What to do in and around Las Vegas: the Strip and the deserts

Three or four nights are enough in Las Vegas: two days for the Strip, the rest for Death Valley, Valley of Fire, Red Rock and Hoover Dam.

Compiled by Kylian, updated on Nov 6, 2026

The Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign lined with palm trees, at the entrance to the Strip

In Las Vegas, allow three or four nights: two days are enough for the Strip and the historic center, and it is the deserts around that deserve the rest. Red Rock Canyon is 30 minutes away, Hoover Dam 30 miles (48 km), Valley of Fire an hour’s drive and Death Valley two hours. Zion, in Utah, is too far for a return trip in a day: it takes two days.

Everything then depends on the season. From October to April, these deserts can be explored on foot. From mid-May to the end of September, the heat closes trails and reduces visits to dawn and the air-conditioned car.

What to do in Las Vegas itself, and how many nights to spend there?

The Strip is visited on foot and by monorail, without a car. Two days cover the essentials, a third lets you add a show or the historic center without rushing.

The Bellagio fountains: free, every 30 minutes in the evening.
The Venetian: its indoor Grand Canal and its gondolas, unashamed kitsch.
The High Roller observation wheel: 550 ft (168 meters) high, a 30-minute rotation. The sunset slot is the most in demand.
The Sphere: a globe 370 ft (112 meters) high covered in screens, for a concert or the Sphere Experience, depending on the schedule.
Downtown: Fremont Street and its 400-meter canopy of light, the Mob Museum on the history of organized crime, and the Neon Museum, where the historic signs are lit up again at nightfall.

The shows and the Sphere are booked several weeks in advance, the dusk slot at the Neon Museum two to three weeks ahead. Our Deserts and Las Vegas itinerary gives the city four nights, after Joshua Tree and Death Valley.

The excursions around Las Vegas, from the nearest to the furthest

The prices below are those displayed by the managing bodies at the time of writing, in October 2026. Check them again on the official websites before you leave.

Place	From Las Vegas	Time to allow	Entry	Good to know
Red Rock Canyon	17 miles (27 km) west of the Strip, 30 minutes	Half a day	$20 per vehicle	Slot to book from October 1 to May 31, between 8:00 and 17:00
Hoover Dam	30 miles (48 km) to the south-east	Half a day	Self-guided visit $15, power plant $25, guided dam tour $40; parking $10	The guided tour is only sold on site
Valley of Fire	An hour’s drive	A day	$10 per vehicle registered in Nevada, $15 otherwise	Several trails closed from May 15 to September 30
Death Valley	120 miles (193 km), 2 hours via Pahrump	A long day, better two days	$30 per vehicle, valid for 7 days	No signal, fill up beforehand
Zion	170 miles (274 km) from the airport	Two days	$35 per vehicle, plus $100 per non-resident adult	Free shuttle compulsory from March to November

At Red Rock Canyon, a 13 miles (21 km) scenic road loops around the site. The slots open 30 days ahead on recreation.gov, then a second batch two days ahead. From June to September, no reservation is required.

At Hoover Dam, the visitor center opens from 9:00 to 17:00. Tickets for the self-guided visit and for the power plant are bought online, not those for the guided dam tour.

Valley of Fire is Nevada’s oldest state park: red sandstone, 2,000-year-old petroglyphs at Atlatl Rock, and the Fire Wave, a wave of sandstone striped pink and cream at the end of a 1.5 miles (2.4 km) trail. The park opens from sunrise to sunset, with no reservation for the day.

Death Valley from Las Vegas: one day or two?

One day is enough for the sights on the valley floor, two days with a night on site change the visit. The return trip means four hours of driving. Once there, the most popular loop, via Badwater Road, takes about 1 hour 30 minutes according to the National Park Service.

What to see first:

Badwater Basin: the lowest point in North America, 280 ft (86 meters) below sea level, on an expanse of salt polygons.
Zabriskie Point: rolling badlands, famous at sunrise.
Artist’s Drive: a one-way road to hills tinted pink, green and purple.
Dante’s View: a viewpoint at 5,480 ft (1,669 meters), directly above the valley.
The Mesquite Flat dunes: the most accessible in the park, to see at the end of the day.

Sunrise at Zabriskie Point and sunset on the dunes are out of reach of a return trip from Las Vegas. That is the argument for sleeping at Furnace Creek, where rooms are booked several months in advance in season.

Watch out: Carry at least one gallon of water per person per day, that is nearly 4 liters, and fill up before entering the park. If you break down, stay near the vehicle.

Heat and season: when to visit Las Vegas and its deserts?

