Vegas trip ideas

[cramman]

Bit of a spur of the minute thing and me and 2 mates have booked 12 days in Vegas (arrive 20th August).
So, what are the must do/see things.
Grand Canyon has to be seen, via the Hoover dam possibly.
We would also like to fit a bit of a road trip in somewhere.

We don’t have any hotels or anything booked yet, my thoughts were a few nights in Vegas, then off somewhere on a mini road trip, where do people recommend? The original plan was a loop from Vegas, through Death Valley down the coast to LA then back to Vegas, but I think that may be a bit much?!?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Cheers

Cramman.

[Simon Brooks]

for about £120 you can geta return flight to san francisco for a couple of days

[Marlin45]

If you have to be there then a must do is the 'try a machine gun' store

http://www.machinegunsvegas.com/
http://www.thegunstorelasvegas.com/

[Truckosaurus]

I had a week solo in Vegas in January.

Things I did included: drive out to the Red Rock Canyon (did a pre-booked guide walk with some locals in the snow) which is about 30-45 mins from the Strip. Parked up at the carpark at the southern entrance to the Lake Mead park and walk along the old railway line (and tunnels) to the Hoover Dam (about an hour each way). Went to the Neon Boneyard (prebooked tours only) north of downtown. Learned the basic rules of playing Craps and Blackjack Basic Strategy on my computer and then ended up around £500 up at the end of the week by playing conservatively. Frequented the bars that sold decent beer (Monte Carlo's The Pub, P.U.B. in the City Centre complex, Sincity Brewery in Planet Hollywood (perhaps the world's smallest bar but has people just sitting and chatting) and the brewpub in the Main Street Station downtown) and saw Penn and Teller at the Rio.

If you're there on a Saturday morning there is a 'Cars and Coffee' meet over towards Henderson.

[RDMcG]

You might want to go to the nearby Shelby works and museum. You can get a tour of the works during the week and see some historic Cobras and Mustangs.

[kelk]

If you go out ot the Gun store then stop by the pinball machine museum

[Mr E]

The bit of the GC you really want to see is a *long* way from Vegas.

[cramman]

Thanks for the comments.

Mr E said:

The bit of the GC you really want to see is a *long* way from Vegas.

So, could this be worth adding to a road trip, is there anyway to go that this would be on the route of, within reason.

[Truckosaurus]

The giant meteorite crater place is out that way, as is the petrified forest so not really worth it unless you are a big fans of rocks and/or holes in the ground.

I forgot to mention above that it is worth taking the bus between The Strip and Downtown for comedy effect as the drivers have headsets and do a commentary over the tannoy.

[RDMcG]

The GC is about 4-5 hours drive and you can pick up some pieces of the old Route 66 if you like...through Kingman, Hackberry, Seligman and through to Williams, all of which are close to the main drag.

[Blue Cat]

Marlin45 said:

If you have to be there then a must do is the 'try a machine gun' store

http://www.machinegunsvegas.com/
http://www.thegunstorelasvegas.com/

Yep a must do, my husband does this every time he goes to Vegas - but beware can be expensive.

Another thing to be aware of, going to Vegas in August, it is going to be hot, very hot!

[FloppyRaccoon]

Truckosaurus said:

The giant meteorite crater place is out that way, as is the petrified forest so not really worth it unless you are a big fans of rocks and/or holes in the ground.

I forgot to mention above that it is worth taking the bus between The Strip and Downtown for comedy effect as the drivers have headsets and do a commentary over the tannoy.

As a geologist, that sounds perfect.

[Mr E]

The bus is excellent, and runs all night from mandalay bay to fremont street.

I much preferred fremont street to the mega casino resorts. Your milage may vary.

Watching the sun go down drinking cocktails on top of the stratosphere was quite cool.

I liked the hoover dam, but I'm an engineer and therefore big chunks of concrete amuse me.

[Rollin]

cramman said:

Bit of a spur of the minute thing and me and 2 mates have booked 12 days in Vegas (arrive 20th August).
So, what are the must do/see things.
Grand Canyon has to be seen, via the Hoover dam possibly.
We would also like to fit a bit of a road trip in somewhere.

We don’t have any hotels or anything booked yet, my thoughts were a few nights in Vegas, then off somewhere on a mini road trip, where do people recommend? The original plan was a loop from Vegas, through Death Valley down the coast to LA then back to Vegas, but I think that may be a bit much?!?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Cheers

Cramman.

Another alternative road trip would be as follows.

1. Drive from Vegas to Kingman.
2. Drive on route 66 to Williams
3. Drive up the 64 to see the Grand Canyon
4. Continue on the 64 and then go north on the 89 to Page and Lake Powell.
5. Continue on the 89 not the 89A to Kanab.
6. Take the 9 over the mountains to Springdale/Zion Canyon.
7. Head to I 15 to get back to Vegas.

Should be able to do that in the time you are there.

Having said that, I love Death Valley. The heat in August is fantastic, it was 100 last August after dark. Stovepipe Wells is the more authentic of the 2 places to stay, but you may have to book as it does sell out. You will see a lot doing the route above though. There are other places nearby such as Bryce canyon, but as you are limited for time it would be better to enjoy a few places for a day or so, rather than turning up,taking a photo and leaving within an hour.
Let me know if you want anymore advice?

Although if you want better nightlife then LA all the way!

Edited by Rollin on Thursday 22 March 15:59

[AdeTuono]

Car collection at The Imperial Palace is good for a couple of hours.

http://autocollections.com/index.cfm?tab=main&...

[Matt..]

If you have an interest in the outdoors (walking in places with big drop offs ) then go to Zion. It is well worth a day trip.

[Vytalis]

Vegas hotels are much cheaper midweek. When I went we booked Vegas midweek, then toured a big loop via Bryce canyon (overnight there), then onto monument valley (another overnight) and then south rim of grand canyon (overnight) before back to Vegas via Hoover dam.

Out to Yosemite may be a good alternative too

[cramman]

Some excellent ideas and routes to look at.

Thanks again.

[Nickyboy]

If you're there over a weekend rental cars are cheaper, i'm there in October and a car from the Adrenalin range from Hertz is £65 for a days rental so we're heading out to the Hoover Dam for the day, 4 muscle cars, 1 convoy!

[arun1uk]

I did:

- Gun store (make sure they let you shoot your free t-shirt at the end! Great little souvenir!)
- Indoor skydiving
- Dune buggying in the hills outside of Vegas strip
- Helicopter ride to GC and landing in the middle for champagne lunch (if you travel from boulder city, it's MUCH cheaper).
- Take in a few shows
- Hire a Harley and ride to Hoover Dam
- Jump off the Stratosphere and go on the other rides (100% you have to do this!)
- Get a wristband for the biggest buffet in town. We ate for 2 hours, amazing.

If you need a decent place to stay that's cheap and quiet, I'd recommend the Desert Rose. It's cheap, all self catering rooms with big bedrooms, living rooms and kitchens. Located just behind Hooters, so it's close enough to MGM, Luxor, Excaliber, and only a short walk away from the main hotels.
I stayed there and the only complaint was the small pool area, but it had a jacuzzi and was generally empty!

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g45963-d...