Between Hoover Dam and Kingman, a detour heads west to the Nevada side of the Colorado River to Laughlin, Nevada, a place that epitomizes the anything-goes character of Nevada gaming. Laughlin, a booming gambling resort that in many ways seems even more mirage-like than Las Vegas, may lack glitz and pizzazz, but makes up for it with cheaper rooms ($20 is not uncommon) and the almost unheard-of attraction of river views from the casino floors.

  The history of Laughlin—or rather, the lack of it—is impressive even by Nevada standards. Starting with a run-down bait shop he bought in the mid-1960s, Michigan-born entrepreneur Don Laughlin envisioned the fantasyland you see today, opening his Riverside Hotel (702/298-2535 or 800/227-3849), which is still a local favorite, in the late 1970s, and drawing visitors from all over Arizona and Southern California. Laughlin’s independent mini-empire was eclipsed in the 1980s by the big shots: First Harrah’s came, then Circus Circus opened the steamboat-shaped Colorado Belle, then the Flamingo added a 2,000-room palace. Fortunes have ebbed and flowed ever since, but Laughlin is still well worth a look or an overnight stay.

  For further information, contact the Laughlin Chamber of Commerce (702/298-2214 or 800/4-LAUGHLIN).