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Self-guided tours lead to six points around the dam, where guides give short talks on the dam’s history and construction. The Bureau of Reclamation opened an impressive $125 million visitor center and parking lot in 1995. The three-level, circular center includes a rooftop overlook, a rotating theater, and a gallery. Here you can learn the fascinating story of the settlement of the lower Colorado River valley and find out about the amazing technology involved in the production and distribution of hydroelectric power.

Hoover Dam Tour

It’s worth including Boulder City on a Hoover Dam trip to appreciate the scale of work involved – the city was built as a model community to house dam construction workers. The grandest buildings are the Bureau of Reclamation and the Bureau of Power and Light; the Municipal Building; and the Boulder Dam Hotel. Most of the construction, however, was focused on the two- and three-room houses for the workers. (see Construction Workers’ Houses, Boulder City)

Built in 1933, the Dutch Colonial-style Boulder Dam Hotel now houses the Boulder City/Hoover Dam Museum. Actor Boris Karloff and other Hollywood stars stayed in the hotel’s glory days, and Crown Prince Olav and Princess Martha of Norway hosted a party here in 1939. The out-of-town hotel declined in the postwar rise of Las Vegas as a tourist mecca, but, since the mid-90s, a group of volunteers has set about rehabilitating it. The museum itself includes memorabilia from the 1930s.

View from Hoover Dam Visitor Center

After the completion of the Hoover Dam in 1935, the waters of the Colorado River filled the deep canyons that once towered above the river to create a huge reservoir. This lake, with its 700 miles (1,120 km) of shoreline, is the centerpiece of Lake Mead National Recreation Area, a 1.5-million-acre (600,000-ha) tract of land.

Lake Mead

Along many miles of varied shoreline, Lake Mead’s marinas and beaches range from delightful tiny coves to long stretches of sand. Popular beaches include Boulder Beach, Callville Bay, Echo Bay, and Overton Beach. These have recreational vehicle sites with full hookups, and supplies at nearby stores. Boxcar and Icebox coves are favorites with houseboaters. Callville Bay and Lake Mead marinas are close to Hoover Dam, while Temple Bar marina serves the lake’s southeast reaches.

The establishments lining Laughlin’s South Casino Drive may not be as dazzling as those along the Las Vegas Strip, but they offer extremely good value. Getting around is easier than in Las Vegas: a riverside promenade connects most of the casinos, or you can take a bus or shuttle boat. Tours of the Colorado are also available.

The 67-mile (107-km) long lake extends from below Hoover Dam to 2 miles (3.5 km) north of Laughlin, and is only 4 miles (6.5 km) at its widest. A National Park Service Visitor Center at Katharine Landing, just north of Laughlin, offers free guided walks by park rangers. These lead through the desert to the petroglyphs at Grapevine Canyon. Houseboats, pontoon rentals, and fishing tackle are available at Katharine Landing and Cottonwood Cove. Record-size striped bass have been caught in Lake Mojave.

Christmas Tree Pass and Grapevine Canyon, just west of Laughlin on Hwy 163, are the best places to see the fascinating petroglyphs incised into the cliffs of the canyons by the early Patayan group. The line drawings and symbols may have served as the road maps of their day, directing hunters and fishermen. National Park Service personnel have located more than 150 Patayan camp sites between Davis Dam and Willow Beach, which is 10 miles (16 km) from the base of Hoover Dam.

A century ago, Oatman was a thriving gold mining center; today, visitors are taken back to the old days of the Wild West, with burros roaming the streets and staged gunfights in the middle of town. The Oatman Hotel was where honeymooners Clark Gable and Carole Lombard stayed in 1939. The town has been used as the location for a number of movies, including How the West Was Won .

In 1995, the Fort Mojave Indian tribe opened Nevada’s first Native American-owned casino and the only Native American-owned gaming business in the USA operated under state regulations. “Avi” means money or loose change. The resort is located in an area that the tribe intends to develop as a planned community. (see Avi Resort and Casino, near Laughlin)