The Hangover Guide to Las Vegas

Ching Almazan

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Iconic Caesars Palace Tower Sign

Over a decade ago, the award-winning comedic hit, โ€œThe Hangover,โ€ graced the silver screen and was an instant box office phenomenon, ultimately producing two sequels. The storyline was simple. It revolved around a bachelor party set in Sin City with four guys collectively called the Wolfpack. The chaotic yet hilarious sequence of events begins when Doug, the groom-to-be, somehow disappears after a night of drinking. His three friends Phil, Stu, and Alan wake up to Mike Tysonโ€™s tiger in the bathroom, a chicken wandering around the suite, a crying baby, and the group desperately begins their quest to find Doug before his wedding day.

Visit These Locations From โ€œThe Hangoverโ€

Because of the popularity of the original movie, many tourists have come to Las Vegas over the years to precisely find the locations where their favorite scenes from the movie were filmed. Here are some of the most popular sites you can still visit today.

Las Vegas Strip

The drive into Vegas is such a vibe with Kanye Westโ€™s โ€œCanโ€™t Tell Me Nothingโ€ playing in the background and the group passing iconic Vegas landmarks like the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas Sign, the hot air balloon at Paris Las Vegas, the Statue of Liberty at New York-New York Hotel & Casino, the Fountains at Bellagio Hotel & Casino and Caesars Palace where a great majority of their shenanigans take place.

The Las Vegas Strip at Night |
The Las Vegas Strip at Night (ยฉJulian Paefgen)

Caesars Palace

One of the prominent filming locations for the movie was at Caesars Palace, located on the Las Vegas Strip. While we are all about art imitating life, weโ€™ll start by saying that Caesars does not allow swimming in their fountains or tigers in their hotel. The Wolfpack can be seen in the lobby checking in. This, of course, is the scene where the famous question is asked, โ€œYou probably get this a lot. This isnโ€™t the real Caesarโ€™s Palace, is it? Did Caesar live here?โ€ Scenes were also filmed at the pool, elevators, front-drive and the rooftop of the casino hotel. The rooftop is where the group begins their adventure taking shots of Jagermeister and ultimately finding Doug. The Villa in the movie, however, does not actually exist. The suite was a soundstage inspired mainly by the Emperors Suite, which does exist. This suite is a two-bedroom, two-story suite, unlike the one-story villa seen in the movie.

Caesars Palace Strip View Las Vegas |
Caesars Palace Strip View (ยฉQueen Ahumareze)

Hostel Cat (The Best Little Chapel)

Stu falls in love with Jade, a stripper played by Heather Graham. He marries her on a drunken whim at The Best Little Chapel, which in fact, did not exist. A fake faรงade was added to the exterior of the Hostel Cat building located in Downtown Las Vegas. A makeshift bus stop was added and later torn down after the filming of the movie. The interior of The Best Little Chapel was a set built on a soundstage.

Mandalay Bay

Halfway through the movie, the trio reclaims their impounded car, which is located in the parking lot on Giles Street at Mandalay Bay. They believe they have finally found Doug when they hear banging coming from the trunk of the car. When they open the trunk, a naked man named Mr. Chow jumps out with a crowbar.

Mandalay Bay Las Vegas |
Mandalay Bay (ยฉTommao Wang)

Atomic Liquors

The trio literally runs into Mr. Chow again outside of Atomic Liquors, the cityโ€™s oldest freestanding bar originally built-in in 1945. The bar is located in Downtown Las Vegas and was already a popular drinking spot before its cameo appearance in the movie with visitors like The Rat Pack, Barbra Streisand and Anthony Bourdain over the years. It is also famous for being the spot where its customers could watch atomic blasts from the rooftop, which is where the bar got its name. Visitors to Las Vegas often stop in for a drink and photos at this popular spot.

Atomic Liquors Exterior Las Vegas |
Atomic Liquors Exterior (ยฉMelanie Lee)

Fremont Street East

The sight of a roaring tiger in the suiteโ€™s bathroom at Caesars Palace is one of the many standout scenes in the movie. The trio returning the tiger may even be funnier. They put five roofies in a piece of raw meat so they would be able to get it in the car. They can be seen driving down Fremont Street East to return the tiger to Mike Tyson. Mike Tyson lived in Las Vegas when the movie was filmed and owned seven tigers. When the 550 lb tiger was cast, the director decided to include Tyson in the film. At the time, Tyson thought the movie was a low-budget comedy and had no idea how successful the movie would become.

Fremont Street East at Night Las Vegas |
Fremont Street East at Night (ยฉBenjamin Brank)

 

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