NOTE: This Blog is a compact version of my original article published in Hilton Grand Vacation Gateway Guide. Visit the full article here for details including other HGV articles and resources.
Introduction & Planning The Trip
Las Vegas, Nevada bills itself as the Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous for its luxurious casino-hotels, venues for sports, music and entertainment and as of 2025, the world’s largest interactive Sphere. With over 3 million annual visitors, it is a top-three destination for business conventions and a global leader in the hospitality industry, with most AAA Five Diamond hotels in the world.
While we’ve been to Las Vegas a few times, our most recent trip in 2024 was especially memorable as part of Hilton Signature Vacation trip with a 4-night stay at the HGV Elara at the heart of Vegas. Hilton has several HGV locations in and around the Vegas metropolitan area, most notably the Elara, Polo Tower and Trump Tower located at the center of the city around the Strip and Formula 1 Track. During peak season and popular events, these locations can fill up quickly, so it is advisable to book a few months ahead or take advantage of promotional discounted rates as it fits your vacation plan.
During our booking of the Signature Vacation a few months ahead, we planned to make most of our trip by enjoying attractions both in the city and under a 30 minutes drive from the city. Thankfully, there are plenty of attractions to choose from, both modern and natural, that fit short or longer stays. Our short itinerary included famous highlights like The Venetian, Planet Hollywood, The Sphere, Hoover Dam, Red Rocks Canyon and Lake Mead.
Arriving in Las Vegas
When flying into Vegas from the East Coast, as we did from Atlanta, keep in mind the time difference. Flying in we gain about 4 hours that we give back on the return flight. The airport is just outside the city with shuttles available to the hotels and resorts. In our case, we opted for a rental car from the airport since we planned to venture outside the city. The drive from the airport to Elara, on the strip, is typically under 15 mins even with regular traffic.
Staying on The Strip
The Las Vegas Strip is about 4 miles long stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard at the heart of the city. Its hotels, casinos, restaurants, residential high-rises, entertainment offerings, and skyline have established the Strip as one of the most popular and iconic tourist destinations in the world. Famous resorts & casinos on the Strip include MGM Grand, New York-New York, The Venetian, Caesars Palace, Horseshoe Las Vegas, Paris Las Vegas, Planet Hollywood and Bellagio.
Staying at HGV Elara on the Strip meant that most of the attractions were within easy walking distance for us. Planet Hollywood has a direct entrance from Elara, with easy access to dining and entertainment options and a comfortable walk out to the Strip. We had a direct view of MGM Grand from our dining room.
The Vegas Sphere
The Sphere, though a couple of miles outside the strip, is connected to the Venetian providing walking access back to downtown Las Vegas. Additionally, the Vegas monorail transit system allows easy access to attractions around town. The music and entertainment arena has a 18,600-seat auditorium and is notably visible from far away due to its massive size dwarfing other tall buildings. The Sphere measures 366 feet high and 516 feet wide and cost around $2.3 billion, making it the most expensive entertainment venue built in Las Vegas. Entry inside the Sphere is ticket based and has limited capacity on an hourly basis. Booking online prior to visiting the Sphere is recommended since space may be limited during popular shows. Make sure to check with your HGV concierge for discount Sphere tickets! The interior exhibits are known for their immersive video and audio capabilities. Exhibits and cafes are spread around the interior leading up to the multi-level entrance to the auditorium at the top.
The main attraction of the Sphere is typically a live music event or 4D show at the auditorium. Sphere opened on September 29, 2023, with Irish rock band U2 beginning a 40-show residency called U2:UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere. We watched the docu-film “Postcard From Earth” with a surrounding view that is unique for an auditorium of this size. The 16K resolution video demonstrates the fine detail of live frames at a small and large scale as seen in pictures taken on a standard smartphone from 30 rows back in the auditorium!
Hoover Dam & Other Attractions near Vegas
Some prominent national parks and popular attractions are a short drive from downtown Las Vegas. Heading East, visitors can access Hoover Dam, Lake Meade national recreation area within 20-45 mins drive. Heading West, the Red Rock national park offers one of the most scenic drives in western U.S. just 30 mins away.
Hoover Dam, located about 30 mins drive from Las Vegas is one of the world’s top engineering marvels. We first drove by the dam over the bridge and parked at an upper level to get a great view and enjoy the walk back down to the bridge to experience the dam at various angles and locations.
There are multiple guided tours available when exploring Hoover Dam. We chose the Hydro-electric Plant tour, which took us way down to the belly of the Dam. Our expert guide showed us the various intricacies of this massive station that provides water to seven states and dozens of large metropolitan cities in the southwestern United States.
Lake Mead, formed by the construction of the Hoover Dam in the 1930s, is the largest reservoir and one of the largest man-made lakes in the United States. Lake Mead National Recreation area offers amazing scenic views, rock formations and picturesque trails. A popular spot is the sunset view trail, located about 11 miles and approx. 20 minutes drive from Hoover Dam Visitor center.
Red Rock Canyon is a canyon, nature park and mountain trail that attracts visitors from all over the world for its towering red sandstone cliffs, unique geological formations, and diverse wildlife. Although famous for its quiet, natural beauty, the canyon is surprisingly close to Las Vegas – about 22 miles and 30-35 mins drive when not encountering rush hour traffic. You can buy the entrance ticket for Loop Drive online. This gives you timed access to a scenic loop road around the Canyon with ample parking and trail access to major sites around the Canyon.
Final Thoughts
Las Vegas is a world class tourist destination that offers many modern and classic entertainment options as well as natural attractions for visitors of all ages. Staying at the Vegas Strip offers easy access to all the dining, entertainment and shopping options. We highly recommend HGV Elara for a few days or longer stay when visiting this wonderful city.