Lake Las Vegas is an incredibly sad place – and that makes me sad.  It had so much promise.

Lake Las Vegas is a man made lake and community that was severely hit by the economic downturn and recession unbeknownst to us prior to our stay.  Many properties are either left unfinished, or boarded up abandonments as a result of bankruptcy.  Despite all this, there is a beautiful Westin hotel there.

During our Wild West adventure, my husband and I decided to stay there and leave the glitz of downtown Vegas behind for a night.  And it seemed like a great idea.  When we arrived, were shocked and saddened by what we saw.

As I mentioned, the hotel was beautiful, but trying to find a restaurant for dinner was like trying to find a needle in a haystack. I have a weird thing about hotel restaurants, I almost always want to get out to explore and try to find some place new and exciting or a total hole in the wall.  We finally found an incredible Italian restaurant, Luna Rossa along the water in what they call the Village of Lake Las Vegas, but it took some time to find it.

In a nutshell, what should have been a relaxing night away, was actually quite a depressing little side trip.  I hope the Lake Las Vegas area can make a comeback, but as of right now, I would not recommend adding it to your Vegas itinerary, unless of course you’re stopping by for an Italian dinner.