Lake Havasu City, Arizona is home to London Bridge, which majestically spans Bridgewater Channel. It’s one of the main attractions in the area, aside from the city’s beautiful namesake lake. From viewing over two dozen lighthouse replicas around the lake to digging for gold and riding a hot air balloon, Lake Havasu City offers an abundance of unforgettable attractions. Book a stay at a Lake Havasu City vacation rental today. Plan your Lake Havasu City itinerary with these activity ideas.
1. See the Lighthouse Replicas Around Lake Havasu
Sunset Charter & Tour Company offers a sightseeing tour of the more than two dozen scale-model working replicas of famous lighthouses built by the Lake Havasu Lighthouse Club. While replicas of the Great Lakes lighthouses surround the island in the lake, West Coast lighthouses stand on the west side of the lake, and East Coast lighthouses line the east side. Lighting the lake for nighttime recreation, the west side beacons are green and the east side beacons are red, just like the real lighthouses after which they were modeled.
2. Explore Lake Havasu Museum of History
The Lake Havasu Museum of History displays antique tools, historical documents, and genuine ore samples. These artifacts illustrate how mining for semi-precious stones, gold, and copper shaped the dreams and work of early miners. Other exhibits share amazing insight into the lives of the Native Americans, settlers, and ranchers, featuring glimpses into the lifestyles, cultures, and customs. It’s a city that was planned and built by investors, and the museum brings the history to life with photographs and other memorabilia.
3. Join a Hot Air Balloon Sightseeing Tour
The Wanderlust Balloons sightseeing tour gives you a new vantage point from which to view many of the area’s major attractions, including the lake, the Colorado River, Lake Havasu City, London Bridge, and the mountains. You witness the fascinating unfolding and inflation of the balloon before sunrise. Then, you climb into the basket and the pilot guides the balloon upward. You glide smoothly and quietly along, drifting on the air currents as day breaks, lighting up the scenery below. The adventure ends with a picnic, and your family members each receive mementos of the experience.
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4. Go Rockhounding WithLake Havasu Gem & Mineral Society
The Lake Havasu Gem & Mineral Society shows you how to collect gems, minerals, and fossils as souvenirs. Guides take beginners out on rock-hounding field trips, teaching how and where to hunt for the goodies, including quartz, geodes, gold, and copper. After all that fresh air and exercise, you get to keep whatever you find.
5. Shop in the English Village
When the city rededicated the London Bridge in 1971, a small open-air mall opened at the northeast corner of the bridge to welcome visitors. Over the years, tearing down the original buildings opened up the property for stunning views of the bridge and highway. The new Visitor Center is located in City of London Arms Pub, along with a number of shops. In 2017, the property owner installed new pavers and street lights, and they upgraded the landscaping, making the English Village a welcoming place for travelers to get information and browse the quaint shops. Take the Visitor Center’s 90-minute walking tour of London Bridge to learn about it’s amazing 5,400 mile trip from London to its current location.
6. Watch a Waterless Boat Race at Havasu 95 Speedway
If you happen to be in town for the waterless boat race, take your family to watch racers drag boats around the asphalt oval track in a unique twist on the demolition derby. Drivers try to smash up their opponents’ boats, and the last boat “standing” wins the event. The rest of the time, the Havasu 95 Speedway features stock car racing in several classes, including late model, modified, truck, and street stock. Choose the family section if you prefer to keep your kids in an alcohol-free and smoke-free area. There’s VIP seating with food and drink service plus an open section for lawn chairs. The concession stands serve burgers, hot dogs, sandwiches, and drinks. To give your stock car racing fan a real treat, show up a little early, walk right into the pit, and talk to the drivers about their cars.
7. Attend a Show at Grace Arts Live
For an evening of live entertainment, head to Grace Arts Live, the Lake Havasu City performing arts theater that features concerts, youth productions, large-scale productions, and special events. Whether you go to see productions such as “Miracle on 34th Street,” “The Sound of Music,” or “Shrek,” you can expect professional choreography, sets, lighting, acting, and singing by adults and youth.
8. Cool Down at the Aquatic Center
Slip into something more comfortable at the indoor Aquatic Center. It’s climate-controlled, giving your family a comfortable place to cool off when it’s hot outdoors. There are two swimming pools, a kiddie pool, a wave pool, and a water slide indoors, plus a splash pad outdoors for some extra fun for the kids. Feel free to use the tables and chairs to enjoy the treats you bring or the ones you buy from the vending machines.
9. Hit the Water With Havasu Sunseekers Chartered Boat Service
Havasu Sunseekers offers chartered boat services for 2.5 hours, half-day, or a full day. If you want to float up to the Turtle Bar and Grill for a dockside meal, just let the captain know; but, your personal food and drinks are also welcome aboard, as your family’s charter is private. Be sure to ask for a trip through the channel to see one of the city’s main attractions, the famous London Bridge that was brought from England stone by stone and reassembled right here.
10. Try a Sunset Cruise
There’s something magical about setting out on the waters of Lake Havasu and the Colorado River for a sunset excursion. The Serenity Now launches daily just before sunset for a leisurely 24-mile round-trip cruise through the lake’s canyons while looking for local wildlife, including burros, deer, coyotes, and big horn sheep. The crew narrates the trip, sharing the history of Lake Havasu City as you float along this part of the Colorado River.
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