Looking at the descriptions of the Red Rock Canyon tours, though, I saw that they only allowed 30 minutes ‘on our own’. We had gone with Desert Tours to the Grand Canyon, and had a great time on that tour. I came ‘this close’ to booking a tour here with one of the companies. This was a great scenic opportunity and lots of people were hiking, biking, jogging and taking guided tours. So do the visitor center at the start of your tour. The road spits you back out onto Highway 159 and you're out of the park. If you want to access the second lot (Calico 2) I recommend going early because the lot is very small and hikers use it. The first 3 parking areas provide really excellent opportunities for photos of the red rocks. You must make a reservation online for a certain access time. There was just about every other mode of transport on the road. Great value if you're seeing multiple parks. We bought it the day before at another park and as I write this we would have had to pay $55 for the 3 parks we have visited. We have an annual US park pass (America the Beautiful) which allows access to all Federal parks and facilities. We also got a blue sky day which was great. The loop drive is spectacular and the scenery stunning. We stayed in Summerlin so it was only about a 25 minute drive from our hotel. We visited Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area while staying in Las Vegas. Otherwise, great place to get a good workout, and worth it to spend some time here. Only downfall is there are no disposals on or near trails (for obvious reasons regarding wildlife, and inability to constantly clean and get to them) so a lot of people discard their garbage, unwanted things they don't want to hike back through with, and even children's diapers all over the place trails, and mountains, and they really don't belong in a place like this. It is NOT FREE to get in, but well worth the $10-$15 they do charge. There are hikes for agile and advanced hikers, mediocre hikes for those who just want to show off that they've been here without actually taking the time to hike and see the different canyons, and hikes for more moderate/average hikers, like myself. They have a lot of different day hikes that can be enjoyed by most people, including dogs and young children too. It's not recommended if you have trouble walking or trekking as you will need to have some mobility to actually get inside the different canyon regions, trails and hikes. I'm a local, and have spent a grand amount of time in Red Rock Canyon hiking, driving around, and taking photos. We will be back to explore the area more but the time we spent gave us time to explore the park and hit the highlights. Check park hours as well because they vary with the seasons. We spent about 4 hours in the park and hit a few of the highlights, stopped at the scenic overlooks and hiked 4 different trails. There is a visitor and information building with bathrooms and some information on the park and animals and land but stop on your way in because with a one-way route you won’t have another opportunity. I recommend arriving early to beat the crowds especially on weekends or when the weather is more inviting. Be aware that if you plan to rely on your phone, service is not reliable throughout the park. The guide which you can access online or pick up in paper form has a map and very good descriptions of all scenic views, overlooks and hiking trails. There are also many hiking trails ranging from easy to moderate to difficult with a variety of elevation rises and lengths that you can choose from to see petroglyphs, hidden falls, scenic views and nature’s beauty more close up. There is a 13 mile one way scenic loop which you can drive through and see plenty just stopping at the overlooks. It was just over 60 degrees so plenty comfortable for us northerners and we wore shorts with a long sleeve top, had on sunscreen and carried water on our hikes. The park fee for a vehicle day pass is $15 and well worth the time spent here. Spent half a day in this park in January when we wanted to get out of Vegas and do some hiking and exploring.
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