, but they’re quite creative, with choices like black truffles with white cheddar, and mole chicken with cheddar and red cabbage.

Leave your designer handbags on the bar; this is a place to see and be seen. Sophisticated clientele frequent this piano lounge, where a different expert each day (check the website and pick your favorite) tickles the ivories of a one-of-a-kind, art deco–style Steinway grand while patrons sup on trendy offerings like the Poof!—a pairing that reflects Las Vegas bars' current fascination with all things smoky, with a cocktail of Bulleit rye, apple brandy, and sweet vermouth, placed under a smoky dome alongside duck confit croquettes. Caviar is, of course, a given, featured in tacos and the Bellagio Martini, served with an Ossetra cigar.

Who knew you could have an alibi almost all night long in Las Vegas? This cocktail lounge offers just that—it's open until 3 am Fridays and Saturdays, 2 am other nights. Offering bottle service and DJ entertainment Thursday through Sunday, as well as a creative cocktail list, Alibi is perhaps best suited to those who want a VIP-style experience without waiting in a long line or shelling out extravagant prices.

Don’t be deterred if you walk through the door and see a few guys in barber chairs getting haircuts. Just head to the “janitor” door in the back of the room and pass through. The next room—gorgeous and high-ceilinged with crystal chandeliers—reflects Las Vegas’s current fascination with speakeasies, though they were seldom this opulent. There’s bottle service, shooters, and “spiked juices” such as the Bonnie & Clyde, which is Bulleit rye, Cointreau, Aperol, and lemon juice and serves two in a souvenir flask. And if you want to, you really can get a haircut, shave, or facial.

The inventive cocktails snag the spotlight at this hidden gem tucked away off the lobby at The Cromwell. Try the Bunny Bubbles, with Benedictine liqueur, raspberry puree, pomegranate juice, and sparkling wine, or one of the extensive collection of bourbons, Scotch, and other whiskeys (and whiskys) from all over the world. There's also a selection of light bites.

This full-service cigar shop reproduces the decor and atmosphere of El Floridita, Ernest Hemingway's favorite Havana watering hole. Its sophisticated lounge, which obviously specializes in rum drinks, is a great place to enjoy your smoke.

A staircase leads revelers straight from the Paris casino floor up to this French-inspired nightclub on the roof of the resort. It's bordered with glass walls to provide optimal views of the Strip—and allow for lots of Instagram-worthy photos. The Rooftop has VIP tables, bottle service, and plenty of room for dancing under the stars. It's open from 10 pm to 2 am, Friday and Saturday, and reservations are required; call or book online.

Circles are a big theme at this lounge that fronts Koi restaurant. The motif is repeated in the ceiling and in light patterns projected on the walls, plus the circular banquettes that are great for big groups and lousy for small ones. Be sure to visit during happy hour from 5 to 7 pm, Tuesday through Saturday, when mixologists oblige by offering signature drinks for reasonably discounted prices.

This serenely styled lounge is quite literally at the center of the action in Bellagio. It's smack-dab in the middle of the casino floor, which you can view through windows on two sides. Community-style ottomans lend themselves to conversation. At the bar, expert mixologists pour cocktails made with seasonally fresh ingredients. There's live entertainment from 9 pm to 2 am, Tuesday and Thursday, and 7 to 11 pm, Friday and Saturday. DJs spin Friday and Saturday from 11 pm until the venue closes around 3 am.

Cigars team up with whiskeys (including barrels and flights) and small bites at this respite in the center of the resort. Find up to 1,000 cigars housed in a climate-controlled humidor, one of the largest in the city. If you're a sports fan, take in the fan cave with its 208-inch video wall and lots of screens. You can bring your own cigars; there's a $10 cutting fee. Become a member for discounts on beverages. There's also a location at Paris Las Vegas.

This baroque Paris piano bar can get loud, but it's all good fun. Free music flows Thursday through Sunday from 7 pm to 2 am; tip the dueling piano players well if you really want to hear your favorite song. Creative cocktails include the Banana Split Martini and Godiva chocolate–based Midnight in Paris, and cigar lovers can enjoy a smoke in the exclusive lounge area.

Las Vegas club operators are always looking for that perfect party that will appeal to everyone and Omnia definitely goes the distance, with numerous experiences for club-goers—"Omnia" does, after all, translate to "all." This is a 75,000-square-foot behemoth of a club from nightlife heavyweight Tao Group, where the music comes from celebrity DJs like Steve Aoki and Justin Credible. There's a big emphasis on interactive technology, which extends to the 22,000-pound kinetic chandelier with eight rings that dance with light to the music, along with six aerialists. The lines to enter stretch through the casino floor with gaggles of trendy youth. The weekend brings Deseo Latin Sundays for that rare Latin experience at a Strip nightclub.

The Chandelier Bar may be The Cosmopolitan's cocktail-venue claim to fame, but you shouldn't overlook the sleek Vesper Bar, the true mixologist space at the hotel. Name an ingredient, any ingredient, and the talented staff behind the bar can come up with a drink for you. Long-forgotten cocktail recipes are a specialty at this very modern square bar sitting alongside hotel registration.

Different cityscapes ranging from sunset in Hong Kong to night in Dubai to evening in New York City change on huge screens (so you can order a Manhattan while you're looking at Manhattan) that make up the background at this lounge, which offers specialty drinks like a pineapple mule.