Two Cactus Garden Drive
Henderson, NV
(702) 458-8864
Ethel M Chocolates website
- Hours: Open seven days a week, year round except December 25.
- Reservations: Not required
- Cost: Free
- Location: Henderson, about 15 to 20 minutes' drive from the Las Vegas Strip, on the way to Hoover Dam. Driving directions below.
- How Long: Allow about half an hour to tour the factory, and an additional half hour or more for the gardens.
- Best Time to Visit: Any time. From mid-November through early January, the Cactus Garden is lighted for Christmas.
Ethel M Chocolates Review
Forrest Mars, Sr., the founder of Mars candy company (Milky Way and Snickers) created Ethel M Chocolates in 1981, naming it in honor of his mother and using many of her recipes and methods to create specialty chocolates.The self-guided Ethel M Chocolates factory tour leads past large windows looking directly into the factory. Ever wonder how they get the filling inside a chocolate truffle? You'll find out here. Each step of the candy-making process is explained on video monitors and placards outside each window. Depending on your timing, you may see Ethel M Chocolates confectioners pouring batches of pecan brittle onto cooling tables, or raspberry centers getting a chocolate coating. The tour ends with free samples in the Ethel M Chocolates gift shop.
Just outside the door at Ethel M Chocolates is the Cactus Garden, a 2.5-acre botanical garden with 350 kinds of cactus, more than many municipal gardens. The eco-friendly Living Machine is also of interest here. It cleans up the Ethel M Chocolates factory's waste water to use for irrigation.
Getting to Ethel M Chocolates
From the Las Vegas Strip:- Take Tropicana Avenue to Mountain Vista
- Turn right on Mountain Vista (south)
- Stay on Mountain Vista to Sunset Way
- Turn left onto Sunset Way (east)
- Follow the signs to Ethel M Chocolates
If You Liked Ethel M Chocolates, You May Also Like:
- Jelly Belly Factory - Fairfield, CA
- Scharffenberger Chocolate Maker - Berkeley, CA
- XOX Truffles - San Francisco, CA
- Desert Botanical Garden - Phoenix, AZ
- Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum - Tucson, AZ
