Wrangler National Finals Rodeo

If you love rodeos, horses, cowboys, and cowgirls, this place is the place to be. Absolutely fantastic time here at the National Finals Rodeo, where crowds can cheer on their local favorites! Tickets are kind of steep in roce, but the fun and excitement are limitless. Outside vendors provided delicious BBQ, kettle corn, street corn, and sandwiches, and there were a couple of NFR merchandise trailers to pick up your favorite gear. Parking was easy, I chose to purchase a parking pass, but he very offers buses and ride share options as well. Alcohol is a bit cheaper here. Beer on tap, wine, and hard alcohol are also available. The show opened up with a live band, and the introduction of all the riders. It was pretty awesome to see. They even had fireworks. So, if you're looking for an awesome night out with friends, family, or just by yourself...this is a great event to check out.

Wow. What an experience. The Super Bowl of the Rodeo! It's the Men's and women's championship title with contenders from Australia, Canada and Australia. Massive crowd on a Thursday night- if you don't have tickets there are PLENTY of scalpers advertising tickets as you walk toward the entrance. There are food and memorabilia vendors outside of the event center and inside as well. Seating is very very cozy (as in tightly compacted and hard surface). I'm also on the shorter side and my knees were a few inches away from the back of the seats in front of me. YIIIIIIKES. Be prepared. The temperature was warm inside. If you sit closer to the field, sure will be kicked up during some of the competitions. A must try experience!

Bought $1500 worth of tickets for NFR. On our tickets, there were seat #'s and sections. Got there and apparently they're General admission. You get to sit in a room and watch TV's Don't even guarantee a chair to sitSeems like they need to be a lot clearer on seating. Wasted a lot of money on hotels, transportation and tickets. It would have been better sitting in my own living room. Super unhappy with the whole mess

Finally made the great pilgrimage to the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. Traffic was horrendous and the taxicab and ride share wait lines were miles long. I would highly recommend meeting your ride away from the venue. The contestants were amazing and did not disappoint. The Rodeo it's self was good, not great. Honestly our local Idaho PRCA rodeo is way more fun and entertaining as there is more interaction.

I have lived in Las Vegas most of my life and have only attended the NFR a couple of times. The opportunity came up to attend this year with my good friends and I decided to go.This event is annual and lots of people from over the USA and other countries attend. It is held at the Thomas & Mack and the entire building was filled to capacity. Parking is always a challenge at this venue and we ended up across the street near the ride share area. All I could think of was how long we were going to have to wait to get out, but it was surprisingly organized and easy to leave when it came time.Upon arrival, we located our seats which were pretty primo. We were down low near the corrals and had a spectacular view. The rodeo began promptly and stayed on schedule. The announcer was entertaining and kept the crowd engaged.My favorite event is the women's barrel racing as I used to compete in this event when I was younger. I had great memories come flooding back as I watched this event. I was reminded of the rush of adrenaline when it is you and your horse running these barrels against the clock. The young lady who won the heat finished with an incredible time of 13.62. The other events were also well done such as the bareback riding, tie down roping, bull riding etc but I do have concerns over how the animals are treated. There were so many cowboys and cowgirls of all ages, shapes and sizes. Everyone appeared to be having a great time on the "Fan Cam" and the "Kiss Cam" overhead and there was plenty of music during the events that kept everything moving.Definitely made me wish I had a horse again just to run those barrels one more time.

