Las Vegas Nevada Neon Museum Red Rock Canyon and Hoover Dam

Why visit Las Vegas

There is simply nowhere else like it. Within a few miles you will find headline concert residencies, acrobatic stage productions, celebrity chef restaurants, enormous swimming pools and some of the most elaborate architecture ever built for fun.

Las Vegas is also a gateway to the desert Southwest. Red Rock Canyon is about fifteen miles from the city, Valley of Fire and Lake Mead are within an hour, and Hoover Dam is an easy half-day trip.

The Strip and its landmarks

Fountains of Bellagio

The free water show on the lake in front of the Bellagio is the most beloved sight on the Strip, with jets choreographed to music ranging from opera to pop. Shows run frequently from afternoon into late evening; check the resort's website for the current schedule.

Sphere and the High Roller

Sphere, the giant ball just east of the Strip behind the Venetian, opened in 2023 and is covered in a vast LED exterior that changes from eyeballs to planets to emojis throughout the evening. Inside, an immersive wraparound screen hosts films and concert residencies; book tickets well ahead.

Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign

Designed by Betty Willis and erected in 1959, this sign stands in the median at the south end of the Strip. A small parking lot gives safe access, and there is often a queue for photographs.

Elsewhere along the Strip, the canals and gondolas of the Venetian, the flamingo habitat at the Flamingo, and the observation deck of the STRAT tower at the north end are all worth a look.

Downtown and old Las Vegas

Fremont Street Experience

Fremont Street was the heart of Las Vegas long before the Strip, and its historic casinos, including the Golden Gate, which dates from 1906, still line the street.

The Neon Museum

On Las Vegas Boulevard north of downtown, the Neon Museum preserves more than two hundred signs from vanished casinos, motels and businesses in its outdoor Neon Boneyard. Its visitor center is the shell-shaped lobby of the former La Concha Motel, moved here from the Strip.

The Mob Museum

Two blocks north of Fremont Street, the National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement occupies the 1933 former post office and federal courthouse. Exhibits trace the history of organized crime in America and the agents who pursued it, including the restored courtroom where hearings on organized crime were held in 1950.

Nearby, the Las Vegas Arts District, centered on Main Street and Charleston Boulevard, is known for galleries, vintage shops, murals and craft breweries, and hosts a monthly First Friday art walk.

Day trips into the desert

Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area

Only about fifteen miles west of the Strip, Red Rock Canyon is a dramatic landscape of red and cream sandstone cliffs where an ancient thrust fault pushed older gray limestone over younger red rock.

Hoover Dam

About forty minutes southeast of Las Vegas, Hoover Dam was completed in the 1930s to tame the Colorado River and create Lake Mead. You can walk across the top of the dam, which straddles the Nevada and Arizona state line, and visit the visitor center for exhibits and guided tours into the structure.

Valley of Fire State Park

Nevada's oldest state park lies about fifty miles northeast of Las Vegas, and its name comes from red Aztec sandstone formations that seem to burn in the low sun. Highlights include Elephant Rock near the east entrance, the petroglyphs at Atlatl Rock and Mouse's Tank, the striped rocks of the Fire Wave trail and stone cabins built by the Civilian Conservation Corps.

Food and local flavors

Las Vegas has become one of the country's great dining cities. Most major resorts host restaurants from internationally known chefs, along with steakhouses, sushi counters and lavish weekend brunches.

Some of the best food lies off the Strip. Spring Mountain Road, west of the Strip, is the city's Chinatown, a long corridor of Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Thai and Filipino restaurants that stay busy late into the night.

Where to stay

The center of the Strip, around the Bellagio, Caesars Palace and the Venetian, is the best base for first-time visitors who want to walk between the major sights, shows and restaurants.

Downtown, around Fremont Street, offers a more retro atmosphere, lower rates and easy access to the Neon Museum, Mob Museum and Arts District. Families and travelers who prefer a non-gaming environment often choose resorts without casinos or suburban areas such as Summerlin, close to Red Rock Canyon, or Henderson to the southeast.

Best time to visit

Las Vegas sits in the Mojave Desert and has hot, dry summers and mild winters. Spring, from March to May, and autumn, from October to November, bring warm, sunny days that are ideal for both the pools and desert hiking.

Crowds and room prices depend less on the season than on events.

Getting there and getting around

Harry Reid International Airport lies just east of the southern end of the Strip, so most resorts are a short taxi, rideshare or shuttle ride away. Many visitors from Southern California drive in via Interstate 15, a trip that can slow to a crawl on Friday and Sunday afternoons.

On the Strip, walking is the main way to get around, using pedestrian bridges to cross the Boulevard.

A suggested itinerary

First day

Photograph the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign early, then explore the central Strip resorts and the Bellagio Conservatory.

Second day

Drive to Red Rock Canyon at opening time with your reservation, hike in the Calico Hills and finish the scenic loop by midday.

Third day

Spend the morning at the Mob Museum, lunch in the Arts District, then take a Neon Museum tour around dusk and spend the evening under the Fremont Street canopy.

Fourth day

Choose a desert day trip: Hoover Dam and the bypass bridge with a stop at Lake Mead, or a full day among the red rocks and petroglyphs of Valley of Fire.

Practical tips

• Drink water constantly; the dry desert air dehydrates you quickly, even indoors.
• Check resort fees, parking charges and taxes when comparing hotel rates.
• Book popular shows, Sphere, the Neon Museum and Red Rock timed entry well ahead.
• Wear comfortable shoes, since distances between resorts are longer than they look.
• Set a gambling budget before you start and stick to it.
• Carry ID at all times; casinos, bars and pools check age strictly, with twenty one the minimum for gaming.

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