Casino Drive, Laughlin

Laughlin, Nevada’s slogan is “It’s like you own the place.”  Yeah, and you bought it dirt cheap!  Laughlin is the poor man’s Vegas, a warm-weather gambling destination for people who really don’t like the crowds and the prices and the youth-pandering culture of Vegas.   It’s for people who don’t want to spend $300 on dinner or bribe bouncers to get into a nightclub where they can’t wear jeans anyway, and who don’t need dancing fountain shows to have a good time.  If you prefer staying at a Downtown or off-Strip casino in Vegas, chances are good you’d like Laughlin.

River view of Laughlin

During one of my many Vegas trips, I took a side trip to Laughlin, located an hour and a half south of Vegas on the Arizona state line, to visit my uncle, who lived there at the time.  The drive  was beautiful. They’d gotten so much rain that spring, the desert was alive with vast expanses of spring green vegetation that went all the way to the foot of the dramatic purple mountains on the horizon.

Colorado River

Laughlin is a casino town if ever there was one.  It is comprised of clustered housing developments and condominiums, a shopping outlet, a string of casinos along the river, and a few other essential businesses (at the time, they had one bank, one post office, one grocery store, two gas stations, and several restaurants near the casinos). Because of the casinos, it has an excellent bus system which operates 24 hours a day. Aside from its fantastic hotel and dining prices, Laughlin’s primary advantage over Las Vegas is its location on the Colorado River. Green grass grows along the river. Who knew you could take your shoes off and feel cool, green grass between your toes in the desert?

River view of Laughlin

All the casinos in Laughlin are located along the river on Casino Drive. I had booked a room at what was then the Flamingo Laughlin, centrally located across from the Horizon Outlet Mall. I think my room rate was the ridiculously cheap sum of $36/night (that’s a typical Laughlin hotel rate).  It was not the best choice I’ve ever made. The Flamingo was an older hotel showing its age. The elevator was scuffed up and people had carved their names into the wood inside. I got to my room and found huge red splotchy stains on the carpet, and immediately wondered if it were a crime scene.  There was no alarm clock in the room, no hairdryer, and no iron or ironing board. All I got for toiletries were soap and shampoo.  The only good thing about the room was the view of the river. (Fortunately, this hotel is under new management and is now the Aquarius.  It’s had a $46 million facelift and probably has better toiletries now.)

Colorado River

I did like the employees, who were very friendly and maternal (or paternal, as the case may be), and I have to give high points to the breakfast buffet.  I really hope the Aquarius hasn’t changed that too much.  The buffet area had floor to ceiling windows overlooking the Colorado river, making it a lovely, sunny breakfast spot.  The food was plentiful and very good. Best of all was the price: $5.99 plus tax–about 1/3 of what the same meal would have cost me in Vegas.

Harrahs Laughlin

But I wish I had stayed at Harrahs, despite its remote location from the other casinos and the fact that it was the site of a deadly biker shootout just a couple of years before.  Harrahs is a beautiful property, way nicer than its sister property in Vegas. It’s got a Spanish style architecture with lush grounds, a private beach on the river, and a nonsmoking casino in addition to the regular casino. It has all the usual restaurants, bars, etc. that you could possibly want.  I just really dug it.

Harrahs private beach

The cool way (literally and figuratively) of getting from casino to casino in Laughlin is by water taxi.  My uncle and I took a round trip down the river and back so I could see all the casinos.  Our river taxi driver was so busy chatting with us, he wasn’t always looking where he was going and we nearly ran over a couple on a jet ski at one point. Which by the way, brings me to the water sports you can enjoy in Laughlin.  And you’ll want to do something in or on the water, because Laughlin is about ten degrees hotter than Vegas all the time; it was 100 degrees when I was there.

River view from Harrahs

In hindsight, my time there was all too short. I keep thinking one of these trips to Vegas, I should rent a car and head down to Laughlin again for a few days to get the full experience.  There are cruises on the Colorado River from Laughlin to Lake Havasu (where the London Bridge is) that allow you to see some amazing  gorges you wouldn’t be able to see from the road. Also nearby is Oatman, Arizona (a mining town where burros walk around freely in the streets). It’s just two hours away from the Grand Canyon–which makes Laughlin a better base from which to make a day trip there than Vegas.  And whatever city amenities Laughlin doesn’t have, Bullhead City–which is right across the river–probably does.

Colorado Belle

No, there are no hotels here that rival the Bellagio or the Wynn.  No Todd English or Emeril restaurants.  No shows on par with Cirque du Soleil or Phantom of the Opera–and no prices like that, either.  It’s a different kind of vacation, for sure, and for many, it’s preferable.  I don’t think I could ever do Laughlin instead of Vegas, but in addition to?  For those prices?  Why not?

Laughlin travel tip:  If you drive to Laughlin, be sure to fill your tank for the return trip in nearby Bullhead City, AZ where the gas is always cheaper.