The best things to do in Las Vegas in November

Let’s not beat about the bush: as the seasons turn from fall to winter, it becomes increasingly difficult to know how to pack for your Las Vegas vacation. At the beginning of the month days remain mild, with highs reaching the mid 60s and – if you’re lucky – evenings that are just about warm enough to for dining al fresco at Lago with ringside seats for the Bellagio’s famous fountain shows. But by the close of the month, you’re very much into the sharp end of autumn, with a distinct winter chill lending a holiday feel to Vegas as Thanksgiving approaches. Our advice? Take jeans and light jumpers for the daytime, and layer up with thicker woolens – jumpers, hats and socks – if you’re planning to be out and about on the Strip in the evenings. 

Those lower temperatures mean there are some relative bargains to be had on flights and hotels too, but watch out for spikes in prices during the busy SEMA motor show and around Thanksgiving and Black Friday.

The season for lounging poolside at Mandalay Bay with a pina colada may be over, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t plenty of fun outdoor pursuits to keep you occupied during these mild November days. In case you hadn’t noticed, Las Vegas is surrounded by desert and mountains that are ideal for hiking enthusiasts. Then there’s that great big geological masterpiece they call the Grand Canyon, its South Rim accessible on day trips from Las Vegas by coach or ‘copter. There are dozens of variations of Canyon tours on offer. Private or in a group. With or without champagne. Even posh picnics complete with linen tablecloths and polished silver cutlery. 

We also love day trips to the Hoover Dam. This epic feat of early 20th-century engineering and ingenuity is one of those things that simply has to be seen to be believed. Like many out-of-town Vegas attractions, your options for visiting the Hoover Dam and its enormous reservoir, Lake Mead, are not limited. Take a helicopter trip for maximum top-down views, or – our fave – travel by coach and get a chance to stand on the thing, and to take in jaw-dropping panoramas from the Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge 905 feet over the Colorado River. In a word: stunning.

Did you know there’s another canyon that’s much closer to Vegas and therefore doesn’t require a flight or 12-hour return road trip? Well, now you do: Red Rock Canyon sprawls across nearly 200,000 acres of Mojave Desert just a few miles west of Sin City. Close enough, in fact, to rent a car and drive out there yourself with the top down and Viva Las Vegas blasting on the stereo, should you fancy it.. 

As the name suggests, Red Rock Canyon is notable for its vivid rust-colored cliffs and crevices, which have been part of the landscape here since dinosaurs roamed the earth. There are plenty of hiking opportunities, from easy kid-friendly adventures to strenuous mountain yomps best left to the experts, but a guided hike is probably your best bet here. November is a great time to ‘do’ Red Rock as the mild temperatures are less likely to turn you into a sweaty puddle than they might have done in late summer and early fall. 

Or, y’know, you could just stay in town and play the slots, dine yourself silly on some of the best gourmet food on the planet, and take in a few of those famously flamboyant Las Vegas shows. Vegas really is the city that never sleeps, where entertainment is available 24/7 and performances from the likes of Cirque du Soleil and the Blue Man Group are as much a part of the local landscape as the Bellagio fountains, the Wynn’s animatronic amphibians and the soaring observation tower at the STRAT. 

For the best live music concerts in Las Vegas in November, check listings for the T-Mobile Arena, the MGM Grand Garden Arena and the legendary Colosseum at Caesars Palace. Between them they’ve hosted some of the biggest names in rock and pop, from Stevie Nicks to Sinatra and Black Sabbath to Britney.

Pro-tip: Go City’s Las Vegas pass includes entry to several Vegas shows, including comedians, Cirque, magic shows, tribute acts and more.

If there’s another city that’s more ready for its close-up than Las Vegas, well, we’ve yet to find it. Sin City is full of weird and wonderful, bright and beautiful, and downright eye-popping things to gawp at. So get your cameras at the ready, and start snapping!

A selfie in front of the ‘Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas’ sign is practically a rite of passage here, but did you know there’s a whole cottage industry offering professional shots there? Well, now you do. 

You’ll also want to catch expansive aerial views of the Strip – by day or night – from the dizzy heights of the High Roller observation wheel or, perhaps, on a thrilling helicopter night flight. Back at ground level, the Bellagio’s dancing fountains, the gondoliers at The Venetian, and the Wynn’s giant animatronic pond critters are Vegas essentials. Likewise the trippy, kaleidoscopic Seven Magic Mountains art installation just out of town.

Several of the city’s museums will also have your eyes out on stalks and your camera roll creaking with the strain of it all. Hit up the Neon Museum for a cool old-school boneyard of retired Sin City signage (best visited after dark, obvs), catch the fascinating Real Bodies exhibition at the Horseshoe, and ogle masterpieces of modern and contemporary art at the Bellagio’s gallery.

As well as any number of major rock concerts and unmissable acrobatic and burlesque shows, November sees a number of food festivals roll into town. Follow your nose to the Viva Taco Fest, which takes place on or around the Mexican Day of the Dead celebrations, and promises live mariachi music, Lucha Libre wrestling, fireworks and fairground rides, as well as – of course – dozens of taco and tequila stalls.

Then there’s Thanksgiving, of course, which is such a big deal that it merits its very own blog. By this point in November, the holiday spirit is also in full festive swing, and there’s plenty to love if fairy lights, animatronic reindeer, ice-skating and snowball cocktails are your jam.  

The Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Garden undergoes a massive seasonal transformation around mid-November, ditching its autumnal reds, browns and oranges for holiday season greens, reds and golds. Expect a supersize Christmas tree decked out with basketball-sized baubles, plus bejeweled polar bears, stunning floral decorations and twinkling fairy lights in their thousands. 

Elsewhere, the Magical Forest at Opportunity Village is a veritable winter wonderland of Christmassy carousels, cute woodland train rides and funnel cakes. And Vegas holiday stalwart the Ethel M Cactus Garden turns up the ritz with festive decorations including baubles, ornaments and families of animatronic reindeer.

Shopping? Sorted. It’s practically a national sport in Las Vegas, which would make Black Friday the retail Super Bowl. Good news for incurable shopaholics: there’s plenty of choice here with mega-malls including Las Vegas Premium Outlets North and South and the Fashion Show Mall. Resorts including Caesars Palace and The Venetian also offer major shopping complexes (The Forum Shops and Grand Canal Shoppes, respectively). But a word to the wise: expect long queues both outside the stores and at the tills. Now, elbows at the ready and… go!