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High Roller (Ferris wheel)

Coordinates: 36°07′04″N 115°10′05″W / 36.117698°N 115.16815°W / 36.117698; -115.16815
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High Roller
High Roller
High Roller, seen from The LINQ
Map
General information
StatusOperating[1]
TypeFerris wheel
LocationLas Vegas Strip, Paradise, Nevada
Address3545 South Las Vegas Boulevard
Coordinates36°07′03″N 115°10′05″W / 36.117402°N 115.168127°W / 36.117402; -115.168127 (High Roller)
OpeningMarch 31, 2014; 10 years ago (March 31, 2014)[5]
OwnerCaesars Entertainment Corporation
Height550 feet (167.6 m)[2][3]
Dimensions
Diameter520 feet (158.5 m)[4]
Design and construction
EngineerArup Engineering[4]

High Roller is a 550-foot tall (167.6 m),[2][3] 520-foot (158.5 m) diameter[4] giant Ferris wheel on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, United States of America.

It opened to the public on March 31, 2014, and is currently the world's tallest Ferris wheel. It is 9 ft (2.7 m) taller than its predecessor, the 541-foot (165 m) Singapore Flyer, which had held the record from 2008.[6][7][8][9]

Design

High Roller was announced in August 2011[10] as the centerpiece[11] of Caesars Entertainment Corporation's $550 million The LINQ.[7] Arup Engineering, which previously consulted on the Singapore Flyer, acted as the structural engineer.[4]

The wheel rotates on a pair of custom-designed spherical roller bearings, each weighing approximately 19,400 lb (8,800 kg). Each bearing has an outer diameter of 7.55 feet (2.30 m), an inner bore of 5.25 feet (1.60 m), and a width of 2.07 feet (0.63 m).[12]

The outer rim comprises 28 sections, each 56 feet (17 m) long, which were temporarily held in place during construction by a pair of 275-foot (84 m) radial struts, prior to being permanently secured by four cables.[13]

The passenger cabins (or capsules) are mounted on the wheel's outboard rim and are individually rotated by electric motors to smoothly maintain a horizontal cabin floor throughout each full rotation.[14] Preliminary designs anticipated 32 passenger cabins, each with a 40-passenger capacity[15] —with the final design accommodating 28 40-person cabins and a total capacity of 1,120 passengers.[8][16]

Each 225-square-foot (20.9 m2)[4] cabin weighs approximately 44,000 pounds (20,000 kg), has a diameter of 22 feet (6.7 m), includes 300 square feet (28 m2) of glass, and is equipped with eight flat-screen televisions and an iPod dock.[17][16][8][18]

At night the wheel is illuminated by a 2,000-LED system[19] which can display a single solid color, differently colored sections, multiple colors moving around the rim,[20] and custom displays for special events and holidays.[19]

Construction

Located on Las Vegas Boulevard, across from Caesars Palace,[8] construction was originally scheduled to begin in September 2011 with a late 2013 completion;[15] subsequently revised to early 2014.[21]

The outer rim of the wheel was completed on September 9, 2013.[22] The first passenger cabin was delivered and installed in November 2013 and the final cabin was installed the following month.[8][18][23]

After preliminary testing, High Roller's lighting system was illuminated at sunset on February 28, 2014.[24][19]

High Roller opened to the public at 4 p.m. EST on March 31, 2014.[25]

Ticketing

Tickets were originally expected to cost less than $20 per ride,[8] but estimates had risen to "about $25 per person" by mid-2012 then "about $30 per person" in September 2013 news reports.[22]

When High Roller opened to the public in March 2014, tickets for a single 30-minute ride, the time taken for the entire wheel to rotate once, cost $24.95 (daytime) and $34.95 (nighttime). Other ticket options included a $59.95 Express Pass, allowing the holder to skip the line and ride any time.[26]

  • View of High Roller from The LINQ
    View of High Roller from The LINQ
  • One of the 28 cabins
    One of the 28 cabins
  • High Roller view of the Las Vegas Strip
    High Roller view of the Las Vegas Strip
  • High Roller view looking east
    High Roller view looking east
  • Top of the High Roller from the base
    Top of the High Roller from the base

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to High Roller (Ferris wheel).

References

  1. ^ Trejos, Nancy. "World's tallest Ferris wheel opens in Vegas". USA TODAY. USA TODAY. Retrieved 31 March 2014.
  2. ^ a b Las Vegas to build world's tallest observation wheel
  3. ^ a b World's tallest observation wheel coming to Las Vegas
  4. ^ a b c d e Caesars pushing forward with High Roller observation wheel
  5. ^ Trejos, Nancy. "World's tallest Ferris wheel opens in Vegas". USA TODAY. USA TODAY. Retrieved 31 March 2014.
  6. ^ High Roller: world's largest Ferris wheel hoisted into place in Las Vegas
  7. ^ a b A vital Linq for Las Vegas
  8. ^ a b c d e f Colorado's Leitner-Poma to build cabins for huge observation wheel in Las Vegas
  9. ^ Singapore Flyer opens to the public from Saturday
  10. ^ Moscow plans an observation wheel to beat Las Vegas 'High Roller' project
  11. ^ High Roller: World's Tallest Wheel Offers New Spin on Vegas
  12. ^ "SKF Wins Contract for Caesars Las Vegas High Roller Wheel". Design News. Retrieved 27 August 2012.
  13. ^ LINQ Tenants Progress report
  14. ^ Colorado Company To Build Las Vegas Observation Wheel
  15. ^ a b Las Vegas plans to top London Eye with massive Ferris wheel
  16. ^ a b High-flying deal for Leitner-Poma
  17. ^ High Roller Fact Sheet
  18. ^ a b Las Vegas High Roller Observation Wheel reaches new heights
  19. ^ a b c Las Vegas Strip: Brand New Half-Billion Dollar Attraction Woos Tourists
  20. ^ High Roller testing features colored sections
  21. ^ Hurricane Sandy drives quarterly losses for Caesars
  22. ^ a b World's newest largest Ferris wheel goes up on Vegas strip
  23. ^ Final passenger cabin affixed to High Roller, but work continues
  24. ^ "Official lights-on for giant Vegas Ferris wheel". Associated Press (AP). The Washington Times. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
  25. ^ Trejos, Nancy. "World's tallest Ferris wheel opens in Vegas". USA TODAY. USA TODAY. Retrieved 31 March 2014.
  26. ^ "The LINQ". Retrieved 31 March 2014.
  27. ^ Voyager Las Vegas


36°07′04″N 115°10′05″W / 36.117698°N 115.16815°W / 36.117698; -115.16815

Preceded by World's tallest Ferris wheel
2014–present 		Succeeded by
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