The right window runs from October to April. The National Park Service describes winter and spring as very pleasant in Death Valley. The average highs recorded at Furnace Creek speak for themselves:

January: 66 °F (19 °C);
March: 81 °F (27 °C);
April: 90 °F (32 °C);
July: 117 °F (47 °C);
October: 93 °F (34 °C);
November: 77 °F (25 °C).

In summer, the thermometer often exceeds 120 °F (49 °C) in the shade and the night brings little relief. Hiking there is then advised against, except very early in the morning and in the mountains; the main sights remain accessible by air-conditioned car. At Valley of Fire, the Fire Wave and White Domes trails close from May 15 to September 30.

In Las Vegas, everything is air-conditioned, to the point that you should plan a layer for indoors.

Zion from Las Vegas: two days and a surcharge for non-residents

Zion is visited by free shuttle, with no reservation: during the shuttle season, generally from March to November, the canyon’s scenic road is closed to cars. Two days let you walk up the Virgin River in the Narrows and climb towards Angels Landing. Valley of Fire is on the way, 2 hours 30 minutes’ drive from Zion: the two go well together.

Since 2026, Zion has been one of the eleven national parks where each non-resident visitor aged 16 and over pays $100 on top of the entrance fee. For two adults in a car, that makes $235.

Tip: The non-resident annual pass, at $250, covers the whole vehicle and exempts you from this surcharge. As soon as your trip includes a second park concerned, Bryce Canyon or the Grand Canyon for example, it becomes cheaper than individual entries. Death Valley, for its part, does not apply the surcharge.

Resort fees and car: the two budget lines to anticipate

The hotels on the Strip charge resort fees, compulsory charges added to the price of the room: allow $40 to $50 a night. Compare hotels on the total, not on the displayed price.

For meals, every budget coexists: $15 to $25 in the buffets and food courts, $80 and more for a fine-dining table, with tax and an 18 to 20% tip on top. The detail of the spending items is in what budget for a trip to the United States.

A car is useless on the Strip, but none of the excursions above can be done without one. So you can rent it only for the desert days. Insurance, license and the pitfalls of the contract: renting a car in the United States.

So, what to do in and around Las Vegas?

Two nights: the Strip, Downtown, and half a day at Red Rock Canyon or Hoover Dam.
Three or four nights: add a day at Valley of Fire and a long day in Death Valley. This is the right format between October and April.
Five nights or more: spend a night at Furnace Creek for the sunrise, or go to Zion for two days and pay the non-resident surcharge.
In summer: keep Las Vegas, Hoover Dam and Death Valley by car, and give up the hikes.

If Las Vegas is only one stop on a longer trip, our road trip in the American West helps you place it. Zion, Bryce and the Grand Canyon are detailed day by day in our Grand Southwest itinerary, and all our regions are on the United States page.

Frequently asked questions

What people ask while planning this trip.

Another question? Write to us

What can you see for free in Las Vegas?

The Bellagio fountains, first of all: 1,200 jets on a 3.5-hectare lake, with a show every 30 minutes in the evening. The same hotel's conservatory, redecorated every season, is also freely accessible, as are the indoor canals of the Venetian and the light shows of Fremont Street, every hour. The Shelby American workshop and museum is visited free of charge, and the photo at the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign, at the southern tip of the Strip, costs nothing.

How old do you have to be to enter the casinos in Las Vegas?

21, to gamble as well as to drink alcohol, and ID is required. Keep your ID on you in the evening: without it, no gaming table and no drink at the bar.

Is the annual national parks pass worth it for a visitor who is not a US resident?

Only if your trip goes through one of the eleven parks subject to the non-resident surcharge, such as Zion, Bryce Canyon or the Grand Canyon. The non-resident annual pass costs $250 at the time of writing, in October 2026, covers the whole vehicle and exempts you from the surcharge of $100 per adult. For Death Valley alone, at $30 per vehicle and with no surcharge, it is of no interest. It is not valid at Valley of Fire, which is a Nevada state park, nor at Monument Valley, on Navajo land.

Is there phone signal in Death Valley?

No, not on most of the park's roads. The National Park Service also warns that in-car GPS units are unreliable there and recommends an up-to-date road map. Download your offline maps and your reservations before leaving Las Vegas, and fill up before entering: fuel is sold at Furnace Creek, but stations are few.

Do you need a permit to hike Angels Landing, in Zion?

Yes, for the final ridge fitted with chains. The permit is obtained by lottery on recreation.gov, either in advance for the season, or the day before for the next day. Without a permit, the trail remains open as far as Scout Lookout, at the top of the 21 switchbacks of Walter's Wiggles, and the view there is already very wide. The Narrows, the hike in the bed of the Virgin River, needs no permit in the upstream direction.

From research to departure

Travelling in the United States

This article comes out of a complete itinerary in the United States: the day-by-day program, hotels named with their booking link, and the tickets to book flagged in advance.

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