Things to do at Hoover Dam and Lake Mead

Hoover Dam sits about 35-40 miles from the Strip, roughly 45 minutes by car, and marks the Nevada-Arizona line where the Colorado River backs up into Lake Mead, the largest reservoir in the United States by volume.

A dam tour runs about $30-40 per person and takes 30-60 minutes depending on whether it includes the power plant level; parking at the visitor centre costs a separate fee on top. Boulder City nearby has no casinos by law, a deliberate holdover from the 1930s construction camp.

Lake Mead cruises and Black Canyon kayak trips below the dam run roughly $60-120 per person, and summer water temperatures stay far cooler than the 40°C-plus air above the canyon walls.