American Southwest roadtrip – Kingman to Las Vegas

Yesterday, after a long monotonous drive, we reached Kingman, Arizona. As it usually works with roadtrips, we have another day full of driving (and adjusting to jet lag) ahead, further exploring the American Southwest, before finally reaching Las Vegas for a deserved 3 day relax with the car parked deep down in the parking garage. But first, let’s explore Kingman!

Kingman is a small city located in northwestern Arizona. It is situated along the historic Route 66 and is known for its stunning desert landscapes, mountains all around, and scenic beauty. Kingman also has a rich history, with numerous museums and attractions that showcase the area’s Native American heritage, mining past, and railroad history.

September 11, 2022. We drive through the Route 66 sign, explore the Route 66 Museum, and stop by the famous Santa Fe steam engine. Kingman has a great vibe – it isn’t too touristy and is rather small, which makes it great to stroll around. We are here on a Sunday morning, so we meet families going to the church, parents with their kids in the parks, or young girls going shopping. After soaking up the atmosphere, we start the car up and drive towards the border between Arizona and Nevada!

We arrive at Hoover Dam. We are mesmerised by how huge it is and how could people manage to build it in 1930s, without the technology we have available now. Being built on the Colorado river, Hoover Dam provides hydroelectric power to millions of people in the surrounding areas – and it is so sad to see how the amount of water is slowly decreasing.

After walking around in 40 degrees, we continue to our last stop of the day, before reaching Vegas. We arrive to Hemenway Park in Boulder City. The park offers beautiful views over Lake Mead and, as a bonus, a herd of buckhorns will most likely be roaming around! This stop is definitely recommended if you are in the area!

Lastly, we arrive in Vegas! We will be spending one night at the Aria and two nights at Planet Hollywood, which is my go-to when in the city. In my opinion, PH offers the best price-quality ratio, being located in the centre of the Strip, having a lot of food and shopping options, nice casino and great big rooms! But more about Vegas in the next post…