Hotel at a Glance: Red Rock Casino Resort Spa

From Las Vegas, it’s a short drive to the desert, where joshua trees and rocky peaks etch a jagged line across the sky and the distantly glowing Strip looks like a neon mirage. Red Rock Casino Resort Spa occupies 70 acres of this starkly beautiful landscape. Though situated about 25 minutes from the heart of Vegas, the resort has all of the extravagant offerings Sin City is known for. In addition to the casino and resort, there are nearly a dozen dining options, a bowling center, an IMAX movie theater, and a venue for live music. Guest rooms include marble bathrooms with extra-deep tubs, plasma TVs, and private bars.

• Chill by the pool, where cabana beds join a swim-up gaming station and a poolside bar serving cocktails and burgers.
• Hit the jackpot at the casino, which is equipped with more than 3,000 slot machines and video-poker games, as well as tables for blackjack and roulette.
• Unwind with a massage or body treatment at the spa.
• Eat well at onsite restaurants, include the Mexican-focused Libre and T-Bones Chophouse, which was voted best steak house in Las Vegas in 2011. Guests can also enjoy the traditional flavors of southern Italy at Salute, presented by Chef Luciano Sautto.
• Optional perks: The signature suite option comes with a daily breakfast buffet for two. This option also includes a BOGO cocktail at any casino bar, and a BOGO round of bowling.

Beyond the Las Vegas Strip: Old Vegas, Red Rock Canyon, and the Hoover Dam

It can feel like the entire city of Las Vegas revolves around the Strip if you never venture beyond that neon-lit corridor. But there’s plenty to see and do once you step off Las Vegas Boulevard. You can find a taste of Old Vegas on Fremont Street, where vintage signs and showgirls crowned with headdresses recall the days of Sinatra and Martin. Beginning at dusk, a canopy of more than 12 million LED lights erupts in a psychedelic light-and-music show every hour. For an aerial view, zoom down the center of Fremont Street on a zipline.

Nature puts on its own show at Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, a landscape of fiery-red sandstone formations and limestone cliffs just 17 miles outside the city. Motor down the 13-mile scenic drive or ditch the car and strike out on any of more than 20 hiking trails that course through the region’s otherworldly topography.

Hoover Dam, a marvel of modern engineering, lies just 35 miles away, near the Nevada–Arizona border. Take the 30-minute power-plant tour or the 60-minute dam tour, which takes visitors inside the dam’s narrow passageways. You can actually kayak down the Colorado River from the base of the dam—just be sure to arrive early, as only 30 permits are issued per day.

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