A sad day for rodeo. I realize that the NFR is the "Superbowl" of rodeo, but let's be honest. Rodeo is a growing sport. It's not the NFL. It should welcome new fans with its arms wide open. Why deter that growth and popularity by allowing "season ticket holders" to sell their tickets second-hand on Stub-Hub and jack-up the price to make it unaffordable for many? This is no different than the Taylor Swift ticket scandal. Many of those season ticket holders could care less about the rodeo. They are in it to make money. And... why does the NFR claim to put single day and mini-pack tickets on sale to the general public at a designated date and time, only for the anxiously awaiting fan to find out that as soon as the clock strikes noon pacific time, there are no tickets to be bought, regardless? Why does the NFR mislead the fans? What a joke and what a bad taste it leaves for the excited new rodeo fans who want to support the sport.For me, it all comes down to principal. I cancelled my week reservation at the "Cowboy Channel" endorsed Conrad hotel. I cancelled my flights. I will not be spending my hard-earned money at Cowboy Christmas, nor will I be supporting all the other events, venders, and restaurants that are associated with the NFR. The effects are broad. I may stop watching the Cowboy Channel and even give-up on rodeo altogether. I realize that I am just one person, and someone will fill my void and be willing to get ripped-off, but I can't help to believe that there are many more fans who feel the same way I do, and who may give up on rodeo. In the grand scheme of things, Rodeo becomes the loser! There are ways to alleviate some of these problems. If the NFR is so popular, get a bigger venue! Don't allow tickets to be scalped for ridiculous amounts! And don't advertise tickets to go on sale to the "general public" when in fact there are none to be purchased because the season ticket holders have gobbled them all up (even though in the small print you mention that possibility). Sneaky!! Come on NFR, get with it. Start thinking about the common man. After all, this is the sport of the common man, the blue-collar, hard-working, not afraid to get dirty, COWBOY and COWGIRL. And ultimately, when rodeo loses, so do the cowboys and cowgirls. Don't let rodeo become like every other sport in the U.S. Don't let money and greed take control. Or is it too late?

During the 18 years I've lived here, I've gone to NFR twice--once in 2006 and again this year. I'm conflicted about the rodeo. I enjoy the beautiful horses and I appreciate the dedication of the athletes who compete here nightly during the NFR. On the other had, I'm not fond of the treatment of animals for this sport, especially the use of the buck strap to make the animals buck. I also appreciate the amount of tourists and the money the NFR brings to our city.Mostly, NFR to me is not the animals nor the athletes but the people watching in the arena. Never will you see so much denim, so many cowboy hats, and so many LARGE belt buckles. I, on the other hand, had no hat at all, no denim, and there was a belt buckle in sight on my un-cowboy like clothing.The rodeo begins with a prayer and then the National Anthem. This is followed by calf roping, bucking broncos, bull riding, and other rodeo sports not in that order. There's ample time to get a beer or two many did and there's a lot of NFR merchandise for sale.For a now and then thing, the rodeo would be OK. I'm just not into that very much.

I finish the year here for the last 15 years! No matter what the year throws at me The NFR closes out the year in style!!!!Cowboys, cowgirls, horses, bulls and beers!!!!Tip:Don't forget to visit Cowboy Christmas at the Las Vegas convention center to get geared up for the night!!!!

I came to Vegas on the weekend where the Finals Rodeo was starting...it was so interesting. Every single casino you walked into, you'll get cowboys and cowgirls galore!! Shhhh....don't tell anyone, but cowboys do exsist. These were real live in the flesh cowboys, with the tight jeans, plaid button ups (tucked in), big belt buckle, cowboy boots...and to finish off the outfit a big ass cowboy hat! I've never been anywhere with tons of cowboys just walkin' around. There were block parties sponsered by crown royal where some of the little streets were closed down on Las Vegas Blvd. and they had drinks, country music and a mechanical bull. I was very impressed with the transformation of the Vegas strip into a rodeo finals for all the cowboys! It was fascinating, growing up in Southern California, I'm not too exposed to real cowboys, perhaps just at the country line dancing bars I've been to, which I call the cowboy bar. But this was a real treat for me. Now I can cross off meeting real life cowboys off my list. Thanks Rodeo Finals for holding it in Vegas! Yippee ki yay Mo...

After living here for 15 years, I finally went to my first NFR event. Since I'm not a Cowboy, my expectations were very low. I was pleasantly surprised to experience such an awesome event. It is 10 days of non-stop action and partying!Every event is action packed.....with my two favorites being the Bronc Riding and Bull Riding.The key to really enjoying the rodeo is to get there early and spend some time outside the Thomas & Mack enjoying the food stands and beer tent. You can find Philly Steak Sandwiches, Burritos, Italian Sausage & Pepper Sandwiches, Fries, Hot Dogs, Burgers, BBQ, and Pizza....and much more. The food is better outside the arena than inside, which is your typical arena type food.The beer is reasonably priced and your limited to your basic domestic beers. If you want craft beers, head inside the Thomas & Mack and they have a few vendors that serve better stuff. That's the only positive to the food choices inside.Another tip is to make sure you dress warm. It's the middle of December and it can get chilly outside. Oh, and don't forget your Cowboy Hat!Will I return? Hell ya!