Weird Day Trips
Death Valley
Death Valley is about 2 to 2.5 hours from Las Vegas to Furnace Creek, paved. That is a planning number for a dry day, not live traffic. It is a full day. What you actually see is Zabriskie Point, Badwater Basin, and the Furnace Creek area. A summer afternoon on the valley floor is extreme.
Death Valley is about 2 to 2.5 hours from central Las Vegas to Furnace Creek, on pavement. That is a rounded planning number for a dry day, not live traffic. It is a full day, not a half day. A same-day return is possible and tiring. People come for Zabriskie Point, Badwater Basin, and the Furnace Creek area. The thermometer in Baker is the roadside version of this trip.
- From Las Vegas
- About 2 to 2.5 hours
- Distance
- To Furnace Creek
- Road
- Paved
- Time to allow
- Full day
Short history
The valley floor is the low, hot part of the park. A summer afternoon there is extreme. Starting early in hot months leaves more of the day before that heat.
Visit
Worth a look if you have the whole day and, in hot months, an early start, for a paved look at Zabriskie Point, Badwater Basin, and Furnace Creek.
Camp
Camping is possible if a developed campground has space. They fill, so check the park before counting on one. Summer nights on the valley floor stay hot. This page does not name sites as if they were open.
Skip
You might leave it off if you only have a half day, if it is a summer afternoon and you have no plan to leave the valley floor, or if you wanted a ghost town.
The call is yours.
Practical visitor info
Hours and fees change. Check the site, the park, or the business before you go. This page does not quote a current price or a current opening time.
The numbers match the drive times and distances page. Read desert day-trip tips before a hot day, and see sample itineraries if you want to combine stops. The town list is Ghost Towns Near Las Vegas. Tonopah and the Extraterrestrial Highway are indexed under Weird Day Trips.
How long is the drive to Death Valley?
Plan on about 2 to 2.5 hours to Furnace Creek. The road is paved. This page does not list entrance fees or which overlooks are open.
Is the drive to Furnace Creek paved?
The approach described here is pavement. A normal rental car is the usual vehicle for Zabriskie Point, Badwater Basin, and Furnace Creek. Side roads that leave the pavement are a separate decision.
What you can see
A paved look can take in the badlands at Zabriskie Point, the salt flat at Badwater Basin, and the services around Furnace Creek.
Heat and safety
A summer afternoon on the valley floor is extreme. Summer nights down there stay hot. Read the desert tips, carry more water than a city day needs, and start early if the forecast is hot.
On the ground
What you can see
You can see Zabriskie Point, Badwater Basin, and the Furnace Creek area on paved roads.
Private or off limits
A summer afternoon on the valley floor is extreme. Campgrounds fill. Check the park before counting on a site.
Summer and the season
Hot months go better with an early start. Summer nights on the valley floor stay hot.
Badwater or Zabriskie in the light you actually have, including the lack of shade.
Get directions
Get directions from Las Vegas. The link opens a map. It is not a live traffic report.
Combine this
Times below are planning figures. Conditions change. A north stop and a south stop do not belong in the same day. The return drive eats it.
West of town, a full day. Baker is the shorter roadside thermometer, about 1.5 hours. Tecopa is the quiet east side, about 2 hours via Pahrump. A summer afternoon on the valley floor is extreme. This does not share a day with Laughlin.