Las Vegas Off-Strip, Nevada

As of 2006, the estimated population of the greater Las Vegas metropolitan area is 1,036,180. The vast majority obviously is off the Strip. When you rent off the Strip, you are near many casinos. Most of those can be found downtown; old school ones like Bugsy Siegel's El Cortez or the Golden Nugget. These resorts and casinos center around the Fremont mall, a four-block long mall, lit up by twelve million lights. Every night shows and concerts fill the air. Downtown resorts and mall also cater to different palettes, with over thirty restaurants to choose from. Boulder Strip has casinos, shows, and restaurants. Sam's Town and Gambling Hall has been running since 1979. Sam Boyd Stadium is situated here as well. When you step off the Strip, move beyond downtown and Boulder Strip, there are attractions that are real finds: Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area should be on your top ten list. It is a fifteen mile drive from Las Vegas, Nevada. It is 197,000 acres in size. It has over thirty miles of hiking trails. Cycling, climbing, horseback riding are for when you want a breather, away from the non-stop action of Las Vegas. A cactus garden roam can be quiet respite; an informed guide through the park can be a learning experience for you and your family. Not all of Vegas is Sin City. The Valley of Fire State Park, named for its red rock, is beauty to behold. Learn about the geological make-up of the surrounding desert and the land in which Las Vegas' towers stand. Desert heat can get to you. Lake Mead National Recreation Area offers the water sports resort pools can't compare to: jet skiing, water skiing, boating, fishing, among others. What separates Lake Mead National Recreation Area from the most deserts is its location meets three of America's four desert ecosystems. They are the Mojave, the Great Basin, and the Sonoran Deserts. Because of this special location, in a seemingly barren land, some of the diversity of plants and animals can be found nowhere else on earth. Your first thoughts on Las Vegas probably are not on skiing, but at Mt.Charleston Recreation Area there is. Elevated at 11,900 ft., the highest peak on Mt. Charleston, views of the city are picturesque. Skiing and camping are pastimes on Mt. Charleston foot hills. On your list of things to in Las Vegas, for when the lights and noise get too loud, should be the Hoover Dam. There are different vehicles in which to wow you with this man-made wonder: tour in a helicopter, raft, kayak and boat to near points of view, or walk on a guided tour. And if the sights of lakes, mountains, gardens, deserts are not up your alley, do not have the speed your eyes need, Las Vegas Motor Speedway Motorsports Complex is a 1500-acre piece of land, with twelve race venues and five driving schools. Museums, art galleries, aquariums, conservatories, spas are dispersed throughout Las Vegas, Nevada. Though your nights may be heated in front of a plate of filet mignon, Coppola wine, or a roulette wheel, your days can be mind-expanding and body-soothing. The downtown Las Vegas Natural History Museum may be a start on your tour of different museums in the area. Or for a different tone, the Liberace Museum may be your flair. Or, perhaps, the Aquarium at the Silverton Hotel and Casino Lodge interests you more. The aquarium measures at 117,000 gallons; feeding shows are interactive, in which the scientist uses a diving mask to communicate with guest; over 4,200 tropical fish, along with stingrays, eels, and sharks call this their habitat. Perhaps, you'd like to pop into see modern art at the Las Vegas Art Museum or see the ethnic- and diversity-based art at Left of Center Art Gallery and Studio. Ritz Carleton gives a spa treat after a night turning the town upside down. Spoil alert: Ethel M. Chocolates Factory and Cactus Garden gives out free samples on its free guided tour. If bowling's your game, Vegas has it. Texas Station Gambling Hall and Hotel, Sunset Lanes, Suncoast Hotel Casino, Santa Fe Station Hotel Casino are places where you can have a beer and up your scores. When you reach Las Vegas, look at a map: golf is everywhere! More than three dozen golf courses are in Vegas. Golf can crown your trip. Wake up, have breakfast, play a round, have lunch, play a round, eat dinner, gamble, see a show, sleep, play a round...you get the idea. Since the Mirage opened in 1989, Las Vegas changed. Since then, the greater Las Vegas region lost its popularity. On the flip side, there is more to Vegas than gambling and Elvis impersonator ministers. Las Vegas is the Wedding Capital of the World, for good reason. If you want a large, conventional black-tie affair, a small, quick, painless wedding, or something only your imagination can conjure up, Vegas can do it. The popularity may have shifted to the Strip, but family vacation is gaining in popularity both there and off the Strip. Las Vegas, Nevada, may not lose the sin in Sin City (and would you really want it to?), but in comes the title of Entertainment Capital of the World. See for yourself how true it is.