United States
Nevada
How to fly high above the Fremont Street Experience for up to a minute of fun
By
Zeke Quezada
Updated on 01/09/20
Perhaps one of the coolest experiences in Las Vegas sends riders flying high above the Fremont Street Experience in Downtown Las Vegas. The $12 million SlotZilla zip line took 14 months to build and opened in 2014, already offering adventures to more than two million riders when it celebrated its fifth anniversary in August 2019. In late 2019, the world’s largest single video screen, Viva Vision, which serves as the canopy for the six blocks of the Fremont Street Experience, went through a $32 million renovation to bring 3D graphics that the zip lines fly under as it’s lit up at night. But day or night, SlotZilla gives riders an overhead view of the entertainment district while sailing along at speeds up to 35 mph.
SlotZilla’s home is an 11-story slot machine-inspired structure decorated with over-sized dice, a martini glass, a pink flamingo, coins, video reels, a giant arm, and two showgirls. Those 35-foot-tall showgirls flank the structure, and their likenesses are based on two real people, named Jennifer and Porsha. The replicas mimic two showgirls who always appear with former Las Vegas mayor Oscar Goodman, a colorful character who still represents the city at many functions.
Where Is It?
The entrance to SlotZilla sits Fremont Street between Fourth Street and Las Vegas Boulevard at 425 Fremont St. Riders queue up here to begin their experiences that can take up to one hour to complete, depending on rider volume.
Two Lines
SlotZilla offers two different rider experiences. The lower zip line lets riders fly on a seated harness from 77 feet in the air, about seven stories up, for 850 feet, about half the length of the Fremont Street Experience. Flyers land between the Third Street Stage and Casino Center. The ride lasts about 30 seconds.
The upper Zoomline features a horizontal Superman flying position launched from 114 feet, or 11 stories, up and spanning 1,700 feet, the length of the Fremont Street Experience. Flyers land at the Main Street Stage near the Golden Gate, the oldest casino in Las Vegas. This ride takes about one minute to complete.
When to Ride
Obviously nighttime is the best time to ride since the Fremont Street Experience is busier and the experience of the Viva Vision light shows is more dramatic. But for daytime riders, know that the light show goes on 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Every hour from 6 p.m. to 1 a.m., the light show features a six-minute concert playing music and cool videos from bands such as Vegas-born The Killers and Imagine Dragons, Vegas resident deejays Tiesto and Steve Aoki, and rockers Green Day and Linkin Park. Planning for a ride on the hour during those shows provides the best flying experience.
Restrictions
Let’s get this out of the way. For the lower zip line, riders need to weigh at least 50 pounds, since it’s a gravity-based ride essentially going downhill from the launch pad. For the Zoomline, flyers need to weigh least 80 pounds to ride. Both rides have a maximum weight of 300 pounds. Riders cannot be taller than 6-foot-8 on either line. Flyers younger than 16 must have a rider 16 or older with them, but they will ride alone and not in tandem. No, there are no tandem rides, although up to four people can ride on separate lines at the same time on either the lower or upper lines.
Hours
Both zip lines offer rides from noon to midnight Sunday through Thursday, and noon to 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday.
Tickets
The lower zip line tickets go for $29 while the Zoomline tickets cost $49. Riders who fly before 5 p.m. can get a $5 discount. Customers can purchase tickets online or at the ticket office at 425 Fremont St., where every ride begins. Riders do get a boarding time, so it’s best to buy in advance. Flyers should arrive 10 minutes before their boarding time. The cost to change a boarding time is $10 as long as the change doesn’t occur after the boarding time.
What Happens Before I Ride?
Riders need to be weighed, climb up two flights of stairs to the tower, get strapped into the sitting or horizontal flying harness, and go through safety checks before they fly. Zip line riders then walk up to the launch tower while Zoomline flyers take an elevator to their launch pad. ADA visitors can use elevators to access all levels.
Lockers
While SlotZilla doesn’t have lockers for personal items, it does offer bags that are attached to the harness on the ride to store everything from sunglasses and handbags to phones and wallets.
Photos
Riders can’t take their own photos, but Magic Memories does shoot images of guests as the land and again posed after the ride. Customers can purchase photo packages at the bottom of each landing platform. Riders can request a GoPro helmet on the harness deck as well, and then purchase the footage at the end of the flight.
How Do I Get Back to the Start?
Both zip lines only operate in one direction, so riders may need to walk back to the ticket office to meet their party members who didn’t ride.
