DK Travel : Las Vegas

The Entertainment Capital of the World offers just about everything: the world’s largest hotels; the brightest stars in show business; shops and restaurants that rival any on earth. It’s true, too, that the lights are brighter in Las Vegas. Yet you don’t have to go far from the glamour and glitter to find the natural beauty of lakes and the desert as well.

World’s Largest Slot Machine, Four Queens

According to the Guinness World of Records Museum, the enormous eight-reel contraption within the Four Queens Hotel-Casino is the largest slot machine in the world. Up to six players at a time insert from one to three-dollar tokens into the slot of the 9-ft (3-m) tall and 18-ft (6-m) wide machine; an employee pulls the giant-size handle; and everyone watching holds their breath. Winning combinations are posted on the machine. Should you be tempted to try, bear in mind that the more reels a machine has, the more difficult it is to hit winning combinations.
Yavapai Observation Station, South Rim, Grand Canyon

For a visual introduction to Grand Canyon geology, you can scarcely beat the view from Yavapai Observation Station. Look down to the canyon floor for views of the Phantom Ranch lodge and the Colorado River. The river flows along the bottom of the canyon, no less than 5,000 ft (1,500 m) below the rim. From this great height it doesn’t look very threatening, even with binoculars, but from the canyon floor it’s a wildly impressive sight.
Zion Canyon

This makes for another splendid scenic drive, ending at the Temple of Sinawava. Of special interest is a mass of debris caused by a landslide 4,000 years ago. If you can stay, head for Zion Lodge, and, if you have no air-conditioning, gaze longingly at the shady groves of cottonwood, velvet ash, and box elder. Near the end of the drive is a turning that affords excellent views of the Great White Throne.
Zion Lodge

The complex includes 40 cabins with gas log fireplaces and private porches, and 75 motel rooms, each with two queen-size beds.
Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort

A number of guided activities, such as hiking, abseiling, mountain biking, and horseback riding in Zion National Park.
“O”

“O” , staged by Cirque du Soleil, is a circus quite unlike any other. The whole show revolves around the theme of water (hence the name, as in the French eau ). Seven hydraulic lifts raise and lower the water levels throughout the performance, allowing for spectacular diving and other feats.

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Hotel price categories

For a standard, double room per night (with breakfast if included), taxes, and extra charges.
- under $50
- $50–$100
- $100–$150
- $150–$200
- over $200