Things to do
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Fountains of Bellagio
Choreographed water jets rise from the lake in front of the Bellagio, set to music that runs from Sinatra to opera, each sequence a few minutes long and repeating through the afternoon and evening. Shows come more often once it is dark. The pavement rail on Las Vegas Boulevard is free and fills early; the bridge to the south gives height and a little distance from the speakers.
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Las Vegas Strip
Roughly six kilometres of Las Vegas Boulevard, most of it outside the city limits, lined with resorts that borrow their architecture from Venice, Paris, ancient Egypt and Rome. Distances deceive: two hotels that look adjacent can be a twenty minute walk apart, much of it through casino floors and over pedestrian bridges. Evening is when the frontages are designed to be seen.
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Red Rock Canyon
Aztec sandstone burns orange against grey limestone thrust over it, half an hour west of the Strip. A one way loop road of about twenty kilometres strings the trailheads together: Calico Tanks climbs to a pool and a view back over the valley, Ice Box Canyon holds shade and seasonal falls. Timed entry applies in the cooler months. Summer afternoons on the rock are dangerous.
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Valley of Fire State Park
An hour and a half northeast through the desert, Nevada's first state park holds red sandstone shaped into waves, arches and domes. Petroglyphs left by Ancestral Puebloan carvers cover Atlatl Rock, reached by a steel stair, and line the sand wash to Mouse's Tank. The White Domes loop is short and varied. Shade is scarce and summer heat regularly passes forty degrees Celsius.
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Fremont Street Experience
Downtown, five blocks of the original casino row run under a barrel vaulted screen that fills the whole canopy with light shows after dark. The Golden Nugget and the other old houses here keep lower ceilings and lower stakes than the Strip. A zip line launches from a tower at the east end and flies the length of the canopy. Live stages play through the evening at either end of the mall.