Hoover Dam

Hoover Dam is the most popular day trip from Las Vegas and one of the great engineering achievements of the 20th century. It stands in Black Canyon on the Colorado River, on the border between Nevada and Arizona, about 30 miles south-east of the city. Work began in 1931, the first concrete was poured in June 1933 and the dam was dedicated on 30 September 1935. At 726 feet tall, it holds back Lake Mead, the reservoir formed on the Colorado River when the dam was built.

You can walk across the top of the dam, look down the downstream face and watch the intake towers on the lake side. Nevada and Arizona are in different time zones, and because Arizona does not observe daylight saving time, the clocks on the intake towers only agree for part of the year. Downstream, the Mike O'Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge, opened in 2010 about 1,500 feet from the dam, carries the highway across the canyon.

Tours are run from the visitor centre, which is open daily from 9am to 5pm except Thanksgiving and Christmas Day, with the last tour leaving at 4.10pm. The Guided Dam Tour goes deepest, with historic tunnels, inspection galleries and a lift to the top, and its tickets are sold only on site on a first-come basis. The Guided Power Plant Tour visits the original construction tunnels and a viewing platform above eight generators, and both this and the self-guided visitor centre ticket can be bought online. The dam itself is open to the public from 5am to 9pm.

Expect security: all vehicles pass an inspection checkpoint on the Nevada side, drones are banned, and knives of any size are not allowed in the buildings. Pets are not permitted on the dam or in the buildings, though service animals are welcome, and visitors under 16 must be accompanied on tours. A paid parking garage sits on the Nevada side near the visitor centre. Summer heat on the dam crest is intense, so arrive early and bring water.

Most visitors drive or join a coach or helicopter tour from the Strip. Allow at least half a day including a tour. Tours have run here since 1937, and the current visitor centre, which opened in 1995, has a self-guided exhibit area with views of the dam and canyon.