Two days in Laughlin, Nevada

The best things to do in Laughlin are related to the Colorado River: there is a mile long riverwalk accessible from all the casinos fronting the river and there is a small river boat that docks at each hotel....so you can combine your river ride with hotel hopping

Quick Tips:

Prices on buffets for breakfast, lunch and dinner are much lower than in nearby Las Vegas and the food is equal to Las Vegas' offerings. Try the buffets at the Golden Nugget and Harrah's Laughlin; they are a good value. Arrange your trip to coincide with the annual rodeo in April and you'll be able to see some spectacular riding and roping. Dress is always casual in Lauglin and along with the casual dress there is a friendly and casual atmosphere, akin to Las Vegas of thirty years ago.

Best Way To Get Around:

There is bus transportation from Las Vegas to Laughlin but if you have your own car, you can drive to Laughlin in less than two hours; once you're in Laughlin, you can park your car and explore the town on foot. The exercise of walking will burn off those calories you've consumed at the luscious buffets and fine dining restaurants in this charming Western town.

Colorado Belle overlooks the Colorado River; we opted for a king-bedded non-smoking room. The cost was only $l9 a night since we had mentioned a special code rate we saw advertised in our Sunday edition of the "Las Vegas Review Journal". Tip:always check out the special offerings in your own Sunday travel section.

On the way to Laughlin, Nevada you'll pass through the small town of Searchlight; don't race through it but stop at the local Searchlight diner and ask directions to the small but complete Searchlight Museum. Here you'll find mining artifacts from l00 years ago and a complete display about the life of Searchlight's local hero, a boy who grew up in this small town and went on to become Nevada's U.S. Senator. None other than, Harry Reid! You'll also find the story of Clara Bow, a silent screen star, of the twenties who married and settled down on a ranch in Searchlight. You'll need to spend an intensive half hour looking at all the memorabilia in this old fashioned Western mining museum.