We've been to Vegas twice in the past two years. We'll be going again in May and would like to take a daytrip. We've been to Hoover, Valley of Fire and the Grand Canyon.

Can anyone recommend something besides these. We'd consider either spending just the entire day, or spending the night outside of Vegas.

Thanks!

If you contact the Nevada visitors bureau they will send you a nice little package which includes the whole state of course...but also many thing that i had no knowledge of. Check it out. I think it is www.travelnevada.com.

How about renting a boat and cruising around Lake Mead? Or hiring a fishing guide there if that is attractive to you. I want to try the float trip down Black Canyon below Hoover Dam sometime. An overnight trip to Zion might be reasonable.

Someone I know did a bike thing where they take you to the top of a mountain and you bike down..sorry, don't know the name. There is always a golf outing option.

Red Rock Canyon makes for a nice morning. Zion National Park makes for a nice overnight.

If you want something that rivals the Grand Canyon, then Zion National Park is what you are looking for. Since you have time to spend the night...do it!

Utahtea

Zion is very nice. There are some cute hotels in Springdale Utah just outside the entrance to the park. Just be sure to bring your own liquor. For some reason, they make it hard to find in Utah.

For a day trip, consider Mt. Charleston. It's a 45 minute drive from Vegas. The top of the mountain is cool and forested. There is a lodge at the top where you can have lunch. Actually, stop by a sandwich shop and have them pack you a picnic.

No brainer!! OATMAN is your town!!

A few years ago two couples (me and mine and another couple - good friends thankfully) were in Las Vegas for SEMA. My big idea for an excursion was to go to Oatman and see where Route 66 passes through and the tiny little mining town with burros in the street and a two room hotel that supposedly housed Clark Gable and Carol Lombard on their honeymoon night (??).

Anyhoo ... we got lost on our way there (it is in Arizona I believe) and didn't pull into Oatman until almost 5:00 on a Sunday. They were in the process of rolling up the sidewalk as we arrived. We even saw the burros walking out of town to their evening beds (approx. 10 of them). All in all kind of a wash but apparently there is a shootout staged in the street on a particular day (Sunday??) which we missed as well.

As I said, thankfully the other couple were GOOD friends and we could laugh about the rather looooong day. We had a nice dinner when we got back to Las Vegas at approx. 8:00 p.m. (after having left at 1:00 in the afternoon).

So, I guess I'm saying if you want to see Laughlin, Kingman, the Colorado River and then a tiny little quasi-ghost town (with fridge magnets) this is the side trip for you.

Haven't been there but a new museum. The Atomic Testing Museum opened recently. Check www.ntshf.org/atomictestingmuseum.htm

You can always check out the marshmallow and Ethel M Candy factory tours in Henderson, NV.

I agree with Tracy2cents. Red Rock Canyon is a great place to explore. There are numerous hiking trails that spur from the road. Each is different and the visitor center can help you select. We can easily spend the better part of a day.

You should go to Death Valley National Park in California. It is absolutely beautiful, and it is an unique feeling to stand in the lowest point in the western hemisphere. Death Valley is only a two hour drive from Las Vegas.

We're to Vegas every year and best side trip was renting a ski boat for 1/2 a day at Lake Meade Marina(they have a website). Rent some skis, pack a throwaway cooler with beers(don't tell anyone)and hoagies and cruise Lake Meade. Find your way to the inlet leading to Hoover Dam and see the Dam from a different perspective-from the Lake! Awesome!!! There are other Marina's to check out along the way. Makes for a great day. Advice-Take and use plenty of sunscreen. You'll need it!

am in Vegas all the time and always looking for something to do. Have you tried going to lasvegas.com and clicking on their link to tours?

Last year my girlfriend and I did the Black Canyon/Willow beach smooth raft and had a blast

http://foreverlodging.com/lodging.cfm?PropertyKey=130

Now that I have done this, I would prefer to do my own trip overnite to the Hacienda Hotel in Boulder city

http://www.haciendaonline.com/index.html

and either book the tour at the desk there since I really enjoyed the differences away from Vegas, or go to Willow Beach from the Hotel and book my own Kayak or paddle boat as there are a few hidden springs a short hike from the river that the boat tour is not allowed to take you to.

If neither of these "float your boat" be sure to check the first link I gave as there are a ton of cool tours there...Next is the teepee on the ranch at the rim of the grand canyon if I can talk my friend into not wimping out on me!

I forgot to mention, if you book anything on the Lake Mead side, be sure to find out if the lake is still low. Last year our raft tour picked up the Mead cruisers and they we expressing much disappointment in their tours as the lake was VERY low. I was astonished to see the jetty we used to launch from in 2002 more than 200 yards from shore. There is even a mini island that I could not remember seeing before and that is because it used to be underwater. Sad, sad dilemma that is happening!