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Las Vegas
Nevaders
Parks & Recreation Around Las Vegas
Las Vegas is best known as the entertainment capital and its casinos. But far from this reputation that stick to Las Vegas, it is also a city that can be the starting point for numerous parks, each one as beautiful and exotic as the next. In this article, we reveal all the hidden treasures that you can discover less than 3 hours from the Strip…
Parks & Recreation within 1h of Las Vegas
Red Rock Canyon - 35min
Red Rock Canyon is a beautiful park that features a 13-miles (21 km) scenic drive, miles of hiking trails, rock climbing, horseback riding, mountain biking, road biking, picnic areas and many other outdoor recreational opportunities just minutes from Las Vegas (about 30 minutes from the Strip).
If you have children you will love the Visitor Center which offers fun activities indoors and outdoors.
Seven Magic Mountains - 25min
Seven Magic Mountains is a public art created by Swiss artist Ugo Rondinone, located near Interstate 15, approximately 10 miles south of Las Vegas, Nevada.
Comprised of seven towers of colorful stacked boulders, measuring over 30 feet high, Seven Magic Mountains is a creative expression of the human presence in the Mojave Desert, punctuating it with a poetic burst of form and color.
Spring Mountain Ranch - 35min
Neighboring Red Rock Canyon Park, Spring Mountain Ranch is a state park in Nevada, which historically has been a ranch and then a luxury retreat for celebrities such as German actress Vera Krupp and millionaire Howard Hughes.
Today, visitors can explore some of Nevada's oldest buildings, an 1860s blacksmith shop, and you can enjoy hiking trails through the park, and shaded picnic areas with tables and grills, and the presence of wild donkeys.
Lake Las Vegas - 40min
If you like quiet beach resorts, beautiful landscaping and Italian-style villages, you'll love LAKE LAS VEGAS, which you'll find just 20 miles from the Strip.
Lake Las Vegas is a pleasant place to visit with hotels, golf courses, water activities, shops and restaurants. And an ideal setting for wedding photos
The evenings are particularly pleasant there and in summer concerts take place every weekend.
Valley of Fire - 1h
Valley of Fire is a state park in Nevada named after an official who said the valley seems to be on fire at sunset.
Located about 1 hour northeast of Las Vegas, this park will seduce you with its bright red sandstone outcroppings nestled in gray and beige limestone mountains.
It includes kilometers of hiking trails, each one as exotic as the last, as well as picnic and camping areas.
Hoover Dam - 45min
Hoover Dam is an arch-gravity dam on the Colorado River in the United States, near Boulder City, on the Arizona-Nevada border. It was built between 1931 and 1936, during the Great Depression, and was dedicated on September 30, 1935, by President Franklin Delano. It is 200 meters thick at its base and wide enough at its crest for traffic on Old State Route 93 to pass right over it. It is the height of a 60-story building and the base is as wide as two American football fields.
Pioneer Saloon - 35min
35 minutes south of the Strip is a relic of the past that is worth the detour. The Pioneer Saloon in Goodsprings and its neighboring General Store.
This Saloon, more than 100 years old and now converted into a restaurant, will take you back to the atmosphere of the first gold prospectors who scoured the plains of what would become Nevada in the early 1900s.
Nelson Ghost Town - 45min
Located 45 minutes southeast of Las Vegas, Nelson Ghost is one of the traces of the history before Las Vegas and Nevada.
The site is open for public tours for a few dollars which you can pay at the on-site boutique, but also for weddings and photo shoots to be booked and paid for in advance.
Parks & Recreation within 3h of Las Vegas
Death Valley - 2h30
Located in the desert region of California, Death Valley is the hottest, driest, and lowest National Park in the United States, making it a land of extremes. Yet, each extreme in Death Valley offers many contrasts. Peaks are frosted in winter snow, rare rainstorms bring vast fields of wildflowers, lush oases shelter tiny fish and provide refuge for wildlife and humans, and despite its morbid name, Death Valley is home to a diverse array of thriving life. In this article, we'll tell you everything you need to know to discover this park that will leave you speechless.
Rhyolite Ghost Town - 2h15
Founded in 1905, the town of Rhyolite came into being after the discovery of high-grade gold ore in 1904 by prospectors Frank Harris and Ernest Cros.
In 1906, Charles M.Schwab purchased the Bullfrog mining district, which took the operation from good to large. In one year, three railways were connected to the brand new Rhyolite station, still perfectly preserved.
But by 1910, mines began to close, businesses went bankrupt, and workers looked for work elsewhere.
Historic Route 66 - 2h
US Route 66, its real name, is the old American road which connected Chicago (Illinois) to Santa Monica (California) between the years 1926 and 1985.
Although it is no longer an official road in the USA today, it nonetheless remains a mythical road which appears in numerous films such as “Forest Gump”, “Easy Rider”, “Rain Man”, “Baghdad Café”, or in the animated film “Cars”.
Many people therefore wish to go there to explore even just a portion of it.
If this is your case, you will be happy to know that a portion of this route is approximately 2 hours from Las Vegas. So why not plan to spend a day there?
Other Suggestions
Annual Passes
Annual National Parks Pass
If you are planning to take a Road Trip in the USA and want to visit the national parks, it may be interesting for you to purchase the Annual Pass known as “America The Beautiful”.
This pass costs $80 and can be purchased online or directly at the park entrance. In the case of parks without an entrance ticket like Death Valley, you can purchase it at the Visitor Center.
It is often interesting from 3 parks visited, but check the price of park entries before buying it. Please note that it is nominative and ID is required.
Please also note that it does not provide access to state parks and tribal areas like Monument Valley.
Below is the list of National Parks and Conservation Areas that accept it within 3 hours of Las Vegas:
- DEATH VALLEY
- LAKE MEAD
- RED ROCK CANYON
- WILLOW BEACH
- ZION
Note: Grand Canyon West is not a national park. The pass is valid for Grand Canyon South which is approximately 4.5 hours from Las Vegas.
