Hoover Dam is one of those places on my list of places to see. We did not want to book a tour with a company so we rented a car. The drive was not bad at all. Less than 30 minutes away from the strip. I am always very paranoid about driving in the desert though. Last trip from Phoenix to Grand Canyon, I made sure we stopped by a gas station to buy a cooler, ice, and lots of water and snacks! This time, just water, snacks and fill up on gas. It was not as hot as the Grand Canyon trip. Beautiful area. It was nice to see nature outside of the strip. We paid $7 to park the car and walk around but did not do the museum or tours. Hoover Dam was a great experience. A must see! We attempted to go hiking for the nearest hot springs but after a 2 hour hike into the canyons we turned back. It was adventurous because the hikes are not maintained but we didn't plan it out and didn't have enough time before sun down.