The best Hoover Dam tour tickets for most visitors are the $40 Guided Dam Tour, which takes you inside the dam itself. The $25 Guided Power Plant Tour suits families and wheelchair users. The $15 self-guided Visitor Center Tour suits short stops. A private guided tour from Las Vegas suits anyone who wants the driving, timing, and storytelling handled for them.
Choosing is not the hard part. The hard part is knowing how each ticket is sold. The Dam Tour can only be bought in person, tours sell out, and old price lists still circulate online with figures that no longer match the box office. Arrive with the wrong plan and you can lose a morning.
Another Side Tours has guided visitors from Las Vegas to the dam since 2007, so we know where people get stuck. Below you get five options, each with what it includes, what it costs, how to buy it, and who it fits. Prices come from the Bureau of Reclamation and can change, so confirm them when you book.
1. Another Side Tours private Hoover Dam tour
A private tour is the easiest way to see the dam, because transport, pacing, and commentary come in one booking. It fits you if you do not want to rent a car, hunt for parking, or work out the schedule alone.
What you get
The Ultimate Hoover Dam Tour is our core option. You can also pair the dam with Red Rock Canyon or Valley of Fire in a single day. Our guides cover construction history, engineering, and the Colorado River, not just photo stops.
- A private guide and vehicle for your group
- Hoover Dam on its own, or combined with Red Rock Canyon or Valley of Fire
- Helicopter tours over the dam and Lake Mead
A private tour buys you time and context, not just a ride to the dam.
Cost, tickets and who it suits
Natural-attraction tours that include Hoover Dam run about $249 to $399 per person and last 3 to 5 hours, depending on the route. You can book online or by phone at 1-702-819-9127. If you want to go inside the dam, say so when you book so the team can plan the day around it.
This option suits couples, families, and small groups with limited time. It also suits first-time visitors who want the story behind the concrete. If you only want the lowest possible ticket price, the next options cost far less.
2. Guided Dam Tour
The Guided Dam Tour is the best Hoover Dam ticket for most people, because it takes you to places the public never sees otherwise. It costs $40 per person, and children 3 and under are free.
What you get
This is the extended package. You ride the original elevator to the top of the dam and walk the tunnels where inspectors work. Groups are small, capped at about 20 people, so you can ask questions.
- Historic tour tunnels and the original elevator to the top
- Inspection tunnels at the center of the dam
- A view of the Colorado River through the ventilation shaft
- A guided Powerplant Tour as part of the package
The Dam Tour is the only ticket that includes the inspection tunnels, and you cannot buy it online.
Cost, tickets and who it suits
Tickets are sold on-site only, in person, on a first-come, first-served basis. The whole group must be present when you buy. These tours routinely sell out, so arrive when the Visitor Center opens at 9 a.m. The last tour leaves at 4:10 p.m. Plan on about an hour.
It suits adults and teens who are comfortable with elevators and tunnels. Strollers and motorized wheelchairs are not allowed, and the ventilation shaft is not accessible to manual wheelchairs. Anyone under 17 needs an adult with them.
3. Guided Power Plant Tour
The Guided Power Plant Tour is the best-value guided ticket for families and anyone who needs step-free access. Adults pay $25, ages 4 to 16 pay $15, and children 3 and under are free.
What you get
You see the machinery that makes the dam work rather than the structure’s inner walls. The tour is shorter than the Dam Tour, at roughly 30 minutes. It is still a real look at the generators and penstocks that power the region.
- Original construction tunnels
- A viewing platform over a 30-foot penstock, where you can feel the vibration of rushing water
- Eight of the commercial generators in the Nevada Powerhouse
The Power Plant Tour is the guided ticket that works for strollers and wheelchairs.
Cost, tickets and who it suits
You can upgrade on-site if you start with a Visitor Center ticket. The quietest windows are 9 to 11 a.m. and 2:30 to 3:45 p.m. Check the Bureau of Reclamation’s tour information page for current online sales, since tours can be cancelled without notice, with refunds.
It suits families with young children and visitors with mobility needs, because it welcomes wheelchairs, scooters, and strollers. If you can handle tunnels, the $40 Dam Tour already includes a guided Powerplant Tour, so buying both is wasted money.
4. Self-guided Visitor Center Tour
The self-guided Visitor Center Tour is the cheapest paid ticket at $15 per person, with children 3 and under free. It is the right pick when you want context about the dam without a guide or a long schedule.
What you get
You move at your own pace through narrated exhibits that cover how the dam was built and why. The observation deck gives you the widest view of the dam, Lake Mead, and the bypass bridge in one spot.
- Narrated exhibits on the history of Hoover Dam
- A 360-degree observation deck over the dam, the river, and Lake Mead
- The Original Exhibit Building with a narrated 3D model of the region’s dams and power systems
The Visitor Center ticket explains the dam, but only the guided tours take you inside it.
Cost, tickets and who it suits
Do not count on a federal discount. Interagency passes, including the America the Beautiful pass, are not accepted, because Hoover Dam is self-funded. Parking in the Nevada-side garage is $10 per vehicle. Everyone clears security screening before buying tickets, and knives and weapons of any size are not allowed in any building.
This ticket suits travelers short on time, mixed-age groups, and history fans. It also lets you decide on the day. You can upgrade to a guided tour at the box office if the line looks manageable.
5. Free: the dam top and Bypass Bridge
You can see Hoover Dam without buying any ticket. The dam is open to the public daily from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m., and walking its top and the Bypass Bridge costs nothing. This is the closest thing to free Hoover Dam tour tickets, and it covers the views only.
What you get
The pedestrian walkway on the Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge sits nearly 900 feet above the river. It gives you the best bird’s-eye photos of the dam face and Lake Mead. Stops along the walkway explain what you are looking at.
- A walk across the top of the dam
- Interpretive stops along the bridge walkway
- Wide views of Lake Mead and the Colorado River
Free means the outside views, because no free option gets you inside the dam.
Cost, tickets and who it suits
The only cost is parking, $10 per vehicle in the garage. Discounted interior tours are rare, so the realistic way to save money is to pick the right paid ticket rather than hunt for a coupon. Children 3 and under are free on every tour.
It suits budget travelers, photographers, and anyone arriving outside tour hours. Respect the rules on site. Vehicles cannot stop on top of the dam, and drones and firearms are prohibited.
Which ticket to buy
Buy the Guided Dam Tour if you want the best look inside the dam, and get to the Visitor Center early. Choose the Power Plant Tour if you have kids, a stroller, or a wheelchair. Take the Visitor Center ticket when time is short, and walk the bridge for free whatever else you pick.
If you would rather skip the ticket line and the driving, a private tour handles the logistics and adds the history. Talk to our team about a private Hoover Dam tour and tell us what you want to see. We will build the day around it.
