Fremont or Hoover dam?

So mid April I will be traveling to vegas for my fourth trip. On our second trip we went to Fremont street experience for a few hours and enjoyed it although the visit was short (felt like 2 hours) only bad part about the first trip was that it took us forever to get there with the bus. Stayed south strip and so many stops. Staying south strip again this year.

Been going back and forth as to whether we should do a half day trip to the dam or go to Fremont for a longer visit. I'm an engineer so the dam seems interesting but also think visiting old vegas would be an enjoyable time.

Any thoughts?

 

If u have a car Fremont is easy, you can go any time day or night. I don't think you need to plan this part.

The Hoover dam is an easy drive but not much besides small casinos around there. There is a tour that I thought was okay.

I'd say rent a car and do both.

Fk

 

Why not do both. You could do the dam in the morning/afternoon and Fremont at night.

 

Depending on where on the South Strip you're staying, there's an express bus option to get downtown to Fremont Street. The WAX bus picks up on Tropicana Ave just west Las Vegas Blvd, right in front of NYNY. From there, it's about a 20 minute ride to downtown (bus stops downtown at 4th @ Carson).

From downtown, you can catch the WAX right by Binion's (corner of Fremont St @ Casino Center), and the bus will drop you off on Tropicana Ave just east of Las Vegas Blvd, right in front of the Tropicana Hotel & Casino.

The current WAX bus schedule can be found here: http://www.rtcsnv.com/wp-content/uploads/routes/2013/WAX%2807-07-13%29.pdf
This bus schedule may change slightly beginning March 2, 2014, so check rtcsnv.com after 3/2/2014 for an updated schedule.

You can pay cash ($2 each way) as you board the bus.

 

Agreed with above, I would never ride the deuce again if I had known about the wax my forst time going downtown! I think we started cabbing it thereafter which can get expensive! WAX is a great option forsure!

 

Definitely doable. And if you've never been to the Dam, being an engineer, you should do it and take the tour. I don't know if they still take you down into the bowels of the Dam (really neat to see those huge turbines and go out to the spillway), but if they do, take that tour.

 

This is a no brainer. Dam during the day and Fremont at night. Plenty of time in a single day to do both. Skip the bus and take a cab. Don't spend precious Vegas time waiting for anything.

 

I am a downtown lover, but you have to go see the dam. As mentioned, I'm not sure after 9/11 if the full tour still takes you down inside or not.

I have an engineering background and the full dam tour was one of the most impressive engineering feats I have ever seen. If you have a car, also make sure to go up to the bypass bridge that just opened in 2010. Also an amazing bit of engineering.

http://www.hooverdambypass.org/

Here is one picture from the bridge:

 

Does your hotel have a rent a car counter? Rent one for the day and do them both. Without the tour, the dam and bridge (you must walk out on the bridge) will take you 3 to 4 hours in total with travel, with the tour add another hour. Then come back, get refreshed and go downtown later and say as long a you like. You can park at binions for free with validation downtown.

As far as the dam trip. The Hacienda offers a nice cheap breakfast and is located just before you get off the highway to see the dam. There's a special parking lot for the bridge, it's a must with any trip to the dam, then go to the arizona side to park for a walk out onto the dam. It's easier and free from that side.

Have fun.

 

Another vote for the dam tour! We did the power plant tour in 2010. This tour takes you down into the dam to see the generators. The tour is fairly technical and non-engineers would find it less interesting. As an engineer with 20+ years experience, I really enjoyed it. Especially when one considers that the dam was designed without the benefit of modeling and simulation tools. Amazing!

 

There are two tours. One is the power plant tour, you can buy tix in advance, it's about an hour. It's $15 but is included in most of the bus tours. Then there is the regular tour, more in depth. It's $30 but tix cannot be bought in advance, only in person the day you are there. That's why this tour isn't an option if you are on a tour bus. Both are great fun, Hoover Dam is something everyone should see.

 

Thanks for the feedback guys. We are there for 5 nights but have scheduled shows and whatnot on the strip most days. Sounds like the dam tour would be enjoyable and I just found out I get half off tickets through work.

Damn dam tour it is. Fremont if we have some time to kill.

Thanks again!

 

If you take the tour, make sure to ask a lot of dam questions.

 

Do the damn.
Our first visit downtown was just a few hours. We attempted a 2nd trip and thought we would stay longer, but ended up staying even less. Not much to do downtown. Skip it and check out the damn.

 

Yeah the last Fremont trip was probably 3 hours? One of my traveling partners kept complaining about walking so wanted to go back to the room. Figured a longer visit might be a better experience down there. We will see how busy we are.