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Cooler temps open door for outdoor adventure near
Vegas
• Adventure Photo Tours
Pays travel agent commission. • Flightlinez
Pays 15% travel agent commission. • Galavantier
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By JoAnna Haugen
Operators online
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Strip
During Las Vegas' stifling hot summer months, few people
venture beyond air-conditioned casinos and oversize
swimming pools.
But once temperatures begin to drop, the adventurous side
of Las Vegas begins to show itself with myriad outdoor
adventures that can be comfortably enjoyed with even just a
few free hours in a busy travel schedule.
Though Las Vegas itself is urban, it is surrounded by miles of
desert landscape and a few noteworthy destinations just
beyond the city limits, the most well-known of which are Red
Rock Canyon and the Valley of Fire.
• Las Vegas Ski & Snowboard Resort • Maverick Aviation
Pays travel agent commission. • Pink Jeep Tours
Pays travel agent commissions on a tiered
level. Also offers fam trips, DVDs of its
tours and sales and marketing information.
Pink Jeep Tours, which is considered one of the most
reputable tour companies in Las Vegas due to its certification
standards and personable guides, offers more than a dozen
experiences, including the Red Rock Canyon Signature Tour.
"It's a small-group experience with only 10 people, so it's a
personal experience," said Richard Scown, general manager
of Pink Jeep Tours Las Vegas.
The four-hour tour offers morning and afternoon departures to nearby Red Rock National Conservation
Area, which features a 13-mile scenic drive that has served as a backdrop for movies and commercials.
During the experience,
travelers can hop off the
famous pink Jeep for a bit of
hiking past Native American
pictographs and desert
wildflowers (especially
abundant in the springtime),
and although this tour is
available year round, the mild
daytime temperatures from
October through April make it
much more enjoyable.
For a longer journey (generally
six hours when booked with a
tour company), travelers can
visit Valley of Fire State Park,
which is located north of Las
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Cooler temps open door for outdoor adventure near Vegas - Travel Weekly
Vegas. Hiking is popular in
this area, as well, and
photographers seek out the
Valley of Fire for its colorful rock formations.
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Despite the fact that the city is located in the desert, visiting snow bunnies can get their full-blown winter
fix at Las Vegas Ski & Snowboard Resort. The resort's average annual snowfall is 240 inches across
the 445 acres of terrain. Right now there are 30 trails at Las Vegas Ski & Snowboard Resort, 14 that
are new for the 2012-13 season. A terrain park offers tabletop jumps, rails and a variety of features for
snowboarders and skiers. Travelers who don't have their own vehicles can reach the ski resort via daily
pickups at Town Square (on the south end of the Strip) or Santa Fe Station Casino (in the northwest
part of the city).
Heading south out of Las Vegas toward Lake
Mead is Boulder City, where there are different
opportunities for adventure activities. Bootleg
Canyon Park is hopping with activity outside the
summer months with 36 miles of mountain biking
trails, but one of the most popular draws for
tourists is Flightlinez Bootleg Canyon.
This desert ziplining experience consists of four
long cables high above the Mojave Desert, which
give visitors the chance to fly over the barren
landscape at speeds up to 60 mph. Transportation
is available to and from Excalibur on the Strip.
Beyond half-day experiences, there are several
full-day trips throughout the Southwestern U.S. that
embrace the cooler weather.
"A lot of people don't realize that we're centrally
located to many of the national parks," Scown
said. "One in particular, which I guess you could
say is a winter park, is Death Valley. It's a very
scenic place to visit and a popular tour for us, but
we only operate that tour from Sept. 1 through May
31 because the extreme heat makes it too
dangerous in the summer."
Death Valley, about three hours west of Las Vegas by car, is a world of extremes as one of the driest,
lowest and hottest places on Earth. Short hikes throughout the park reveal a juxtaposition of
otherworldly landscapes and colorful mining history.
The Grand Canyon is one of the most popular day trip destinations from Las Vegas; it is located about
five hours east of the city. Visiting during the winter months can be a drastically different experience
than going during the summer.
"The West Rim is very similar
to the weather in Las Vegas,
whereas the weather on the
South Rim is very different
because it's at such a higher
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Cooler temps open door for outdoor adventure near Vegas - Travel Weekly
elevation," said Bryan Kroten,
vice president of marketing for
the Maverick Aviation Group,
which runs several helicopter
tours from Las Vegas. "You
definitely get the wintertime
look and feel."
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It would be possible to spend
days at the Grand Canyon
and not see enough of it, but
for those without a car, a
guided experience either
overland or by helicopter
offers a chance to do a bit of
exploring and whet the appetite for a longer trip in the future.
"If you're visiting the Grand Canyon, dress appropriately," Kroten said, "and don't forget to bring your
camera."
Photographers also flock to Zion National Park in the fall and winter for its scenic beauty.
"I think Zion National Park is awesome, especially around this time of year," said Marko Greisen, cofounder and CEO of Galavantier.com, an online travel company that creates experience packages.
Located in southern Utah, about a three-hour drive from the Strip, this park also offers plentiful hiking
opportunities. While many tour companies offer a scenic drive packaged with some on-foot exploration
others, such as Adventure Photo Tours, place an emphasis on scouting out specific locations.
"I think one of the amazing things about visiting Zion National Park is capturing those iconic images in
photography," Greisen said.
gnmtravelweekly: Winter storm affects
holiday travel - Travel Weekly:
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Travel
Weekly@TWtravelnewsNew Jersey, U.S.
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Due to the mild temperatures in the fall and
winter, outdoor activities can be more
enjoyable and comfortable than other times
of the year, but travelers should be prepared
for the cooler weather.
Arnie
Weissmann@awtravelweeklyNew York
"A light jacket would be good, and walking
shoes or mild hiking boots are always
preferable," Scown said. "Most places we
go, the trails are uneven because we like to
take people to see the natural sides of Las
Vegas."
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Regardless of the time of year travelers take
advantage of adventure activities while
visiting Las Vegas, it's important to keep in
mind that most excursions start early in the
morning.
"It's Las Vegas, it's a 24-hour city," Greisen said. "But these tours often leave at 6:30 or 7 in the
morning. People should keep that in mind in order to fully enjoy their experience."
Urban adventures
For those who can't or don't want to get away from the city center, there are still plenty of thrills in Las Vegas. Urban
adventures abound on the Strip, in the heart of downtown and in nearby areas that can be easily reached by taxi or
rental car. Here are a few thrills to be had practically within reach of a slot machine arm:
New York New York roller coaster
New York New York's roller coaster is as much a spectator's delight as it is a rider's thrill. Lifting people up 203 feet
and dropping them 144 feet at speeds up to 67 mph, this roller coaster runs all year long, late into the night. Go to
www.newyorknewyork.com/attractions/the-roller-coaster.aspx. Vegas Indoor Skydiving
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Web: http://www.travelweekly.com
Bio: Editor in Chief, Travel Weekly
Michelle Baran@mbtravelweekly
Web: http://www.travelweekly.com
Bio: Senior Editor, Travel Weekly
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Cooler temps open door for outdoor adventure near Vegas - Travel Weekly
America's first indoor skydiving facility is still a popular attraction for visitors. This simulated skydiving experience is
similar to the real thing with the addition of a vertical wind tunnel, mesh trampoline floor and foam padded walls. A
brief training class, suiting up and the actual "jump" take about an hour. Visit www.vegasindoorskydiving.com.
Fremont Street ziplines
As if the Fremont Street Experience isn't wild enough, visitors can up the ante by ziplining down its spine. Four lines
run for 800 feet up to 30 mph through the famous glittering downtown lights. See http://flightlinezfremont.com.
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