The audio tour on this site covers more than 68 miles from the Lake Mead Visitor Center to the red sandstone of Valley of Fire, with stories that start on their own as you pass each point.
Updated 22 October 2026
In shortThis Valley of Fire driving tour is app-based: you drive your own car while GPS-triggered audio in English plays more than 60 stories along a route of over 68 miles, and one purchase from $13 covers everyone in the vehicle. Driving time runs 2 to 3 hours without long stops. It suits travellers who already have a car and want commentary while they drive, since there is no live guide on board and park entrance fees, parking, food and car rental stay separate.
2–3 htour length
from $13per booking
★ 4.37 reviews
What the Valley of Fire driving tour covers
This Valley of Fire driving tour begins at the Lake Mead Visitor Center, 10 Lakeshore Rd, Boulder City, and runs more than 68 miles north to Valley of Fire State Park. The app holds over 60 audio stories, each triggered by GPS as you reach the spot it describes, so you set the pace and the commentary follows. Count on 2 to 3 hours behind the wheel with short stops, and add time for any trail you decide to walk.
Finish the setup in your hotel room. After booking, look for the email and text with the download link for the operator's separate audio app, enter the password and pull the tour down while you still have Wi-Fi or mobile data. Cell service inside the park reaches only the entrances, Fire Canyon Overlook, lot P3, the White Domes lot and the Atlatl Rock platform, which is why the download matters. Once it is on the phone, the audio and the route maps work offline, and the narration is in English.
The booking is not an entrance ticket. Entry to the park is handled per vehicle at the fee booth, and parking, food and car rental sit outside this tour; the Northshore Road approach also crosses Lake Mead National Recreation Area, where a federal recreational use pass applies. Access does not expire, so the same tour plays again on a later trip, and the price covers the car as a whole.
Day use runs sunrise to sunset and day visitors must be out of the park by sunset, so set off in the morning. Since 3 August 2026 the West Entrance, the one off Interstate 15 at exit 75, has been closed Monday to Thursday while a new entrance lane and a second fee booth are built, a situation expected to continue through the end of 2026; on those days enter from the east via State Route 169 or State Route 167. The park closes completely from Tuesday 1 December to Monday 14 December 2026 for maintenance, and normal operations resume on Tuesday 15 December.
From 15 May to 30 September the park authority closes every trail longer than a mile under its heat rule, including Fire Wave, the Seven Wonders loop with Pastel Canyon, White Domes Loop, Pinnacles Loop, Prospect Trail, Arrowhead Trail and Natural Arch Trail. The drive itself still works in those months and Atlatl Rock, Elephant Rock and the overlooks stay reachable from their lots, but plan the audio stops around the closures. Spring and autumn are the seasons the park authority names as preferred, and summer highs commonly pass 100 F and can approach 120 F.
Self-guided audio drive, one purchase for the whole car
Over 60 audio stories along 68 miles, offline GPS route maps and lifetime access, starting at the Lake Mead Visitor Center in Boulder City.
Lake Mead Visitor Center The drive starts here, at 10 Lakeshore Rd in Boulder City. The route runs over 68 miles with more than 60 audio stories and takes about 2 to 3 hours, and access to it has no expiry date.
Lake Mead Marina10 min A set of floating platforms and docks on the shoreline. The marina did not start out in this spot, it was moved here, and it may well be moved again as the water level shifts.
The old fish hatchery site10 min This stop takes its name from the Lake Mead Fish Hatchery, built in 1969 to raise striped bass and trout species for sport fishing. The hatchery no longer operates.
Sunset View Scenic Overlook10 min A pull-in with wide views over Lake Mead and the surrounding desert. From the railing you can pick out Boulder Basin, the Muddy Mountains and Callville Mesa.
Owl Canyon10 min Falling water levels at Lake Mead have uncovered ground that spent decades submerged, Owl Canyon among it. Hikers can walk it again now that the lake has pulled back.
