The biggest thrill ride in Las Vegas is SkyJump, an 829-foot controlled free fall off The STRAT, and the other three worth your time sit lower and faster: Big Shot on top of The STRAT tower, the Fly LINQ zipline over The LINQ Promenade, and the Big Apple Coaster at New York-New York. Here they are ranked by how much nerve each one asks of you, most first, with what each ticket actually covers.
1. SkyJump at The STRAT: the one you have to step off
SkyJump Las Vegas opened in April 2010 and holds the Guinness World Record for the highest commercial decelerator descent, an official 829 feet. You suit up, clip into a descender line and walk out to the edge of a platform on the 108th floor. Nothing pushes you. Guide wires keep the fall on course and the descender slows you to a soft landing on a mat at the bottom, but on the way down you reach about 40 mph with the whole Strip rushing up at you. Every other ride on this page does the moving for you.
Where: The STRAT, 108th floor. Ride: an 829-foot controlled descent at up to about 40 mph. Ticket: a timed jump reservation.
2. The STRAT Tower and Big Shot: launched off the top of a 1,149-foot tower
The STRAT Tower has stood 1,149 feet over the north end of the Strip since 1996, the tallest freestanding observation tower in the United States, and from the deck helicopters pass at eye level. Above it, Big Shot fires riders 160 feet up the spire at 45 mph to a height of 1,081 feet, then lets them drop. Your stomach stays behind. The Vegas.com ticket covers observation deck admission; the rides are bought at the top. As of October 2026 The STRAT lists X-Scream as closed, so Big Shot is the ride to plan around.
Where: The STRAT, north end of the Strip. Ride: Big Shot, 160 feet up the spire at 45 mph. Ticket: observation deck admission; rides sold at the tower.
3. Fly LINQ: the Strip's only zipline, flown sitting down
Fly LINQ launches from a 114-foot tower at the Las Vegas Boulevard end of The LINQ Promenade and runs 1,121 feet down the promenade, 12 stories above the crowd, at up to 35 mph, finishing near the High Roller. Riders sit rather than lie flat, so you see the whole run coming. Ten lines run side by side, which makes it the one a group can do together. It's quick. At night, with the promenade lit below, it's also the prettiest ride here.
Where: The LINQ Promenade, center Strip. Ride: 1,121 feet at up to 35 mph, seated. Ticket: one ride, valid for three days from the date you pick.
4. The Big Apple Coaster: the roller coaster on the Strip
The Big Apple Coaster has wrapped around New York-New York's fake Manhattan skyline since January 1997. The trains are painted like yellow cabs, the biggest drop is 144 feet and the top speed is 67 mph, past a 150-foot Statue of Liberty and through two inversions, a loop and a dive loop. When it opened, its twist-and-dive element made it one of only two coasters in the world with one. It's the easiest ride here to fit into a day: you board on the casino's second level, at the corner of the Strip and Tropicana Avenue.
Where: New York-New York, Strip and Tropicana Avenue. Ride: a 144-foot drop at up to 67 mph. Ticket: a single ride.
Check Big Apple Coaster tickets
The short version
SkyJump is the bravest thing you can book in Las Vegas, and the Big Apple Coaster the easiest; Big Shot and Fly LINQ fill the gap. The STRAT and New York-New York sit at opposite ends of the Strip, about three miles apart, so most people pick one end per day. For the views without the adrenaline, our High Roller vs STRAT Tower guide compares the two observation decks.
