There’s the chillaxed glamour of SoCal, the harshness of the California desert, curious life existing in pockets of somewheres that dot the landscape in the beige and brown valleys further east still, and finally the promise of an illuminated high-octane Las Vegas.
Making the 4 hour drive to Sin City from the left coast is something of a cinematic trope featuring party-hearty young white men eager to get their drink on in casino bars up and down the famed strip. I’ve never been interested in that script on screen or in real life, but the drive, now that’s the thing with potential.
Of course, a good road trip should also be a fun buddy film so it’s perfect that I was in the company of two lovely, hilarious people in a lux white Kia Sorento from the car manufacturer’s U.S. headquarters in Irvine to the valet of the Hard Rock Hotel in Vegas, baby.
We looked for kitsch, found craft root beers in an alien outpost, downed milkshakes at a roadside diner, went off road to discover a towering public art exhibit set against an earth toned backdrop, and we did all of that in extreme comfort.
A sweet ride makes any journey better, and this is especially true for hours in a desert. The powerful a/c, screen shades, 2nd row power outlet and flat floor (no weird backseat hump!) of the Sorento allowed me to spread out, drift in and out of slumber and have a fully charged phone in Vegas.
Here’s a look at our journey yesterday.
*This Vegas road trip is a part of a pa8d press trip with Kia. All opinions expressed above are honest and unbiased, as always.