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  1. Home
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  3. Cool Neon Signs Around the World

Cool Neon Signs Around the World

By Lyndsey Matthews
March 25, 2013
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Credit: Courtesy of photodillon
Without its neon signs, Las Vegas would be virtually unrecognizable. From the electric blue martini glass (complete with neon green olive) above Fremont Street to the multicolored hot-air balloon of the Paris Las Vegas Hotel on the Strip, these phosphorescent signs add more than a dash of color to the city night.

Discovered by British scientists in 1898, the element neon gets its name from the Greek word for new, neos. In 1910, French engineer Georges Claude patented a lamp that uses an electrified tube of the element and introduced neon gas signs to companies in the United States.

Neon signs quickly became a popular form of outdoor advertising by the mid 20th century, adding colorful pops of light to cinema marquees like the Bagdad Theater & Pub in Portland, OR and transforming cities like Hong Kong after sunset.

In Vegas, neon signs are such a part of the city’s identity that there’s an entire museum dedicated to the preservation of its most iconic signs. Visitors to the Neon Museum can see signs collected from motels, businesses, and casinos that date back to the 1930s.

To show off some of the coolest neon signage around the world, we looked through Travel + Leisure’s archives and dug through submissions from our online community members. We’ve selected our favorite images to create a round-the-world tour of the most dazzling examples of neon, from Paris’s Moulin Rouge to a neon cowboy boot on Nashville’s Music Row.

See for yourself by checking out these photographs of neon around the world.
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The Neon Museum, Las Vegas

Cool Neon Signs: The Neon Museum
Credit: Misha Gravenor

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Nashville, TN

Cool Neon Signs: Nashville
Credit: Courtesy of photodillon

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Chicago

Cool Neon Signs: Chicago
Credit: Angie Naron

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San Francisco

Cool Neon Signs: San Francisco
Credit: SiliconValleyStock / Alamy

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Oakland, CA

Cool Neon Signs: Oakland
Credit: Patrick Boury

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The Neon Museum, Las Vegas

Cool Neon Signs: The Neon Museum
Credit: The Neon Museum, Inc.

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Pike Place Market, Seattle, WA

Cool Neon Signs: Pike Place Market
Credit: Sandro Munoz

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Bagdad Theater & Pub, Portland, OR

Cool Neon Signs: Bagdad Theater & Pub
Credit: Courtesy of Curtis Gregory Perry

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West Hollywood, CA

Cool Neon Signs: West Hollywood Motel
Credit: Mark Peacock

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Fargo, ND

Cool Neon Signs: Fargo
Credit: Courtesy of Darwinquest

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Paris Las Vegas Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas

Cool Neon Signs: Paris Las Vegas Hotel & Casino
Credit: Courtesy of jonwalker

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Pleasant Hill, CA

Cool Neon Signs: Pleasant Hill, CA
Credit: Courtesy of pacientzero

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Brussels, Belgium

Cool Neon Signs: Brussels
Credit: Marie Hennechart

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Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Cool Neon Signs: Kuala Lumpur
Credit: Courtesy of LindaM

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Las Vegas

Cool Neon Signs: Las Vegas
Credit: Coral Von Zumwalt

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Hong Kong

Cool Neon Signs: Hong Kong
Credit: Kevin J. Miyazaki

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Lenoir, NC

Cool Neon Signs: Lenoir, NC
Credit: Courtesy of inka19

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Las Vegas

Cool Neon Signs: Las Vegas
Credit: Coral Von Zumwalt

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Mitchell, NE

Cool Neon Signs: Nile Theater, Mitchell, NE
Credit: Courtesy of jeannel

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Pike Place Market, Seattle, WA

Cool Neon Signs: Pike Place Market
Credit: Courtesy of dmguzman

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Watkins Glen, NY

Cool Neon Signs: Watkins Glen, NY
Credit: Lyndsey Matthews

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Nashville, TN

Cool Neon Signs: Nashville
Credit: Courtesy of currierm2

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Las Vegas

Cool Neon Signs: Las Vegas
Credit: Courtesy of photodillon

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Paris

Cool Neon Signs: Moulin Rouge, Paris
Credit: Courtesy of EvanTravels

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Santa Rosa, NM

Cool Neon Signs: Santa Rosa, NM
Credit: Courtesy of nomaddanib

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Las Vegas

Cool Neon Signs: Las Vegas
Credit: Courtesy of ltyear

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St. Paul, MN

Cool Neon Signs: St. Paul, MN
Credit: Courtesy of BradleyOlson1

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Metairie, LA

Cool Neon Signs: Metairie, LA
Credit: Judi Bottoni

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Nashville, TN

Cool Neon Signs: Nashville
Credit: Courtesy of ChandraLani

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Las Vegas

Cool Neon Signs: Las Vegas
Credit: Coral Von Zumwalt

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Holbrook, AZ

Cool Neon Signs: Holbrook, AZ
Credit: Courtesy of FlergHergersen

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Ann Arbor, MI

Cool Neon Signs: Ann Arbor, MI
Credit: Marcus Nilsson

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Chicago

Cool Neon Signs: Chicago
Credit: Courtesy of photodillon

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Las Vegas

Cool Neon Signs: Las Vegas
Credit: Courtesy of photodillon

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By Lyndsey Matthews

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    1 of 34 The Neon Museum, Las Vegas
    2 of 34 Nashville, TN
    3 of 34 Chicago
    4 of 34 San Francisco
    5 of 34 Oakland, CA
    6 of 34 The Neon Museum, Las Vegas
    7 of 34 Pike Place Market, Seattle, WA
    8 of 34 Bagdad Theater & Pub, Portland, OR
    9 of 34 West Hollywood, CA
    10 of 34 Fargo, ND
    11 of 34 Paris Las Vegas Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas
    12 of 34 Pleasant Hill, CA
    13 of 34 Brussels, Belgium
    14 of 34 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
    15 of 34 Las Vegas
    16 of 34 Hong Kong
    17 of 34 Lenoir, NC
    18 of 34 Las Vegas
    19 of 34 Mitchell, NE
    20 of 34 Pike Place Market, Seattle, WA
    21 of 34 Watkins Glen, NY
    22 of 34 Nashville, TN
    23 of 34 Las Vegas
    24 of 34 Paris
    25 of 34 Santa Rosa, NM
    26 of 34 Las Vegas
    27 of 34 St. Paul, MN
    28 of 34 Metairie, LA
    29 of 34 Nashville, TN
    30 of 34 Las Vegas
    31 of 34 Holbrook, AZ
    32 of 34 Ann Arbor, MI
    33 of 34 Chicago
    34 of 34 Las Vegas

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