Travel Articles

If you only have a vague idea of where Las Vegas is, you are not alone in the world. Many people actually come here and still do not know exactly where they are! Part of the reason for this curiosity is that Las Vegas is in a very narrow part of Nevada, close to Utah, Arizona and California. People who have not spent time in the Great American Southwest just do not have a clear mental picture about how these states are arranged.

Coming from the East. In the mind’s eye, see Interstate 15, which descends out of the northern parts of Utah down the west side of that state. Interstate 70 joins up with it, having come west all the way from Maryland to the Rocky Mountains. I-15 then goes all the way down the border with Nevada until, in the far corner of Utah, it nicks a small piece of Arizona at Mesquite and then angles southwesterly right into Las Vegas — about 80 miles ahead.

Coming from the West. On the West Coast, I-15 starts in San Diego and passes through Ontario (where I-10 comes in from Los Angeles), and then northerly and easterly towards the Nevada border. The trip from LA is about 270 miles. How long it takes depends, of course, on your starting point, your mood, the traffic and what sort of car you’re driving. Four hours is almost enough for most people.

The southern tip of Nevada is a triangle, pointy part down. Arizona is to the south and east, California to the south and west. At the very tip (south of Laughlin), you can be in three states at once. Las Vegas is in this triangle, just to the west of Lake Meade, which was created by the great Hoover Dam. Roughly speaking, Utah lies to the north of Lake Meade, and Arizona extends to the east and south.

The path of I-15 through this triangle traces the fertile, natural valley that originally gave Las Vegas its name. North and east of town is “North Las Vegas,” at the entrance to the valley. To the south and east, about 20 miles away is “Henderson” at the southern entry point. Past Henderson is Boulder, the town created by workers on the Hoover Dam.

Right in the middle of this valley is the city proper, and south of there, the famous “Strip,” otherwise known as “Las Vegas Boulevard South.” Most of the Strip is outside the city limits, in “Paradise,” an unincorporated community in Clark County, made up mostly of casinos and resort hotels. Technically, “the Strip” is Nevada Route 91. As interstate I-15 comes out of the city and heads south towards California, it follows the contours of this original state highway, and stays within eyeshot of the Strip.

Two US highways (not Interstates) come into Vegas from the north out of Idaho (93) and northwest from Carson City and Reno (95). These two arteries join at one point to come through town. Then they separate again south of Henderson. 93 goes on to Boulder and 95 goes south to Laughlin. Binding these three north-south routes in a matrix are I-515 and Route 215 (which becomes I-215). The first is a sort of downtown throughway for the city, ending near Henderson. The second is a sort of beltway around the western and southern sides of the city, passing by the airport (at the south end of the Strip) and making a connection with I-515 close to Henderson.

To the west is Red Rock Canyon and Summerlin, together with other upscale suburbs. Spring Valley lies to the west and south.

Whether you come into Las Vegas from the north through Nevada or Utah, or from the east from Arizona, from Los Angeles and San Diego to the west, or even from Mexico, 250 miles or so farther south, you will cross a desert. Most of this terrain is dry and hot. Were it not for the springs in the valley, the town would be as parched as the Mohave Desert in which it is placed.

Benjamin Hughes writes for Vegas365.com, the authoritative source of information about Las Vegas, from hotels to restaurants, nightlife, gambling and many other activities. To get in touch with him, and for more information about Las Vegas, visit the Vegas365 website by following this link: Las Vegas and go to the “contact us” page.