Mandalay Bay Tower Behind the Luxor’s Sphinx Statue

Mandalay Bay opened on the Las Vegas Strip in 1999, developed by Circus Circus Enterprises at a cost of roughly $950 million. The resort's gold-tinted glass exterior and tropical theme were meant to evoke Southeast Asia rather than ancient Egypt. The limestone sphinx replica visible here belongs to the neighboring Luxor hotel, which opened in 1993 and is connected to Mandalay Bay by a tram and pedestrian walkway. Mandalay Bay's hotel tower rises 43 stories and includes an 11-acre artificial beach, a feature unusual among Strip resorts at the time of its construction.

Taken April 2008