Nevada is far from the barren wasteland that some visitors of Las Vegas may think it to be. In fact, all the glitz and glamour of the city is possible because of the powerful Colorado River that runs through the state. That water is held off by the Hoover Dam, and besides also functioning as a power plant, the dam also serves as one of the country’s hottest tourist attractions.

The Hoover Dam is located in the south of Nevada and shares a border with Arizona. The dammed water from the Colorado River creates Lake Mead (Nevada) and Lake Mohave (Arizona). Motorists can’t miss it on highway US 93.

Hoover is absolutely huge, standing 726 feet high and covering 1,244 feet in length. The structure is what’s known as a concrete arch-gravity dam, when it was built, it was years ahead of its time in terms of construction and sheer scale. The project was originally known as Boulder Dam.

It took five years to build this impressive monster. Construction started in 1931 and ended in 1936. All told, the Hoover Dam cost an estimated $49 million to complete and also cost many workers their lives. It was certainly one of the country’s most dangerous jobs at the time, and even with today’s safety improvements, dam-building still claims lives.

Even if you’re not familiar with the Nevada area or even with Las Vegas, Hoover Dam stands out as a famous landmark due its name being mentioned in songs and books, and its image being shown in many movies. It attracts millions of visitors every year who tour both the dam above and facilities underneath.

Most tours take anywhere from two to three hours to be completed. Of course, you’ll want to take it all in once you get there. There’s no judging its massive size until you’re actually standing on top of it and witnessing the monster mound of concrete holding back Lake Mead.

The dam is ridiculously busy in the summer months, and in late spring the traffic is also a bit overwhelming if you’d rather have some room to move around on the tour. The best time to go would probably be in January or February. It will be a lot cooler then, but the crowds will be thinned out significantly.

Many regard Hoover Dam as one of the greatest engineering feats of the 20th century. Not only is the dam impressive because of its size and the 6 million tons of concrete used in construction, but also because of the 17 Main turbine power station that generates 4.2 billion kilowatt-hours of 100% green electricity.

Anyone wishing to tour the 726-foot-high dam can either pick up touring tickets in the actual Hoover Dam reception lobby, or they can be reserved in advance. On tour, a guide will give you an introduction of the dam and explain how it was built. Next up is a tour of generators and a 500-foot elevator ride under the dam’s surface.

Because of the many visitors, Hoover Dam has a few concession stands, restrooms and other comforts for its guests.