Las Vegas is a big city that’s only pretending to be a small town. A metropolis this sprawling and complex requires instructions, urban hacks. These nine smartphone apps, available for both Android and iPhone, are those hacks. Get ’em.
Breezometer measures air quality. On those days when we’re trapped between dust clouds and nearby wildfires—as we were for most of last month—it’s nice to get an official suggestion to go inside and crank the AC.
Chefsfeed provides dining suggestions from chefs. Want to know where the chefs of the Strip’s five-star restaurants go for tacos, burgers and pork belly bao? It’s all here, and unlike most Yelp reviews, it’s trustworthy.
Discotech is a skeleton key that opens clubs. Use it to find out who’s DJing on any given evening, buy tickets, reserve VIP tables and even get on the guest list, if there is one.
ItsOnMe allows you to buy a drink for that friend at the end of the bar, even if they’re in a separate bar in another city entirely. You can also buy friends dinner and—why not—rounds of golf.
Leafly tells you what your neighborhood dispensaries have behind the counter, and offers reviews of the effects and characteristics of those strains. Example: Acapulco Gold has “an aroma of burnt toffee” and will reduce stress, but you’ll get dry mouth. Seems fair.
Neon to Nature lists the Valley’s outdoor trails—locations, lengths, suggested uses. Might not make sense now, but in a few weeks you may get the urge to go outside.
Postmates enables you to order food from virtually any restaurant in town and get it delivered practically anywhere. It’s a godsend when you want to order burgers from a barstool, or when you’re home doing Netflix and Leafly.
Untappd is a combination brewery hunter/social network/beer scrapbook. Not only can it tell you what Atomic Liquors and Tacos & Beer have on tap right now, but you can keep a record of all those stouts, lagers and IPAs as you sock them away.
Waze is a necessary tool for navigating Vegas’ roads and freeways. It provides traffic updates from both official agencies and individual users. It’ll even tell you where police have been spotted … not to say that should matter.