A 1.5-mile birding corridor10 min This trail runs 1.5 miles and takes under an hour. Birdwatchers come for the Black-throated Sparrow and House Finch that feed on the vegetation along the corridor, with the occasional Great Blue Heron and plenty of dragonflies.
Las Vegas Wash10 min The wash is the main channel carrying excess water from the Las Vegas Valley back into Lake Mead. The audio covers where that water comes from and where it goes.
Anniversary Narrows Trail10 min An easy 3-mile trail through a slot canyon, usually about an hour and a half on foot. It sits off the driving route, so decide before you park whether you have the time for it.
A short, steep overlook climb10 min Short in distance and steep the whole way up. The top looks out over the Muddy Mountains, the Bowl of Fire and Bitter Spring Valley.
Redstone Dune Trail10 min An easy half-mile loop through red sandstone, under 30 minutes at a normal pace. It is the shortest walk on the whole route.
Atlatl Rock10 min An atlatl is a throwing stick used to launch darts and spears, and it appears in the petroglyph panels on this rock. Climbing on petroglyph surfaces is prohibited, so stay on the stairs and the viewing platform.
Fire Cave and Windstone Arch10 min Fire Cave was a small wind-carved tunnel in the sandstone with Windstone Arch standing at its mouth. The red tones and the arch shape made it one of the most photographed corners of the park.
Pastel Canyon Trail10 min An easy mile through banded pink and cream sandstone, reached only from lot P3. The trail is closed from 15 May to 30 September under the park's heat rule.
Fire Wave Trail10 min A 1.5-mile out-and-back from lot P3 to the striped sandstone bowl, about an hour by the park's own estimate. Loose sand and uneven ground make it feel longer than the distance suggests, and it is also shut from 15 May to 30 September.
Valley of Fire State Park The drive ends in Nevada's first state park, opened on Easter Sunday 1934 and given its legal designation by the legislature in 1935. It now covers more than 40,000 acres of Jurassic Aztec sandstone in the Mojave Desert, with Fire Wave, White Domes, Rainbow Vista and Elephant Rock spread along the two park roads.
Photos: ours and the tour operator's
What is included
Included
Your own car and a phone are all you need; the app runs the tour.
Support from the operator by chat, email or phone if the app gives trouble.
Route maps, planning tools, scenic stops and area previews inside the app.
A private drive with only the people in your own vehicle.
Lifetime access, so the same tour plays again on a future trip.
Offline GPS route guidance with audio stories that start automatically.
One purchase covers everyone in the car, with no per-person charge.
Start, pause and stop the tour at any point during the drive.
Access through the operator's separate audio tour app after booking.
Local stories and lesser-known stops along the 68-mile route.
Not included
No live guide on board. Park entrance fees, parking, food and car rental are separate.
Meeting point and before you set off
Starting point: Lake Mead Visitor Center, 10 Lakeshore Rd, Boulder City, NV. The audio begins there and follows the route north.
Setup: after booking, search your email and texts for "audio tour", then download the separate app and the tour itself while you have Wi-Fi or mobile data. Finish this step before you leave the city.
Ages: travellers 0 to 120, with one purchase covering everyone in the car.
What you need: your own vehicle, a charged phone and a phone mount or a passenger to handle it.
Other driving tours of Valley of Fire compared
Three alternatives cover similar ground with the logistics handled for you. The self-drive jeep at $448 puts you behind the wheel of a rock crawler on an off-road route, following a guide who stays in contact by radio and takes the photos. The small-group half day at $99 includes park admission, a professional driver and guide, a deli sandwich lunch and pickup at several Las Vegas locations, which is the sensible pick if nobody in the group wants to drive, while the 8-hour day tour at $148 pairs Valley of Fire with Red Rock Canyon in a single outing.
Tour
Length
From
Rating
Lake Mead & Valley of Fire State Park Self-Guided Audio Tour (this page)
From $13 for the whole car, 2 to 3 hours of driving, offline audio and lifetime access. Download the app on Wi-Fi, then start at the Lake Mead Visitor Center.
