West Coast Road Trip: Part 4 – Utah & Las Vegas!

Hi all! We are about half way through our West Coast Road Trip and there’s so much more fun to reveal. To catch up on the stop before click here.

After the Lower Antelope Canyon we were on our way to Las Vegas, NV. I was so excited because I’ve never been there before but was completely ready to gamble all my life savings away in the spur of the moment. Before hitting the slots we made a detour to Zion National Park in Utah. This was recommended to us by our Lower Antelope Canyon tour guide along with our airbnb host in the yurts.

Zion National Park is one of the most gorgeous hiking locations you could probably go to. A highly recommended hike would be Angels Landing. This is an extremely dangerous hike and is not for anyone scared of heights. At one point you are hiking up rocks with nothing to hold onto besides a chained link. Yikes!

John wanted to do this hike badly but unfortunately it’s a full day event and we only had time to make detour. Instead we did a quick 1 mile hike that is a lot more doable. It was called the Canyon Overlook Trail and it had breath taking views.

There was no steep inclines but still was fun and interactive. There was a bridge, a cave, and a stunning view.

Though this hike was easy make sure to pack some water as it gets HOT.

There are also a couple of shaded places to take breaks if needed. Luckily the hike isn’t long so it was pretty simple. Once we finished the hike and got to the view it was incredible.

From Zion National Park we had another 2 1/2 hour drive to Las Vegas, NV. In Vegas we stayed at the Stratosphere Casino and Hotel. John and I love theme parks and rides full of adrenaline so this seemed like the perfect option for us. This hotel has 3 rides on top of their roof that basically throw you off of the edge of the building into nothing but mid air. If I’m being honest I was actually terrified but I prevailed. When the wind blew hard enough you could feel the rides uneasily shake. The thrill rides were at the skypod and you had to buy tickets. Information can be found here.

My favorite ride had to be the most dangerous one called the Big Shot. It was 160 feet in the air at 45 miles per hour as you overlook all of Las Vegas. the Big Shot thrill ride catapults 16 riders from the 921-foot high platform up the SkyPod’s mast to a height of 1,081 feet and down again. I mean let’s be honest, that’s SO high.

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For reference look at the photo above. The stratosphere is taller than all the towers listed and on top of this you get shot up additional feet into the air. It was CRAZY but SO fun.

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Of course we had to hit the slots as well and I think all we won was $20.00 thanks to John. I lost all the rest, whoops.

They also had a pool for 21 and over so we decided to check it out. It was called Radius Pool and Wet Lounge and we definitely could have avoided this area. It had beautiful scenery while enjoying some strong made cocktails but we missed the memo of topless women and actually felt rather uncomfortable. Many people were without clothes and on top of each other, not really our scene but maybe could be yours?

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We of course still made sure to make the best out of a fairly weird situation. I mean we already ordered drinks so might as well chill and finish them anyway!

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We also had dinner at Top of the World which revolves 360 degrees every 80 minutes giving you a full view of the city while you eat. How cool is that?! It is very pricey but the food tasted as good as it was priced for.

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Appetizers were soup, salad, pasta, and crab meat. So yummy! I’d suggest the salad and pasta over the soup and crab meat.

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Dinner was salmon and steak. Both SO good. Dessert I had a buttermilk cake with ice cream and John had creme brulee. My cake was definitely better.

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After dinner we took time to explore the city at night and had a ton of fun walking around. We visited a lot of the famous hotels and saw The Fountains of Bellagio water show.

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This was The Venetian hotel that was stunning inside and even had Gondola Rides. We didn’t attend this but next time I’d love to give it a try as it looked like a lot of fun!

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We also checked out Caesars Palace which was another gorgeous hotel and I really loved the architecture of the whole place. Right by Caesars Palace is Gordon Ramsey’s Restaurant which we definitely need to make reservations for next time as John is craving to eat at one of his restaurants.

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Here is a preview of The Fountains of Bellagio and The Volcano at The Mirage. These were short shows that I would check out if you had time at night. It was fun and interesting to see plus it wasn’t super long.

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Lastly, we got to see The Eiffel Tower of Las Vegas. Other activities we attended was a comedy/magician show by Mat Franco. He was the winner of the ninth season of “America’s Got Talent” and I really enjoyed this show! More information can be found here. One thing I wish we did more of was attending shows in Vegas. I think that would have enhanced our trip but we still had fun!

Up next we check out of Vegas and head to California! I can’t wait to share those experiences with you as we head back into hiking and exploring which is our more our pace. Only 2 more posts to go until we complete our total West Coast Trip. Thank you for following!