For many Las Vegas visitors, adventure entails stepping outside one casino and stumbling off to the next. But Vegas is situated in the perfect spot for a true outdoor experience.
“We have wonderful desert beauty around here,” says Nancy Murphy, vice president of sales at the LVCVA. “There are options for rock climbing and hiking, and we have hardcore mountain biking trails. We are also a gateway to the Grand Canyon.”
One of the closest getaways from Las Vegas is Red Rock Canyon National Conservation area, located just 17 miles west of the Las Vegas Strip. Encompassing 197,000 acres, the park offers more than 30 miles of hiking trails and a 13-mile scenic drive to see its myriad rock formations. The area is home to feral horses, wild burros, bighorn sheep, coyotes, and a variety of desert plant life. Groups can enjoy self-arranged adventures here, as well as organized tours.
Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada’s oldest and largest state park, is located only six miles from Lake Mead and 55 miles northeast of Las Vegas. The name of the park refers to the red sandstone formations found throughout the Mojave Desert area. The park is filled with petrified wood and petroglyphs. Groups can use the area all year for outings, including hiking and picnicking.
A wealth of tour companies take advantage of the Las Vegas region’s natural surroundings and adventurous activities, accommodating groups that want to savor a bit of the great outdoors.
Adventure Photo Tours offers group outings to Red Rock Canyon and Valley of Fire, including sightseeing and photo stops along the way, as well as myriad tours of the Grand Canyon. Also popular are half-day visits to the Eldorado Canyon Techatticup Gold Mine, including a barbecue.
“We can organize scavenger hunts for any of the tours,” says Donna Tryon, president of the company. “Attendees use disposable cameras to photograph the objects rather than take them.”
Another option for team building is a quiz of the region the group is visiting.
Look Tours can take groups to the Grand Canyon by plane, helicopter, bus, and even through the canyon by boat, which entails a 20-minute float on the Colorado River. More adventurous options include white-water rafting trips and ATV tours of the canyon, as well as hikes around the rim.
Look Tours also offers day trips to California’s Death Valley and Bryce Canyon in Utah, and can arrange horseback riding adventures in Red Rock Canyon, Hummer tours of Hoover Dam and ATV off-roading in Valley of Fire. Groups can also arrange team-building events and even helicopter hangar parties with night flights down the Las Vegas Strip.
Rebel Adventure Tours is equally diverse, offering thrilling off-road experiences. The company holds its tours in Hummers, which have been converted to hold up to 12 people each.
“A lot of 4x4 companies claim to go off road, but we go up hills, small mountains and into the desert,” says Tony Mancuso, director of sales and marketing for Rebel Adventure Tours. “We don’t need roads, we can make our own.”
The firm’s Hoover Dam Hummer tour features a history of Hoover Dam and stops at Lake Mead, which lies 25 miles from Las Vegas. Hummers also head through the remote Native American areas, and the company leads ATV trips to Hidden Valley or Valley of Fire, as well as excursions by helicopter to the Grand Canyon, including a champagne breakfast.
“We can put anything together, depending on what the client wants,” Mancuso says, adding that white-water rafting trips through the Grand Canyon and jet-ski outings on Lake Mead are also popular options.
Pink Jeep Tours Las Vegas ventures off-road as well, with Jeeps heading to Valley of Fire, Red Rock Canyon, Grand Canyon, Toiyabe National Forest, Mt. Charleston, and the gold mine in Eldorado Canyon.
The company specializes in team-building events, including scavenger hunts, photo rallies, ATV rides, and Survivor-style games. Pink Jeep can also organize helicopter rides and cruises on Lake Mead.
Rocky Trails offers a wide variety of outings. One of the most popular programs for groups is the Strip scavenger hunt, in which participants head down the Las Vegas Strip in Amazing Race style. The competition can be combined with dinner and awards ceremonies. Another option is an A to Z scavenger hunt in one of the park areas, using Polaroid cameras to snap pictures rather than collecting objects. Whoever comes back with the most pictures from letters of the alphabet wins.
Other team-building opportunities offered by Rocky Trails include hiking and biking obstacle courses as well as ropes courses at Red Rock Canyon. The company also offers flights over Las Vegas, glider trips over Hoover Dam and Lake Mead, and white-water rafting and horseback riding trips at the Grand Canyon, including barbecue dinners.
McGhie’s Bike Outpost features guide service and bike rentals for about 30 people at a time. The most popular is the Red Rock Loop Drop-Off, which drops off riders at Red Rock and they bike back to the store, all on pavement.
“Many groups don’t have much time, so they will ride in the morning or the day before a convention,” says Randy McGhie, owner of Bike Outpost. “We can set up anything—breakfast rides, dinner rides.”
There are two locations for rentals—Blue Diamond Bike Outpost, which is close to more than 120 miles of single-track trails at Red Rock Canyon, and McGhie’s, located close to the Strip.
For a true cowboy experience, Sandy Valley Ranch, located 45 minutes from Las Vegas, provides a number of team-building activities for groups, including cattle penning, wagon rides, horseshoes, treasure hunts, ax throwing, and even old-style saloon poker tournaments. The ranch can accommodate groups of up to 60 people. Larger groups can take advantage of the ranch’s two full-size arenas, where the staff can entertain guests with a rodeo.
“We can also offer a fair-type atmosphere for large groups, where all activities are open to everyone, and they choose the ones they want to try,” says Cynthia Steger, who organizes group activities at the ranch.
One of the most popular spots for horseback riding is at Sagebrush-Ranch, also situated 45 minutes from Las Vegas. Breakfast and lunch rides can be arranged through desert canyons, with views of the mountains. The sunset steak dinner ride begins on a trail along a mountain ridge, with views of the Las Vegas Valley, and ends with a barbecue dinner.
Maverick Helicopters is another unique option for groups. Popular programs include the Wind Dancer Tour, with views of Hoover Dam, Lake Mead, the extinct volcano Fortification Hill, and the West Rim of the Grand Canyon. Guests can descend into the canyon’s into Hualapai Native American territory and enjoy a picnic. The return trip heads over the red rock formations of the Bowl of Fire and along the Strip.
Maverick also flies to a number of area golf courses for heli-golf outings, and another program features a helicopter flight to the Black Canyon area of the Colorado River, where guests can take a 10-mile float trip, including a stop for lunch.
With Adventure Balloons, groups can take 45-minute sunrise trips between the Strip and Red Rock Canyon, with cake and champagne served upon landing.
For the true thrill-seekers in the group, another way to “fly” in the destination is with Skydive Las Vegas, which offers tandem skydiving out of the Boulder City Airport. Flights head south of Las Vegas, with views of the Hoover Dam, Lake Mead and casinos along the Strip.
For More Info
Adventure Balloons 702.247.6905
www.smilerides.com
Adventure Photo Tours 702.889.8687
www.adventurephototours.com
Look Tours 702.233.1627
www.looktours.com
Maverick Helicopters 702.261.0007
www.maverickhelicopter.com
McGhie’s Bike Outpost 702.875.4820
www.bikeoutpost.com
Pink Jeep Tours 888.900.4480
www.pinkjeeplasvegas.com
Rebel Adventure Tours 702.380.6969
www.rebeladventuretours.com
Rocky Trails Adventure Tours 702.869.9991
www.adventurelasvegas.com
Sagebrush-Ranch 702.645.9422
www.sagebrush-ranch.com
Sandy Valley Ranch 702.255.7948
www.sandyvalleyranch.com
Skydive Las Vegas 702.759.3483
www.skydivelasvegas.com
