Las Vegas isn't known for its sports teams. Except for minor-league baseball and hockey, the only consistent spectator sports are those at UNLV. For the pros, if watching Triple-A baseball (in this case, a Toronto Blue Jays farm team) in potentially triple-degree heat sounds like fun, the charmingly named and even-better merchandized Las Vegas 51s (as in Area 51, as in alien-themed gear!) is a hot ticket. The team's schedule and ticket info are available at www.lv51.com, or call tel. 702/386-7200. Ice hockey might be a better climate choice; get info for the Las Vegas Wranglers at www.lasvegaswranglers.com or call tel. 702/471-7825.

The Las Vegas Motor Speedway is a main venue for car racing that draws major events to Las Vegas.

Because the city has several top-notch sporting arenas, important annual events take place in Las Vegas. The Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open takes place in Las Vegas every October. The National Finals Rodeo is held in UNLV's Thomas & Mack Center in December. From time to time, you'll find NBA exhibition games, professional ice-skating competitions, or gymnastics exhibitions. Finally, Las Vegas is well known as a major location for boxing matches. These are held in several Strip hotels, most often at Caesars or the MGM Grand, but sometimes at The Mirage. Tickets are hard to come by and quite expensive.

Tickets to sporting events at hotels are available either through Ticketmaster (tel. 702/893-3000; www.ticketmaster.com) or through the hotels themselves. (Why pay Ticketmaster's exorbitant service charges if you don't have to?)

Major Sports Venues in HotelsMGM Grand's Garden Events Arena (tel. 800/929-1111 or 702/891-7777) is a major venue for professional boxing matches, rodeos, tennis, ice-skating shows, World Figure Skating Championships, and more.

Mandalay Bay (tel. 877/632-7400) has hosted a number of boxing matches in its 12,000-seat Events Center.

Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.